Any Tumble Dryer Experts out there? Now with test drive

[Lady Elanore]

So after many years of happily using my aging washing machine and tumble dryer I finally gave in and replaced them. Against most peoples advice, I went for a washer/dryer....yes I know, mistake. Brilliant washing machine though (it makes bubbles ) but a very so-so dryer. Anyhoo, my old dryer only had length of drying and two heat settings and I had to bodge the timer as it packed in So now I am thinking of buying a separate dryer again and have narrowed it down to a couple of models. 

 

• First model, LG Gentle and Cozy, is a 7kg sensor dryer and is a basic condenser type with a reverse action but no self cleaning

 

• Second Model is a Bosch 9kg sensor dryer, has a self cleaning system for the condenser and also uses a heat pump if you want it to.

 

So, if I want a self cleaning LG model, it has to be plumbed to a fresh water supply! (the Bosch doesn't) but I reckon I can live with cleaning out the condenser if I need to, however the Bosch doesn't have a reverse action so it may tangle clothes more. Both are sensor dryers (Something I want), but I am curious to know if a 7kg drum is the same size as a 9kg drum?

 

I work on the theory a bigger drum will crease clothes less, so perhaps apart from big loads like sheets etc, clothes will remain tangle free and only need a light ironing. However, when I looked at some different capacity dryers side by side, the drums appear to be of a similar size, regardless of the maximum load capacity. Is the purely down to the heat source as to whether a machine is rated as 9kg or 7kg? Also, ignoring reverse spin, will a 7kg machine prove as good at not tangling and over creasing clothes as a 9kg machine.

 

I've read extensively about sensor machines needing a decent sized load to work etc, but I can't find any specs for the size of these drums. 

 

Any ideas??

 

I like the idea of a heat pump, but it's not a major factor for me

 

 

Edited 6 October, 2016 by Lady Elanore

[john999boy]

I much prefer reading your 4k UHD posts!

However, I can't help with specifics about those dryers but ours (condensing) needs the filters cleaning pretty much after each session. The amount of 'dryness' (and hence 'ironability') can be dialled up accordingly. Any further details and I'll have to consult the Domestic Chief.

[mac11irl]

We have an lg washer drier, 8/6 kg. Bought to replace a nordmende which was a pup from date of purchase. Retrurned that for a refund and bought the LG - inside 4months had a guy out to replace the recirc pump as it was knackered. Known fault for a long time... which LG seemingly do nothi g about

If i had my time back idve bought a Miele.. parts available forever and they pay a man to put ladies silk tivhts on his hands to rub the inside of the drum to check for snags..

[Lady Elanore]

I much prefer reading your 4k UHD posts!

 

However, I can't help with specifics about those dryers but ours (condensing) needs the filters cleaning pretty much after each session. The amount of 'dryness' (and hence 'ironability') can be dialled up accordingly. After further details and I'll have to consult the Domestic Chief. 

 

I did think of posting links to tests and reviewers thoughts on the 2 machines in question....

 

 

We have an lg washer drier, 8/6 kg. Bought to replace a nordmende which was a pup from date of purchase. Retrurned that for a refund and bought the LG - inside 4months had a guy out to replace the recirc pump as it was knackered. Known fault for a long time... which LG seemingly do nothi g about

If i had my time back idve bought a Miele.. parts available forever and they pay a man to put ladies silk tivhts on his hands to rub the inside of the drum to check for snags..

 

I have a Samsung 9/6kg combi jobbie

 

The washing machine does play a nice tune at the beginning and end and also has ecobubbles which for some unknown reason I have to watch being formed. it does depend on the washing powder used though.

[mac11irl]

Dont get bosch, whirlpool, indesit or hotpoint... all the same factory and disastrous customer care... thats from my uncle, who sells and fixes them..

[Lady Elanore]

Dont get bosch, whirlpool, indesit or hotpoint... all the same factory and disastrous customer care... thats from my uncle, who sells and fixes them..

 

 

You forgot to add LG to the 'Avoid list' The trouble is, if you read all the online reviews you would never buy anything. I have an LG telly and an Bosch Dishwasher (my boiler is a Bosch too), but both have been fine so far. It's a tough call I guess, perhaps it might be better ot get a 3rd party warranty to cover the goods? 

 

The drum size continues to baffle me though. The box they come in is pretty much the same size and both the drums seem to fill the available space??

