Washing machines that REALLY clean

[Muststopeating]

My Samsung washing machine has just died after 9 years and 3 international house moves.

Other than Miele (which is out of budget because we are in the middle of an extension and already had a broken macerator, broken toilet, broken microwave and broken car this week)... can anyone recommend a washing machine that is great at getting out stains.

I'd like a couple of fancy features (auto dosing and add wash/pause wash) but none of the reviews or descriptions ever talk about how well the machine actually cleans/gets rid of stains.

About to have DC3 so with all the upcoming weaning mess, plus 2 other active, messy kids... stain removal is critical. Tired of having 'clean' but stained clothes.

Thank you.

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MNHQ

Towels, fine, no issue. But don’t you find a lot of clothes shrink on a hot wash? I though cotton was notorious for shrinkage?

Yes, sorry, just to be clear: towels, bed linen, underwear, table cloths, bath mats. Not proper clothes items (we hardly have any white ones).

Frankly I've found Miele amazingly economical in the long run, and would go for one again. No need for all singing all dancing top of the range, mine was 2nd cheapest model, and is currently 21 years old, never a problem with it. Only looking to replace as going for new kitchen /utility and wanting integral

I disagree that they all wash the same. We stay in a lot of holiday cottages and so have used many over the years and imo there's a big difference.

Ariel cool wash - gets just about any stain out!

Pretty sure most of my underwear wouldn’t survive a 60c wash!

Those saying you need to wash at 60c or use a tumble dryer to kill bacteria, how does that correlate with hand washing? I thought it was the combination of soap and mechanical action that removes germs from your hands so why not the same for clothes? Does anyone understand this?

I dont wash underwear or other clothes at 60⁰C. I dont think its necessary and we've survived so far

With your budget of £650 you can afford a Miele

www.johnlewis.com/miele-wea025-freestanding-washing-machine-7kg-load-1400rpm-spin-white/p4985108

I always buy Siemens instead of Miele (first one lasted 15 years, number 2 is on year 7/8) and find them very good. I use the idos trays with liquid. I was whites at 60, darks and coloured at 50, sheets and towels at 70, no issues. I use colour catchers on mixed loads.

imo these machines dont use enough water and also dont overload so there is plenty of movement

i add extra water to mine where you can actually see the water sloshing about and sometimes leave to soak for an hr (whites)comes up great

there was an article online awhile back about not having enough water to clean well and put some washing in a bath and the water soaked the clothes the water looked grim

I have an Indesit which replaced my old Indesit. My previous Indesit lasted 12 years and was a great machine. This one has been fine.

@SprayedWithDettol

I have seimens washing machines and they are v good.

My Siemens was brilliant. I bought an LG when the Siemens broke down and its very meh - it doesn't clean as well as the Siemens and anything with marks on it (most kids clothes) need an intensive cycle on the LG.

I'm on my second Bosch (first one did 10 years, two babies and two house moves) and they're fantastic workhorses and definitely wash well.

Oh wow that AMA thread has blown my mind! I thought I knew all I needed to know about laundry! Now I just feel like an amateur. WHAT ABOUT THE COLOUR CATCHERS?!!!!!

Haha! I know, I've been talking about all the discoveries from that thread to anyone who'll listen (so now noone talks to me ).

I also did some more research and it its all quite unanimous.

In the process of deciding which washing machine I signed up for Which. Of liquid detergents they rated Aerial most highly. Same for capsules (but the oxy ones). They also said powder was better for removing stains but hardly reviewed any mainstream powders which is frustrating. I couldn't find anything on there about colour catchers though.

I have ordered a washing machine. In the end I went for Samsung Series 6 with auto dose and add wash based on which reviews. Annoyingly they didn't review the Bosch I liked. It was really a flip of a coin between the two (and the Bosch would definitely have looked prettier in my new utility) as there were very little differences (even the customer reviews were almost identical in stars and quantity).

I went for Samsung because:
It has a steam option.

It has bubble wash which a lot of MN threads rave about.
I concluded that although the Bosch will likely outlast the Bosch, my last Samsung did 9.5 years and I was ready for a new one.
(Samsung do a 5 year warranty as standard, Bosch are doing a 5 year warranty as a special offer).

My mum also just bought a Samsung and I have did some washing at hers at the weekend. Couldn't comment on how well it cleans as I was washing clean clothes (new baby en route) yet. But when my sheets come back I will defintely be able to comment (DH had been sleeping it them while doing a load of DIY on our house that didn't have any running water at the time so pretty gross).

You haven't tried 60 washes 😱
I wash everything at 60, even whites
Underwear and bedding at 90
Anything delicate gets a 30
But I've recently discovered on my washing machine I can do 60 and select the delicate option
Anything that isn't dirty, am happy for it to go on 30 wash

Good choice. Bosch only offer a 2 year warranty whereas Samsung offer 5. My MIL Bosch broke down last year after 3 years of use.

You'll hear lots of people saying "my washing machine is 10 years old and brilliant". Unfortunately washing machines these days aren't built to last 10 years like they were when the people saying this bought theirs so anyone with a machine more than 5 years old take their feedback with a pinch of salt as build quality has really gone down hill recently.

How does everything not shrink washing so hot?

Well its here!!! (Thank god, DC3 is due in 10 days, thank goodness for our mums in the meantime).

Love love love the autodose and already used the add wash twice!

I've done one darks wash using auto dose, just chuck in the clothes and switch it on. No faffing with those bloody child proof boxes for tablets or spilling fabric softener. Obviously hard to tell with darks how clean they are but they smell fab!

Then did a lights load. Had a top in there that had a curry spill (with lots of turmeric). I did rinse it through with some cold water when it happened but then forgot about it and its completely out. A jumper spattered in tomatoes (i am a messy cook) has come clean. As have my husbands rather filthy shorts.

I am impressed.

I am using auto dose (Aerial liquid) for darks and a 'lightly soiled' wash. Switch to manual dose with Aerial powder for whites or stains (very easy to do). Will be switching Vanish for Ace as soon as the shopping is delivered. I also used the bubble soak for the lights.

Only downside is the silly tune. Its not that annoying except that it goes on FOREVER! You can turn it off very easily but frustrating that you can't ask it just to do a short beep or something instead. However, I've set it up on wifi so it does send me a notification on my phone when its done. I do also like that I can check my phone to see how much longer (very pregnant and lazy).

Anyway, as you can tell I am ridiculously obsessed with this, especially after reading the AMA thread. Looking forward to the novelty wearing off so I can return to my normal status of finding washing an annoying faff.

I really like my AEG for price /Performance ratio but we live in Germany and I think they're cheaper here.

For stains I find some kind of spray and then leaving things in direct sunlight to dry doors the trick.

Sorry for resurrecting an old thread but would you still recommend Series 6 Samsung machine? We need to replace ours and this is one of the ones I have narrowed it down to

@morechocolateneededtoday I have a 12 yr old series 6 that's still going strong so definitely the thumbs up from me

Thank you @feministqueen