I want a washing machine that isn't a twat

[Medlady]

Current machine is unreliable, chiefly because it is over-engineered: instead of simple clockwork knobs, it has touchscreen buttons, that break. It takes forever to turn on or off, or switch programmes, because it thinks for itself. I wish it didn't - I can think much faster than it can and I just want it to do as it's told without fuss, or trying to contact the wifi, or 'sensing' the load.

I want a simple, no frills, washing machine. Probably only obtainable in the 1990s, or the USA, where they still make indestructible, amber-coloured workhorses.

I'm probably doomed to disappointment, but please hit me with your top recs

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If you're short on time, here's a summary of the washing machines Mumsnetters are recommending on this thread:

• Best reliable washing machine: Bosch Series 4 WAN28250GB Freestanding Washing Machine, £479
• Best hot fill washing machines: Ebac Hot Fill Washing Machines, from £699
• Best budget washing machine: Beko WTL104121W 10kg Washing Machine, £299
• Best quiet washing machine: Haier HW80-B1439N 8Kg Washing Machine, £429
• Best premium washing machine: Miele WWD164 9KG 1400 Spin Washing Machine, £899
• Cheapest no-frills washing machine: Indesit EcoTime IWC71252W 7KG 1200 Washing Machine, £250

For a deeper dive into the top washing machines for all budgets, take a look at our round-up of the best washing machines, according to experts and Mumsnet users.

MNHQ

@stepfordwifey That is an issue I luckily don't have! Do have a shelf but with rarely used items on it.

Maybe that's the trick...

I also have the entry level Miele and use the quick wash for most things. It's set at 20mins but you can change to 30min.

OP if you have the means and the space, look at a top loader Speed queen. It is what a lot of people here have if space allows. Those things are workhorses of note. They used in every self service laundrette that I know of. Not pretty, but get the job done.

I've got a Bosch with dials. It has a couple of buttons for on/off, time delay and to adjust the spin but no touch screen or anything. It has a timer countdown but tbh it works in "Bosch units" as it has no correlation to real time 🤣

I used to sell washing machines and anything with crap like touch screen or Wi-Fi is just more to go wrong IMHO

This is the newer version of mine

ao.com/product/waj28001gb-bosch-series-2-washing-machine-white-96687-1.aspx

I've got that one too (or one that looks exactly like that). Had it around 7 years and had no problems with it at all. It's my third Bosch and my next will also be a Bosch.

Well, didn't this just touch a nerve?

Clearly, we want fewer bells and whistles; to the last man, we override the baked-in eco-driven settings in the interests of getting a wash done in less time than my botox lasts; we despise perky little tunes or self-satisfied 'I've finished' toots; and want it to do what's needed, not what some marketing group who've never had to sanitise a vomited-on 'special blankie' before bedtime think best.

Try and get one where the drum and the fins inside the drum are all one piece, rather than a metal drum with clipped on plastic fins. My plastic ones (Indesit) snapped off.

We have replaced a lot of our white goods in the last three years and they are all stupid bastards. I just want a time machine to nip back to the 90s and stock up.

Another vote for Miele. They are just the best. And the helpline is wonderful if anything ever goes a bit wrong. Really nice people who actually listen.

We had a Bosch for 10 years which was brilliant (one of the first things we did was switch off the little tune). Unfortunately it packed up just as we were going into the first lockdown and we had to choose another very quickly, we have an LG now. It is electronic digital etc and I HATE the sensor. If you overload it by one sock it goes from 1 hour to 3, if you notice a sock you've dropped and open the door after it has started letting water in it re-weighs it with the water and goes up to 3 hours even if its only a small load. AVOID.

Don't get a Samsung Ecobubble. I had an older one which was great and I recommended it to everyone and then I had to replace it. I got another and it is a total twat. The engineers have been out so many times with new parts that I call it my Frankenbubble.

EBAC. Just googled it and they do a hot fill!
Brilliant for us because in summer we have surplus hot water from solar panels and in winter we have surplus hot water from stove.
Info on the benefits of hot fill

@weirdoboelady Thanks for that. My info is obviously out of date as this was a long time ago.

I've gone for a Beko on the basis that:

• it is cheap - so if it dies in two years like my current one, I wont feel so bad;
• it is cheap, so they can't have loaded it with too many chips or other twattery

I think DH's take on it is either buy cheap and be prepared to replace, stay in for repairs, etc or buy expensive and it will last. I would be fascinated to know whether people know that this equation has changed since people WFH more - if you WFH surely (ecology issues aside) it is quite a good idea to buy cheap and replace more, with the strategy that you buy from somewhere that gives you a good warranty, can be home to let WM person in, and then replace as necessary. Probably cheaper overall for those not married to a WM genius, and as the OP has theorized, cheap cuts out lots of the twattery.

I WFH and have done for the last ten years. I absolutely do not need more answering the door to people or making them tea while they do work in my home in my life. Having appliances delivered and fitted is a massive PITA. I have gone for expensive and am very happy to have only had to get people in for an issue once in the past fifteen years.

Despite being seen as cheaper, my Beko outlived my expectations until today. It may have only lasted 4.5 years for me, but I have a young child with additional needs and bowel issues a similar age to that machine, so I'm sure you can imagine it is sometimes on twice or more per day, it has taken some abuse and has even moved home. For being the lower end of the budget, it lasted well for the amount it was used!

Family members of mine have also had Beko machines. One of them has had theirs over 10 years so far and also uses it daily or every other day.

We have a Samsung and within 6 months it started leaking, and it turned out it’s ‘10 year warranty’ didn’t cover the door liner, which they said was a disposable component and we had to pay (£100s) to fix it and not fixing it, having logged it, meant our ‘warranty’ was completely void. They said a button or a bit of fabric must have got stuck it in while loading.
Don’t buy samsung.

Asked the appliance repair man which he recommends. Without hesitation he said Miele.

He also said to look at Miele outlet online as they have bargains.

I have a Siemens. Simple efficient machine with big capacity but (see my other live thread) it beeps. A lot !!!

We inherited a Bosch with the house, but when it died our repairman gently broke it to me that they'd stopped making spares for it a decade ago, so we got a Haier HW80-B1439N on his recommendation, which is very well behaved, hilariously quiet and everything clever can be overridden. I didn't need a wifi washing machine, I needed 1400rpm spin that didn't try to launch into space.

I have a Beko WM94145W maybe 5 years old. Love it, it just does what I ask it to.

Not a twat 😊

My mum has one that just randomly gets overwhelmed and won't do a thing. Far more expensive than mine too

@Medlady The best machine I had was a beko. It did as told, didn't argue about how much the washing weighed or how much powder needed to go in. Had no preachy eco wash that takes 4 hours. Had a decent quick wash cycle. Didn't sing twatty tunes. I regret flogging it on fb marketplace or £50 to make room for my twatty ecobubble.

I used to have a huge top loading washing machine that came with the house (previous house owners were American). I could get so much washing done with just one load and it was so simple to use. The only problem was that repair companies wouldn't touch it if there was an issue with it, there was one engineer in the entire city that could repair it. I had it for years and still miss it.

We have a Siemens, it's 20 years old
Has had the odd bit replaced, DH is an engineer so that helps
Dread the day we have to replace it to be honest

Absolutely agree. I bought two second hand Miele products for £50 each approximately 100 years ago and they both do their jobs marvellously, and without incessant beeping/singing a jaunty fucking tune every time they complete a task.

I second Miele. Ours is very user friendly.