NIB Miele T9800 Electric Dryer / $500 (OC, CA)

[stricklybojack]

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I was looking at a pair of these used with a gas dryer for very little moohla...
now this pops up.
What was the final verdict on these biguns...do they vary meaningfully through the different iterations?

http://https//orangecounty.craigslist.org/app/6024087294.html

 

[nmassman44]

I can comment since I have this model dryer in my condo in Maine. This dryer does quite well when a load of laundry is spun at 900+ rpms. Any lower, and it takes forever to dry a load. I once paired this dryer with my Maytag 613 washer and the dryer took close to 2 hours to dry a load spun at 618 rpms. This dryer is not quiet by any means since the amount of airflow that the dryer utilizes is mind blowing. My guesstimate is that the dryer moves over 300+ cfms and one does have to open a window or it will suck all the heat out of the house. The dryer has a capacity of 6.3 cu. ft. And with most loads that comes out of my Miele 4800 washer, it matches the load size. Some loads like jeans have to be broken up into slightly smaller loads for it to dry properly. When I say smaller, like 6 pairs of men's jeans per load max. The dryer also has reverse tumbling that is erratic so a load does not ball up like sheets. The other thing is the fact that one cannot use dryer sheets in this dryer since the pores on the lint filter is so fine that it traps the waxy material from the dryer sheet to the point it will block the lint filter. I did that mistake once and had to soak the filter in hot water to dissolve the waxy substance and scrub it out to strip it and get it back to normal.
Drying performance is quite accurate. If the dryer is turned on without any clothes in the dryer, it will shut off in under a minute. The dryer is also very accurate in drying a load of laundry and will show what stage the load is in from hand iron, machine iron, drying, normal etc. drying temp is low unless one uss Turbo then the heat is high but not scorching high heat as in some machines. It also seems to taper the heat as the load drys so the clothes are not fried out like one would get with a SQ dryer. The entire drum is used as the sensor system. It does have ones baffle that has a metal bar in it that senses the load as it tumbles. This dryer has multiple settings but I find that with most loads that Normal dry, and Turbo dry is all one needs to produce perfect dry loads. Also loads coming out of the dryer are cool to the touch when they come out, i.e. Room temp.
If you do decided to get this dryer, it doesn't come with the pedestal as in the pic above. At least mine didn't and I paid close to $1100 for the dryer alone. There is also a max wet weight that one can put into the dryer something like 25 pounds of wet wash, that said any heavier then one may break the drum belt. There are two belts in this dryer, one for the drum and one from the motor to the drum drive. Changing a belt is no small feat since the dryer needs to be disassembled almost completely. So don't break a belt!
Overall , I think you would be quiet happy with it. Also the dryer should have as stationary rack that is curved, I used it once and that's it. The dryer also comes with the power cord attached and it's for the 4 prong type. I had to buy the conversion cord to go from 4 prong to 3 so I wouldn't have to rerun my electrical line to the dryer. If you have any questions feel free to ask!

 

[stricklybojack]

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Thanks for the thoughts.
The pair i may snag for a song sports a gas dryer, wonder if they perform the same as the electric model?
I like a fast but acurate dryer...our SQ nails the first part of that equation but falls down on the second part.
Who built these for Miele...the company that makes Bosch?

 

[super32]

The company that makes Bosch?

We made our own 27" laundry at that time. We also made and still make our own 24" laundry. We discontinued the 27" laundry in 2011. My understanding was Miele made the above units themselves.

 

[nmassman44]

These units are all Miele built. Right down to the screws holding it together.

 

[nmassman44]

The dryer if it's gas was recalled because of loose fittings in the dryer. Miele should have the info on their website about what model series and serial numbers affected. Hopefully it was taken care of by an authorized Miele servicer or Miele itself. The dryer should perform no differently than the electric version.

 

[nmassman44]

The washer by the way is a 4800 and that is my model. Beware though, this washer is heavy. Very heavy close to 300 pounds.

 

[stricklybojack]

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So Miele developed an entirely new platform, only marketed it in North America, then pulled it after a comparively short time?
Wow...

 

[launderess]

Depending upon who you believe

Miele claims they were losing money on the 48XX series washers and dryers. This because of low sales volume (as noted they were only sold in North America), coupled with high production costs.

Consumers claim both the washers and dryers were trouble prone and not up to Miele standards of old. One member who purchased the set had the bearings go out on his 48XX washer in a few years IIRC, which never should happen. There were also other issues.

You can "Google' via the model numbers for washer and dryer and find a litany of complaints against both. Then again you can find those who were and are happy, so there is quite a range there.

Do know the first 48XX model washer was trouble prone. It often leaked (from front door seal and internally somewhere), which caused issues. The latter would trigger some sort of alarm function inside the machine causing it to shut down until the "leak" ceased and or machine dried out.

As for the dryers IIRC Miele never built a gas dryer before and it often showed with these models. Indeed IIRC Miele no longer sells gas dryers in North America, and IIRC they stopped selling vented models as well.

It is telling that two of the biggest European domestic laundry equipment makers; Bosch and Miele introduced and then quickly withdrew uber sized washing machines and dryers. Bosch's Nexxt series of washers and dryers didn't last very long either for all the fan fare at their introduction.

For what it is worth many comparing the Miele 48XX washers and matching dryers at the time felt the smaller 30XX series washers and matching dryers (launched at about the same time) were of better quality overall, more like Miele of old.

Thing that struck me about the Miele 48XX washers was despite the supposed huge size of tub, Miele stated one was only to fill it three-quarters for "Normal/Cottons"

Problem for Miele and those "uber" sized washers and dryers was that they were going up against Whirlpool, LG, Speed Queen and host of other brands sold in the USA that offered same capacity but cost less. [this post was last edited: 3/20/2017-20:53]

 

[launderess]

Furthermore

Miele like Bosch, Asko and other European washer and dryer makers long had an image issue when it came to the USA/North American market. Consumers simply considered the standard European 5kg/11 lb washer capacity too small.

Miele, Creda, Bosch, Asko, all did well enough in urban settings like New York City where space is at a premium. But none ever really broke out of the niche market numbers.

When Maytag brought out the Neptune washer line, later Whirlpool with their Duet washing machines it was a game changer. American housewives and others could finally get a front loader that had the capacity they were looking for. Leaving aside the problems with the Neptune, it did start the front loader ball rolling.

Whilpool's big Duet washers were designed and built with the knowledge taken from Bauknecht, a leading German major appliance manufacturer who knew a few things about building H-Axis washing machines. This allowed Whirlpool to avoid many of the mistakes Maytag made with it's Neptune washers.

Getting back to Miele's 48XX washers and matching dryers, they also suffered from the fact Miele refused and still refuses to build a plant in North America. Thus all those machines must be imported from Europe. Shipping those large washers and dryers to USA could not have been inexpensive. Then again Bosch built their Nexxt washers and dryers at their North American plant, and that didn't seem to help save those machines either.