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Original poster

need a new washing machine

31 replies

triplets · 31/03/2004 10:30

Help, a disaster, my machine has packed up after 7 years hard slog! I have had it repaired three years running at around £70 a time. Now think although we are broke that maybe its throwing money away and time to get something else. Does anyone have a family size machine they would recommend, been told that you can get them with much bigger drums now and faster spin speed, mine is 4.5 and spins 1000. I do at least one load a day as i expect lots of you Mums do, any advice please and best places for prices?

OP posts:

Crumpet · 31/03/2004 10:39

I think empiredirect.co.uk offers reasonable prices - I've never used it but my old flatmate gets stuff from there.

kiwisbird · 31/03/2004 10:40

After much engineers coming out to our NEW* indesit we asked the engineer what machine they would buy, money being no object with a view to it not breaking down ever..
he said miele, you get what you pay for
WE are looking into getting a miele when we move
HTH and look online you get better prices
Jane

Freckle · 31/03/2004 10:43

Bosch. Love their products. They are not the cheapest, but I have to say that I have rarely had any problems with any of mine.

Crumpet · 31/03/2004 10:44

We've got a miele and love it - but I think the drum size is standard rather than large. Spins at 1200 though

Crumpet · 31/03/2004 10:45

hmmm, I've just said I love a washing machine....will blame it on the caffeine rush from my starbucks

bundle · 31/03/2004 10:46

if you're in London, we've bought a few white goods from Garland Electronics (finchley, I think, but they do have a website) - we basically did our research at John Lewis, then asked Garland "how much for cash?" (felt like someone on only fools & horses) & got a good deal each time, with free delivery

Janh · 31/03/2004 11:07

Have a look at this Bosch , triplets - £270, free delivery from Comet, 1000rpm and 12lb drum. They will connect it up for you for an extra charge, and take the old one away.

(I have been v pleased with Comet but everybody isn't!)

Alternatively, this one - still only 1000rpm but 13.2lb drum, £300, delivery extra.

Bosch are v v good.

Janh · 31/03/2004 11:11

And they can deliver within 2 days usually.

MeanBean · 31/03/2004 17:54

I got mine from Cometdirect, but found it originally on Pricebusters.com - compares everything. AAA Hoover 1600 spin for £250 ordered it on Wednesday, delivered and carried upstairs on Friday 2 days later. Great service. You can do a search on pricebusters and specify that you want it in silver, or with a handwash facility, or whatever.

michellefromlakeland · 31/03/2004 18:13

dont get a philips whirlpoo/pool!

GeorginaA · 31/03/2004 18:27

Love our AEG (have an AEG dishwasher too). Used to have a Hotpoint and it kept breaking down

frogs · 31/03/2004 20:48

Miele, miele, miele every time -- they do cost more, but they last for 25 years and never go wrong unless you do what I did and bung it up with beach sand...

Seriously, most machines have an anticipated life expectancy of 7 years, which is pretty much accurate IME, while Miele have a life expectancy of 20-25 years and a 10-year guarantee. You won't regret it.

Ours came from buyers and sellers (not sure about web address, but in west london somewhere. Empiredirect are also good.

Millie1 · 31/03/2004 21:03

We have an AEG and love it ... it's been going strong for 9 years and has had the same piece replaced twice (overuse! ... just a little cog) with no problems apart from that.

MrsGrump · 31/03/2004 21:24

WE subscribed to Which? Online a few months ago when we thought our machine had died (it hadn't, DH had just turned the water off!). Anyway, what I recall most was that 2 premium brands Bosch & Miele?) plus one cheap brand (Candy, Argos catalog!) had the fewest breakdowns, Hoover & one other cheap brand Hotpoint? -- had the most breakdowns, and the rest were in the middle. The average machine lasted 8 years before breaking down even once (that's just an average, though, right!?). All this based on a survey of 14,000 Which? Readers.

The other "interesting" fact is that it's arguable that there's no energy efficiency gain in having a hot water intake in a newer washing machines, because they usually take in just a little hot water and then intake all cold, heating that up. But the Which? review counted no hot water intake as a bad thing for energy efficiency, so I don't know what to think!

