World of Washers

Pam writes:

Hi Brad,

While I knew the day was coming, our conventional washer crapped out on Sunday. After searching the internet for hours that night I was relieved to find some straight forward, easy to read, and informative opinions on washers. Thank you as well for the links to other review sites.

I was strongly leaning towards the LG WM0642HM until I couldn't find it on any Canadian store websites. Nor could I find the Maytag Neptune (unless the panic is setting in and I just can't find them). I'm afraid the immediate need to replace our washer is going to lead to a bad buy (this will probably be bought tonight, if not now we won't have time to look until next week).

I don't want anything fancy, just something that gets clothes clean, is reliable and can handle the large amount of laundry (3 boys and a small massage business worth of sheets).

Your opinion would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Pam

My response:

Hi Pam! Thank you for visiting and taking the time to write.

I don't know exactly how different the appliances offerings are in your neck of the woods. I took a look at Canadian Appliance Source, and they do have the LG 0642 on the website. They also have the Maytag Epic listed at $999, which is a heckuva buy for you considering it's going for the same price down here. So those are available in Canada; it's just a question of where to find them in relation to your area.

The site also lists the Amana washer that I have been bragging up. This model is a tremendous bang for the buck.

If you are set on a frontload washer, then I would not hesitate to recommend a washer built by Samsung or LG. Both brands are very popular and offer a lot of performance for the dollar. There is also the fact that LG and Samsung washers feature a direct drive motor. It is simply a simpler design, and less prone to failure.

Despite the amount of Whirlpool bashing I exercise on my blog, I do like their frontload washers (although the Duet Sport is a bit iffy). The Maytag I have linked above (made by Whirlpool) offers a pretty good bang for the buck. Good capacity, good spin speed, and an internal water heater!

I tend to advise people to stay away from most high-efficiency top load washers (such as the Oasis/Cabrio/Bravos washers) and some models made by Frigidaire. But I think if you can hunt down the LG or the Maytag, you will definitely get what you need.

Please let me know if you have any more questions.

Brad