[mac11irl]

The LG sings too... it got turned off...

[mac11irl]

Drum size -

They are limited in terms of diameter - have to fit in a standard 600wide undercounter space.

so, they make them deeper.

Our old nordemende washer had nearly the same diameter drum as the 8kg LG.

but the LG pushed in far as itll go sticks out about 3-4inches beyond counter edge where the other one jutted out by about an inch.

And.. i didnt add LG because to their credit i rang them about the pump motor noise and they had a guy out 48hrs later. Wouldve been sooner except he was covering a big area. The others listed will fob you off for weeks. Then eventually the guy will turn up and declare that "yes, as you stated component "x" is knackered. Itll be 6-8wks before thats in the country and i can get back to you... and its out of warranty so itll cost you double the price of a new machine."

Edited 30 September, 2016 by mac11irl

[mac11irl]

Apparently the main problem is the likes of Harvey Norman, Curries etc have such a market share each they can go to the manufacturers and say "we want a machine built to a retail price of ,eg, 150quid including our 15% mark up. What can you give us" they wander off come up with a machine but to get it to price components are lighter and crappier and a brand's reputation for quality gets eroded

[Lady Elanore]

I did wonder if the drum was deeper on the bigger capacity models. I tried to guess how wide the drum was by putting one hand on the inside of the drum wall and the other just next to it on the outside of the machines casing. It seemed, pretty much, to fill the whole box. My combined washer/dryer obviously has a lot of gubbins crammed into the same sized box (width 60cms, which means the diameter has be less than this....but how much?) It's all so frustrating. I might just learn to love the Sammy

 

 

Mind you I fancy a new desktop PC or a new camera lens    :think:    . Perhaps I just need more clothes lines  Or more money

Edited 30 September, 2016 by Lady Elanore

[VWD]

Lady E- I'd ask these blokes. No bias as to your gender, but they will try to help.

http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/forumsphpbb3/

 

These are the blokes that will turn out to fix a problem- so why not ask them for help.

Edited 30 September, 2016 by VWD

[Lady Elanore]

Lady E- I'd ask these blokes. No bias as to your gender, but they will try to help.

http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/forumsphpbb3/

 

These are the blokes that will turn out to fix a problem- so why not ask them for help.

 

 

Ooh that looks interesting

[Lady Elanore]

I've had a quick trawl around that site and they do mention that the drum sizes don't differ in accord to the capacity. I figured as much, but of course an extra inch or two here and there can make quite a difference in volume I guess. It's a good site 

[skomaz]

Personally I wouldn't go for anything that doesn't reverse tumble regardless of drum size... Experience shows me they just tangle the clothes in a ball and only dry the outside layers

[GentleGiant]

I dont like condensors, for all the hype, my experiences suggest they dont dry as well or as quickly as a vented dryer, so the purported energy savings are bogus.

 

I have had condensers, both at home and at work, and they ALWAYS took longer to get a "cupboard dry" load. bearing in mind the work load was the same +/- 5% every time, so the difference over the original vented dryer was VERY noticeable.

 

Ré brands.

 

They all have good years and bad years; I'm not sure of current Bosch products, but certainly they have had poor reviews over the last few years; go back 10 years and they were great, go back another 5 and they were patchy; ditto Miele and AEG, the first Miele/AEG washers and driers we had were fantastic, but later models were no better than Whirlpool/Indesit, but at twice the price, and a fairly recent Miele washer-dryer was terrible (been replaced with a Panasonic).

 

I have an early, basic Samsung (pre Eco-Bubble), the design is so good that - despite only having a 1200prm spin, the cloths come clean, out so dry that only really heavy items need a proper drying; the 1600rpm Indesit it replaced left everything still dirty and sopping wet.

[Breezy_Pete]

Vented is like putting a heater on outside your house, rather than inside...

[@Lee]

We have an lg washer drier, 8/6 kg. Bought to replace a nordmende which was a pup from date of purchase. Retrurned that for a refund and bought the LG - inside 4months had a guy out to replace the recirc pump as it was knackered. Known fault for a long time... which LG seemingly do nothi g about

If i had my time back idve bought a Miele.. parts available forever and they pay a man to put ladies silk tivhts on his hands to rub the inside of the drum to check for snags..

