Latest Consumer Reports Ratings Of Washing Machines

[launderess]

Just took a quick peep through the latest issue of CR and their ratings for washers and dryers are almost dismal. Barely 15 or so tested and details rather limited. Suppose they want you to read up the rest online.

Long story short ratings are mainly for Samsung, Kenmore,Electrolux and LG front load washers. Frigidare for some reason (one forgets)has been dropped.

Front loaders seem to be getting larger (how is that possible?) with one new offering by either Samsung or Electrolux (forget which) holding about 25lbs of laundry, but get this cycle times range nearly two hours. That is a long time to be slapping about one's clothing in a puddle of water.

 

[frigilux]

If only CR would just come out and say it in plain English...

The laundry equipment in the February issue of Consumer Reports lists only the "greatest hits" of all 112 machines they've tested in the past year, plus mentions of a few of the machines that were at the bottom of their ratings. The easiest way to see the whole list is to get their 2013 Buying Guide, which comes free to subscribers. Otherwise, you have to gather every issue from the past 12 months that mentioned washers and dryers and try to piece it together. I believe the yearly Buying Guide is available at book stores in the magazine aisle.

I was delighted to see Frigidaire's redesigned front-loaders jump to near the top of the scores a few months ago due to newly-lengthened cycle times, which raised cleaning scores from Good to Excellent. Unfortunately, according to the latest reapir surveys gleaned from CR customers, Frigidaires purchased within the past five years that required service jumped from 10% to 14%---enough of an increase that CR no longer recommends the brand. Whether the increase in repairs is due to the old Affinity models or the new ones (which went on sale in 2010), I can't say. I've had mine since August of 2010 and have had no problems, washing about 7 loads per week.

The new LG front-loaders with their immense 5.1 cubic foot drums are the machines that hold 24 pounds of laundry. The matching dryers have a 9 cubic foot drum. I stopped by the local LG dealer and saw the TOL models, and the tubs are noticeably huge.

As I mentioned elsewhere, the local Frigidaire dealer has the new Immersion Care top-loader in the display window, begging me to take it home. The impeller and tub are one piece, so the whole tub spins back and forth to create agitation, unlike all the others that use a powered impeller. From what I can tell, the machines have the same suspension and tub size (about 3.2 cubic feet) as the 2006 agitator/indexing tub model I used to have. No hanging suspensions of plastic to invite explosions. I've been able to resist tempatation as of this writing, LOL.[this post was last edited: 1/4/2013-19:39]

 

[supersuds]

Their methodology is so opaque I felt I learned almost nothing by reading the article, such as it is. It seems they used to explain their criteria more clearly.

 

[spookiness]

CR reviews

I have been steered wrong by them one too many times now. The last disaster was a printer that was a "best buy" and a hassle from the get go. All CR really does is a feature comparison, which I can do myself. They don't really test longevity, or add much info about customer service and support from the company, which is important.

 

[launderess]

Am Still Trying To Wrap My Head Around

A washing machine that holds 24lbs for domestic use. Who washes that amount of laundry per load each week? More important without an excellent suspension system there is going to be a whole lot of shaking going on, and one imagines bearings aren't long for the world either.

 

[Unimatic1140]

The problem, in my opinion, with consumer reports is they are not an expert on anything. It is clear that the average long-standing member of automaticwasher.org has studied and has more knowledge about washing machines than anyone at CU. If I want an opinion on a new computer I turn to a magazine, blog or website where their expertise is on computers and only computers. Consumer Reports tries to report on everything which makes it an impossibility to became an expert on anything.

 

[frigilux]

I find CR helpful in making purchases. Their tests reveal which front-loaders are better for 1st or 2nd floor installment (vibration) and which models clean the best whether washing an 8-lb. load or with the machine filled to maximum capacity. I don't know where else you'd find that kind of information encompassing many models over a number of brands.

I got quite a kick out of my indexing-tub Frigidaire top-loader despite it being CR's lowest-scoring model. If you were very careful with the clothing-to-water ratio, turnover wasn't bad; cleaning was pretty good with soft water and a top detergent. But there's no way I would have wanted that washer as my daily driver.

Frankly, I can list a dozen things about CR that annoy/frustrate; it's simply one source that provides comparative information from standardized product testing.

 

[frigilux]

Launderess-- When I bought the first Electrolux-made Frigidaire front-loading pair in 1996, the dryer drum was 5.1 cubic feet. Now there's a washer with a tub of that size. I have to say, though, that when viewing the LG pair at the store, it was the 9 cubic foot dryer drum that was the most startling. That sucker was HUGE.

