Speed queen FL mold & mildew smell

[gyrafoam]

One advantage the Europeans have is the ability to seriously boost water temperature.

I bought a new FriGEMore in 1997. It's low mileage and having been dropped to free-fall down a flight of stairs when only a few months old, is tough as nails. No repairs.
Just a dent on the rear console.
I have never had mold or odor issues with it, although the dispenser drawer requires regular cleaning.
I also tend to wash everything in hot water, and always leave the door ajar after use.

I've never known anyone with a SQ front loader that had mold or odor issues, so they must be doing things right.

 

[mrb627]

@johnl...

John,

It would be interesting to see a couple pictures of these trade in machines when you get them back in the shop. Please post, if you can...

Malcolm

 

[yogitunes]

heres a Neptune inner drum after a tear down....hot/warm washes, bleach with the whites....this was at 14 years of service....

 

[johnb300m]

tub access envy (off topic)

I envy you all who can open your tubs on older front loaders.
It's come to my attention that Whirlpool's new direct drive FL architecture (MT WP) have glued/sealed tub halves.
They're only sold as a $700 assembly.
NO access to the spiders. Or the bearings. It's all sealed now. >:[

It's one of the reasons I BOUGHT a Maxima in the first place, after seeing all the relatively easy bearing changes that could be done on the older Duets and Epics. I never would've minded swapping out bearings every several years if I got a nice solid washer in other aspects.
Not anymore. And I'm peeved. These bearings better last.

http://www.wealthbyjeffhartman.com/another-washer-you-do-not-want-to-buy-whirlpool-wfw70hebw0/

 

[yogitunes]

I caught that sealed tub machine while stumbling upon a yoututbe vid of a guy who was able to get around that sealed tub....and repair his machine.....apparently, it can be done...

 

[johnb300m]

yeeeeesh, that looks like a looooot of trouble.
But doable..... :/

 

[rolls_rapide]

Sealed Tubs

The reason for the sealed tubs is to "encourage" new sales.

That way, the bearings wear out, the consumer baulks at the cost of renewing the drum-tub assembly (where parts are available), the consumer considers other aged components (suspension, electronics, etc.), and the consumer ultimately decides (actually, they don't decide, they're forced) to buy a new machine.

And the new machine will have all these lovely gimmicky 'bells and whistles', but sadly will not be built to last any length of time - even less than the machine which preceded it.

Meanwhile, the rubbish pile gets bigger...

The whole situation is dire. In fact, it is a complete crock of shit.

http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/appliance-industry-news/4243-washer-sales-double

 

[washerdude]

Sealed Tubs

The tub on the newer WP FL's are not 100% sealed. They use the same tub clip method of attaching the two half's of the tub just like on the older duets. I'm sure if bearings failed, you could always use high quality Nachi bearings. But at the same time, they don't sell the god damn spider or tub seal, however I'm assuming you could get away with a non OEM seal too...spider seems to be a one time deal only...

 

[mark_wpduet]

The old Duets engineering mistake?

Not if you do laundry properly and leave door and dispenser open. I have an OLD duet that is 12 yrs old next month, and never had a trace of mold or smells. This is the case with all FL washers. They won't smell if you do these things *UNLESS* something is drastically wrong with the washer.

 

[mark_wpduet]

Oh forgot to add

It does piss me off when I see manufacturer's touting energy savings and being eco friendly - (like that article above said) but, in reality, it's just the opposite! If people are throwing out double the amount of laundry appliances than they once were and paying for new ones, there's nothing eco friendly about that at all. I've been so lucky with my machine and I hope it lasts me a few more years at least. I wonder if the total cycle count on my Duet is lower than average? I'm thinking an average of 4 loads per week, usually rather large loads - sometimes a little more, sometimes less, so say 20 loads per month to be safe - at 12 years old, that would mean my duet has only done around 2,880 cycles. Just say 3,000 to be safe. Where other families do laundry DAILY! MUCH MUCH MORE. That could be part of the reason I've been so lucky.

