You asked for a Horizontal-Axis Top Load washer?

[arbilab]

Should note: Mine is "smuggled", neighbor a chronic complainer, no problem has arisen.  As well, building is flimsy, absolute minimum to squeak by code.  I do run it infrequently and redistribute if it shimmies.

 

The one remaining mainstream US appliance mfr is not going to come out with 'alternatives' and China only copies what's already been done.  Puts TLA in favorable position.

 

[yogitunes]

I too would like to see a video of it handling a load bigger than the Norge20 or Frigidaire 1-18!...

lets see, Pearl Bailey is not around anymore, but I bet Betty White would be a good spokesperson!

Avanti already offers a fully automatic machine with a No-Spin, No chime options...

 

[thomasortega]

John

It handles that load easily.

Of course, the dry load will be packed in the drum, but one is starts filling, the load saturates then there's room to wash them.

It depends, of course, on your definition of "large". The test is considering a standard "hotel" towel, not those Lacoste giant towels sold at Macy's. four of those towels would fill that LG top load washer that claims to have the largest drum in the world.

 

[thomasortega]

@yogitunes

Sure! Send me a 1-18! It will be my pleasure to compare...

I can't give you any guarantee that the 1-18 will go back. LOL

 

[sunspot42]

I have one of these!

So I got the Niagara over a year ago, to help cope with laundry during the pandemic. The laundry room in my building is ten floors down and surrounded by stinking garbage and recycling. No way am I washing my clothes down there. Disgusting.

I bought a cheap spin dryer first, but it was always out of balance, so I replaced it with the (slightly smaller) model from The Laundry Alternative. Unfortunately this forces me to usually run the Niagara slightly under capacity. On the plus side, that aids with rinsing and the clothes I think tend to get a bit cleaner.

My routine with this machine is to drop it and my spin dryer into my bathtub, so I don't have to worry about leaks or flooding. It's amazingly light for something so large - I have no trouble picking it up and plopping it in the tub. I set its feet and the spin dryer's on little foam feet to help isolate noise and vibration, and close the bathroom door while it's running. I actually have a compact soundbar in the bathroom, hooked up to an Amazon Echo Dot, and play a Spotify "Laundry" playlist while the machines are running to help cover the noise - lots of electronic music with deep grinding bass. My bathroom is right next to the front door and shares a wall with the hallway on one side and the vent shaft on the other, so it's important to disguise the noise as well as possible and this works great.

I run it thru a full cycle, remove the clothes, drop them in the spin dryer, partially refill the machine on the short wash cycle, then let it drain to remove soap residue and begin the rinse cycles over again. Once it refills for the rinse cycle I remove the clothes from the spin dryer and plop them in for another set of rinses, followed by a final trip thru the spin dryer and then off to a compact cheap tumble dryer I got off Amazon.

It's a hassle, but no more of a hassle than our nasty laundry room. And the machine paid for itself in weeks compared to taking my stuff to a local cleaners. During the pandemic I've been working from home and dressing light, so I don't do tons of laundry, meaning the extra work required isn't really that much of a burden.

The machine cleans well and doesn't make tons of noise, although I wish it were a bit quieter and had its own foam isolation between the machine and the skid pads. I get why they included a pump but I wish the machine also just allowed you to opt for gravity drain, since the pump is probably the noisiest thing about the machine. Unfortunately if you just throw the hose in the floor of the tub all the water drains out - there isn't a valve that closes it off while it's washing. So I have to use a bungee cord to hook the drain hose to a shower rack and keep it elevated above the water level in the tub. Another drawback is hose and cord storage - it doesn't really have any. I wish there were recesses in the back to hold the hoses and cord flush - they'd make it much easier to store the machine. The dimensions of the machine are OK, but I feel like it's actually both taller and deeper than it really needs to be and could be shaved down a bit. An option for separate hot and cold water inputs and internal mixing would probably be great too for people who have hookups.

My ideal machine would be a touch wider than this one, similar height but shallower, with the drum being a few inches greater in diameter. I think it would be easier to store for most people. It would be stealth - I'd make it look like a large laundry hamper with no visible controls or hoses - they'd be beneath the lid or concealed behind a panel in the back. It would have a valve to seal off the drain hose during wash and rinse, so you could just flop it into your tub or shower, with an option to turn off the pump and just gravity drain. It would have spin cycles, optional hot and cold water inputs w/mixing, and also feature clothes drying capabilities. Being able to replace three machines with one would be worth a lot of money to me - I'd easily pay $600 for such a gadget, probably more.

Here's hoping we see more of these horizontal axis washers in the US market. I can't understand why anybody would deal with the hassle of a front-load washer - all the gaskets, the stooping over, the mold issues, etc. - when this design is available.

 

[thomasortega]

Its all about cost, cost and cost.

