Mid 1990's Amana Washing Machine

[SawaSun]

I was wondering if you all have any information or opinions on this mid 1990's Amana Washing Machine model LW8303W2. It gets clothes clean well so no complaints there, but it's a bit of an eccentric machine, in that it fills the tub with water very slowly compared to other 1990's washing machines in other people's houses and halfway through the cycle, right after the rinse, it takes at least a 5 minute rest after the rinse cycle before continuing on through the wash cycle, which takes around 20-25 minutes or so compared to 12 on other machines. Nothing wrong mechanically, just a little unusual. It has a nice metal tub and has many settings/features which I don't use. Any comments on this unit would be appreciated.

 

[SawaSun]

Picture #2 of Amana Washing Machine

 

[DigAPony]

Had that machine before I got educated.

The good; tub is deep, stainless and it cleaned okay. The bad; slow to fill as mentioned, eats drive belts, cabinet rusts easily, thumped and shook during the spin.

Replaced it with a Maytag A806.

 

[rp2813]

I had the 1997 "Commercial Quality" version of that machine, but it didn't have the speed options.  Those were pre-determined by the cycle selector.

 

My experience was that it was very bad at rinsing.  It drained into a laundry sink and even after running it through two or three additional rinse cycles, with a load of towels the rinse water would still be sudsy, and I was conservative with my use of detergent.

 

It also ate belts for lunch.  This is true of later Amanas and even the highly regarded Speed Queens of today.

 

The plus side is that these machines still had the long agitation stroke, which I prefer. 

 

 

 

[tecnopolis]

You say "there is a 5 minute rest after the rinse cycle before continuing on through the wash cycle". Three of the 4 cycles have a spot in the cycle that will cause the washer to pause for a period. First is marked "soak", which is self explanatory, and the second is "Cool down" which is also a period of pause that allows fibers to "cool down" from the friction generated after being moved about in the wash. The reason I am confused is you state "rinse then wash cycle", the rinse is the final part of the cycle, are you saying it pauses before going into final spin?

 

[yogitunes]

the possible problem with the belts chewing, as I have a Raytheon built one, during the first spin, the spin/spray starts, and the pump gets an airlock issue, and doesn't pump this water out, causing the tub to slow down, and the belt to strain and overheat from the excess slippage, bogging the whole system down....tis is not with every use, but happens enough......not to mention the filterflo constantly pumps water over the load during spin

and correct, not very good rinsing.....

to get the best results, you really have to underload this machine....not one of their best designs.....

but no issues with the Alliance built SQ's

 

[estesguy]

Horrible...all I can say

My "commercial quality" year 2000 Amana's were the biggest POS I have EVER owned. The motor and tub bearing went out at 6 years. Dryer made a "thump-thump.....thump-thump" noise until the rollers warmed up,as the drum seam made that noise as it rolled over them.

 

[washer111]

Fancy That:

The tub and agitator on the machine look identical to that of a SQ machine of recent... 

 

Looks like a pretty darn nice machine, in my opinion, although, as with my TL machines (and FL's for that matter), full loads won't get the best possible rinsing/washing. I like the control panel design and all the knobs and options to choose from. This one is a gem PLEASE use it with Warm/Hot water when possible, to save scum buildup and mould in the machine!

 

Based on whats said above, a pause during the (Normal?) cycle may be a "hidden" cool-down period, for washing mixed fabrics, to prevent setting creases, or a soak for the rinse to all full fabric softener penetration? I don't really know - so perhaps I shouldn't be talking!

 

But the slow fill speed (esp. on Hot) will be to save (hot) water and energy. Or, if its the opposite, the machine might use more hot water than cold water to negate cold pipes or something... Only Cold and only hot fills will be slow - esp. the hot ones with a "saver" valve fitted. A mixed fill should take less time, provided the water pressure in your home is good and the filter screens in the valves or the tap aren't clogged up. 

The manufacturer may have cheapened out and given this thing fill valves for an FL machine of the era (Amana and KM are related, right?), just used two low-flow valves to save time/money on design (Our old "Electrolux/Simpson" machine had this... 10+ auto fills) - at the expensive of cycle/filling time. Same goes for the timer - which may just "repeat" the Permanent Press cycle for Regular wash, to save money on timer design. Don't quote on that, because I don't know anything!

 

[whirlcool]

And we almost bought a set of these Amana/Speed Queen Raytheon built washers instead of our Whirlpool set. I am so glad now that we went with Whirlpool.

 

[SawaSun]

tecnopolis: Yes, it pauses before going into the final spin.

I met a neighbor recently who has a Maytag Dependable Care washer and dryer set from 1996. It does a cycle in 20 minutes and fills the tub fast. I mistyped in my original post. My Amana does a wash cycle in 40-45 minutes. I've read the Maytag Dependable Care are some of the best units of the last twenty years. Sadly, I don't think theirs is for sale.

Would a new basic, no frills TL washing machine (Hotpoint or Roper) perform better or worse than my 1990's Amana?

 

[rp2813]

No contest.

 

Even that Amana of yours is better at washing than any of the low-filling TL machines on the market today.

 

[neptune]

I had an Amana washing machine similar to the one pictured a few years newer. I had it 12 years and I regret getting rid of it when the bearing went. It did up to 10 loads of laundry a day for 12 years and never was serviced it didn't owe me a dime. I now have a whirlpool duet front loader and im not satisfied with it. The quality of the machines are not there in today's day in age. I work for an appliance company and we fix a lot of newer appliances and every once in a blue moon we get an older one. Its a shame on how all the new appliances are being built today.

 

[SawaSun]

netpune: Wow, that's amazing! Was it a Raytheon built Amana washing machine? That's what mine is. What's odd is that on a regular wash it says 15 for Heavy, which I assume is 15 minutes, yet a cycle on that setting takes way longer than that, more like 40-45 minutes. Does a longer cycle use more energy or the same energy as a ultra fast machine that gets a cycle done in 12 minutes?

 

[rp2813]

15 only indicates agitation time.  You still have to account for draining, spinning, another fill, deep rinse, draining, and final spin.

 

If this process is taking 40-45 minutes, it could be that water flow issues are making it take longer to fill the tub.

 

[yogitunes]

you can always remove any restrictors or drill out the inlet valve to allow a faster fill....and for the most part, a equal 50/50 mix of hot and cold, for a true warm wash

another mind trick which you may not realize, the machines fill flume is sending half of the water onto the clothes load, and the other half behind the perforated tub.....I sealed mine off so ALL the water runs onto the clothing...