Speed Queen top loaders

[brucelucenta]

Well, I guess I am wrong about Speed Queen top loaders of today. Apparently no other company makes a top load machine that fills up completely with water and washes like a traditional washing machine. Judging by the reviews and the fact that even consumer reports rates it #1 in not having fewest repairs, I guess they have probably worked out the problems they had in the past and have the best top load washer money can buy.

 

[gusherb]

Ours just turned 1 year old yesterday. I still get a thrill standing over it and listening/watching it merrily agitate the grime away.

 

[angus]

Interesting that the new Consumer Reports rated washers and dryers and doesn't mention a single Speed Queen model in the "detailed" ratings - at least not in the hard copy magazine.

 

[launderess]

Consumer Reports

Of today is fast becoming a rip off. It pales in comparison to what it once was to the point you don't want to bother.

Much of the good stuff is online which requires a separate payment on top of the subscription. Even then you still are not getting anywhere near the detail of old.

Haven't bothered with them in years...

If you have access to a library check to see if they offer free access to CR online as well as printed issues.

 

[glomain]

Bruce

thanks for retracting your thoughts,as a owner of a awn432sp speed queen washer I can say it washes & rinses clothes very well & is still made in the USA (which is a plus in this day & age),it looks,feels solid & well made, no frills just a washer that works. Greg

 

[brucelucenta]

I just worked on so very many of them made in the 70's, 80's and 90's with so very many problems, it somewhat soured me on them. I realize that a different company owns them now, but the design is very much like the design they had when they started making perforated tub machines. Apparently they have overcome most of the problems they had back then and redesigned them to a point of superior service with a minimum of repairs. They also seem to be one of, if not the only, machines that actually wash your clothes in the traditional way automatic washers have done so in all the years up to now. I happened to be at Lowe's yesterday and did notice a Hotpoint washer and dryer that looked very much like a traditional machine too. It was fairly plain, but had the water levels, a manuel timer dial and a regular agitator. Perhaps it works like a normal machine, perhaps not. I don't know. But it did appear to be like a traditional washing machine. I know they don't hold up well over time though. So I guess if buying a top load washer, Speed Queen really is the only choice it seems. As far as consumer reports goes, I don't rely on them for much. They are very bias toward the machines that use the least amount of water, regardless of performance. Interesting that they actually acknowledged Speed Queen top loaders as the least amount of servicing in the first 4 years, yet did not even rate them in their rating of machines.

 

[washman]

CR is at best

a substitute when you run out of Charmin. Or the generic stuff at Dollah General.

They lost me loooong ago with their absurd bias towards any USA made car whilst anything that had made in Japan stamped on it was like the 2nd coming of the Messiah.

Reviews would go something like this..............

New ____ (Fill in the blank Detroit model) no data, previous ______ (fill in the blank Detroit model)have been unreliable.

New _____ (Fill in the blank Jap car)no data, but like other ______ (fill in the blank Jap car) we expect it to be reliable.

While they may be free from COMMERICAL bias, they are far from being bias free.

I can get a better feel from James Healy's reviews in USA Today than I can from the 4 paragraph CR reviews.

Just sayin.

 

[wayupnorth]

CR has alwayes hated anything anything made in the US. Every foreign vehicle, rated the best. Every american made appliance is always at their bottom of the list. I wouldnt trust their reviews the length of Pinocchio's nose.

 

[mrsalvo]

For me, deciding on Speed Queen was a no-brainer, given the offerings out there today. I wanted the water, LOTS of it, because I care for an elderly parent. Laundering badly soiled clothes in 4 or 5 inches of water was not an option, you wouldn't wash YOUR clothes in the same loads that I have to wash, trust me. The very thought of washing in 4 inches of water literally turned my stomach.
Sorry, if I grossed you out.

I've found that Speed Queen, for my needs, suits perfectly. The thing weighs a ton, and its fast. I don't have 2 hours for one load of clothes.
It's a better washer than I've owned in a very long time, even beating out Kenmore that it replaced. The only negative thing I can think of is I think it could hold a few more clothes for what I paid for it, without fear of overloading.

But what I am tired of is negative comments that it is not HE. That somehow by not having an HE machine is considered irresponsible, old-fashioned, stupid, etc. etc. I get that during periods of drought we all need to conserve. I get that. But I also get that people, like myself, have different challenges in real life situations.
It's not the end all, be all, washer. But, it is very good.