 

Another vote here for Miele. We've got a Miele condenser and can't fault the engineering or the drying of it. Stuff comes out totally dry and virtually crease free. We hardly ever need to iron anything.

I've had a quick trawl around that site and they do mention that the drum sizes don't differ in accord to the capacity. I figured as much, but of course an extra inch or two here and there can make quite a difference in volume I guess. It's a good site 

A lady should know that an inch or two makes no difference; it's how what you've got's used :p

[GentleGiant]

Vented is like putting a heater on outside your house, rather than inside...

 

Vented is pushing the warm wet air away from the clothes and drawing in fresh dry air, instead of constantly circulating it OVER the clothes and hoping a heat exchanger will cool it down enough for the water to condense out first.

 

Condensers tend to be ok for a few weeks, then there is a gradual build up of fluff inside the heat exchanger that cannot easily be removed, and the amount of wet air getting through and being blown across the cloths goes up and up, until it doesnt matter how long you leave the dryer on, the cloths feel a little damp when they have cooled down.

 

Cue a few hours trying to clean the heat exchanger as best you can (assuming it is removable), before restarting the cycle.

 

With the non removable Indesit, the cloths were starting to feel damp after the first winter, and it never got any better, even if you ran the clothes through 3 hours of dry cycles.

 

With a removable heat exchanger (I forget the make), performance fall off could be partially rectified by spending a few hours cleaning out the exchanger every month (perhaps every 3 months for normal household use).

 

However both took much longer than the MUCH cheaper vented dryers they replaced; I switched back to a vented dryer about 5 years ago, and my electric bills went DOWN slightly; the difference wasnt huge, but I should add that the vented dryer I bought doesnt have a delay timer, and has a stupid momentary push button, so cannot be used with a timer; and so rarely gets used during the E7 period,  the condenser did have a time delay, so I nearly always used it during E7 times.

[@Lee]

Condensers tend to be ok for a few weeks,

 

Then please explain why our Miele condenser dryer still drys clothes as well as it did since the day we bought it.

Apart from regular removal of lint from the filters and the odd descaling of the mesh filters as required it's been faultless.

No unsightly hoses, no need to use a core drill through the brickwork to properly vent it, a laundry room that's dry as a bone and clothes that are perfectly dry. (cupboard dry).

[Aspman]

I have a White Knight tumble dryer. It has been resoundingly abused for about 8yr and hasn't missed a beat.

 

It doesn't reverse spin so it does indeed tie larger items into knots but so so badly I'd replace it.

 

It can also do amazing things. If you put a duvet cover in it without buttoning it shut it can put all the clothes inside the duvet cover then tie it in a ball. How the F does it do that? Magic I say.

[VWD]

Ooh that looks interesting

It's a site with blokes who spend all day fixing all manner of white goods stuff- and they give their time up for free to try to help us folks. Try asking them for help- they ight just sort out a problem

[Lady Elanore]

Re the benefits or detriment of condensers, the Bosch I am looking at self cleans the heat exchanger using recycled condenser water, the LGs use a fresh water supply. In theory the condensers should remain relatively lint free (occasional inspection is advised I think )

 

The downside of the Bosch model (or potential upside) is it's a heat pump type. There isn't too much of a price premium on these types these days, but unless you engage the regular heater, I suspect drying times will be significantly longer. This isn't a problem for me though. 

[Lady Elanore]

It's a site with blokes who spend all day fixing all manner of white goods stuff- and they give their time up for free to try to help us folks. Try asking them for help- they ight just sort out a problem

 

 

I've read a few of their replies to people with problems. I think i could do a few of the repairs that they suggested on various machines. It certainly gave me a little confidence The main contributor replies that I read, also recommended LG and Bosch, so even if they aren't built up to the Miele standards, he gave them a thumbs up. 

[VRS Mike]

We have the Bosch one, if you get it you have to set the drying setting higher or else it's poor. It's the reason it has so many poor reviews as people don't understand how to use it properly.

It's a great machine, not noisy and doesn't pump out loads of heat. My Mrs is very happy with it.

[Lady Elanore]

I've seen there are 3 addition heat add-ons you can use. if I understand things correctly, then once you find the right one for you, as long as you don't touch any of your tweaks, the machine will remember your last used settings Hopefully I can get a look at a few machines on my wish list next week.

 

How is the Bosch for tangling?