Need a new washing machine - a couple of questions

[pantherlj]

My 16 year old washer is dying on me. The dryer is still working fine.

I am leaning toward the HE top loader. A large one (4.6 or 4.7). A few questions
1) how/where to get the best deal? I can't wait for Black Friday :0
2) extended warranty - 3 years for $99, yes or no?
3) do I bite the bullet and get the new dryer? If I get the extra capacity washer, I might have to dry my larger loads in 2 separate drying cycles. That would be a hassle but not sure if it worth the extra $800?
4) any brand recommendations?

 

[burnurcomputer]

I have the Cabrio top loader. Some hate it some (like myself) love it. I purchased mine at Lowes, as they price matched. Sears had it on sale less then a week later and we were given a discount. We used our Lowes consumer credit to get 12 months same as cash. Delivery and set up were free.

I was told to not bother getting a dryer if mine worked well. Pwer the Lowes employee; Dryers can't really be energy efficent. It all depends on your washer and how dry it gets the items. My washer gets items very dry and I have a reduced dry time when compaired to my old washer. (Got new dryer about a year before my new washer). It will most likey still take longer to dry then to wash with a HE, but it is very reduced. The dryer I purchased was a "lower end" model that is still very nice. If a matching pair is important to you then i woudl spend the $ to have it be so.

I have 4 kids and have several loads a week bwtween then and the adults (DH and I). I actually do less wash now because my washer can do so much more on less time and energy.

I do not have a expanded warrenty because my DH decided against it. It may or may not be worth your while depending on your water quality. It seems that those with harder water can experience more difficulty with function due to mineral build up over time.

 

[SGB13]

If you have a little time, check out what your local stores have in their "return/damaged" section. I am in the process of building a new house and our 20 year old Maytag washer died. The front loader we were looking at would not fit in the small laundry closet. We found a washer that was returned for $200. That would work for the time we are building.
For my new house, I have been looking at the same store for other appliances. Someone just returned a washer & dryer front loader due to scratches during delivery. I got them for half price. They will be in a laundry room. I am not concerned about a little scratch or two. I like deals. These are models I had looked at but ruled out due to the expense.

 

[dyna]

I do not recommend a Maytag top loader mine has been nothing but trouble and Maytag service has been to my house more than 6 times in the 1st 6 months and has put over 700.00 replacement parts in a 500.00 washing machine. All of which was done at not cost to me.

Dh picked this machine because it was so energy efficent. HOW it so efficent I have no idea it takes for ever an a day to wash a load of clothes that along with the fact that the machine is not working as often as not.

From the very 1st repair I myself have wanted my money back an to go buy a different machine but Maytag is bent an determined to make the machine right no matter the cost.

 

[mommyrosa2]

Last Fall, both my machines had to be replaced and we purchased the LG HE top loader washer with the matching dryer at Best Buy. I absolutely LOVE my machines. We got them on sale, and about 2 weeks later, they were running a better promotion, so we took the receipt back to the store and we ended up getting $200 back in Best Buy gift cards and saved an additional $50 on each machine. They are extremely quiet and they can hold so much clothes, my laundry time has been cut in half...

 

[LJSquishy]

Home Depot, Lowe's, Sears and Best Buy are all great places to start scouting and price watching. It is easier if you have an exact model number you want because then you can compare apples to apples when trying to find the best deal.

We have HE front loaders but when we were shopping around, Home Depot ended up having the best price in the end. Sears and Best Buy were close. Any holiday is the best time to purchase, such as Labor Day, Memorial Day, etc.

 

[canadianjovigirl]

My LG dryer went in December and the LG front load washer went a few weeks ago. I replaced them with the HE top load Maytag Bravo machines and love them................we do a lot of laundry with 5 people and 2 cats, and i was not interested in spending over $2500 on a new set.

I did get the extended warranty as it was piece of mind knowing they will not cost me a penny in the next 5 years.

 

[jel0511]

I just bought new machines. My 6 year old Cabrio machines are HORRIBLE!!!! The washer puts holes in my clothes and sounds like a jet plane taking off when it spins. The dryer was taking over 2 hours to dry a load of clothes. I replaced them with a LG top loader and the matching LG dryer. They get delivered on Saturday and I can't want to play with my new toys!

 

[LJSquishy]

I guess I should respond to your other questions besides getting the best deal. lol

I think $99 is very reasonable for an extended warranty, IF it starts when the manufacturer's warranty ends. Some warranties overlap and it's a waste. I purchased one for my LG HE front loaders, but only because they have the electronic lcd screens etc on them and are more costly to repair than non electronic-type machines.

You really don't need the matching dryer unless it is going to bother you to not have a matching set. Or, as you said, if your current dryer may not be large enough you might want to consider upgrading it. I would hate having to do one load of wash and two loads of drying. We sold our old working washer/dryer on Craigslist and had so many people wanting them. We had full price offers, but in the end, decided to sell them super cheap ($50 for both) to a single woman with three young children who had to go to the landramat to do laundry. The look on her face when she got them was worth so much more than $$. I also gave her a brand new huge bottle of Tide detergent (which we all know is almost $20, lol) and she was almost in tears with excitement and gratitude for having a "brand name" detergent to use. If you decide to upgrade your dryer as well, try selling it on Craigslist...any extra money toward a new unit helps!

