advice neede on purchase of commercial washer

[davidblazor]

Hello to all AW.ORG members. I am in need of replacing my SPEED QUEEN AFN50R MODEL WASHER. The machine is going out again and want to replace it with something more along the commercial line of either Milnor or Continental Girbau. Can any members of the group please guide me in what to buy. Would it be better to buy a solid mount or soft mount washer. I am looking for something with a 35- 40 pound capacity load and would also be replacing a exceptional Speed Queen dryer model ADE40. As always all advice is appreciated in advance.

David

 

[whirlykenmore78]

If you need a real HEAVY DUTY commercial washer

I would go the Continental route.  I have used Cont/Girbau machines in an entry mat laundry.  It did not faze them.  This is the machine I would recommend.  Of course you can get it without the meter if you need an OPL machine.

WK78

http://www.continentalgirbau.com/vended/coin-operated-washer-eh040.html

 

[whirlykenmore78]

Here is an Alliance made Uni-Mac option:

This should do the job.  There may be a Speed Queen option at the same or better price.

WK78

http://www.unimac.com/products/unimac-washer-extractors/softmount-commercial-washer-extractors/uy40-40-lb-capacity.aspx

 

[davidblazor]

soft mount or solid mount

Is the Continental a soft mount or solid mount? I live in a manufactured home and the floor in the laundry room was reinforced and rebuilt because the Speed Queen ate a hole thru the original floor.

 

[suburbanmd]

Spin speeds on hard mount washers are very low.

 

A washer with 35-40 lb. capacity may not have the option of a drain pump; it'll dump the water on the floor, expecting to find a drain trough there.

 

Look at the available programs and configurability on these washers. I've looked at them in the past, and found them pretty limited. In contrast, the Miele Little Giant is a commercial washer with lots of functionality for home use, and probably costs no more than a big commercial washer. It is small, smaller than your Speed Queen, but can be stuffed pretty full on many of its programs.

 

[combo52]

Heavy Duty Washer Choice

How many loads does this washer have to do ? and what is failing on it now ?

 

[rp2813]

John,

David is the guy who had all of that trouble getting Alliance to repair his SQ FL under warranty a while back.  It's my understanding that he has special needs kids and that the machine is being used for multiple loads on a daily basis.  Apparently even a SQ can't hold up under such demands.  He's probably better off with a commercial type if his laundry room can accommodate one.

 

[combo52]

Best heavy duty washer choice

Hi Ralph, yes I remember this case well but in order to give the best advice I ask for more details. The best thing I could possibly recommend right now would be another speed queen soft mount commercial homestyle washer. These are truly commercial washers, they use the exact same ones and coin laundries all over the world.

We have these machines and hotels in veterinary clinics etc. doing 20+ loads a day some for over five years and have never had bearing failures with most of them I have a couple of them that I've done over 45,000 loads out there.

If the bearings are failing again in this washer they may either not of been repaired well or there may be some unusual water conditions that are causing the frequent failures which no washer may be able to avoid.

 

[davidblazor]

current failures on speed queen

To all members of AW.ORG the current failure(s) are probably easy fixes but IMHO the machine is just on it's last leg. Our house hold averages 25-30 and sometimes more loads of laundry a week. Due to having 2 special needs kids in the home. The loads consist of about 14 loads of bedding, 4 large loads of towels, 10-14 loads of clothes this is a real bad week though. If I were weighing the laundry I would say the machine is easily doing 400 plus pounds of laundry a week.

The machine isn't having bearing failures again but water keeps pouring out from under the machine. It does not happen with every load but about every 3 loads. This started happening after I washed a medium sized sleeping bag in the machine and I have washed it numerous times in the past. I have also noticed that it started doing this leak while using GAIN HE detergent vs. TIDE W/Bleach. I watched the machine progress with a load of clothes and it did not leak but when I washed a queen size blanket it did leak. There is no water coming from around the boot or any water coming out from around the door.

As far as water conditions here on the Oregon Coast we have SUPER soft water. I have noticed that when using GAIN HE detergent the machine gets extremely sudsy using a 1/4 scoop. IS it the detergent causing the leak if so that is a easy fix. Gain was on sale so I just bought 2 boxes versus buying tide at the time

The good news is there is absolutely no problems with the dryer (model ADE40). These machines were rated the top of the line when purchased.

David

 

[mrb627]

Sounds like...

You may be having a suds lock condition which results in foam escaping the air vent in the back. There may also be a need to check and clear the pump guard. Additionally, Gain HE powder is a very sudsy formula. I can't use it in my machine.

