Advice on purchasing a new Duet

[frigilux]

Bob, if the "superfluous, blah-blah-blah" comment was aimed at me, then I will counter that I'm just providing information about a machine's features from the manufacturer and sharing what CR has to say.

If a prospective buyer should heed only the advice of someone who actually owns a given machine, then one trip to Epinions.com will confirm there are vastly differing posts on almost any model you want to name. Some people's experience with the Duet/Hettie, for example, leads them to state it's the greatest frontloader made. Others attest it is the biggest piece of crap they've ever owned and advise people to steer clear of it. That's so much more helpful?

If you find any of my information to be incorrect or misleading, then please say so. Certainly no one at AW has ever hesitated to disagree with me if their opinion or experience is different than mine. That's what a forum should be, no?

 

[bobofhollywood]

opinions vary

Opinions vary...that's true.
Even within my own post I say that I love the machine and also have had problems with it.

I'm talking about another guy, who replys to nearly every post on this site and seems to not know anything about any of it...just superflous blah blah blah like he loves to hear himself talk.

..it's a dude from the upper part of california, I do believe...seems to be an expert on everything, yet has no ACTUAL experience with any of it.

That's just my opinion...and I'm stickin' to it.
Please ignore my posts if you do not find them to be helpful.
My only intention is to provide help ONLY if I have actual PERSONAL EXPERIENCE with the appliances in question.

Holla from Hollywood.

Bob

 

[tumbler]

Duet tangling/balance

I bought the Duet HT (the fanciest one with the heater), and couldn't be happier. 220 volt service isn't really necessary due to the fact that the heater in most f/l's that have them are only about 1000 watt, and don't have very much water to heat. Note that I bought my machine at Sears; the Duets sold through Sears are slightly different than what you'd get from a Whirlpool dealer, i.e. 1250 r.p.m. instead of 1200, for one thing. Mainly, though, you have a choice of service providers; you can call either Sears or an authorized Whirlpool service company. If you buy a Kenmore, it has to be serviced by Sears, if you buy from a Whirlpool dealer, it must be serviced by them. (I'm referring to warranty service).

 

[rp2813]

Just my $.02 on the "epinions" web site and others. It's true you get both sides of the story from people who own the product, but I noticed when I was shopping for a vacuum cleaner, I'm pretty sure it was "epinions" that had been obviously hijacked by the marketing department at Hoover, with multiple posts gushing and extolling the virtues of the "Wind Tunnel" machine with testimonials that were so over embellished and involved that it was clear they were fake. Like with other types of data gathering, it's probably best to throw out the extreme reviews either in favor of or against the product and study those that are more moderate in tone.

 

[lightedcontrols]

Now I'll tell you why...

I got a set to use when I had lots of company one Christmas. It took OVER THREE HOURS to wash a load of towels! As soon as Christmas was over and the crowd was gone, I reconnected my 59 Frigidaires and gave the Duets (He3t's) or whatever they were away. The washer was not real impressive to me on washability (we had a sick kid that threw up all over the place and chunks were left on clean up towels etc.....AFTER they went through the VERY HOT long sani cycle) The dryer was slow too. Mark

 

[rp2813]

I've had my eye on a Duet/HE/KA pair when the time comes to replace what I've got. When I look at these on display, the latching mechanism seems flimsy to me on the Duet. I don't go to Sears or OSH that much to see the HE's and have yet to see a KA pair on display anywhere. Can anyone comment on whether the latch design is any better on the HE or KA models? Needless to say, after reading Mark's accounting of a 3-hour cycle I may be reconsidering as I prefer a machine I can still have some control over, but maybe by the time I'm ready some kind of override option will be included for those of us who can't wait 3 hours.

 

[lavamat_jon]

3 hours seems to be a bit of an exagerration for cycle times - from what I've seen and read most cycles clock in at 45-60 minutes.

Jon

 

[zipdang]

3 hours?

My KitchenAid's running time for a Normal/Casual cycle set to medium soil level is 40 minutes (plus a little extra if the load is tricky to balance before spinning).

The Whitest Whites cycle with the default extra rinse is 60 minutes, and if I eliminate the extra rinse it drops it to 50 minutes.

The longest cycle I can run is the Sanitary cycle (which defaults to "super hot" temperature), and if I add the Autosoak and extra rinse options the total cycle time is 2h35m.

 

[tumbler]

New Duets

For what it's worth, I bought a Duet set-w/all the trimmings-from Sears back in May. So far, I couldn't be happier with them. I got the washer w/the heater and the 12 cycles (Duet HT), and the 1250 r.p.m. spin. By purchasing from Sears, I have the option of having warranty service (if needed) performed by either Sears or a Whirlpool service co. (If I have problems after warranty, I'll deal with it since I'm in the business). Note that the full-size Duets are made in Germany by Bauknecht, which was bought out by Whirlpool. The Duet "Sport" (odd name for a washer) is made in Mexico and is somewhat smaller in capacity. I would avoid the LG machines due to the fact that parts are very difficult to come by-you can only get them from LG-and apparently there aren't many service techs trained on them.

 

[tumbler]

Duet cycle times

Regarding long cycle times on the Duets-even if I choose Sanitary (heated) wash, extra wash time, prewash and extra rinse, I can't get the time readout anywhere near 3 hours. I suppose this could happen if one is supplying the machine with "hot" water which is too cool, i.e. below 125 or 130 deg. f.