OK, now it's all over.

[bajaespuma]

Went to Lowe's for the first time in a while and discovered, to my horror, that every new top loading washing machine on the floor was a Whirlpool or clone thereof. Whirlpool, Roper, Amana, Maytag, every single stinking machine was a whirlpool clone. Wasn't the American system designed to avoid such a monopoly?

 

[appnut]

Ken, I know you haven't been asleep for 100 years, but welcome to sad reality.

 

[frigilux]

bajaespuma---I know how you feel. This is part of the reason I bought a Frigidaire TLer. It's SO not a Whirlpool clone. Its innards are old-school, despite the white plastic facade.

 

[laundromat]

didn't Lowes have any GEs?

 

[alr2903]

So true frigilux, but they have added us to the neutral drain club. I was shocked. Is it a separate drain pump motor?i never looked inside of it yet. but alas or oy, it does good enough. ho hum. alr2903

 

[launderess]

Unless something drastic happens, top loadering washing machines that are not "HE" are a dying breed. Great designs came when there were dozens of laundry appliance makers, energy and water were cheap, and everyone wanted to get in on the market. With government mandated energy restrictions, coupled with major appliances rapidly becoming throw away goods, the consolidation that began in the 1970's has pretty much bottomed things out.

There are still plenty of famous laundry brand names, but they now all belong to three or four companies.

L.

 

[user 12105]

WAHH!

 

[laundromat]

So,so sad but so,so true.It was the variety of designs,features,and the way they were advertised that got me so involved decades ago.The different dealerships in the area,in home service,outside drying.I loved going out back when the neighbors or my grandmother would hang out freashly washed clothes-especialy sheets and pillowcases!!!They smelled so good when the wind was blowing just the right way!!!!

 

[lederstiefel1]

same here on this side of the big pond....
and I guess as well as down-under or on the asian market...

Ralf

 

[launderess]

Oh well, the line drying can be had for the most part,but all those innovations by the likes of Frigidaire/GM, Norge, General Electric, et all when they were all competing in the white goods market; and new models rolled out like automobiles is gone for top loaders as we knew.

Even without government energy restrictions, top loaders were becoming an endangered species in the United States. Laundry appliances have moved from being an luxury item that consumers would pay dear for, to a common thing. General Motors saw the trend early on as did others that sold off their laundry appliance divisions; people no longer were going to pay vast sums for what they considered an every day appliance.

As the market matured, along with designs, there really wasn't much left to do with top loaders. Aside from perhaps higher spin speeds, most everything else had been tried en masse and done; various dispensers, variable washing actions, variable washing and spin speeds and so forth. What was left basically was design and durability, and increasingly consumers weren't willing to pay for either. Maytag could have continued their Dependable Care line, but consumers were balking at the price for all that legendary quality. So Maytag chucked that line, and the rest is one more tale of appliance woe and misery.

In a way the "HE" market opens the doors for American appliance makers to once again strive for innovation. However since H-Axis washers have long been the staple in Europe/UK, much of what is crossing the pond is rejiggered European models adapted for Americans.

 

[frigilux]

Come to think of it, the toploading market is still the one with the most diversity in wash mechanisms. You have the obligatory fast/short stroke agitator models (Whirlpool and GE), you have the more traditional slower/long stroke agitator models (Frigidaire, Speed Queen, GE Hydrowave, Fisher & Paykel) and you have various wash plate types. There are a couple of TL H-axis machines (Staber, for instance).

Most frontloaders depend on features and cycle idiosyncracies to set themselves apart. They all tumble to wash, then tumble much, much faster to extract the water.
Dyson tried the contra-rotating frontloader and that didn't catch on (though what a collector's item it will be!).

 

[frigilux]

Oh, and Maytag had their rotating disc Neptune toploader for a couple of years. Another to-die-for collector's item of the future.

 

[washertalk]

I was disappointed too..

Went to the Sears store near me a couple months back and checked out the traditional toploaders. Blah! They definately were nothing special. They only come in white. The KM toploader side swing door is replaced with the Whirlpool rear hinge. There is only like 6 models. They are all 27" wide. I think they are all Super Capacity. Sloffed off into the back of the sales area with a few other toploaders with other names. I think there was one GE, a couple of Frigidaires, maybe a Maytag.
But hey people, we can do better. Still I will never forget in the early 80s going to Sears and seeing what seemed like numerous choices. And this is when they only sold KENMORE.

 

[rp2813]

If you watch any of the TV ads for places like Lowe's and other retailers that carry appliances, they invariably showcase FL washers. You don't even see a TL washer anywhere. This is the wave of the future. I doubt I'll ever go back to a TL washer. Just yesterday I threw chaise lounge pads into my Duet HT, something I couldn't have done before, even with my huge capacity Amana TL.

