Love it ! (with some, hopefully, helpful info)
Written: Dec 22 '03 (Updated Dec 22 '03)
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Pros: Excellent cleaning, gentle on clothes, true high efficiency
Cons: more costly than conventional washers
The Bottom Line: I recommend the HE3T simply because I did a lot of research, and judged with skepticism, with the result of believing it is the best washing machine currently available.
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| pilotmelch's Full Review: Kenmore 44932 \ 44934 \ 44936 Front Load Washer |
This is an excellent washing machine! The BEST there is, from what we could tell. Of course, as time moves on, and new machines are brought to the market, that will change. We purchased this machine after doing a ton of research and feel we made the right choice.
Basically, for the high-end of washing machines, there are really, currently, only two contenders, Kenmore/Whirlpool HE3T and LG 2432. While the LG appeared to be "nicer" on the surface (and the Sales staff seem to "sell" it well), closer looks made us believe in the Kenmore over it. Here's what we found in our research.
First, it's myth to think these high-end, super efficient units will somehow pay for themselves. Their efficiency will help mitigate their extra cost, but washing machines really don't use that much energy or water to begin with. Do the math yourself and you’ll see. We're talking an electricity cost of $9-$10 per year for these HE units, versus $18-$20 per year for the piggish machines. A savings of about $10 per year isn't going to make this unit pay for itself, regardless of what the sales staff says. Water is even cheaper in most places. Of course, that’s looking at it from a purely $’s cost standpoint, not an environmental one.
That said, the savings will add up incidentally due to the better job these high-end units do in getting the clothes much dryer before they’re put in the dryer. That means less time running in the very energy inefficient dryer machines.
BTW, we opted to keep our old (44 years old) dryer and not get the matching unit. There’s just not much of a story for dryers, they don’t really do much, but tumble the clothes and pump in hot air. There are a few minor stories for some newer units, but not enough to make us spend $800 on a new one, just so it could match. The big sales pitch caution is “capacity”. They warn that not all dryers can handle the capacity of a fully loaded HE3T. They’re right, but most dryers will handle almost a full load, which is probably more than 99.9% of the loads you’ll do, even if you put much more in a load than you do now. If that doesn’t suffice, you may want to take a look at the lesser expensive high-capacity dryers. They won’t match in style, but they will get your larger loads dry.
The capacity of the HE3T will alarm you. You literally can stuff it to the brim, shut the door, and go. When the clothes get wet they take up less space, allowing them to tumble and wash just fine.
We’re finding that due to the extra fast spinning on the HE3T, the clothes come out so dry, that we just hang most things up for a few hours and they’re dry anyway. No that is a money/energy saver.
About the Sanitary Cycle, if you’re consternating over this feature, to decide between the HE3 and HE3T, let me clarify something for you. First, I think I read another review that rationalized the heated water as being unnecessary citing that their water heater could heat it up just as well, and that they didn’t want the water boiling in the unit anyway. Well, that logic is nonsensical.
First, your water heater shouldn’t be heating water beyond 120 degrees F anyway. Any more is a major waste of energy for so many other reasons, notwithstanding the potential for scalding of hands, etc. So, to put that aside, let’s say everyone’s water heater is set to around 120 degrees (which is also the assumption of the HE washing machine manufacturers according to their literature)
Now, let’s say you load up your new HE washer, which is metal, and cold, with cold clothes, and pump in hot, 120 degree, water to wash them. Of course in many homes the first few seconds of the hot water is also cold, until the hot water gets up to the washer inside the pipes. Well, hot water at 120 degrees, added to all those cold clothes, in a cold washer, will bring the overall temperature of that water down, leaving you with wash water at soothing less than 120 degrees. From there it will only cool more as the washing cycle continues.
To sanitize, you need to get the actual wash water temperature (and thus the temperature of the clothes being washed) up beyond about 145 degrees, and for an extended period of time. To kill some bacteria and parasites (such as dust mites), you need to go beyond 150 degrees. Your 120-degree tap water that is cooling the minute it exits the water heater tank, will simply never cut it. To sanitize, you need the machine to be heating the wash water to a constant and controlled temperature, for the entire wash cycle.
Now, to answer the “boiling water” comment. Both the Kenmore and LG heat to between 150 and 160 degrees. Unless you’re doing laundry at the top of Everest, water tends to boil at around 212. We’re far from boiling here.
