Speed Queen Front Loaders/Commerical Models

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Question for Laundress

Hey Laundress,

I have a question for you. I had the Frigidaire FL for 8 years and then the bearings went out on it. I was curious about the Commercial front load Speed Queens. With the type of wear they would get, say 12 hours of almost constant use each and every day, how long would the bearings typically last on them? I wouldn't be surprised if they needed to be replaced on a yearly basis. I mean if you consider a typical household has even one load per day (and that seems pretty high), a commercial Speed Queen would be working the equal of 20 years of home use in one year!
 
Far as I know bearings on commercial front loaders can go ages before being replaced if ever during service. It is common for bearing to be changed during a refit such as when an older washer is being stripped/rebuilt/repaired before being sold as "used" laundry equipment. Will ask our local laundromat owner and see what his thoughts are.

IIRC correctly much has to do with the type of bearings, how/if they are sealed and placment. Obviously a "cheap" FriGeMore unit which had bearings as part of the plastic outer drum assembly is not going to be the same as heavy duty commercial bearings which are sealed and separate. It has been explained to me that if bearings are of good quality and sealed against water/detergent getting in, they can go ages.

Thing to keep in mind is that commercial front loaders especially laundromat units are designed to be easily serivced and if need be rebuilt. This is why one sees 30 year old or more Wascomat units still around, happily in service. Mind you they lack some of the bells and whistles of modern units, but they get the job done. If you ever take peek inside a commercial front loader, you will see they are VERY basic units. Built for the duration, but easily serviced and if one knows how, taken apart.

Launderess
 
Need More Speed Queen Info....

I have been watching with interest this thread on Speed Queens. I am in the market for a stacked FL W/D unit. I have been looking hard at the Maytag stacked unit (MLG2000A), Fridgidaire (GLTF2940)and LG (2277 or 2075) stackables. I have looked at the Speed Queen site. They too have a stacked set. Priced $1800-1900 in my area, altho no one carries this particular unit to be looked at, I am wary of buying something like this sight unseen. The size and basic choices are OK by me. Has anyone here actually purchased a more recent model of Speed Queens? What is their reliability record? How well do they wash and are they gentle on clothes?
Thanks for all the really interesting information...you're all such a wealth of knowledge.
Emily
 
I have Speed Queens

Emily:

I purchased Speed Queens in early March and am very happy with them. I used to have an Asko set which was great but I was disappointed with the capacity and longer wash times. I switched to LG's which were refurbished and after a month they went back as the washer never would spin.

I now have the ATS90AWN washer (front load no heater) and AES68AWF dryer. My laundry is not terribly soiled so the shorter cycle time and not having an internal heater is not a problem for me. Cycle time for the regular wash is 30 minutes and the dryer is quick as well. The spin on the washer is louder than the Asko but no big deal.

I have given a link to that home site which has a laundry room forum and went ahead and did a search for Speed Queen. Quite a while ago somebody on there had purchased the stacked unit that you are looking at and was quite happy as well. I did not find there posting and am not sure if they have an archive.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Jim

http://ths.gardenweb.com/search/nph-ind.cgi?term=speed+queen&forum=laundry&forum_name=Laundry+Room
 
Speed Queen (35 lb.) Commericial Just Posted on Ebay

I was just on ebay. I did a search for speed queen. It is common to see the smaller speed queens commercial front loaders listed (25 lb.). Tonight, however, there is a 35 lb. model listed. The person stated he bought it a few years ago for $3,000.

If you are interested, check it out (post is for five days) for the pictures. They have a whole series of pictures from every angle both inside and outside of the machine. Here is something I found of interest. One of the pictures was the model number plate. In addition to listing its capacity as 35 pounds, it listed its voltage requirement as 208-240. I never thought about it, but are all of the commercial speed queens FL 208/240 voltage? Or are the small units (25 pound capacity) 110? Also interesting is that you can see that the top of the machine clearly has hinges on the back, so the repairman can insert a key and just push up the top. I guess the front comes right off too for easy access.
 
Have peeped at the voltage for smaller units at the local laundromat from about 12lbs to 35lbs and they all run on 208v voltage. IIRC most SQ frontloader excpet the "Homestyle" light commercial models run on 208v power. There are however some smaller coin units which run on 110v power, however do not know if they are still in production. See the following link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Speed-Queen-Fro...ryZ25390QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
 
As an eBay Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Easy Access

Most if not all commercial frontloaders, at least those recently built are designed for "easy front access". After all these units normally bolted down into concrete and have gravity drains, not to mention weigh in at about 300lbs more or less. In short they do not move very easily! *LOL*

Also quite a few laundromat/commercial laundry owners like to do their own repairs (to save on costs and keep down time low), and easy front access makes repairs that much easier.

