Washing Machine In Thailand Front Or Top Loader?

[rjhklein]

Dear All,

My wife and I have endless discussion regarding the better laundry machine. We bought an Hitachi top loader 2 years ago which cannot heat up the water.

My wife believes the top loader is better because the laundry would be fully immersed in water and soap, you also do not need a machine that heats up the water because you change your clothes daily.... These are basically her arguments.

I believe that the front loader is better because of the following:

Using less water and energy

Heating up the water (therefore kill bacteria easier)

Able to get higher RMP's and possibility of hot air drying the clothes

In case of some really dirty gardening work the top loader cannot full fill the job. I think a front loader probably creates more friction with the laundry and there fore make it cleaner.

Anyway, being a foreigner in Thailand and having mainly experienced front loaders in Europe I kindly would like to have a second opinion for people who has been here many years and came to a conclusion.

Hope you guys can advice and finally put an end to this discussion.

Rumble.

[rijb]

My wife and I are having the same discussion. I need help too!

[mahtin]

I thought top loaders were for those who relied on hosepipe to fill it

[gotglue]

Unless you're the ones actually washing the clothes, i can't see what your problem is. If you are that determined to have a front loader, which we have and do prefer, why just lie to your wife and tell her, you've just been chatting to a samsung engineer, who's fed up with spending his days fixing top loaders.

[tangoll]

Actually, I saw one Whirlpool top loader with a vertical spinning drum, that also has heat water function. The cost is about 24,000 baht. This one is unlike the normal Japanese make top loaders with the horizontal spin tub and no hot water function. I saw this Whirlpool unit at either Emporium or Paragon department store, home appliance section.

These top loaders are narrow in width only about 18 inches (40 cm) across, and are very common in HK because of narrow width, but not so common in Bangkok.

[utneflyte]

I think Top Loader is best.

This is Thailand, the water temperature coming out of the tap water is warm enough to clean your clothes properly.

It is also easier to load and unload, being you go from the top and don't have to bend over to access your clothes. Unless you get gf/wife/mistress to do it and it turns you on.... haha

In order to kill bacteria, with simply water, you need boiling water, which would destroy your clothes. Assuming you use laundry detergent, it takes care of killing any bacterias.

With top loader, you can access your clothes, if they are heavily dirty, such as gardening clothes, if they need extra personal care (rubbing, soaking, slap), you can do so in the beginning of the wash cycle.. something you can not do with a side loader.

you can also do hand wash in a top loaded. Useful is you buy any clothes from the streets or for delicate gf/wife/mistress dresses/lingerie/undergarments/blah/blah/blah.

Well, that's my thoughts, hope it helps.

Cheers.

[bkkjames]

i like the top load style.

a mate of mine has a fancy side load style and the mechanism for closing the door always seems like it is gonna break or something.

[nam-thip]

Previously i had a front loader which after five years of endless use it went tits up so the misses asked me to buy a top loader which is the preferred machine of Thai people. We now have a Whirlpool 7.5kg top loader which set me back around 14000 baht three years ago and one thing my misses likes is that if she forgets an item she just opens the lid and throws it in which you couldn't do with a front loader as the door is locked until the cycle is finished. The other point my misses made at the time was that Thai washing powder is geared to wash clothes in cold water and not hot so what's the point in having a machine with a heater.

The machine is piped in and fully automatic, changes the water at least twice and not once have I questioned an item as not being clean.

On a final note, in three years it's never failed once.

Edited May 31, 2010 by nam-thip

[Forkinhades]

I think Top Loader is best.

This is Thailand, the water temperature coming out of the tap water is warm enough to clean your clothes properly.

It is also easier to load and unload, being you go from the top and don't have to bend over to access your clothes. Unless you get gf/wife/mistress to do it and it turns you on.... haha

In order to kill bacteria, with simply water, you need boiling water, which would destroy your clothes. Assuming you use laundry detergent, it takes care of killing any bacterias.

