When you rent an apartment with appliances already in place, you trust that the owners are smart shoppers because they’ll have to spend more money in the long run if their volume discount bargains are not up to snuff. Our apartment complex has all GE appliances, and they work well.

Our washing machine is no exception. This GE washer has two main cycle categories, cotton/whites and casuals (permanent press and delicate items). For cotton/whites there are five cycles and three more for casuals for a total of eight cycles. There are three water levels for small, regular, and super loads; and three wash and rinse temperature combinations (cold/cold, warm/cold, and hot/cold). It also has a liquid bleach dispenser in front on the left.

Now for real life: I use two of the eight cycles. I wash all clothing under casual’s longest cycle and towels under the cotton/white’s longest cycle. I use the warm/cold setting for towels; everything else goes in cold water all the way. We don’t have any white items except for washcloths, so I don’t bother with liquid bleach. I use Bounce dryer sheets to soften fabrics (and clean out the dryer’s lint filter).

It works well, even on items that are typically washed by hand. My Lymphedema leg wraps are a perfect example. They’re made of a felt-like strips that fasten with Velcro. The manufacturer recommends hand washing in Woolite, but that would take too long. Insurance wouldn’t pay for them, so I could only buy one set. I’m supposed to wear them all day long, so I put them in the washer at bedtime and transfer them to the dryer the next morning. By the time I’m showered, they’re dry. I’ve also washed large afghans in it, even the ones made of wool. The results are beautiful. These are my only extra loads.

My one complaint about the washer is noise. It could drown out a brass band. The first time I used it, I thought I broke it because it became very quiet for about three minutes between cycles and then start banging as though it was loaded with bullets. I’m used to the noise after living with it for the last four months. It took our visiting son to remind me how loud it is. He suggested I close the door to the laundry room. Big improvement, yes; but without all that noise, I forget that I have a load in there. For efficiency’s sake, I’ll live with the noise.

In my former role as homeowner, I might have passed on this model. On the one hand, it’s a basic model without all the bells and whistles of the pricy models in the Sunday ads. Yet, it handles very large loads, allowing me to do laundry once a week. I do three loads every Monday – and then I’m free to enjoy my new home town. Even with the noise, it’s a smart buy.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 00