 

[yogitunes]

people way of thinking surprises me....

do you think dishwashers would have the same issues if only COLD water was used?...we don't leave those doors open or anything!....stacking dishes in there until a full load is met, so odors can happen, but once we run a cycle, that is all gone....

where is the true thought in energy savings.....running a load several times to get the clothes clean?....running an empty machine, completely filled with HOT water to clean it?.....or, wash in cold water to save our clothing from fading or shrinking, and yet most will toss them into a 160 degree dryer, way hotter than most water heater settings....

were not asking for every fill to be hot water.....just the first wash...and what does that equal, 3 to 4 gallons tops!

seems like simple practices like hot/warm washes.....will eliminate having a mold/mildew issue, eliminate running a clean washer cycle, and most likely less break down time or replacement of a machine....

amazing how many people will never understand any of this....seems like a lot of people just want to complain, they don't want the cause, the answer, or the fix!

how many threads have and/or will we see on this subject?

 

[whirlykenmore78]

Cold washing bullshit:

I never have and never will do cold washes. Cold water is for RINSING hot water is for WASHING. Nuff said.
WK78

 

[washerdude]

I've heard people recommend to wash whites in cold water...YUCK! No way that's ever going to happen at our house.

 

[kb0nes]

"The reason for the sealed tubs is to "encourage" new sales. "

I really don't believe that this is true. The reason manufacturers might switch to a sealed tub would be for manufacturing cost savings and less likely hood of a leak.

Consider these things:

The main bearing and shaft seal really don't fail that often, especially if the machine is used correctly.

When confronted with a malfunctioning machine that is say 5 or 6 years old, what percentage of owners even bother to consider servicing the machine??

Of that small percent of people that would call for service, only a tiny percent of them will choose to replace the main bearing and seal if that were the failure. Even in a non-sealed tub machine we are talking a $500 repair, most are condemned at this point.

So looking at those factors, a sealed tub really means nothing different will happen. Five year old machines that need bearings will be scrapped either way. Us appliance aficionados that believe in repair no matter what are few and far between. Sure it is an annoyance for us, but it really won't force more sales by way of planned obsolescence.

I too would LOVE to return to times where machines were repaired and not replaced anytime they fail. But I'd also like to return to the times where NOBODY drank bottled water!!! In the grand scheme of things, single use plastic bottles are FAR worse for the environment then disposable appliances, even if they are properly recycled.

 

[pierreandreply4]

thats the problem these days

i can say thats clearly a problem if it was not for my aunt also my mom aunt for keeping the bill and sale paper for her 6 year old fridge that she had to call for a repair a couple of years ago the tech would of told her to replace her fridge i think the same go for washers and dryers, picture is an exemple there was a time where appliance could last up to 40 years and where easy to repair and also unless you can repair the machine yourself and have good experiance the trouble with modern machine they make them so that after 10 years or more of service the customer trying to get a call for a repair have to buy a new machine because depending on the tech they rather advise replacement than repairing the washer that is sad

 

[combo52]

Sealed Outer Tub assemblies On New FL Washers

Are probably a good cost saving idea on FL washers with cheap plastic outer tubs. A sealed tub assembly will save many machines getting junked early because of leaking outer tub seam seal leaks.

 

Also keep in mind FL washer bearings almost never fail unless water gets past the main seal and ruins the bearings.

 

Bearing life is not affected by spin speed, load size, even the amount of use the washer gets to a measurable degree.

 

The main issue if you want to replace the bearings in any FL washer is making sure that the main seal assembly is in perfect condition, ultra premium SS bearings etc will not make any difference in life, SS sealed bearings will not work any longer if exposed to water and detergent.

 

If you want a reparable washer that has the potential to last 30+ years today there is ONLY one reasonable choice for the average home, A Speed Queen FL Washer.

 

John L.

 

[stricklybojack]

.
In regards to mold, we have kept the door ajar on ours and had no problems however you MUST wipe the black rubber tub seal regularly as water/moisture hides there and gets nasty fast.