I washed the pads in separate loads. Interestingly, one pad caused the machine to suds up like I've never seen. The display panel ended up with the "Sud" indicator. I went in the house to pull the operating instructions out and read up on what the washer does when "Sud" is displayed. I returned to the garage after a few minutes and found the washer operating normally without any sudsing. Whatever it did to de-suds itself, it did it quickly and effectively. How can I not love this washer? OK, don't answer that. It's only a few months old.

 

[washerfanatic]

I went to Sears to explore washer a month ago and I, too was disgusted by how many washers were whirlpool rip-offs. Everything ranging from the boring neutral drain, down to the knobs and the infamous "Shredtator". Who knows what could be next when the neptunes get discontinued this fall?

 

[runematic]

Who knows what could be next when the neptunes get discontin

They're being replaced w/ more Duet clones.

 

[oxydolfan1]

Runematic, does that mean we can expect the Amana front loader to disappear, as well?

 

[stevet]

front load amana??How long a life?

Seems like WP has rebranded the Neptune with the Amana name but has also dropped the price too. Maybe that will help sell more or clear out a backlog of unsold inventory.

One question remains.. was the Neptune really that bad a machine? I was one of the original owners of one back in mid 1997 and never had a problem with the mold, smell and mildew problems they seemed to have had.

Only real problem was the detergent dispenser as the machine came out of the box. The repairman was to the house 5 times before they allowed him to replace the complete assembly which was obviously defective from the get go.

Other than than it is still running, though I sold the house it was in.
Would like to hear other people's experiences.

 

[runematic]

does that mean we can expect the Amana front loader to disap

I would assume so. I believe they're closing the factory. I didn't see any closeout notices on that model yet, though.

 

[brinomarc]

For those of us who like top loaders, it is sad to see all name brands now with the Whirlpool design. One of the things that was always very interesting to me about top loaders were the 'different' agitators and ways they washed the clothes. Each brand used to have it's own unique agitator which were fun to watch. Every time a newly designed agitator was out, I would wonder how it worked, even the 'looks' of them were different. I never found front loaders interesting at all because they all do the same thing, just tumble, and I personally don't like the look of them on the outside either, but that is just me. I believe in USA there will always be a market for top loaders, as many people do NOT care for front loading machines, including most people I know. It is our market of diversity, offering different 'choices' to consumers, which makes sales. I don't think any one type of machine should dominate, those who like front loaders should have a choice as well as the top loader, and I think the companies know this. It would be like saying all people will eventually buy SUV's or all people will buy upright instead of cannister vacuums etc. It just won't happen. I know some areas where people still seek out wringer washers. I just wish that Whirlpool did not destroy the 'differences' between all the brands they bought up. When Maytag first took over Norge, Amana, and Magic Chef, they kept the plants going, and kept the differences in products, even though they might have badged some of them with the same names. I still think the Norge machine was one of the best I have ever owned, and only wish we still had a manufacturer use those designs, as well as the 'original' Frigidaire jet action machine. As with the 'retro' cars and some vacuums being produced with retro design are doing very well, which is what Whirlpool tries to cash in on with the new Maytag outer design, but should have kept the 'inner' design as well.

 

[washertalk]

Well I hear what your saying Marc.

But the market is saturated. Sears, one of the nation largest appliance retailer continues to loose sale volume. (10% stock price drop today). People give washers away on Craigslist and such.
And toploaders do use alot more water in general compared to frontloaders. People may be "used" to top loaders just as they are "used" to large cars. But reality is knocking. We as a nation have to change our piggish ways.

Really it isn't a matter of top load vs front load or land yacht vs. Prius. It is the way they are powered, their economy. Their quality. If I could drive a large car and get 200 miles per gallon, I would.
We have toploading dryers right? Why not a toploading "frontloader"?
Though I think I would rather have a elevated (pedestal mounted) front loader than a deep toploading tumble washer.

 

[MrX]

Europe

Indesit : Indesit, Ariston, Hotpoint, Scholtes (Huge)

Electrolux Group : Electrolux, Zanussi Electrolux-AEG, Tricity-Bendix, Arthur Martin (France), Zoppas, REX-Electrolux as well as own-brand badging operations for major department stores like John Lewis in the UK.

Candy Group: Candy, Hoover, and Rosières Local brands: Iberna, Otsein-Hoover (Spain), Vyatka and Zerowatt focusing on their own country of origin"

B/S/H Group : Bosch, Siemens (main brands) and specialists: Gaggenau, Neff, Thermador, Constructa, Via, Ufesa.
Regionals: Balay, Lynx, Pitsos, Profilo.

The only independent of any scale left is Miele!!

As for front-loaders, they did naturally replace any other design in Europe since the 1970s.