Spin cycle? Nope! That involves a suspension system = added weight (a lot) and $$$$$$.

Hot water inlet, nope... 99% of users will have it hooked up to a kitchen or bathroom sink. Adding a valve means a more expensive washer in a market with consumers that fighting for pennies. $0,25 tag price difference can make the product leave first Page and end up on Page 457 on Amazon.

Oh but for a quartel less I can buy a xing xuang twin tub on ebay. Adiós TLA, that other Chinese washer is definitely much better because is 15 inches tall, 20 inches wide and the seller claims it can wash 500lbs of clothes per cycle. The warranty is only 90 days, compared to the TLA 3-year hassle-free warranty but who cares? 25 cents is 25 cents. That's how vast majority of consumers behave.

 

[pinkpower4]

Questions

Thomas,

I’ve always been interested in this washer, and I don’t fit into your typical scenarios. I don’t have an RV, and I own my home.

This washer appeals to be simply because I am frustrated with the lack of choices and expense in trying to find a washer that use tap hot, enough water, had a good wash action, etc. And I’d really love one with no electronics (like the Whirlpool model I had in the 90s!). Right now, I have a Maytag mvwp575gw. The only other washer I would consider would be the TC5 (it was not available in 2018). The SQ now costs about $1400 where I live. I don’t expect it to come back down in price even after things get back to normal in a year or two from now??? Everything I have read says its repair rate is higher or the same as other top models. Reliability really means is just last longer if you can afford the parts and do the work yourself. While I could afford that if I put a priority to it, I can assure you I am not in the target income market of people who normally buy SQ.

I already use a spin dryer. I personally can’t see myself going back to not having one. I truly see the savings every month and I also feel like it gets that last little bit of extra detergent out too.

How many cycles do you expect this washer to last? How much clothes does it hold when compared to a top load 3 to 3.5 cu. ft. tub? Do you have a cycle matrix chart for this model that shows how much time for each part of a cycle?

It looks like a mechanical timer? Interesting that you can do this, and everyone else has went to expensive control boards.

What would be really cool is if you could somehow design a demo model with a clear front to demonstrate the wash action.

I also would be interested in the other models that are coming out later. I do think you can sell to a larger target market if a spin cycle of at least 700 rpm could be included.

Thanks for sharing and any information you can provide.

 

[thomasortega]

Using hot water is actually very simple, just get a Y-hose from Homo Depot, then select the temperature on the valve.

Indeed, it has no electronics AT ALL!

Clear demo version... hummm nope... too much money involved and the ROI would make the CEO freak out. Wash action is similar to a front load washer, 59 rpm and the water level is absurdly high for what people are used to see nowadays.

There will be a fully automatic version (800 rpm spin) and a washer-dryer combo version (1500rpm) with all the bells and whistles one can imagine, including smart integration, that zillions of consumers buzz me every single day to have.

 

[eddy1210]

I would love to have a BOL Niagara! As one who uses a wringer washer often, I like the hands on approach and the limitless rinses/ water levels one could have with this machine. I'm glad it will have a water pump as I have no floor drain in my basement.

 

[sunspot42]

Any idea when the washer/dryer model will finally come out? I've been haunting The Laundry Alternative's website the past few months.

 

[thomasortega]

Considering the logistics and semiconductors worldwide chaos, I'm glad we still have enough products in stock for another month.

Deep inside me, one could hear the bell sounding and watch me panicking because I know that sooner or later we will end up running out of stock for nearly all our courrent models.
One model (Silk Lux) is being phased out simply because we can't find reliable semiconductor suppliers to make the PCBs.

We're also struggling to keep our prices. Both freigh (containers) and shipping (each box sent to the final consumer) suddenly skyrocketed almost overnight. Freight prices are now up to SEVEN times more expensive.

To make things even worse, this chaos started a few days after we released two new models, Drop! and Revo and both models were an instant success with sale numbers 3x above what we were expecting.

If this continues for too long, in less than four months, ALL manufacturers in the USA will end up in a huge halt never seen before the situation now is worse than the first days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the whole world stopped. LG chemical and DuPont already warned us they can't fulfill our next orders for polypropylene and ABS.

The only thing I can say now is, if you're planning to buy any imaginable consumer products or automobile, do it right now because virtually everything will soon be out of stock.

 

[sunspot42]

I'm guessing the larger appliance manufacturers - especially the ones in China - will get preferential treatment and still be able to produce quite a bit of equipment. We're now learning the full price for outsourcing so much of our manufacturing capacity. Oh well...better late than never, right?

 

[thomasortega]

PuriFI is Rriving the né t few days (finally)

After a long Mexican soap-opera plot starring The Laundry Alternative and EPA, we finally won the bureaucratic hassle.

PuriFI is finally arriving.

