$ Savings on front load vs top load washer $

[GoddessKristie]

I am torn between buying a front load and a top load washer. I was certain I wanted front load, but now that the time has come to buy I am doubting. For those of you who have used both how much are you saving/not saving with your front loader?

[rabbithorns]

We ended up saving more water and electricity on an electric $300 bottom of the line washer by GE than a water-saving front loader for twice the price.

The front loader had some kind of panel that ran 10 watts all the time, like 2 nightlights. The top load didn't.

Because the front load was water saving, everyone thought that meant they could just wash a million smaller loads and use very little water. With the top load, we could set the levels of the water and how many rinse cycles and only did laundry once a week, so in the end we used much less water.

Our water and electric bills went up alot when we switched to front load and went down when we switched back.

Oh, and we switched back because the front load new-fangled thing kept breaking and clogging and smelling like mold even though it was top of the line and replaced twice by the company....

[WeasleyMum]

We have a front-loading Bosch (sp?) washer. It uses very little water (not sure about the electricity). But does it use *so* little that it's paying itself off? No way. It was a very expensive machine; I doubt that energy and water savings over its whole lifespan would justify the cost, to be honest. (reminder to self: it's environmentally friendly. it's good for the planet. and it was my big splurge) Still, it's nice to be able to do dishes or take a shower while the wash is going, and you can put so much stuff into a front-loader; not having an agitator makes a lot more room inside. My loads are bigger, not smaller, than they were previously.

On the flip side, though, it probably makes a difference *how* you do laundry. I just throw everything in together for the most part; jean and dishtowels and socks all comingling. So for me, the bigger the capacity, the better; I'll just fill it up with more of whatever. (I love those 3-load commerical washers at the laundromat...) If you separate everything into neat little categories and wash accordingly, a top-loader that lets you set the load-level might be your better bet because the front-loaders don't let you do that; you're supposed to run it full. At least that's how mine is.

[snanna]

Originally Posted by WeasleyMum

a top-loader that lets you set the load-level might be your better bet because the front-loaders don't let you do that; you're supposed to run it full. At least that's how mine is.

I think it depends on the front-loader... mine adjusts the water level to the amount of laundry in the machine. And I also do bigger loads, which come out cleaner, now that I have a front loader.

The other thing is that even on fl machines where you can't set the load-level, the water usage is still much less-- it doesn't "fill" the way a tl does.

The estimates I have found (form Consumer Reports) for how much water the fl uses as opposed to the tl are something like 17 gallons vs. 40. For the same size load, in those certain machines, etc. That's a lot, thought obviously it's going to vary quite a bit depending on various factors.

I think one thing that should be considered, if you use a dryer all or some of the time, is how dry the clothes come out of a high-rpm front-loader. With mine, a load of diapers can dry in the dryer in 30 minutes, which is a big energy savings. It's lovely on the line, too, as they dry much faster. It really helps make it feasable to line-dry in the PNW-- otherwise, it'd take days to dry on the line, indoors or out, in the winter.

Check out some Consumer Reports back issues and look at the numbers-- I think a lot of times anecdotal evidence is not that great when it comes to energy-use issues, as there are so many factors. I'm lucky in that my library subscribes online, so if you have a library card you can log on and read CR from your computer. But it might be worth a trip to the library as well.

[kerc]

Originally Posted by snanna

I think one thing that should be considered, if you use a dryer all or some of the time, is how dry the clothes come out of a high-rpm front-loader. With mine, a load of diapers can dry in the dryer in 30 minutes, which is a big energy savings. It's lovely on the line, too, as they dry much faster. It really helps make it feasable to line-dry in the PNW-- otherwise, it'd take days to dry on the line, indoors or out, in the winter.

Ditto that!

I'll also say that the tumbling action on the front loader makes my clothes feel cleaner and not get as worn from washing. Your mileage may vary.

I love the front loader (which I have been mourning the loss of) because it allowed my dh to stuff it full. The manual basically said as long as you don't struggle to get the door shut it was ok. That's fabulous for dh because he doesn't get the concept that the clothes need room to move in the washer to get clean.

I also love the front loader because it can handle things like bathrugs or blankets with no trouble.

I didn't have a top of the line front loader. Just the 500 dollar one.

One thing to keep in mind is the size of the drum. My friend has one of those asko ones and he's forever doing laundry because the drum just doesn't hold that much.

[onlyboys]

Our energy usage dropped considerably with our Fisher Paykel. We have the eco-smart, and we love it! It's a top loader.

[Caneel]

We have municipal water and noticed about a $30 per quarter savings when we got our front loader.

We have a basic GE model with knobs on the front (no fancy panel).

I almost never wash partial loads.

I have found that since the clothes are so well wrung, I hang dry much more often than I did before.

[nd_deadhead]

Don't forget that it's not just the water itself - if you wash anything in warm or hot water, you are paying to heat that water. So a reduction in warm/hot water usage saves twice.