Also, DH read that spins higher than 1200 are bad because they don't really get the clothes that much dryer but they do put a lot of wear & tear on the machine.

We have a 12-yr old Ariston (or is it more like 14 yrs old?). It has occasional problems, but DH is engineer-minded and keeps fixing them, so we've never paid for a repair. I'm beginning to think we will take it to our grave...

Lisa78 · 31/03/2004 21:34

don't get an Ariston - ours is a nightmare and the company are horrible to us!

Janh · 31/03/2004 21:43

I was going to say that I didn't think a superfast spin makes that much difference, MrsG. We used to have a Hotpoint with 1000 spin ages ago, and on holiday once the cottage had the same machine but with 800 spin, and I couldn't detect any difference when I took the clothes out.

Top loaders can safely spin faster because they spin horizontally, not vertically, IYSWIM. I would think a larger drum is the most important factor for you, triplets.

throckenholt · 01/04/2004 08:04

we got ours online after having checked it out at the local superstore - saved quite a bit of money (I think about £100 less than comet). It is a zanussi (something similar to a FJDR1466W), with a spin speed of about 1200 and load capacity of about 6Kg.

We have had it about 18 months, use it about once a day on average (we have a 2 year old and 1 year old twins, and do cloth nappies). It seems pretty good, and much quieter than our old one.

Original poster

triplets · 01/04/2004 09:15

Good morning and thank you all for your good advice, who better to recommend washing machines than us Mums! I have just cancelled the engineer coming out as a friend had a spare machine that she has given us to tide us over. I`ll see what its like but have decided not to have the whirlpool fixed again, and will then seriously shop round for a new one when and if funds improve! You are all right about makes like AEG and Bosch and Miele, will probably go for one of those. Used to have a Zanussi before this one and only replaced it for this rotten whirlpool one when Harry built the new kitchen!

OP posts:

Azure · 01/04/2004 09:31

Another recommendation for Bosch - I also took the advice from Which? that it is one of the more reliable brands. Got it from the Comet website and they delivered on a Sunday, which meant I didn't have to take a day off from work.

WSM · 01/04/2004 10:02

Triplets

I have shamlessly plugged my washing machine on here beofre but I will do it again for you ! We have an LG, it has a huge 7kg drum and spins at 1285rpm, but you can get them up to 1485rpm. With the 1285 spin, the stuff comes out almost dry.

It was quite expensive at around £480 (ish) but it has been fab and with a family of 5 including 2 messy pre-teen boys and one equally messy toddler the enormous drum capacity has proved invaluable.

It has a digital control panel and lots and lots of cycle options (but still easy to use). The control panel also tells you how long you have to run on your current wash load and beeps when it has finished (you can turn the beeps off if you like).

It is also fitted with a self-adjustment water flow system which means that it only ever uses the right amount of water for the load (making it better for the environment). I think it is also "A" classed in Energy Efficiency and "A" classed wash performance.

The best thing for me has to be the child-lock function, which stops the kids being able to press/turn anything and disturb the cycle/switch it off.

So there we have, bet you never know that there was so much to be said about a washing machine, did you ?!

Marina · 01/04/2004 10:33

Bosch or AEG. Our AEG is 11 years old and has gone wrong only once. We love it. No frills, not fast, but washes and spins properly.

Grommit · 01/04/2004 10:36

I just bought a new one 2 weeks ago- speed 1600 (fab) and 6k load - Hotpoint Ultima - around £400. I am very please with it so far

Demented · 01/04/2004 17:15

Miele are fantastic. Our one is five years old now and I thought DH had lost the plot when he wanted to buy it but for once I have to say he was right. Shop around you can often get some money off them in the sales.

Tinker · 01/04/2004 18:58

I've also read that the faster spin is a bit of red herring, puts more stress on the machine. As does overloading it. Got a Bosch last time.

Janh · 01/04/2004 19:12

And it only took you 6 months to decide, didn't it, Tinker?

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