Whirlpool HybridCare Dryer Review

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But, the HybridCare isn't a combo washer/dryer. It's simply a condensing heat pump dryer, which most of the eastern world has adopted as a primary dryer type. Not only that, the HC still has a traditional heating element, and when set to do so, can dry a load of clothes in the same quick fashion that a conventional vented dryer can, with the only exception being that the compressor still runs in order to pull the moisture out of the air and drain it away, rather than throwing heated moist air outdoors. Even in this mode, it saves more energy than a vented machine.

While I do agree that the vent grille could be mounted on the front of the machine, I don't see the fuss about grabbing your vacuum's extension tube and nozzle and giving it a few swipes. The only issue I can see with that are these "minimalist" folks who want their machines installed in premade cabinets as one would a dishwasher or refrigerator, which I find to bring up numerous other issues as well with any frontloading pair, but I just sit in the corner looking over thin-framed glasses sipping my tea in regards to that subject.

This is the first generation of this machine, and as Whirlpool has been known with many innovations of the past, will spark more competition from the other manufacturers. I won't be surprised to see LG and Samsung with copycat machines soon, where GE will follow suit, and etc.
 
No, it isn't

a combo washer/dryer, but same long dry time.
Whirlpool once made an electric range called the "Polaris". It had a cooling unit for the oven so you could put cold meals and meats in, then keep them chilled until the start set time for the oven began cooking. It's design style matched the Calypso washer.
Sales must have been sluggish at best.
If I am away all day, I prepare the meal with frozen meat, season, and set the oven for start and cook time. By the time it begins cooking, it may be thawed, but still cold. Also, any selmonella bacteria which may have only began to develop is killed by a sustained roasting temp. of 275 degrees f.
Also, most who can afford fresh cuts of prime meat and do not freeze them are either able to be home the day they cook it, or have a cook, or housekeeper to tend to it.
 
AFAIK, all LG washer/dryer combos are ventless condenser dryers. They're only suitable for people who want/need their own washer and dryer and only have a 120v outlet to work with and/or space for just one machine. 

 

If one has access to venting, 240v line, or gas there are likely better dryer options.

 

That said, I can see a lot of people living in older cities in the northeastern U.S.A buying these units.

 

Jim

 

 
 
The washer dryer combos are a complete different thing. They are watercooled condenser and as said run on 120V, thus takeing longer.

The heatpump units of the WP and LG units are only in the medium 1-2kW range I guess, but are further boosted by a conventional resistive heater.

The LG is vented, which confuses me a lot. Why and how would they?
 
Whirlpool Sales?

I wonder how many of these dryers Whirlpool has sold in the US. They remain a special order item at the retailers I have checked. Further, there are still salespeople that don't even know what a heat pump dryer exists...

Malcolm
 
Nor would most

consumers care. Longer cycle times is a negative selling point.
I can tell you several people I know say keep your older machines over high efficiency ones for that reason alone.
Sort of like a water saver shower head vs. a non saver. If it takes longer to shower and rinse off, how is it saving? Now lower amperage draw and or some water use over several households may add up to real energy savings, but it's an inconvenience.
Then again, using ten amps for an hour, or 20 amps for a half hour. or a gallon per minute for 5 minutes vs a half gallon per minute for 10 minutes is apples to oranges.
 
Agree...

Although I am very interested in the technology. Plus, the 3+ hours cycle times observed in the original post were at the lowest heat setting. Under normal operating temperatures, the dryer would have to perform better on the time table.

I just wonder if there have been problems with this model. And it seems interesting that you never hear anything about them. I see plenty of Maytag commercials and the Cabrio TL, but nothing else.

Malcolm
 
Wait -

So this hybrid care is a condenser dryer, right? But it has an additional heating element that can dry as fast as a vented dryer if one chooses? I just want to make sure I understood that correctly - If that's true, I wouldn't mind having one. I wouldn't have an issue cleaning filters.
 
Essentially it does

condense, but by using a heat pump compressor. You empty it like a dehumidifier.
Even though the technology isn't problematic if you can select a regular heating element dry cycle, why pay for it then?
 
As with ventless dryers otherwise, can only see these WP units being purchased is for situations where one cannot or will not use a vent. Otherwise as noted above, why bother?

Here in NYC where they are converting old office/commercial buildings to housing and or building new a washer and dryer are now considered almost standard equipment by prospective tenants/buyers. Often due to layout of building some or all units simply cannot have vented dryers, so condenser or whatever are the only option. Well that and the dreaded laundry room in basement where dryers are hooked up a central vent line.
 
Why pay for it?

well since moving into my brand new home in 2004, my dryer vents through the roof and I freaking HATE it! The first few years, even as frequent as every 3 months, I would have to clean the run, and the exhaust cap on the roof would also get lint stuck on it, and it's on the very edge of the very steep roof pitch. I would have to use a long pole with a brush taped on the end of it, AFTER using a leaf blower, standing on a ladder.

I discovered a post on gardenweb years ago where a lady and her husband lived in a condo and they experienced the same problem. Their solution was to put a pain strainer inside the part that runs from the back of the dryer to the wall, catching any additional lint that would escape the first lint screen. Then clean it every 2 weeks, keeping the entire vent run clean. I've been doing this for years and there is no build of of lint in the run at all...Since I'm the only one to do laundry, I keep that cleaned frequently. You should see the amount of lint it catches. Luckily, with my setup, I can pretty easily get behind the dryer.

