.....for which I am truly grateful.
I don't know. The scullery maid looks after all that.
How long should a washing machine typically last?
- Thread starter Chris S
- Start date
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I don't know. The scullery maid looks after all that.
snorri
Legendary Member
- Location
- East coast, up a bit.
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We had a Hotpoint for 27 years! When a part went, my wife would resign herself to having to buy a new one but a succession of repair men all said the same thing; 'that's too good to chuck. If I can repair/replace this bit, keep it as long as you can because they certainly don't make them this good these days!' We've had two in the four years since then as well!
swee'pea99
Legendary Member
We've had our Miele for 17 years, and it was second hand when I bought it. Never needed a repair man....
Lullabelle
Banana
- Location
- Midlands UK
We have only had Hotpoint, there is only 2 of us so they only get used 2-3 times a week. Our last one lasted over 10 years and I hope this one will also last at least 10.
iateyoubutler
Guest
I used to think that Bosch were in a similar league too, until I bought my last one, they have gone to the dogs like most of the other makes have. I`m a Miele convert now too, wouldn`t buy anything else
KnackeredBike
I do my own stunts
Used to repair appliances. The German and Polish made Bosch machines are still decent, the Spanish ones not so. It used to be easy to tell them apart but I notice they have made the styling very similar now. Best thing about Bosch machines is they use decent bearings which is the life limiting factor on most other machines now they insist on using sealed drums.
Miele are without doubt the best built domestic machines available but when they do go wrong parts are ridiculously expensive.
Everyone moans about how machines don't last as long as they used to while also wanting A+++++++ efficiency, well to get that you have to wash longer and spin more frequently. Of course the machine won't last as long unless you build them better (which isn't happening).
classic33
Leg End Member
I'd prefer a twin feed supply(higher end models only now), so I'm not heating water from cold using an oversized electric kettle heating element, that empties and reheats three to five times on the shortest wash.
What's economical about that? And a longer shorter wash cycle at 30°C. Stop the brainwashing. Clean at 30, I've done hotter hand washes!
KnackeredBike
I do my own stunts
The reason twin feeds were phased out is that modern machines don't use much water, perhaps 12 litres in the wash cycle, now for most households with a combi boiler it would barely pull through any hot water and you're simply paying to have hot water sitting in a pipe. Obviously households vary but you'd realistically have to have your boiler supplying hot water very quickly for it to be more efficient then electrically heating exactly the right amount of water.
The machine only uses hot water for the wash, the three rinse cycles have always been in cold water. I used to occasionally see people who connected their cold fill machines to the hot water thinking it was more economical, and just ended up with very creased clothes rinsing on hot water!
Personally I wash my clothes on 40C or 60C but I do not think CC users are the target market for 20C washes as our clothes will get properly grubby. If you drive to an office job then I can quite believe clothes can be washed at a low temperature because they aren't dirty. Otherwise it is primarily a marketing gimmick. As are liquid or gel detergents, absolute crap compared and unhygenic compared to powder. People wonder why their machine smells bad and is mouldy but still continue to wash their clothes in it!
iateyoubutler
Guest
I agree with you on the hot water thing. I don`t have a combi boiler, I have a traditional system with a cylinder up in the airing cupboard. Even though this is above the kitchen and the water is already hot, if I run the hot tap at the kitchen sink it`ll fill the bowl with cold before any hint of hot water comes through. Makes no sense..........
KnackeredBike
I do my own stunts
It was only ever a UK thing, domestic machines in Europe never had it. I still know people ask for it but I think it is with the mistaken belief that the rinse cycles use hot water too.
classic33
Leg End Member
Heating elements have got smaller, drums have got larger, and a check of wash cycle times(Old machine versus New) gives a longer wash time for the same temperature, 15 -25 minutes longer on the newer machine. Yet the new one is "more energy efficient'!
Single feed machines are cheaper produce. The "logic board" requires less pre-programming. Parts are not required with only the single feed. The plastic in the soap drawers can be cheaper, hoses likewise.
KnackeredBike
I do my own stunts
The cost saving is more in not having to produce two versions of the same machine with different casings for different markets. The cost of an extra solenoid is almost nothing and a single PCB will power hundreds of different machines and so are easily programmable to do different cycles.
If dual fill was more efficient manufacturers would be all over it as a USP.
classic33
Leg End Member
Instead they sell you the new machine.
Nothing to do with "perversely the effect of energy labels which did not have a testing procedure for hot water supply machines."
https://www.sust-it.net/blog/can-hot-fill-washing-machines-be-a-greener-option/
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KnackeredBike
I do my own stunts
Of course the manufacturer in that article, ISE, went out of business leaving all their customers with a worthless ten year guarantee.
But the article is a bit misleading because obviously there will be energy needed to heat the hot water supplied to the machine and left in the pipes, otherwise you could fill a kettle from the hot water tap and claim it is the most efficient kettle on the market.
If there was a almost free way for a manufacturer to claim they had the most efficient machine on the market you can bet they would be all over it.