Malcolm

 

[pierreandreply4]

maybe its not the washer but the detergent

Hello maybe its not your washer but the detergent itself that cause the problem maybe you should try swtiching to a liquid formula detergent or pod type detergent and try putting less detergent than what is recommended on the label

 

[yogitunes]

for one, you might consider Rosalie's detergent.....best for no suds conditions, could be more economical as well.....

question.....

don't some of these bigger units require a 2 or 3 phase power supply?

and based on size, some may not fit through standard doorways....

 

[yogitunes]

you would have to open the machine up, whether the top, or bottom panels....

and watch closely as to when the water is leaking out.....and where it is coming from

I just worked on a Samsung with a mystery leak, took several loads to figure out that the dispenser box would occasionally have water overflow out the top section where it snaps together.....simple sealant filled the gap all the way around and fixed that issue....

plus, is it from the machine?, or the drain pipe backing up?, even suds backing out of the pipe can show the same results.....anything is possible

 

[rp2813]

Step One: Ditch the Gain

After P&G changed the formula on Gain and Tide HE to be "for both" front-loading and top-loading machines,  I experienced oversudsing issues in my Frigidaire Affinity.   Others here have reported similar experiences.  I stopped using P&G's "for both" products and am back to low suds as front loading machines require.

 

Try a different brand that isn't made by P&G.  I think they're the only manufacturer making the claim about their HE being "for both" types of machines, and that is simply not true.

 

Ideally, you want suds no higher than about 1/3 or so up the window while contents are tumbling.  I find that most of the time I can use much less than the manufacturer's recommended amount of detergent, and only use the full amount on large, heavily soiled loads.

 

 

 

 

 

[davidblazor]

THANK YOU

Thank you for all of your responses AW members. I appreciate all of your ideas and thoughts about what is going on with machine. I wish I would of known about the Gain being so sudsy. I use regular Tide W/ Bleach with no issues.

I checked all the hoses and connections and drain pipe and all are clean dry and no signs of leaks. In my mind it has something to do with the pump assembly.

I don't remember all of the warranty. Do I have 5 years parts and labor? Will I get the same ration of BS and ring around the Rosey with alliance? Should I just call a service tech and say screw the warranty?

All thoughts and responses are greatly appreciated.

David

 

[launderess]

There are single phase commercial hard and soft mount washers in both 120v and 220v.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Wascomat-W6...133676?hash=item3d2be06e6c:g:izwAAOSwuwRYLO-h

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HC40MD2-40l...132595?hash=item3d2be06a33:g:~okAAOSw7XZXhT4b

Larger question for the OP is whether or not his home can withstand the weight and forces generated by such machines. Personally one seconds advice given upthread and seek out SQ or perhaps another brand of OPL unit.

From what one has seen commercial washers lowest capacity is around 20lbs, they then go up to 30, 40, 50, etc....

Unless dealing with fully programmable controls from what one has seen cycle times on most commercial washers tends to be on the quick side. Thus unless one routinely washes large/bulky items a larger capacity machine might not be required. We're talking about 30 minutes or so from start to finish... wash days just breeze by.

 

[rp2813]

John (combo52) should be able to advise on the warranty, or you can call Alliance and they can advise, assuming you registered your machine with Alliance after purchase.  They'll have on file the information needed to initiate warranty repairs.

 

If the machine is still covered, deal with Alliance directly to avoid the run-around you got from your local SQ service provider last time. 

 

[kb0nes]

A couple years ago I looked into buying a Huebsch soft mount commercial washer for no reason other then they are just darned cool. It looks like they have changed their models a little since then, as I recall the one I was considering was rated at 18lbs and cost a bit under $4000.

If you look at their current offerings the 20, 25 and 30lb machines could go through a 36" doorway. All these machines are available as single phase machines (but they are all 240v). I don't believe that any of these machines have a drain pump though, the simple brochure isn't clear about this.

Also note that all of these commercial machines are in the 400 to 600 pound total weight range. If you already suffered floor damage from a residential Speed Queen then I doubt one of these would be workable.

From what you have described as leakage, doesn't make it seem as if the machine is on its last legs. All machines will have minor troubles from time to time. Indeed this is very likely leakage caused by over sudsing or similar. Find the cause and the machine will likely keep working fine for many years.

If you have the room and feel like spending the money I'd buy a 2nd machine which could double throughput as well as serve as a back up in case of any failures. It does sound like you have "mission critical" laundry needs.

 

[yogitunes]

why not call the exact service company that came out the last time....after all, they were the ones who got that situation back on track....

and most likely would have your info on file....