As far as brands/models go, I will PM you some highly rated choices.

 

[lisaross]

BEST BUY will Price Match

 

[luv2mickey]

Last Fall, both my machines had to be replaced and we purchased the LG HE top loader washer with the matching dryer at Best Buy. I absolutely LOVE my machines. We got them on sale, and about 2 weeks later, they were running a better promotion, so we took the receipt back to the store and we ended up getting $200 back in Best Buy gift cards and saved an additional $50 on each machine. They are extremely quiet and they can hold so much clothes, my laundry time has been cut in half...

Which LG model, I was told LG makes the best HE machine.

 

[laughinplace199]

Bumping this up as I now find myself in the same position. My 18 yr old Maytag washer is on its last legs and I need to replace it soon. I know I want a top loader, but that's all I know.

It seems that every machine I research has just as many bad reviews as good ones.

My 18 yr old Maytag dryer (gas) is currently ok, but starting to make some weird noises, so I think I"m going to replace it as well.

I'd love to hear your suggestions on brands/models to look at and/or avoid!

 

[toesmom]

We thought our 16 yr old machine was no longer working as it was not draining after it would clean.

We were going to replace, but my dh went online to do a little research and figured out how to open the washer and check the motor.

Turns out one of the pieces had lots of build up including dust, hair etc. Once he cleared it off... it started working again, like new.

worth a try before buying new machine.

 

[North of Mouse]

A friend of mine got the LG and hates it. I got the FL Samsung VRT and love it. Know you said TL, but was mainly mentioning the brand. We researched, and were told at all the major appliance stores here that Samsung was the way to go. This is our 2nd FL washer and can't say enough good about it - no odors - very clean clothes, quiet, no vibrating - so far it's perfect I've always let all mine air out between washes, but it makes perfect sense to me that if you keep a wet machine closed up you will probably get mildew and odor. Good luck!

 

[4HOLIDAYS]

I got the maytag top loaderBravos XL- hated it! It did not clean!

The darks had streaks of detergent all over, the clothes were not coming ut clean. Things like dish towls for the kitchen would still have sause, gravy...on them,not just the stain but the actual food. No it wasn't overloaded or too much det. While waiting for the store to swap it out it started having problems with cycles where it would just keep running, stuck on wash. One time is was on for a ouple hours!

I got the LG HE front loader 2650- had a front load LG and should have stuck with it. This one has been great, has add water feature, pre wash, extra rince...all good!Plus the steam feature. I paid about $660 at Brandsmart .

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

I too have the Samsung VRT and LOVE it. I got mine at a Sears outlet store for $350 less than other stores. I did not replace the dryer and I don't have issues with drying clothes. I have on occasion split my load into two in order to get everything dry. I have done this with a load that had a lot of jeans. But other than that I dry everything at once. MAN it only takes my dryer 25-30 minutes to dry I load now and that includes jeans!!!!

Make sure when you get the washer to also buy the HE soap. Which you will find you only need to use very little to clean the clothes I use about a 1/2 of a cap ful but usually less. Depends on how much you are washing. A 110 oz bottle of soap will last us 6 months!!!

Plus you will see a drop in your water consumption. My water bill was cut in half which is a $30 savings a month X 12 months = $360 a year savings!! Kid you not. Plus now that my clothes only take 30 minutes to dry that means less natural gas usage!!!! And I am useing less soap.

 

[judomom2]

I just replace my washer as it died. I had a front loader that I hated and went with a he top loader lg. It was orginially 1200 I pd 700, because it had a dent on the front. I wasn't going to replace my dryer as it still worked but decided to just look around since I couldn't dry all the clothes I was washing so I found a front load lg steam dryer at sears for 379(originally 1000) but it had a dent so they took another 50 off. It really pays to look around at sears,best buy, hhgreg and other places for their scratch and dent if you have time. We never buy the warranties because from everything I had always heard they are a waste of money.

 

[Anne34]

I do not recommend a Maytag top loader mine has been nothing but trouble and Maytag service has been to my house more than 6 times in the 1st 6 months and has put over 700.00 replacement parts in a 500.00 washing machine. All of which was done at not cost to me.

Dh picked this machine because it was so energy efficent. HOW it so efficent I have no idea it takes for ever an a day to wash a load of clothes that along with the fact that the machine is not working as often as not.

From the very 1st repair I myself have wanted my money back an to go buy a different machine but Maytag is bent an determined to make the machine right no matter the cost.

I was just going to recommend our 2 year old Maytag Bravos HE top loader. I have had nothing but good luck. Hated our LG front loader, but this has been a really good machine. I haven't had the hole problem others have talked about.