With top loader, you can access your clothes, if they are heavily dirty, such as gardening clothes, if they need extra personal care (rubbing, soaking, slap), you can do so in the beginning of the wash cycle.. something you can not do with a side loader.

you can also do hand wash in a top loaded. Useful is you buy any clothes from the streets or for delicate gf/wife/mistress dresses/lingerie/undergarments/blah/blah/blah.

Well, that's my thoughts, hope it helps.

Cheers.

what a load of garbish

[bkkjames]

I think Top Loader is best.

This is Thailand, the water temperature coming out of the tap water is warm enough to clean your clothes properly.

It is also easier to load and unload, being you go from the top and don't have to bend over to access your clothes. Unless you get gf/wife/mistress to do it and it turns you on.... haha

In order to kill bacteria, with simply water, you need boiling water, which would destroy your clothes. Assuming you use laundry detergent, it takes care of killing any bacterias.

With top loader, you can access your clothes, if they are heavily dirty, such as gardening clothes, if they need extra personal care (rubbing, soaking, slap), you can do so in the beginning of the wash cycle.. something you can not do with a side loader.

you can also do hand wash in a top loaded. Useful is you buy any clothes from the streets or for delicate gf/wife/mistress dresses/lingerie/undergarments/blah/blah/blah.

Well, that's my thoughts, hope it helps.

Cheers.

what a load of garbish

To be honest, unless you are bleaching everything for use in the O.R. what's a little bacteria on you clothes. Generally I don't eat my clothes.

[rjhklein]

Unless you're the ones actually washing the clothes, i can't see what your problem is. If you are that determined to have a front loader, which we have and do prefer, why just lie to your wife and tell her, you've just been chatting to a samsung engineer, who's fed up with spending his days fixing top loaders.

Haha, thanks for the reply but I sure she would figure it out... naturally I also don't want to lie to her in the first place.

Anyway, your point is taken. What is the actual problem. To elaborate a bit more on it, my wife said that in here family house the front loader gave smelly clothes...

Having such humid weather it might be true but then again a front loader has normally a dryer in there...

Another concern is, and this is a bit gross... rash, originating from fungus on the skin. It is very common to have fungus in these hot and humid environment. I had it before and might have been able to get rid of it faster if I wash hotter and more thoroughly.

Hope you can help..

[bkkjames]

In this weather hang your clothes outside. Mine dries in no-time at all.

[dick turpin]

Top loader does it for me, no more crawling around on your hands and

knees trying to locate that final sock.

Think front loaders are more of a euro thing designed to fit under kitchen

work tops, whereas in thailand usually located elsewhere.

Working on the same principle it always cracks me up when I go in a typical

thai home and the refrigerator has pride of place.... in the living room.

[bkkjames]

Top loader does it for me, no more crawling around on your hands and

knees trying to locate that final sock.

Think front loaders are more of a euro thing designed to fit under kitchen

work tops, whereas in thailand usually located elsewhere.

Working on the same principle it always cracks me up when I go in a typical

thai home and the refrigerator has pride of place.... in the living room.

The fridge thing is amazing.

Back in the day Thai Interior Designers never knew what a fridge was so they didnt make space for them in the kitchen.

I once almost rented an apartment that had a massive fridge smack in the middle of the living room. Thought to myself 'hmm this will make it easier for me to avail beers and snacks'. Then realised that I would have to go back and forth to the living room to cook dinner and gave it a miss.

Edited May 31, 2010 by bkkjames

[gotlost]

I love my top loader.

[lazygourmet]

When we had to buy a new washing machine -several years ago- our main problem was to find an 'user friendly" model for the maid.

LG did the trick... Top loader of course!

[garyh]

Washing machines are my business, I would only have a Front loader. The reason for heating water is mainly for a better wash as whites come out very white at 95 degrees. Any wash will wash better at a warmer temperature, but too high will make colours run, so no more than 60 if your not sure use 40. The amount of energy used to heat the water is minimal in a front loader, the top loader will take a lot more to fill with a warm wash.

Front Loaders do wash much better, like the hand laundry, your clothes are picked up and dropped forcing the water and detergent through the fibres. Also it much better for your clothes and they will last much longer, all that lint you collect in your top loader is your clothes wearing out, front loaders don't have lint filters as they don't need it.

