Time for a new dryer in Melbourne

[wilkinsservis]

Westinghouse ( but was made by Electrolux ) dryer ( sensor 5 kg ) stopped working on Sunday ( 5 days before due to go OS on holidays ! ). I think 6 years old so dont expect more ( I like things to run then die ( not limp along )) Repairs and repair men take too much time! Want a dryer in Australia that will last 7 years only. Thinking about a vented or condenser Bosch. Thoughts anybody? Fisher and Paykel get good reviews from Cannstar but previous dryer was F+P and not impressive.

 

[aquarius1984]

Without a doubt

Bosch Serie 8 - Heat Pump Condenser.

Having used ours for a good 5 months on everything I could possibly want to wash it has flawlessly performed and produced perfectly dry uncreased and untangled wash loads.

Learn how to use it properly which means washing same group items in the same wash load to start with i.e towels all together, bedding all together, mixed clothing loads etc etc will yield perfect dry untangled loads. Have managed to conclude that all the poor reviews online centred around tangling is pure user error due to not washing the right loads together.

They dont reverse but this presents no issues if you are washing loads correctly in the first place. Button up your duvets covers to prevent balling. Dry full loads of bedding to prevent balling, set the dry level correctly and the washing machine spin speed correctly for poly cottons and you wont have creases at all.

Not only does this dryer make light work of dring it also costs very little to run which means all in all it completely out performs any vintage vented or new dryers out there. Hardly any lint is produced, animal hair is removed really well and if you wash garments with a tissue it simply collects in the filter as the low heat of the dryer means it does not bake onto clothes like any other dryer.

There really is no need for oversize american style dryers gobbling up loads of energy when these Bosch dryers dont produce creases if used correctly, and given how good the heat pumpdryers are getting I hope it is only a matter of time before a cull on normal wasteful vented and ondenser dryers is called for.

One other huge bonus is the Bosch machines have self cleaning condensors and TOL models have a pump and hose to discharge waste water away meaning it is maintenance free bar emptying the filter.

One other thing - the Bosch sErie 8 machines dry VERY QUICKLY. I can get through a full 9kg cotton load set to cupboard dry in around 2hours 20 minutes. The programme time it tells you is a worse case scenario and it almost always shaves an hour off within 10 minutes. Even a vintage vented dryer takes aroud 2 to 2 1/2 hours to dry this amount given you have to split the load and go back to unload/reload.

 

[sbond22]

Don't hold back...

...tell us how much you really like this dryer. The only thing keeping me from running out and buying one is that it's 3:30 in the morning here.

 

[vacbear58]

Bosch

In defence of Rob (Aquarius1984), whom I happen to know personally, he has used a wide variety of modern machines as well as having an extensive vintage collection so has a lot of experience of different machines. He is also vary particular about his laundry (far more so than I am for example), so I know he would not have given such a glowing report of the Bosch unless it was 100% justified.

Al

 

[nmassman44]

2 hours + to dry a load is not fast in my book, that's incredibly slow for a 9 kg load. My LG dryer will dry that size load in 35 mins and yes it's vented and at 7.4 cu ft is plenty big for my needs. But this is an American sized dryer. I have seen the compact Euro dryers that are sold here like Bosch,Miele, Samsung and LG dryers, and I can't imagine spending 2 + hours drying a load that has been spun at 1200 rpms....

 

[logixx]

it's vented and at 7.4 cu ft

And that's why you are comparing apples to oranges. Oversized dryers aren't readily available to everyone. For me, for example, I'd have to spend thousands on a commercial dryer and have someone come in an put in a 400V line and a vent - in both cases through concrete walls.

 

[combo52]

Best performing Dryers For Home Use

Are American Full sized Gas heated vented dryers, next best dryers are full sized vented electric dryers and after this a full sized Heat-Pump dryer if you can't vent outside [ but so far there aren't many of these on the market ]

 

Smaller 24" dryers simply can't hold a big enough load and simply can not dry normal loads [ 8-12 pairs ] of things like blue jeans and have them come out in a wrinkle free condition.

 

A great dryer should be able to dry clothing at safe low temperatures in under to well under one hour to minimize clothing damage and wear.

 

For any one that has Natural Gas the cost of operating a gas dryer is very low anywhere in the world. Propane while not nearly as cheap as NG can be a good alternative if the cost of electricity is high or a heavy enough electrical line is not available.

