Appliances?

You could go to gardenweb.com and look at their appliance forum (in the Home forum section). Those people take appliances seriously - though cost saving isn't usually a big concern. But you will find some interesting discussions if you do some searches.

Cathy

I'm 5 years into my second set of Kenmore front-loader washer, and electric dryer. Very happy with it. The first set stayed with our other house when we moved, and I bought the same make/model when we moved into this house.

Kenmore doesn't come in those fancy new, pretty colors, nor does it have the electronic controls and all the bells & whistles. But, it get our clothes clean, and is very efficient. Very good value as far as I'm concerned.

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Sometimes money costs too much.

I chose all my new appliances the same way. I go to energystar.gov and brought up the spreadsheet for the type of appliance I wanted. My washer as an example. Sorted by percent better and deleted all but the top 50 or so. Then sorted by water usage and went on down the list. Take the top few then check on reviews around the web to see how people like them and narrow it down even further. I ended up with an LG as my choice and ordered it online for the best price.

All excellent ideas.... thanks everyone!

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Miniature Bull Terriers
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I also have the Kenmore HE4T set and they were at peak price when I got them so sticker shock. Generally, I like them, but like another poster, I had the computer problem. Turns out, about 1/4 of them will have that problem. Something to consider.

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Christy
Growing Human
http://growinghuman.blogspot.com

When wearing narrow lenses of hate and ignorance, is it any wonder one finds it difficult to see clearly? - Me

I got front load machines when I bought my house and I love the washer. It's an older Gibson, but what I love is that it gets my clothes way cleaner than top loaders and it uses lots less soap and water. Mine are located in the kitchen under countertop... the house is very small with no basement or laundry room. If I was building, I would get front loaders again, but make sure they are built up on a platform so they are easier to reach into. That would be my only complaint... that the older I get, the harder they are to get into!

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Lori

I thought the same thing. I have issues with my back already so I built a fairly high platform before realizing to put the soap and softner in I now will have to lift it up pretty high since they are at the top of the washing machine. Never a happy medium I guess.

I know this is kind off topic, but wanted to comment on this. I had a lightning strike back in August of 2008 that blew out every electronic in the house, plus the central heat and air unit! I had most things on small surge protectors and it blew them out too. I called my electric company and had them install a whole-house surge protector, and it wasn't bad at all, $140, paid out over eight months, just tacked onto my usual monthly bill, or I could have paid it all at once.

Before that, I had surges and outages on a near-monthly basis. Since the install, my power has only gone out once and that was with a huge thunderstorm which took out 20,000, lol. I do have my office electronics on a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) so I have time to finish what I'm working on and can then power down if it happens. I can't tell you what peace of mind that whole-house unit has given me, definitely worth the cost even at five times what I paid. Replacing everything I lost before was several thousand dollars.

I'll be looking to replace my washer and dryer soon (very old and on their last leg!), so I pay attention to these threads too.

Our washer just died. I got it used from a thrift store 16 years ago. Tomorrow we will go get another used one from another thrift store. Prices have risen in 16 years from $75 to $160, but this one has a warranty on it.

Do you have to put your soap into the top dispenser? My washer doesn't have this and I just set the little soap cup in the washer itself before I put the clothes in and then turn it on. If I use softener, it's just a dryer sheet.

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Lori

Yeah its one of those little slide out drawers on the top which has areas for each. I dont mind but at some point I may lower my platform if it gets to annoying.