As for who would need such capacity, I suppose a large family would find it handy. For the rest of us, it would mean a lot of barely half-full loads.[this post was last edited: 1/4/2013-22:52]

 

[arbilab]

NINE cubic feet? That's not a (home) dryer, it's an amusement park ride.

I prescribed to CR for decades but things just got too complex for them with all the corners being cut by vendors. How can they practically rate destruction of fabric or underrinsing by no-water washers? Or self-destructing plastic suspensions?

 

[rp2813]

I can see an advantage to the giant LG tubs and drums.  A load of towels that currently comprises a full load in my 3.5 CF Affinity would likely get cleaner in a 5.1 CF tub, and I would think that a 5.1 CF tub would fill with more water than a 3.5 CF, but even if it was the same amount of water, the towels would move more freely in a larger tub and perhaps wouldn't create the seemingly interminable balancing act that they do in the Affinity.

 

Same goes for a king size quilted mattress pad.  More room in both the washer and the dryer, and I'll bet the dryer would get the job done in a single cycle.  Currently at cycle's end I have to pull the pad out of the dryer and re-arrange it due to damp spots, then run the dryer for another 15 to 30 minutes to finish the job.

 

Just because the washer has the capability to handle 24 lbs. of laundry doesn't mean I'd cram it full with that much.  I don't have enough of anything that would add up to a 24 lb. load anyway.

 

As for CR, they have no credibility with me after their bum steer on my "top rated" '97 Raytheon Amana pair.  For quite some time now CR has taken a USA Today approach to their articles.  In-depth and useful reporting disappeared from their pages long ago.  The last straw for me was CU's requirement that paying subscribers to their print magazine had to also pay separately for access to the on-line version.  I decided to let my subscription lapse when they pulled that stunt.  I just this week got a solicitation from them to subscribe.  It went straight into the recycling bin.

 

[tolivac]

Didn't the LG and Samsung FL,TL washers have the "Spin-Splode" action-and weren't they recalled by LG and Samsung-CR doesn't mention this.Large cap FL washers?-maybe their makers have in mind you are going to use the machine to mix cement for your next patio building job?I would never need a machine with that capacity.

 

[MikeS]

CR Pros And Cons

Allow me to express an opinion about Consumer Reports
As a subscriber since 1971 (when I was 14 no less!), I have found CR to be for the most part spot-on about its recommendations. But as the magazine warns, its ratings are designed to improve your chances of buying a good product, not a guarantee you will. Yes, I have had "best buys" or top-rated products that didn't do so well, but the majority of the CR-recommended items I've purchased over the years have given me good service. (Example: The Ekco Miracle Roll can opener that CR rated a best buy in 1973; I still have mine and it still works--for the original cost of 39 cents!)
Some of your comments are well-taken; I don't like to have to subscribe to the online version to get the full ratings and CR's constant e-mails and letters urging me to buy their other publications and services is downright annoying. And yes, CR's articles are not as complete as they were back in the day. On the other hand, the magazine does test far more models of various products than before, and tests them more often as well, a far cry when CR would only test 18 washer models a year, mostly middle-line versions.
So for me, the benefits of Consumer Reports outweigh its disadvantages. I don't mind spending $30 or so every year to improve my odds in the marketplace.

 

[logixx]

Just 24 lbs.?

5.1 cu.ft translates to 144 liters, which (in professional terms) can hold 14.4 kilos or 32 lbs. of laundry. :-o

 

[launderess]

Uber Large Front Loaders

We went down this road in another thread and whilst doing research on my Miele's former shock/suspension woes found out more. By and large H-Axis washing machines are best run at full to nearly full rated loads on "normal" cycles. Under loading causes all sorts of problems for machines including vibrations from unbalanced washing.

Can see a hotel, B&B or someplace that had consistent wash loads at or near 20lbs wanting a washer that held 24lbs,but to purchase something that large and wash only on average 11lbs is just silly IMHO. Perhaps this is the reason you hear so many complaints about vibrations and or washers that take ages to balance loads before final spins.

OTHO Consumer Reports logic makes sense, if one has to wait two hours for a wash load to finish I'd want to bung as much as possible into each cycle to get things over with. Still methinks households would do better with say two washers rated to hold 11lbs to 12lbs or so of washing. That way one could still do max rated loads but also separate things into whatever you fancy.