The new issue of Consumer Reports, IIRC, covered this very topic – pick up a copy.
We just bought an Amana set from Sears, which ran about $500-$600 per machine. They are highly rated and reasonably priced and simple to operate. Both are front loaders and stackable, if needed. The wash cycle takes more time than we would like, but they perform very well.
I have a front loading Maytag set. The washer and dryer are HUGE. The largest you can get. And yet…they stack! The dryer sits on the washer. Actually, I wanted them side by side, but my laundry “room” is just a converted storage area and there wasn’t room.
I love the set. They make laundry almost fun. Almost…laundry isn’t going to be fun until I can afford to hire someone to do it while I drink beer and play video games.
Oh, and the stinky problem has never happened to me. I always leave the washer door open, and once a month I run Affresh through it.
BTW, dishwashers get stinky, too, but don’t get the rap that washers do. And I run a cleaner through my dishwasher once a month, too.
I did a bunch of research and ended up taking the advice of a bunch of people in a thread that I started here last year and got Samsung front loaders. I am very happy with them.
Until a career change last fall, I sold, installed, and serviced appliances. I have seen some great machines, but I’ve junked a lot f front-loaders. Mostly, it was that they weren’t taken care of. When I needed a new set, I bought one of our best selling models - the Whirlpool Cabrio. It uses the same high efficiency as a front-load, but is still a top load. It was the first I had ever seen that was top-load with no agitator or anything, just a large silver drum. We’ve had it almost 7 months, and the only complaint was the amount of noise when we first moved into the house, but a little troubleshooting made me realize that it was due to the back being slightly un-level (when we put it in, we did so in a hurry). Once that was fixed, we have had no problems.
In all honesty, I would buy it again. Of course, the cost reduction of buying it through my work made it a pretty decent deal. We purchased a new-in-box high-efficiency set for the same as a normal retail set at the store down the road. The models on Cabrios are 6200, 6400, 6500, etc. We bought a 6400 set but there are lower priced set equivalents that can be mixed and matched. The big difference seems to be purely appearance or tub size.
Brendon
We had the Kenmore HE3 set for 6 years and the washer bearing went out. The first time we spent $50 on parts to fix it. That lasted a little while, but the second time it went out we bought a new LG washer. The Kenmore also had a terrible mildew problem. I was a little peeved that an $1100 washer only lasted 6 years and gave me smelly towels - even if we kept the door open and cleaned the gasket.
We kept the HE3 dryer since it still worked well, so we didn’t need to buy a set. So far we love the LG washer and it has no mildew or other problems, but we’ve only had it since spring. The pedestal from the HE3 washer will not fit the LG, so that’s a bummer. It does do one thing I dislike: I have long hair and we also have pets. It will ball the hair up. I find tiny little hair balls on freshly washed clothes. It’s easy enough to pick off, but it is a bit of a hassle.
Well, after doing some more shopping around this weekend, the wife and I went to Sears and bought a set of Samsungs. We even got them for the sale price even though the sale had expired the day before. We got a 3yr extended warranty on the washer but skipped buying one for the dryer. They get delivered next week!
Front loaders also offer less wear and tear on the clothing being laundered. The tub spins around and the water drops down over the clothing rather than the top loading where the agitator moves the clothes around.
Got an LG front-loading set last year, the one with the steam cycles. We love it, have had no issues with mildew (as mentioned upthread, just leave the washer door open between loads), and baby clothes that would have been ruined by stains in our old washer/dryer are now coming squeaky clean.
Consumer Reports Magazine has an article on washers and dryers this month.
They name names!
They tested for noise and vibration among other things, and addressed the mildew issue.
See if you can find a copy.
For folks who have noise issues during the spin cycle: what solved the problem for my folks, and for numerous other people I’ve read online, is placing the washer on a “stall mat”. A stall mat is a heavy-duty rubber mat designed to be used in horse stalls, providing a more comfortable surface for the horse to stand on. Since they’re made to withstand a horse standing on them all day, you know they’re sturdy. Stall mats can be purchased at feed and tack stores for about $40, less on sale. Just cut a piece to size, put it under the washer, and you’re golden. I’ve even read that people eliminated spin noise for washers installed on a second story by using a stall mat.
If you’re troubled by the mildew thing, look for a washer that has a “Clean Washer” cycle, like ours does (it’s a Whirlpool Duet Sport). Once a month, you run the “Clean Washer” cycle, with the washer empty and bleach in the dispenser. It runs a hot cycle with the bleach and cleans itself out. Leaving the door open helps too, but it’s nice to have the extra cleaning ability.