It is a pain but it is NOT nearly as much of a pain as cleaning the entire vent run and roof exhaust cap -
If you live in a house where the dryer exhausts directly outside - you are so lucky.

so yes, I could see this being better in my setup.
 
When I lived

in my last apartment, I had a portable Whirlpool washer and dryer, and I vented through the bedroom window like those portable air conditioners.
Whirlpool has gotten enough of my money in 30 years.
 
Vacerator: "...how is it savings?"

 

I think we all agree with your point. However, I think it's too complicated for most consumers to understand. If a new thing uses only half the electricity the old one does, it's saving energy. Period. That the new one has to run twice as long is simply NOT in the equation. Period. And in the minds of most people, you have a screw loose if you think it is.

 

Malcolm: Good point about possible product issues. IMO, if this dryer is still relatively unknown and people on AW are actually unclear about its workings, there's a serious problem somewhere in marketing & distribution. 

 

I'm curious as to whether these dryers are actually that much faster than the drying cycles in LG combo models. If not, then what's the point?

 

Jim   
 
A condenser dryer is much gentler on clothes than a traditional dryer, which to some people is a major selling point over drying time. The fact that the HybridCare is equipped with heating elements to allow it to dry just as fast or faster than a traditional, but without wasting that heat by throwing it outside, is to negate that "drawback" of longer cycle times for when a person is pressed for time. For myself, I don't wait next to my machines fidgeting in my chair for it to be done, and I'd much rather my clothes go through a gentler cycle, so I've already decided my next appliance purchase will be the HybridCare or whatever is best by that time.

It's already been proven by many that a lower power machine that runs longer than a previous design still saves energy in comparison. We bought a KillAWatt device not long ago and tested various things around the house, and at one point I connected the new Whirlpool dishwasher to it and ran a normal cycle, with just 1 kWh being its usage for a three hour, heavy soil instance. The PowerClean, on the other hand, used about 2.6 kWh in its normal cycle, with the motor using much higher wattage than the high-efficiency pump on the 920. And in both cases, dishes come out spotless as always, though the 920 may actually surpass the PowerClean simply because of the longer main wash, where the detergent and enzymes have more time to work. I've had many a speck or smudge from the PC that seemed oddly easy to clean, that I've never had left over in the 920.

@vacerator - Some condenser dryers do require manual emptying, but the HybridCare dryer we're talking about here has a dedicated pump to drain into the same port as the washer, or into a nearby sink, so the owner doesn't have to worry about any hassle as opposed to a traditional machine, aside from cleaning the second filter periodically.
 
Additionally...

If your laundry room is inside your air conditioned space, exhausting air you have paid to cool to 72 degrees then heated to 150 is just crazy. Eliminating the 200 CFM of outside air entering your conditioned space takes quite a load off your ac. The additional 600 dollars in machine cost could be gained over the course of one or two summers...

Malcolm
 
Vacerator, I wonder sometimes if you even read back to yourself what you type.

No, it most certainly is not "same difference" because a condenser dryer uses MUCH lower temperatures than a traditional heating element dryer. Have you ever opened a dryer set even at medium or low heat before it has started its cool down period, or when it's at its peak? The interior and the clothes themselves are nearly too hot to touch. The last time I measured a dryer with a thermometer, it reached 250F. You can't tell me that kind of heat doesn't cause tremendous wear to clothes over time.

A condenser dryer relies on the principle of actually -removing- the moisture from the air it is recirculating through the clothes, rather than super heating the air and pushing the heat and humidity out of the house, or worse, back into the room. The heat that is generated by the conpressor and coils is about the same as what comes out of the vents of a home with an HVAC heat pump system, which is pleasantly warm. The low heat still aids the drying process some, but the primary removal of moisture is done by the moisture in the air being condensed and drained out. That is indisputably gentler on fabrics of all types than baking the water out in a glorified oven.
 
Well I'm older,

and have more insurance, but I do read, and think before I write. I still learn everyday, and I have tried to dry a delicate garment on air dry, and it took forever, so how low is low? I don't go that low anymore. I have also discovered that a lint screen not cleaned after one load can actually help retain some heat in the dryer, because why else would the second load an hour later, after the dryer had cooled down be done in less time? I also remove clothing well before the cool down time, like with ten minutes left, and low and behold, it is fully dry.
Like I said, I've helped support the jobs of all Whirlpool employees, executives, and the portfolios of it's shareholders for 30 years, as well as GE, so I can give an educated guess on any of their products.
You may not agree and that's fine, unlike a person in a supermarket who swung her cart around and nailed me in the knee and tried to tell me I was fine. I ended up needing surgery. No, I didn't sue the store, I sued her and won, but I only sued for my medical bills and lost work time.
 
You have to differ between heatpump powered, water cooled (as in most combos today) and aircooled condenser dryers.
Air cooled once usually run even hotter then vented ones, don't "dry the air" just as well (plumes of steam if you open it mid cycle) and are a bit less efficent on their own (that is not considering the whole ACed air exhaustion topic).
Water cooled systems run even hotter then the air cooled ones in most cases, aren't any more efficent and require lots of water for drying.
Heatpump dryers are best described in one simple comparison: You know these portable AC units? These that run at ~2kw? They cool a well sized room. Now, imagine, a unit about half as powerfull, but for about 1% the air volume. That is how they dry.
 
anyone who has this dryer

just for kicks, can you wash a large load of laundry, then dry it on the speed setting (which uses the heating element) and time it to full dry?

I would really appreciate it. Thanks
 

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