2940 vs 2140
I've owned the 2140 since late March 2006. I am very pleased with the operation. Clothes come out very clean. No skipped spins during rinse as some posters here have reported. I have mine in a stacked arrangement because my laundry area, in a rear alcove of the garage, has a bollard (concrete filled steel pipe) to protect the appliances from a runaway car. This is mandated by county law (Orange County, CA). In my case, the gas water heater, gas dryer, and gas furnace are adjacent to one another. So a car accidentally shifted into forward could take out three gas lines (with burners lit). Some people cut out the bollard, but there is some confusion whether it has to be restored to meet housing code should the home be sold. So I stacked my pair in the dryer space and use the washer space for a folding table.
I saved about $100 by choosing the 2140 rather than the 2940. The latter has two nice features lacking in the 2140: Automatic Temperature Control and a variable delay timer. ATC is not that important for me, because I'm in a temperate climate and the water heater is adjacent to the washer.
If someone's washer were far from the heater, and/or the cold tap water is icy cold, ATC would be a nice feature to have. (note: ATC in this model work on only Cold and Warm settings; there is no onboard heater, so Hot setting means straight hot tap water).
The 2140 does have a delay timer, but only one option: eight hours. At first I didn't see the point of delay timers. I didn't have to worry about running loads overnight, since my machines are in the garage and I don't hear the noise. But as this was my first FL machine, I soon realized that loads that took 20-30 minutes in a TL can take 60-90 minutes in this model, depending on cycle and options selected. The Heavy Cycle with Extra Spin/Extra Rinse/Heavy soil options stretches to about 90 minutes.
So at 21:00 or 22:00, I'm not likely to be able to wash a load and then dry it, unless it's something like towels that don't need to be promptly removed and folded/placed on hangers. And since the washer is sealed, I don't like the idea of wet laundry sitting inside for eight hours before I remove it for drying in the morning.
So I began using the delay timer more and more, mainly to start the wash at 05:00 or so, so that I can dry and remove the load in the morning while getting ready for work or the day's activities. Some US utilities now charge less for consumption in off-peak hours, which further increases the attractiveness of washing overnight.
The 2940 has variable delay, 2-12 hours. This is more useful than my fixed eight hour delay. If I go out after supper, it would be nice to throw in a load and have it wash 10 hours later. If I come home late, a four or six hour delay would be nice. Would I have shelled out another $100 for it? Probably not, but now the price gap between the two machines is closer to $50, and at that price I would select the 2940.
Actually, looking at the website of a large LA-area retailer, Universal Appliance, they now sell the 2940 for $10 LESS than the 2140.
http://www.universal-akb.com/frigwas1.html (the matching dryer with glass window is $30 more than the windowless dryer that matches the 2140, but I'd hardly call that a bait and switch tactic).
If this price situation is the same for those of you elsewhere, I'd go for the 2940. Delay timing may become more important in the future if utilities begin to price their electricity according to hours of peak demand.
(ps: don't worry, the machines ARE level---I'm just not so good at holding the camera level!!!)