One last point, the standard HE3 (and comparable LG) spin at a maximum 900 RPM (or 1000 RPM for the LG). These top-of-the-line units spin at 1200 RPM; a difference of 200-300 RPM. That’s a big difference, when it comes to getting your heavier laundry dryer. Don’t let anyone fool you into thinking otherwise. And remember, it’s the less drying that really ends up saving the energy, by saving on dryer time.
Oh yeah, another review complained about the “smoke colored door”. They wished it wasn’t so dark so they could see the clothes being washed better. Well, first off, it’s not smoke colored, it’s relatively clear. The reason you can’t see in well is because there’s no light in there. It’s not a refrigerator with a courtesy light. If you want to see, shine a flashlight in there. You’ll be able to see amazingly well. I know. When my wife and I ran our first couple of loads, we just sat there on the laundry room floor, with the flashlight, just watching the thing do its work. Can’t tell you why, but for some reason it’s fascinating. I think it’s something like watching a campfire. Dunno.
On the comparisons between the Kenmore/Whirlpool and comparable LG -- From an engineer’s standpoint, I like the “idea” of the LG’s advanced direct drive motor. It’s cool, and has promise. But for me at least, I can get parts very easily from Sears, and work on the mechanical things like that myself, if needed. That’s how I kept the 44-year-old Kenmore washer and dryer going that long anyway. And, from what I can tell, this new machine has actually less mechanical parts, and simpler ones, than my old machine. It seems the bulk of any problems will probably be with the electronics anyway. But, I know, the do-it-yourself repairman thing isn’t for everybody.
So, the salesperson says, “look at that double bar hinge on the LGs door!” Well, go open that door and flex it up and down on that hinge. It’s just plain flimsy!!. Now do the same with the Kenmore, it’s much more solid, even without the burly looking hinge. On the LG, the hinge appears mounted to a very non-substantial sheet metal frame, which easily flexes. It’s like putting a 2 ton trailer hitch on a VW beetle. Whereas, the Kenmore’s hinge mounting is much more substantial.
The LG’s drum flaps (can’t remember what they’re called) have holes in them. This is not to spray water on the clothes, but to scoop it up and dump it on them when they rotate to the top. Ok that’s nice, but in spite of that, Consumer Reports still rates the Kenmore tops on cleaning. It also rates Kenmore tops on being easy on the clothes, and quietness. Though LG claims theirs is the quietest and best washing, Consumer Reports doesn’t agree.
That said, they are both very quiet machines compared to others. A good friend of mine bought the LG just prior to our purchase of the Kenmore. I’ve heard his run with laundry in it. The difference between the two is not really noticeable. The sales staff will probably try to “demonstrate” the quietness on the sales floor, but that’s worthless. Both the Kenmore and LG make hardly any noise at all when they spin without clothes or water in the drum (duh!).
About detergent, all of the salespersons we spoke with encouraged us to get and use the new HE detergents, “specifically formulated to work in HE washers”. These newer, more expensive, detergents come in both liquid and powder form. The form you would use will depend on the forms (powder or liquid) you use for other things, such as color safe bleach, softeners, etc. You basically will use powder with powder, and liquid with liquid. This makes sense. Mixing any powder with any liquid would result in caking of the two components.
But do you need to use the HE detergents? The manufacturers don’t require it for warrantee purposes, or anything else. In fact they specifically say you can use regular laundry detergents, as long as you use less than the recommended amount of HE detergent. They do however, say things like “but for outstanding cleaning, we recommend you use an HE detergent”. So, what’s the deal here anyway? The HE detergent is more costly and we need to use more of it than the regular detergent. Well, we could be wrong, I’m not a chemist, but in trying out both, there is a difference. Hopefully this info/opinion will help you decide.
If you use regular detergent, you’re supposed to use less of it (1/3 to 1/2 of what you’d normally use). From what I can tell, this is to keep the suds down. HE detergent appears to be formulated not to suds as much, as suds will actually decrease the washer’s capacity to clean. Just watch the action with a flashlight through the glass door and you’ll see what I mean. So, knowing that most detergents are fillers anyway, one could conclude that with the HE detergent, you’re getting more cleaning power (since you’re using more of it), than with the regular detergent (which you have to use less of to control suds).
The HE detergents tend to be more fragrant. Not sure why, but I’m guessing it has to do with the assumption that more of the wash and rinse water will be removed from the clothes than with regular machines, and with the water goes the fragrance.
Hope this all helps.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 1170
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Epinions.com ID:
pilotmelch
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Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 1 member
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