Speed Queen Commercial Front Load Washer Questions

[michaelz08]

Hi all,

My condominium is in the process of replacing our top load SQ top loaders with front loaders because of water usage. I've been putting together a Q&A sheet for residents and have some gotten conflicting answers from our vendor and from various mentions online. Was hoping some folks here would perhaps have used these SQ commercial front loaders (ours will have Quantum Gold controls) and would be able to answer these couple questions:

> Cycle Times - what do these range from? A reddit post of some guy with our exact machine said between 30 and 45 minutes, youtube videos of the residential version shows 25-50, then our vendor said 60-80. Does anyone have any hands-on experience using these and know what times they range from? I know folks will ask and I want to give a realistic answer.

> Detergent - Our vendor said no powdered detergents at all, which seems kind of wild to me. I have a big box of HE Tide powder and I can't think of any reason why this wouldn't be suitable for use. Is this really a no-no in the SQ front loaders? I've never heard of a front loader saying "no" to a type of HE detergent before.

 

[michaelz08]

Additionally, the FF7 (residential front loader that looks like friendlier version of the commercial version) says powdered HE is completely OK in the user manual, plus it even recommends it over liquid when using a separate stain booster or pre-wash detergent.

 

[appnut]

Something sounds very fishy to me. It sounds like the the company providing this commercial laundry machine is wanting to control everything usage related. Liquidss can still leave a residue that would obviouslyt need to have the edisper drawer cleaned periodically. Yuck. And there's the tendency to mostly wash in cold water because the general public has been so brainwashed.

 

[neptuneguy27]

As an FF7 Owner

I can't imagine the programming is much different in the commercial machines vs. the residential models. I going to hazard a guess that the default cycle on the machines you'll be receiving is the Normal Cycle. On mine (labeled Normal Eco) the default program time for that cycle is 38 mins; that's for a wash, two rinses, and a final spin. Adding additional options will naturally increase cycle time. As far as powders are concerned, I use powders more often than not and never had any problems. I've no clue why they'd be stressing liquid detergents only.

 

[petek]

Could it be something with the dispenser drawer on the particular model only equipped for liquids? On my LG if you use powder you remove an insert from the detergent drawer meant for liquids.

 

[DADoES]

 
Powder can be placed directly into the drum if the dispenser is hard-oriented for liquids.

 

[michaelz08]

I'm not sure about the detergent drawer yet. I am under the impression that it will be the same as the FF7 4-compartment drawer, which the manual says is OK to have either liquid or powder placed in it.

Pods are probably OK too, they just might be telling us to put them in the tub to avoid having anyone complaining if they don't dissolve in cold water washes.

 

[qsd-dan]

I would just wait until the machines are installed and time the cycle(s) yourself.

No matter what detergent is used, the dispensers will need to be cleaned on a regular basis. People are f-ing pigs. If you don't believe me, go to any laundromat and inspect the dispensers.

 

[michaelz08]

The only reason I'm trying to find out in advance is because when we announce and approve this change, people are going to ask about it and I'd like to be able to answer.

And our on-site maintenance is good about cleaning the machines regularly, fortunately.

 

[petek]

I'd call the vendor back and ask for clarification for sure.

 

[appnut]

Michael, whatever the home version manual of this model says regarding approach to using the detergent drawer should be applicable to this.

If prewash or soak is an option for tennants, whoever select this option will need to use powdered detergent for the main wash is they expect fully automatic (walk-away) additive dispensing since there is no separate liquid "cup" to place in the main wash compartment to hold the main wash additive from being dispensed during the prewash.

 

[michaelz08]

The vendor replied with the following:

"Powder detergents don’t move as efficiently thru the soap dispenser as liquid detergents and tend to leave residue that clogs the soap dispenser over time."

I suppose in theory it's possibly true- but it isn't going to leave more residue than fabric softener does, and he isn't saying not to add that to the drawer. These are going to be need to be cleaned at maintenance intervals anyways. I'm going to be in charge of the flyer that will be put with the new machines, I'm questioning if I should instruct people to put powder in the tub or drawer.

As for pre-washes, I recall reading somewhere in the service manuals that only the Heavy soil option will trigger that if configured on these machines, since they have super simple controls compared to the home versions. I'll have to follow up with them when we are closer to getting these installed at the start of the new year and see how they are programmed.

These laundry lease companies are a bit shady seeming, with 10 year contracts and "not checking the cycle counters upon collection of coins". Plus they don't do any maintenance for us, only coming for repairs when called. If the funds were available and we didn't have so much time left in the contract, I would say we should own the machines ourselves. Service calls have not been frequent and the break-even would occur in a few years depending on what models we bought at what price.

 

[appnut]

Thank you for the information.