It's like having a new washer AND dryer!
Written: Aug 24 '01 (Updated Dec 02 '02)
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Pros: Turbo spin really does get clothes dry.
Simple, straight-forward operation
Cons: I still wonder about appliances made largely out of plastic...
The Bottom Line: The spin dry's so powerful, it'll make your real dryer work like magic. It saves a ton of energy!
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| expert_witness's Full Review: Frigidaire GWL10 Washing Machine |
Bought this machine (the most expensive appliance I've EVER bought, even with the power company rebate) purely based on the glowing reviews here on Epinions. I'd never heard of Fisher and Paykel before this.
I'd actually already bought (paid for, awaiting pickup) a washing machine at Sears for just over half the price of the Fisher & Paykel. That's how extreme this impulse purchase was.
And I don't regret it.
No, I don't bring all my guests in to see the amazing turbo washer ("Wait, look, it sounds like it's made by Pratt & Whitney when I put it in spin mode!") and I don't sit and watch it work (it's actually a kind of finicky washer -- if you listen to it go through a cycle you can almost hear it thinking hmm, maybe a little more water, let me give it a slosh, hmm, perhaps two more sloshes... I think of it as the Wolfgang Puck of washing machines.) The only admiration I'll occasionally admit to is to point out the Energy Usage label on the front; this machine DEFINES the bottom of the scale. I like that.
So I'm not a huge Fisher & Paykel technology groupie who spouts about it every chance I get. I just dump clothes into it, and take 'em out an hour later. And it does its job, which is all that matters.
What floored me is that it's doing the dryer's job as well. Our Whirlpool was always a crummy dryer, taking forever to get things dry no matter how many times I cleaned the lint screen, checked the outlet hose, etc. We were thinking of replacing it even though we'd only bought it a year or two ago...and suddenly, thanks to the drying action of the washing machine, the thought hasn't crossed our mind since. So in a sense the $700 washer saved me $350 on a new dryer.
The washer also has one marvelous design attribute -- a simple "START" button. My complaint with every washer I've ever owned it that there are too many dials and settings (none of which you ever use) and to start them you have to turn some knob to exactly the right place... Now I just press START and walk away. Works for me.
My only hesitation regarding this washer is that it's largely made of plastic. The lid's plastic (so far it's still clean, but I KNOW down the line it's going to get that dirt-ground-into-the-textured-plastic look that never comes clean, whereas enamel will always come clean with a little elbow grease), the drum is stainless but the parts around the drum seem to be plastic... The repairman said they get very few reports of problems, there are few parts to break, so we'll see. (I've only had this machine a few months...)
Repairman, yes, I should mention that the machine broke after four (count them FOUR) loads of laundry. Was out of service for a few days because of a faulty control circuitry board that had to be shipped out by the factory. I was leery, but after the replacement I've had no problems. I'll still gladly rate it highly. If it breaks again, I'll be back on here screaming.
UPDATE 1.5 YEARS LATER --
It's worked flawlessly all this time (a tiny bit of plastic fairing worn away inside but otherwise everything intact) but we had our first problem just before Thanksgiving (when all the repairmen are out fixing ovens!) My frustration turned to admiration, however, when I saw how easy it was fixed. A piece of material (stuffing? yarn?) got caught in the water pump, so it wouldn't empty the machine. Ugh! Could happen with any machine, I'd imagine. The repairman sucked out the machine with my wet/dry vac, tipped it back (it's a relatively light machine, remember, plastic!) and underneath everything's simple, exposed, available. One quick twist on the pump and it pops right out. Gunk removed, pump pops right back in. Done! He says it's mentioned in the manual (don't know where my manual is) but it seems to be a case of excellent design. If it happens again EVER, I can service it myself without waiting days for a repairman. (Incidentally, my call for service to Fisher/Paykel, on a regular 800 number, got me a service operator in Brisbane, Australia (!) who recommended four service companies here in Southern California. I only wonder if they have service contractors in most small towns, since we didn't seem to have more than five or six total out of a population of 13 million, so how many will they have available in Butte, Montana? Might be worth a call to check before purchase.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 699
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Epinions.com ID:
expert_witness
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Reviews written: 22
Trusted by: 1 member
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