Features:

Somewhat similar to silk lux
Smaller body (same capacity)

100% stainless steel drum and impeller

Internal heater

It has the ability to sanitize, however, we couldn't name the cycle as "sanitary" because of EPA, so it's now called super hot wash.

It has a fully automatic diaper cycle.

And there's another model coming VERY soon: Poseidon. It's a semi automatic with something many here will like: slow and high amplitude AGITATOR.

 

[flowerdrumsong]

Laundry Alternative has interesting items, thinking of getting something from there, and this thread is a big help.

 

[jrubswell]

Excited for future developments on behalf of my family

I currently live in Finland for STEM studies, and intend to make this place my new home after my studies are over. Learn the language, become a naturalized citizen etc.

Right now I sport a TDLR 6230L EU/N, a very serviceable mainstream BOL HATL from Whirlpool. It has not given me any trouble, features a 6kg (13lb) capacity and a spin cycle of up to 1200rpm, it has quite a lot of features even though it's not a TOL model (though they do exist here if you have the money).

How hurtful it feels to see that Whirlpool—an American company—offers me a common HATL, yet for my family back in the USA they do not even hint at these existing.

I paid €249 for my washer on sale, it is normally €299 (~$311) at full price. This is very close to the current full price of the Niagara, $289.

As an American I so desperately want to let my father replace his humongous and expensive front-loading horizontal axis machine with something half the size and a third of the retail price, so he can recover much of the laundry closet currently occupied by that and his dryer.

The current available Niagara model is quite enticing, and I am going to at least show this to my father to see what he thinks, but the lack of integrated spin cycle and light portable form factor might be deal breakers for now.

He has the space for something closer to what I currently have: a heavier, boxier steel construction ready for years of service without being moved, but the product just isn't available save for Staber (whose prices are nonsensical!)

Since it's a dedicated laundry closet in the middle of a hallway he doesn't need to move the machine. This means he does not fit into the portable washing machine market particularly well, but would certainly benefit immensely from a smaller cheaper machine that does the same job. (and potentially even if the capacity is less)

I hope that one of the planned future models (or even another product) won't be afraid to venture a little bit outside of a portable mindset and allow itself to be a little heavier and sturdier.

I know my father would love it, he was very interested when I showed him what I have here in Finland. My sister who lives in an apartment with a roommate could also benefit from something like this.

 

[bradfordwhite]

LOVE IT!

I bought the Niagra and the Ninja Spin drier. Awesome cleaning power but yet gentle on your clothes.

The washer is so spacious. I can wash several sheets at once.

You get all the benefits of an efficient front load washer in a light weight, compact, easy to move around package that is top loading.

The spin drier I forget how much the RPMs are but they are like 1600+ and it really spins out the water in just a few minutes. It has well designed suspension system so it handles unbalanced loads quite well.

The washer has a timer and you can select how long of a wash you want. It has a water valve and automatically fills to the correct level. When done washing it drains at a NICE pace (not too fast so as not to overwhelm slower drains) then refills and repeats 3 more times.

What I do after the first wash is remove the clothes and spin them out. While they are spinning out I hose down the washer tub and let it drain all the suds out, I spray the clothes a few times and let them spin out most suds, then return the clothes to the washer and let it complete. That's when I do the final spinout with no spray rinse.

This machine even has an automatic fabric softener dispenser for the last rinse. Someone really did an excellent job of thinking this out.

I had one of the washers shown above in post #6 but the wash tub was too small, the impeller could damage clothing, it was LOUD, and the spin drier was kind of slow and small. It was also difficult to wash shoes in without some kind of guard in place to keep the shoes from touching the impeller. With the Niagra you can wash several pair of shoes without any additional steps.

I'm so glad I got these.

 

[volvoman]

@thomasortega

In a post from last year, you mention the following...

"There will be a fully automatic version (800 rpm spin) and a washer-dryer combo version (1500rpm) with all the bells and whistles one can imagine".

Are these still on tap?

Also, I seem to recall you mentioning a dishwasher that you were designing? Is there any news on that?

 

[peterh770]

Where’d it go?

It appears the Niagara has been out of production for a while? Anyone know the scoop?

 

[volvoman]

Reply 36

I do.

Mrs. V and I were thinking of buying one for a washer-less friend of ours. When I visited TLA's website, I saw that it was no longer listed. Ultimately, I was told through chat that the supplier's costs went up, and they'd be losing money on it. They're hoping to offer it again at some point. Not sure the veracity of this (perhaps someone else can chime in to verify?), but it's too bad; it looked like a great machine.

 

[Chetlaham]

Thats a shame! Does anyone know why the machine is no longer being sold?

 

 

I wanted to buy one but was never able to obtain a wiring diagram/cycle sequence so I just gave up.

 

 

I wish they made a full size Staber like version of this machine and a front load version.

 

 

Guess I might have been wrong about there being a market demand for low cost no-spin automatic tumble action washers.