My preference is LG made in Korea, not the chinese made LG they are rubbish they look almost the same but have lots of problems. LG is not the same quality as some European brands however they are much cheaper to buy and parts are much much cheaper. You could buy 3 or 4 LG's for the price of say a Meile, I'm not bagging them just they cost so much more.

Front Loaders do take much longer to do a proper wash, you can't add more clothes with out stopping and waiting for the door to unlock and you have to bend over to load it.

Water consumption is around 30 percent of a conventional top loader, also make sure you use low suds (Front Loader) detergent.

[Jimi007]

I've had a LG 8 Kg Fuzzy Logic top loader for over three years, never had a problem. It doesn't have a gentle cycle though. It fills to your choice of water levels, one or two rinse cycles, choices of wash cycles and spins the clothes nearly dry... It also has a detergent and automatic fabric softener dispenser. She hangs the clothes out on the drying rack in the sun which would kill most fungi etc. It only takes a short time to dry most things, except when it rains and it doesn't use any electricity to dry... I don't really see a need for hot water, the water from my well isn't exactly cold! Electrolux was the only front loader I saw back when I bought my machine and they were way expensive. So, a top loader automatic fuzzy logic machine seems fine and they are less money than a front loader...

Up to you though, it's your money!

PS, I just looked, it's made in Thailand, so cheaper to buy and fix, if it ever needs to be. 5 year warranty on the motor.

Edited May 31, 2010 by Jimi007

[rjhklein]

Washing machines are my business, I would only have a Front loader. The reason for heating water is mainly for a better wash as whites come out very white at 95 degrees. Any wash will wash better at a warmer temperature, but too high will make colours run, so no more than 60 if your not sure use 40. The amount of energy used to heat the water is minimal in a front loader, the top loader will take a lot more to fill with a warm wash.

Front Loaders do wash much better, like the hand laundry, your clothes are picked up and dropped forcing the water and detergent through the fibres. Also it much better for your clothes and they will last much longer, all that lint you collect in your top loader is your clothes wearing out, front loaders don't have lint filters as they don't need it.

My preference is LG made in Korea, not the chinese made LG they are rubbish they look almost the same but have lots of problems. LG is not the same quality as some European brands however they are much cheaper to buy and parts are much much cheaper. You could buy 3 or 4 LG's for the price of say a Meile, I'm not bagging them just they cost so much more.

Front Loaders do take much longer to do a proper wash, you can't add more clothes with out stopping and waiting for the door to unlock and you have to bend over to load it.

Water consumption is around 30 percent of a conventional top loader, also make sure you use low suds (Front Loader) detergent.

If you are in the washing machine business you should be able to write MIELE right, right? Probably an innocent mistake because you r story makes sense. I will still review the other comments coming in and then make a conclusion.

Thanks a lot for all the info and opinion.

By the way also very funny ones!! Love the Refrigerator in the living room comment. hahah

[fredob43]

I got an LG top loader yesterday 11kg why it will take a duvet Try getting one in a front loader. Cost 10,990bt last one also an LG twin tub lasted nearly 9 year's 6,000bt great value. Thai made. No problem except the Thai wife cant work the new one as it's an auto, Best of luck with what ever you get.

[needforspeed]

My wife and I are having the same discussion. I need help too!

Sorry i can't help you, i had the same problems a few years ago, i had sollid prove that the front loader (head up the water) was much better.

She bought a top loader

happy times

[garyh]

Washing machines are my business, I would only have a Front loader. The reason for heating water is mainly for a better wash as whites come out very white at 95 degrees. Any wash will wash better at a warmer temperature, but too high will make colours run, so no more than 60 if your not sure use 40. The amount of energy used to heat the water is minimal in a front loader, the top loader will take a lot more to fill with a warm wash.

Front Loaders do wash much better, like the hand laundry, your clothes are picked up and dropped forcing the water and detergent through the fibres. Also it much better for your clothes and they will last much longer, all that lint you collect in your top loader is your clothes wearing out, front loaders don't have lint filters as they don't need it.