 

[brucelucenta]

I too care for an elderly parent and believe me when I say that life has never been the same since….I had an excellent Maytag top load washer and dryer from about 1998 that worked perfectly. However, it would not hold a king size comforter, which got soiled frequently. I was tired of going to the laundromat just to wash this stupid comforter and looked for a washer and dryer that would do the job. I had replaced the refrigerator already, since I needed a much bigger one. I bought an LG made Kenmore, so I looked at what else Sears had to offer. I ended up replacing the rest of my kitchen appliances with matching stainless steel Kenmore Elite appliances and also bought the LG made washer and dryer they had. It is huge and does a terrific job on the comforter along with anything else I wash in it. The dryer dries everything pretty well too. Only wish it reversed tumble rotation too, so nothing would get rolled up into a ball. But all in all, it does quite well. The washer washes and rinses better than my Maytag did. It will rinse up to 3 extra rinses and still use less water than the Maytag did with one rinse. It also has a water heating feature called "Sanitize" that makes the water very hot along with a "steam treat" feature. It takes longer, but spins out so dry that it takes little time to dry things. So I am happy with them. With the way the government is restricting water usage, it is only a matter of time until everyone will be forced to make changes and discover the same thing that I have. Front load machines use far less water and are clearly the wave of the future. A top load machine simply cannot use the same amount of water that a front loader does to do the job and do it well. Just physically impossible. The top load HE machines twist, tangle and lint up clothing and cause undue wear and tear on them too. Speed Queen top loaders wash and rinse clothes quite well, but do not even come close to being able to wash really big bulky items like a king size feather comforter and use far more water to do it. The way they are designed, on a regular cycle all you get is a spray rinse unless you use the deep rinse setting. Even then, you only get ONE rinse, not two or three. For me, the only choice I could made was a super capacity front load machine and so far it is serving me very well. Up to the time I bought it, I HATED front load machines and never had any idea I would EVER own one. Necessity changed my mind about that and I learned that I was wrong. For those people who INSIST on having a top load washer, Speed Queen is probably the only one to have. But I wouldn't look for that to last much longer with the way the government is taking control of all this kind of thing.

 

[Chetlaham]

Latest mechanical dial Queen

Do these fill to the top or 2/3 up like the previous models?

http://www.speedqueen.com/products/top-load-washers.aspx?mn=AWN432SP113TW04#build-your-own

As for wash-ability, speed, reliability, clean-ability, ect, ect these are by far #1. I hope more people start buying them, they are worth every penny. And in all honesty, if the market shift was large enough, we could very well have Whirlpool, Frigidaire, and others step up their quality. The state of affairs that the appliance industry is in is beyond disgusting. Between self destructing LG/Samsungs, wet nap washers and machines that break in 3 years its far more than people should be putting up with.

About the only thing that is reliable and marginally resembles vintage appliances in durability are low end ranges. The rest is cheap, chintzy plastic. Unfortunately consumers as whole just don't get it. I was on You-tube watching videos where people were ranking on their new appliances. While half the comments were "they dont build them like they used to" the others were along the lines of "whats wrong with it?" "If it was made of gold you'd still find something to gripe about" The bulk of those comments come from young people. They just dont understand what quality looks like because they have never seen it. I hear sales people blab on about energy efficiency and how nice a steam dryer will work out. "Yahhh, my old washer had a metal tub" "Plastic is better because it does not rust or snag" To bad neither matters when the control board will fry in a few years costing half the washer.

I used to speak up in appliance stores when I saw consumers being BSed, but after the sales people made me persona non grata I simply stopped. I dont buy at bulk places like Sears anymore as is. They push extend warranties, installation, widgets and try to talk me out of the BOL I am trying to purchase. Remember once walking out 45 minutes latter when the sales guy practically refused to sell me a Galaxy insisting I would be happier with a Calypso. ROTFL! They have no idea who I am nor the fact the machine is getting modified as soon as I get it. My plan was to stick a 3 speed motor and an older Kenmore control panel with ATC. I just wanted a new machine to stick it all on. Lowes got the sale with a Roper. That and the fact some places Ive had trouble with delivery asking them to leave it in the box because delivery muppets aren't always careful. They take the machine out of the box before putting on the truck which had lead to incidents of it being scratched.