The SQ FL is chock a block full of very expensive parts that will never make it to the 30 year mark.
I can't make it to 30 loads per $600 motor board on mine...no exaggeration.
FL washers are only as good as the electronics that run them and SQ's are made in Mexico and prone to failure sooner or later...but not 30 years later by a long stretch.
FL machines are disposable devices at this point, if you choose SQ I implore to get the models with a 5 year warranty. That said, be aware you can easily replicate this warranty on other brand machines through third party consumer insurance vendors.
I used to love my SQ on the ocassions it worked...but now feel oh so suckered by the 30 year BS after it started breaking on a nearly monthly basis.
Reviewed.com calls them a "cult washer" brand, meaning for drinkers of the kook-Aid only, in all measurable areas they woefully underperform for the price.

Yes the TL machines are much beloved but the FL design is new as of two years ago and is very thinly distributed to home owners compared with what a consumer behemoth like Whirlpool puts out. Meaning it takes much longer to teethe through the design/manufacturing bugs via the feedback loop with the installed base of customers. To paraphrase an old car joke, Whirlpool looses more consumer FL washers than SQ makes.

Yes I may have been "unlucky" with my machine but don't buy a FL machine based solely on considerations like stainless tubs and what not cause it's just a better arrangement of deck chairs on a washer Titanic that is skippered by questionable quality control in a sea of electronic icebergs....ahem, imo.
And btw, even on the sturdy-build-front the SQ is weirdly flimsy in very conspicuous places, like the door and the start button (I have the rear control "knobs" model), to name two big ones for me. Every time I use it I think, "really, of all the start buttons you could have picked." I then wonder, "just to save how many cents?". Same with the door, it just feels chintzy.
[this post was last edited: 3/12/2017-14:32]

 

[pierreandreply4]

lots of factor comes in when it comes to front load washers

well there are alot of factors that comes when deciding to buy a front load thats what i have right now but not closing the door eather on going back to a good old fashion top load washer,

1 capacety of the washer for the wash drum

2 cycle needed and wash time for the load

3 years of use right now i have a 13 year old whirlpool duet washer dryer set going on its 14 year of use this summer no repairs on the washer only a service cleanup on the dryer because of to much lint but there will come a time when they will need to be replace and the big question is do you went to spend time having a tech because the washer is defective since day 1 if it would of been the case mny mom and i would of ask the store where we purchuse or whirlpool duet to exchange the model on day 1 there are alot of factors to think of but the main point of my post is depends on how many load per weeks or days the washer will be use.

 

[mark_wpduet]

Pierre

Your duet is older than mine. I know back then they were built in Germany - Maybe that's why? LOL. Why do I get the feeling that we will not be so lucky with our next set? Then again, I said the same thing about this set when I got it. I thought in 2005 there would be NO way I would still have this machine continuing to work in 2017

@ agitated - Some real disagreements in this post regarding SQ longevity. Personally, I've never had a SQ but I'm sure their machines are built much better than WP or LG/Samsung, GE, etc. I think you have been unlucky and just gotten a hold of a really buggy machine where something is wrong somewhere. What surprises me most is that they won't replace the thing (especially at this point), which is kind of a turn off and shocking since they are so expensive.

 

[pierreandreply4]

mark_wpduet

thank you mark_wpduet my secret is for 1 thing thanks to this site i have seen the light and now wash light color heavy duty using hot water heavey duty cycle colors warm water but my secret is i do not neglect doing a monthly cleanup using eather tide clean regular bleach white cycle or just water let the washer run a full cycle empty and it cleans it using hot water of course so far doing my home work when after chrismas my mom and i had to replace the dishwasher while in the store i have look at the speed queen topload model awn432 and its matching dryer would use the same pattern sure its a top load but my mom and i have not close the door on buying frontload because in the long term we went a stack set and stack the dryer on top the washer but doing that means costly renos but its good to have options thats the set i have look and i like the old fashion timer knob but not du to be replace yet but if my mom and i have to since i am the one doing the laundry for my mom and i speed queen would be my number1 choice