Need advice for new washer purchase

[stricklybojack]

Update..

just got word the new SQ machines were delivered today. I'll be out to California this summer and hook them up then.
The boxes looked fine, meaning no apparent damage, and the "free curbside delivery" did allow for placing them in the sizable garage at my mother's house.
The order was delayed as the new model FL washer was back ordered. We also got last years now discontinued 4 cycle dryer. Both are the versions with knobs if you missed my earlier posts. A sliver lining to the wait was that the outfit that sold us the machines had a price matching policy, which I utilized. We saved $330 in the process and the money has already been credited back to my card account.
Something I didn't mention is that the laundry area is designed for standard TL sized machines. By going with the SQ's I saved worrying over if they would fit happily.
Will be back here posting pics around July 4th weekend time frame.
Speed Queen should sponsor this site because it's been extremely instrumental in our choice of their product. Of course that and the love affair with computers and plastic many of the other manufacturers are in the throws of.

 

[stricklybojack]

Soon..

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It will be time to finally give these a whirl, and I'm not talkin' about the scooters.

 

[stricklybojack]

The day has arrived..

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After sitting in the garage since March, with some cursing to move things along, the new machines finally made their way inside the house; where there sat another 2-3 weeks until i had the time to switch out the old with the new.
The process was straight forward enough, but like rotating your own tires with only a scissor jack, stupid energy intensive...it was well worth it in the end.
Neither machine required adjustment to level, and the washer only walked less than an inch during its first load. Sounds bad but consider i have yet to install the rubber feet (oops!), and the machine is sitting on very slick ceramic tile.
And man is it a quiet washer, the old Whirlpool woke the dead by comparison.
Also if you like to see a lot of water splashing around you are going to have to adjust the water level, factory settings make the water hard to detect during the wash. You see wet cloths but thats about it.

The dryer just finished it's first load, the only difference there, besides the working buzzer, seems to be the quality of the air exhausted into our garage is very fresh smelling compared with the old machine.
Reversing the door was a snap except I would recommend pre-tapping the new mounting holes before re-installing the newly reversed door to the machine.

Also it should be noted I wiped out both machines with baby wipes and found nary a speck of metal, machine grease, or really anything as others have aparently have. Luck of the Irish I guess. My back is toast so i'll install those rubber feet tomorrow, adios for now.

[this post was last edited: 8/19/2015-21:24]

 

[mrb627]

Looking Good

What is your opinion of the new SQ FL models?

Malcolm

 

[stricklybojack]

Weeeeeell Malcolm...

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thanks for asking.
After one load of laundry washed and dried i'd have to say, two thumbs up!
These machines are actually somewhat simpler than the ones they replaced, which is hard to imagine. This is a good thing however for my mother who likes/needs simple.
If it was me i would have probably have opted for the electronic version, and the front control electronic models in SS really look snazzy, plus 2 more years of warranty. That said i do like the rear control version(s) because they creat a lower, better, work surface height. I have to imagine the front control model simply fills the space created by it's higher work surface with empty cabinet, sorta odd thing to do but perhaps there is a reason.
The Washer seems positively huge coming from our O'l Mr Whirly TL.
So I in no way pine for one of those mega capacity machines. This 2015 SQ FL machine, if anything is larger than we need. And if you'll notice in the pics, there is not a lot of space in our laundry "room".
On the other side of the wall however is a 3 car garage with 15' ceilings!
The new dryer is faster than its predecessor and smells much fresher. I gave the old one a decent cleaning last year; but clearly a full tear down is the only way to exercise almost 30 years of accumulation.
Both of the SQ's are solid..nothing flimsy...basically built to the level of the machines they replaced, which is very important to me. In general i hate using stuff that feels cheaply made. The only way to do significantly better with new equipment would be to go full high end commercial. That would give the super solid tactile quality i love. These are the next best thing.
Wrangling these machines out of the garage, around the house to the large rear slidding door...unbox, wrangle the old ones into the garage; hook everything up, reverse the dryer door, remove shipping bolts dispose of the cardboard, redo a few things done incorrectly the first time around...phew! Makes me tired just thinking about it.
Add to that all the time in selection, ushering the purchase to completion, and eventual delivery...
well, i am ready to not do this again for a long time.
And i don't think i'll have to...
and that feels really good to me right now.
[this post was last edited: 8/20/2015-23:18]

 

[stricklybojack]

Also Malcolm..

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I might add, as you mentioned it earlier, the dryer is sorta tricky to set using the automatic dry setting. Really wants to cook the cloths, so we can get away with about the lowest automatic setting, which is not so easy to dial in.
I'm sure i'll get better over time. No doubt the electronic SQ models are better in this area given their superior sensing system.
I think Mom had to have dials to make the jump from the old TL whirlpools though, or at least to do so happily.