 

Some of the above remarks are assuming that the washer being used spins at at least 1000 RPMs.

 

[brisnat81]

Hi peter,

At the cheap end I'd go f&p vented, it's not impressive but it should work for years. Once you go up in price I'd start with the Bosch vented and then the Bosch or Miele heat pump.

We got Michaels mum one of the Thai made f&p dryers to replace the original and it works exactly the same as the earlier one. The reason they're not as accurate as a more expensive dryer is that the sensor dry is thermostat based not electronic,

It all depends how much you want to spend. I wish Miele still made a vented dryer here, I have our Miele air source condenser dryer.

Cheers

Nathan

 

[mattywashboy]

I have one of the Fisher and Paykel AeroCare 8kg Condensor dryers. I find it a fantastic machine, has a wide range of programs and dry temperatures so you can adapt the cycle to your liking. It dries perfectly every time, looks awesome and holds a huge amount of washing.

That's my recommendation, at work we have a 6kg Electrolux Sensor dryer that is also very good

Matt

 

[Marky_Mark]

I have a Miele T1 heat pump dryer.  Drying a load in this dryer consumes around half the energy of a vented electric, vented gas or electric condenser dryer.

 

However gas is typically around one-third the price of electricity.  So even though a vented gas dryer does use twice the energy of a heat pump dryer, a gas dryer will still typically work out slightly cheaper.  Gas rates tend to be fixed whereas electricity rates can be tiered and also based on time-of-use for some customers in some places.

 

Electricity in Australia is mostly generated by burning fossil fuels.  Although a gas dryer uses twice the energy of a heat pump dryer, this is still thought to be better for the environment as you are still emitting less carbon dioxide by using a gas dryer.

 

So if you can get a gas dryer, this would be the way forward.  I used to have a Maytag Neptune gas dryer and it worked very well and had accurate moisture sensors and could dry quickly at low heat.  But it did ball bedding.  If you must have electric then I would say a vented would be a better choice than a condenser.  This is because they typically dry faster, they don't give out heat to the room, they leave the load cool and dry at the end, they normally use slightly less electricity, they are simpler and can often be quieter and cheaper to buy. 

 

However if you don't have a dryer vent installed and you can't install one for some reason, then I would say a heat pump dryer would be a good choice rather than a traditional condenser.  This is because they give out far less heat to the room than a regular condenser and they consume half the energy of a regular condenser but are usually more expensive to buy and can be noisier or sound like a portable air conditioner.

 

[ronhic]

We've the 6kg version of the Westinghouse dryer mentioned.

The sensor side of the programming went about 3 years ago and was repaired by Electrolux at their cost even though well out of warranty. The timer side still worked.

It started to 'clunk' earlier this year. The plastic guide cog for the belt had partly collapsed. So $65 for a new belt and cog plus an hour of my time to sort and she runs like a champ.

If you aren't fussed about electronic controls or sensor drying, buy the 6kg Simpson version. We soon learn how long things take from towels to sheets to mixed loads and these still reverse tumble assisting with more even drying.

I've toyed with buying a Beko heat-pump dryer to pair with the Beko washer. We do dry about 4 loads a week, but came to the conclusion that unless you're drying virtually every load or are unable to vent adequately...anything other than a basic dryer in Oz might well be something of an excess.

 

[whirlykenmore78]

Would this SQ dryer suit your needs?

This is similar to what I have and I am happy with it.  Mine's electric but I would recommend gas if you can.

WK78

Australia | Speed Queen | Laundromats, Multi-Housing and On-Premises Laundry

speedqueen.com.au

 

[wilkinsservis]

For reasons that arent even clear to me ...

I came home having bought a LG 8 kg condenser at just over $ 1 000. Actually there were two reasons for this . Our kind and long suffering cleaning lady chronically over loads machines ( and also washes wool jumpers at 60 o C on normal wash but that's another story ... ). And when I was in Washington DC two weeks ago at the hotel I used a big Maytag dryer and was impressed at how less wrinkled things came out of the larger drum. This was the biggest volume cavity I could find. The LG is all glitz and glamour but drying performance seems routine and behind the frills the build and material quality is a bit " cheap and cheerful " . Time will tell.