My preference is LG made in Korea, not the chinese made LG they are rubbish they look almost the same but have lots of problems. LG is not the same quality as some European brands however they are much cheaper to buy and parts are much much cheaper. You could buy 3 or 4 LG's for the price of say a Meile, I'm not bagging them just they cost so much more.

Front Loaders do take much longer to do a proper wash, you can't add more clothes with out stopping and waiting for the door to unlock and you have to bend over to load it.

Water consumption is around 30 percent of a conventional top loader, also make sure you use low suds (Front Loader) detergent.

If you are in the washing machine business you should be able to write MIELE right, right? Probably an innocent mistake because you r story makes sense. I will still review the other comments coming in and then make a conclusion.

Thanks a lot for all the info and opinion.

By the way also very funny ones!! Love the Refrigerator in the living room comment. hahah

While we are being pedantic the word "your" does not have a space in the middle either.

[garyh]

I got an LG top loader yesterday 11kg why it will take a duvet Try getting one in a front loader. Cost 10,990bt last one also an LG twin tub lasted nearly 9 year's 6,000bt great value. Thai made. No problem except the Thai wife cant work the new one as it's an auto, Best of luck with what ever you get.

My LG 10 KG front loader will wash it also.

[Donnyboy]

most domestic washers dont last except probably Maytag, some keep going over 20 years, built like tanks thou

[toptuan]

Bought a cheapie Hitachi 7 years ago for 7,800 Baht. Only one minor repair (a condenser) for 400 baht. Does fine for all the clothes, except whites get dingy over time. Now I do what the Thais do--use bluing once a month, following the directions carefully. No more problem with whites. Top loader. Final criteria: Too old and fat to bend over for the side loader.

[garyh]

most domestic washers dont last except probably Maytag, some keep going over 20 years, built like tanks thou

Maytag have gone out of business because their quality turned to crap, google maytag neptune for example.

[Donnyboy]

most domestic washers dont last except probably Maytag, some keep going over 20 years, built like tanks thou

Maytag have gone out of business because their quality turned to crap, google maytag neptune for example.

ok i didnt know that

the maytags i was referring to were the older type> Alot were converted for coin op laundrymats

[rijb]

Here's some dollars and sense... http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/laundry.html

[Forkinhades]

Washing machines are my business, I would only have a Front loader. The reason for heating water is mainly for a better wash as whites come out very white at 95 degrees. Any wash will wash better at a warmer temperature, but too high will make colours run, so no more than 60 if your not sure use 40. The amount of energy used to heat the water is minimal in a front loader, the top loader will take a lot more to fill with a warm wash.

Front Loaders do wash much better, like the hand laundry, your clothes are picked up and dropped forcing the water and detergent through the fibres. Also it much better for your clothes and they will last much longer, all that lint you collect in your top loader is your clothes wearing out, front loaders don't have lint filters as they don't need it.

My preference is LG made in Korea, not the chinese made LG they are rubbish they look almost the same but have lots of problems. LG is not the same quality as some European brands however they are much cheaper to buy and parts are much much cheaper. You could buy 3 or 4 LG's for the price of say a Meile, I'm not bagging them just they cost so much more.

Front Loaders do take much longer to do a proper wash, you can't add more clothes with out stopping and waiting for the door to unlock and you have to bend over to load it.

Water consumption is around 30 percent of a conventional top loader, also make sure you use low suds (Front Loader) detergent.

At last a decent reply, with a little science

[doggie888888]

My personal experience...top loaders with the middle rotater tend to be rough...my t-shirts would be out of shape. Front loaders appear to be gentler as it merely rotates, let the clothes fall and rotate again, without the middle bit pulling on clothes. Front loaders use less water (unless the newer front loaders have changed recently), gives option of cold/hot wash. A poster mentioned you can't pop in clothes if you forget to put them all in at first with a front loader....well, mine has a "delay" function....so I turn on and it will only start in say 1/2 hour so plenty of time to see if I had forgotten anything before it starts up

Oh, i also find top loaders uses less detergent...like 1 level scoop is enough for a very full load. Mind you, the disadvantage is you need to get specially formulated detergent for front loaders as it is apparently not good to use regular detergent.