The GE HydroWave: What did you think of them?

[maytaglover68]

I heard a lot of bad things about GE Model-Ts and HydroWaves, but in my opinion they weren’t too bad and Model-Ts didn’t explode if you loaded them properly. In fact, there are way more videos of VMWs failing than Model-Ts or HydroWaves.

I had a nice 1990s Kenmore direct drive and it failed in 2019 and I bought this Whirlpool WTW5000DW3 whose bearings failed within 5 years. Should’ve repaired it and changed the transmission but I fell for the VMW trap. I don’t like impeller machines either. The DAA VMWs wash better but they fail the same way.

I know several people with newer VMWs with bad bearings, one with a Whirlpool WTW5010LW0, one with the NTW4516FW3, and one with the WTW4816FW3.

Anyways, let’s get back on the HydroWave topic, the HydroWaves were pretty unique and were one of the first high efficiency washing machines. The Model-T and HydroWave was a piece of GE history, but they weren’t as reliable as the filter flo. Also, Model-Ts had decent cleaning performance if it wasn’t overloaded. Overloaded Model-Ts have no rollover. The HydroWaves did have problems with bearings in the mode shifters but otherwise they weren’t bad for modern machines, and the bearing issues on the Hydrowave was mainly caused by a failure of the seal causing water to wear out the bearing. They had no lid lock which was a plus, many had mechanical timers, and they had a better suspension system than the VMW machines. The HydroWaves also were quiet, they weren’t that loud. The Model-Ts weren’t too loud on spin cycle but agitation was somewhat noisy as expected for an older washer. It was also one of the last washers actually made by GE. GE’s newest machines are manufactured by Haier.

GE’s newest machines are just slightly modified Whirlpool VMWs, they aren’t that good and have the same reliability issues as a Whirlpool VMW.

You can easily get 20 years out of a Model-T and 15 years out of a HydroWave if you maintain them properly. You still see plenty of these listed for sale.

 

[gelaundry4ever]

my candid thoughts

Honestly, I hated them. The agitation was so weak that it never turned over full loads. It sounded like it was gonna fall apart. and the last ones I used I had to restart the full cycle all over again to insure the soap was all rinsed out. I've used one in a college dorm. The matching dryers were just as bad. Clothes never got dry even on the cottons setting. I had to run them numerous times to get my clothes dry.[this post was last edited: 5/8/2025-12:33]

 

[cfz2882]

"Ask the man who owns one"

I have one from around 2008-2009 that is in semi-regular use:still going strong-it is the mechanical timer version with the fluted plastic basket.Cheaply made,but has been doing what is supposed to since i got it new,smashed up in shipping accident,for $50 in 2009 The Hanning PM wet rotor pump has always been loud as hell with nasty vibration.Wash is super quiet,spin is a bit loud as inverter driven 3 phase motor revs up to around 10,000 RPM at max spin speed. More details to follow

 

[estesguy]

There's a lot of Hydrowave haters on this website, but I've owned 3, myself, and my 2 kids. The dual action agitator has good turn over, mine rarely goes out of balance, and if it wasn't for the electric pump, they are fairly quiet. My first one was a 2007 model that replaced a 2000 Amana, that the bearings crapped out after 6 years, which replace a 1983 dancing Maytag, that couldn't remain still after we moved to a house with truss floors. I tried to get the tub replaced under warranty, but the local dealer wouldn't budge. The 2007 hydrowave that my daughter had, just recently had the mode shifter lock up after her husband did laundry while she was away for a month. Coincidence? Who knows, but she wanted a larger tub anyway, and bought an LG top loader. My son had one for several years, and the seal went out to where it was leaking this year, even tho it was still functioning ok. He's always wanted a front loader, so he now has an LG turbo wash. I still have my hydrowave from 2014, and only do a few loads of laundry a week. It's TOL, with digital countdown, and even has warm wash/warm rinse. So who knows how long it will last. And I have parts off Ebay to fix it, if necessary, but at my age will I have the ambition to do it? Stay tuned. So all of these have lasted from 10 to 17 years. I've had worse in my time. [this post was last edited: 5/8/2025-13:28]

 

[panasonicvac]

I'd certainly take a Hydrowave over anything that GE sells today (minus the front loaders) or even a SQ TR series. And recently on another thread from users bashing on the T models, now that makes me want one even more if I were to get a basement set for my next house.

 

[qsd-dan]

Brother had one, I played with it.

Large tub (water level could be higher, factory had it set a few tub row holes too low in my opinion).

Washed fine, a bit too aggressive for my tastes.

No lint filter.

Neutral drains (meh, not a fan).

ZERO spray rinse. Two big thumbs down on that!