Launderess
 
Today I went down to our local coin laundry and had to wash our queen size comforter, one of our dogs got sick last night, yuk.
I ended up using a Wascomat Senior 124 machine. I sat there and watched it work. It used generous amounts of water, about 1/3 up the door and was very splashy! I used All HE detergent. The rinse water was very clean after those high speed spins between rinsing cycles(3).
I was not only amazed at how much water went into the drum on all cycles, but how quiet the machine actually was. It was almost silent during the wash & rinse mode. Now the spin start was just like a jet engine spooling up. The whole cycle from start to finish was about 30 minutes. And the comforter was perfectly clean when done.
I looked at the power requirements for this washer, 208-240V 3 Phase! I imagine it really drinks the juice!
Unfortunately, I used one of those SQ Commercial Dryers and set it on "low" and 10 minutes later, when I checked on the drying progress I could smell the fabric burning! That dryer got so hot I could hardly touch the comforter, and that was on low!
 
SQ Cion Op Horizon Machine

I have had that SQ Horizon machine in like on ebay, in my tenants unit for 5 years. She is a big washer, almost everyday. It has run and run without a problem for all that time! A real record when you consider I bought her a commercial Staber and spent EVERY OTHER WEEKEND under the thing trying to keep it going!

I would not hesitate at all buying the home version as it has most of the same components.
I must say I was shocked to see the low amount of water it uses! I saved a bundle but was worried my tenants would end up dirty looking or have rashes all over them! No such thing! Even the newborn has no rashes so the SQ really rinses out well but the clothes never look more than damp!

One feature they really love is the roulette feature. You can program whatever sequence you like but I have it set to 1 out of every 139 washes will be FREE and the console will flash FREE when it comes up! They rush the laundry into the machine everytime that happens!
 
New Speed Queen Front Loaders

Today I had lunch near this ancient coin laundry. I get a kick in walking through and seeing the really old and worn front loaders (but still keep plugging away despite missing parts of lower front panels).

Today I was surprised as all the old front loaders were still there, but they had replaced one half of their Speed Queen top loaders with brand new Speed Queen front loaders. First time I have seen these in a laundry. Rather than stainless steel, they are white. Rather than having the nice big door of the "double load" Speed Queen, they have a door that I think is even smaller than the one on the older Frigidaire front loader. I can understand why a laundry would need more smaller capacity machines, but it is a shame to see them give up the stainless steel panels.

In any case, I am certain these are the same machines that are also available for the home.
 
The new machines have a larger capacity than the toploaders. They are a drop in replacement -- no need to bolt down, have a pump drain, and 110 volt standard plug. And since California is the most Energy Star Nazi state, you will see more and more FL's being installed in place of TL's.
 
Louis, the point is is that government has no business in the private lives of it's citizens. Least of all dictating which type of washer we will be forced to use in the future.

Pat
 
I don't know what govt agency is making up the new "washer" laws-but in the interest of helping Katrina and Rita victims recover-how'bout shutting that agency down-scrapping those regs-and using the funds saved-and helping those folks out-We don't need them telling folks what washers to buy.Its sort of like vacuums--upright Vs canister.Let the BUYER decide.I feel we need to get the govt OUT of the laundry room,the bathroom,and the kitchen.With those agencies shut down-We could really do some serious helping out!!
 
Yes--Would love to see "Energy Star" go away-let these energy and water issues be handled LOCALLY where it belongs and the decisions of customers WHERE IT BELONGS-Not the Know-nothing Govt!!What do they know about appliances??they need to read this site.I definely see the need for energy-water saving devices in areas where water and power is expensive-but why force it on everyone-whats the point-they are paying for something they may not need.FL machines are interesting--but like some vacuums-GROSSELY OVERPRICED to gain the benefit.Much like Hybrid cars that are started to be promoted.I have driven one-very nice-but its price isn't saving me any money no matter what the price of gas is.At the monthly payments the dealer quoated me for the car--it would actually be cheaper for me to hire a cab or limo to take me to and from work!!
 

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