Jungle Red! RIP Frigidaire, welcome Samsung VRT

[ironrite]

Ok, so Samsung calls it Tango Red. After several months of keeping my fingers crossed and hoping the tub wouldn't come flying out of the Frigidaire FL, we bit the bullet on the Samsung VRT washer/drier and pedestals. The Bosch 500s were a very close second, but the red and chrome caught the partner's eye everytime we went looking at machines.

Best Buy had a sale, and much to our surprise and delight, they do negotiate a bit on price when you buy the whole set. Service is by their techs and setup, delivery and takeway was free, no rebate nonsense to fill out. Did get an extended warranty, which they claim is renewable after the five years and full coverage too. The delivery guys were actually EARLY for a change, I barely had time to move out the old machines and clean the floor in the laundry area. It was interesting watching them flip the new machines over to attach the stands.

After a couple of washes, far so good. Did have to tweek the level just a bit on the washer. And it appears their VRT technology works, once this thing finds the balance of the clothes it gets up and moves and no real vibration or noise from the washer. Filling and draining are the two loudest sounds. Right now I'm looking at about a 3 hour wash on the dog bedding. It's getting the presoak, sanitize and silver care options. That will be the real test.

So, here's the pair together.

 

[ironrite]

And best of all...

It's Boxer approved!

Buddy must have been some sort of domestic god/goddess in a prior life. No matter if I'm vacuuming, loading the dishwasher or general cleaning, he is right there! The only thing that spooked him was when the water started to spray in the washer. The Doberman tends to ignore anything domestic!

 

[frigilux]

Wow, that really is an eye-catching pair. They're gorgeous! Let us know more about them after you've broken them in. I'm especially interested in the sanitize/silver care options.

BTW, I get my hair cut at a place in downtown Minneapolis called Jungle Red.

 

[gansky1]

That is one color that gives a little "pop" to your laundry room!

Congrats on the new set, keep us posted on what you think...

 

[gansky1]

BTW, I thought of you on Friday while I was at an estate sale - there was a fairly nice Ironrite (mod. 95 I think) as well as the table and works of another, older Ironrite and in the stack of manuals in the pocket of the 95, there were three different OM's for all her Ironrites through the years. They were all well-loved machines and the house did seem to have an inordinately large amount of linens!

 

[funguy10]

Could you post some more pics of the washer & dryer such as the control panels and interiors? How about some videos?

 

[ironrite]

Dryer Panel

Ok, here's some more photos of them. Perhaps a video next weekend when I can find the video camera and get a few minutes to make one.

Hopefully Greg with the Wrinkle Prevent technology (whatever that is!) I won't need an Ironrite to finish those linens.

Currently the dog comforter is in the dryer. The cycle was almost finished, so it's in a cool down tumble to prevent wrinkles. The main knob just spins, with orange lights coming on to show you the cycle you've selected.

 

[ironrite]

Washer Panel

When you turn the machine on, it recalls the last cycle you used. In this case, this was for the dog comforter. It got prewash, and extra rinse, the high temp wash and high speed spin. Plus tried that Silver Care thing to sanitize it. Though with the hot water and bleach, I think it's pretty well sanitized. 2:41 is two hours and 41 minutes.

Pulled from the washer, very little smell of bleach. No dog hair left in the wash tub. In the dryer I have had to turn it a couple of times. It is a thick queen size comforter so I expected it to take a bit to dry. Normally this made a mess of my previous dryer. That I had to vacuum to get the dog hair and left over dirt. I checked the lint screen and very little build up and no dog hair sticking to the drum or door.

 

[ironrite]

And the washer drum

Odd shaped paddles in the drum and smaller holes than the Fridigaire had.

 

[dynaflow]

jungle red

reminds me of the movie The Woman joan crawford norma shearer 1939 wonderful movie

 

[appnut]

Congratulations Mike!!!!!

 

[sudsmaster]

Candy apple red

Reminds me of the best hot rod paint jobs of the 50's.

Very nice.

 

[mayken4now]

I love it. "No dog hair left in the wash tub". I know I am of the odd. No dog to put hair in the wash tub here, aint gonna have that mess and nasty.

S.

 

[newwave1]

Ironrite,
Congrats on the new purchases! They look really nice! How does it balance on spin? I had a samsung overhear in the uk, i got rid of it because it was taking 20minutes to balance for an interm spin!

I would love to see some more pics of the washer in action!

That red is awesome!

Darren

 

[ironrite]

Yup, Jungle Red from The Women...or The Opposite Sex, depending on which one you prefer. I may have to now do something dramatic with the washroom.

And yes, the dog stuff is rather dirty. For short hair dogs, they both make a mess.

Bob, there was a small pang when I unplugged the Frigidaire for the last time, remembering the excitement when I first got those machines.

Darren, the spin did take a bit to get used to while the machine figures out what it will do. It does operate a lot differently than my old Frigidaire FL. The installers did a fair job of leveling it, I did have to adjust it a bit. If the load is well balanced, no problems, it ramps right up. When I did a load of white towels on the extra high speed, they came out very dry. I think they took about 20 minutes or less in the dryer. For a smaller load of dishtowels, to test the machine, it did take 2-3 tries to balance before the spin took off. That's when I rechecked the level.

 

[funguy10]

What does the machine sound like when it spins? What happened to the Frigidaires?

 

[ironrite]

The tub bearing and the shocks were going in the old washer. Even with a small load of say shirts, the tub would knock around the inside and the washer would take a walk. I had the shocks replaced last February.

When the Samsung goes into it's spin, up to 1300 rpm, you do get the slight sound, but not the jet engine roar. It also sounds like the motor cuts in and out and is not running full time during the spin. Overall the machine is pretty quiet. The dryer sounds robust compared to the former one. More like a commercial dryer when it turns on. And the dryer is electric.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Mike, Congratulations of your ruby pair. They are so much more exciting than Judy's. Will the dogs' pad take that much treatment each time? Does the silver treatment add time to the cycle, and if so, would you explain that feature, please? Did Consumer Reports say something about the silver possibly needing replacing after some years? On the cotton cycle, like you use for the towels and such, does the machine give good fast spins after the wash and between the rinses? Does it have trouble handling sudsy water during spinning? With large, heavy loads, when the machine starts to spin, does the initial flood of water spun from the fabrics trigger a return to tumble while the water is pumped out? My Duet had a nasty habit of doing that and then usually had trouble balancing again before spinning. I solved that by getting rid of unnecessary parts and giving it an Electrolux pump that is serious about moving water. Can you see any water action at all during the rinses? Which HE detergent are you using in it and does it need about the same amount as your Frigimore? Does the bleach get added near the end of the wash or does it go into the first rinse? I hope that these beauties give you years of joy and trouble free performance.

I saw that the former Maytag compact FL and dryer are also now being marketed under the Samsung name.
Tom

 

[washboy2005]

Awesome machines! I love them.... The back of your drum looks somewhat similar to my Hotpoint I think.... Do you agree Darren??

Thanks for taking the time to post pics!