Suspension seemed okay, nothing to write home about.

Tub spun at a decent speed.

I wouldn't go out an buy one, wouldn't even take one for free but it's (sadly) better than most junk top loaders these days.

 

[combo52]

GE Hydro wave top load washer

Were an improvement in efficiency over the T model GE top load washers, which were a huge improvement over the old filter flow machines.

GE has great engineers and they can make a product that performs great even their crappy dryers would often get the top rating and performance, but they didn’t hold up. Well, I figure a GE dryer Lasts about half as long as a whirlpool dryer for example.

But the Hydro waves like the T model machines had a number of serious failure points virtually all of the T model machines had a bad transmission withinthe first seven or eight years, the Hydro wave machines while more reliable had problems with mode, shifters and the inverter motor had a lot of failures and ultimately either one of them had problems with the main seal and bearing major repairs on both the T model and the Hydro wave machine were not worth doing after GE stopped giving away free transmissions for the T models, we stopped repairing them when the transmissions failed.

We have saved a T model GE for the museum so far I have not grabbed a Hydro wave model. We don’t have unlimited space so I’m not sure if I will or not.

John L

 

[thatwasherguy]

Honestly, they’re kind of a guilty pleasure for me…

I know they’re not good machines (like at all) from a design standpoint. I particularly despise the design of the motor having the electronic control board made as one with it, forcing one to change both if one or the other should fail. I also don’t think too much of the shifter design, or the suspension rods not having any dampening grease from the factory. I also feel that the motor is underpowered for the machine, as you can hear them struggling with a full load while it is agitating. However, I always liked the look of the mechanically controlled Hotpoint models, and thought that they had a much more pleasant sound than most other modern washers. On top of that, the reverse current tub brake is pretty cool to witness. I also feel that the rust proofing in them was above average for the time, as the ones I’ve seen don’t seem as crispy as some of the Whirlpool washers I’ve seen from the same time window. My Uncle still has a Hotpoint model from 2014, and I’ve gotten to use it a few times, and I find it to be a more enjoyable machine to use than a comparable VMW whirlpool. In fact, I’d actually kind of like to get a Hotpoint model with mechanical controls for the collection at some point (when I have more space, that is). That said, I personally wouldn’t want one as my only machine, or even my main machine.
Thatwasherguy.

 

[maytaglover68]

A lot of people hate HydroWaves/Model Ts on here. But I know someone who has their model T lasting 20 years and another with a 22 year old model T still going strong.

I also know someone with a GE HydroWave GTWN4250D1WS, this is the infusor version but it’s probably like 10 years old and it’s still working although the bearings are starting to go on that one. Spin cycle is very loud on it.

 

[maytaglover68]

Actually, it’s the agitator one, not infusor. Model GTWN4250D1WS. I thought that was an infusor model but I looked it up, and I believe that was the DAA version. It does still have bad bearings but otherwise works fine.

 

[maytaglover68]

And I know someone with a HotPoint HydroWave with the plastic inner drum at their apartment. I think the tub straps are failing on that one but it does work. The tub straps are failing I think.

 

[maytaglover68]

I believe my friend’s GTWN4250D1WS is a 2014, bearings only recently started getting noisy on it, very loud on spin cycle. It even has good shifter coils as it agitates normally, the bearings in it just are starting to fail. It replaced a Model-T from 2000 which failed in 2014, so even their model T had a long life. I believe the transmission failed on the model T.

I also know someone who had their Model-Ts last a while without any transmission or bearing failure.

I personally take a GE Model-T or HydroWave over any modern Whirlpool machine. My own washer is a modern VMW (WTW5000DW3), bearings failed after 5 years and it needed a shift actuator and a hub at one point. The washplate on that thing was a nightmare to take off. I know others with the WTW5010LW0, WTW4816FW3, and NTW4516FW3 with bad bearings. And the WTW5010LW0 VMW replaced a WTW5000DW0 with basket wobble, and the WTW5000DW0 replaced a 2010 WTW4950XW0 which the bearings failed early. The person with an Amana NTW4516FW3 actually replaced a direct drive that lasted 17 years before ti failed. The Whirlpool WTW4816FW3 replaced another VMW, I believe it was the older WTW4815EW1 which also had bearings fail before replacement, but that one lasted like 7-8 years before the bearings failed, while the new one lasted only 2 years before it happened, and that one replaced the older VMW (WTW4800XQ0) which had the suspension rods fail, and the WTW4800XQ0 replaced a Whirlpool direct drive that lasted a long time. I believe had the same problem before they got rid of it. And I get many VMWs in my shop with bad bearings, oil leakage, bad actuators, bad pumps, bad board, all of it.