Washing Machine Advice

I have a Hoover Washing Machine, but its kaput. original price £550

Anyone got any advice on a good cheap washing machine? price, how long you had it? Noise?

Hoover are trying to obtain a extortionate amount to repair mine  and I think I am also being conned by them... 

Trying to suss if its better all round if I but a new machine.

Any advice appreciated...

Hi DF, sorry to hear about that!  My experience with UK washing machines is that they tend to last us only 3-4 years tops.  I wouldn't bother with repair, I'd just replace it.

Here is ours (and we are happy with it/can recommend it):

http://www.boschappliances.co.uk/boschuk2007/en/products/products-WashingMachines+FreeStanding+Classixx-WAE2416SGB-pid-19.htm

It's available here for less than £375, including VAT and delivery:
http://www.tribaluk.com/detail.php?ProdID=09030492&referrer=aw&utm_source=affiliatewindow&utm_medium=cpa

(We bought ours from Tesco Online.)

ETA: it is a bit noisy (but no more noisy than any other washing machine I've had in the UK) and we've had it over a year with no problems.  The fabric softener bit got clogged, but this happens with all machines, and it was easy to remove the bit to clean it out so it was good as new again once we cleared all the black mouldy grimy gunk that was clogging it up.

I have had 3 machines in 30 years. The 1st one conked out after 13-14 years, its replacement is still going strong at its original home. Got one for this new place 5 years ago and it's still going strong.

Indesit, Candy and all under £300. Maybe I have been lucky. The first one that broke maybe could have been repaired but I wasn't here at the time...

I think the biggest culprit for broken machines is the act of overloading these beasts.

Ducky -  I would call a local plumber. They may be cheaper than the sucker Hoover people. That's always been my experience.

You could also try putting details to JustAnswer.com. Might point you in the right direction. http://www.justanswer.com/  or fixya  http://www.fixya.com/

Thank you ladies, I will check those out.  You are right about the 4 year average life expectancy LBA.  I seem to be suffering this too.  I remeber my mum and dads washing machine lasting 10 years before it gave up its life - i want one of them 

Thank you ladies, I will check those out.  You are right about the 4 year average life expectancy LBA.  I seem to be suffering this too.  I remeber my mum and dads washing machine lasting 10 years before it gave up its life - i want one of them 

My mother's US washing machine has been going strong for 30 years (so has the dryer).  Going back there for a visit is truly like taking a time machine back to the past.

I think that the hard water here makes a difference - surely it's possible to make washing machines last longer than 3 or 4 years, but I think a lot of it has to do with limescale buildup, and we don't have a hard water filter from the main (though a plumber did try to urge us to buy one when we had a new boiler put in and redid the bathroom and kitchen).

This is probably one of those threads where our differing experiences have to do with water hardness (and if I recall correctly from one of your previous threads, DF, you and I both have very hard water where we live).

I swear by Indesit, on my second, they are about £300. Only got rid of the first because my then partner was moving in and she had a newer machine (can't remember make) so got rid of my 12 year old machine, her's broke down 2 years later so bought another Indesit, had this one 4 years.

My mum's first Indesit lasted about 17 years.  Her second one has lasted 15 and is still going strong.

She is militant about adding limescale prevention tablets on every other wash.  I think this adds to the lifetime significantly.

Vicky

My Indescit broke after 3 years.   :\\\'(

Our landlords have a Hotpoint that is REALLY good.

I alternate liquid and powder detergent and use a product from Lakeland called HG Service Engineer every quarter to keep things clean.

I'm a bit obsessive about the laundry, though.  I check every garment for stains before it goes in, check all pockets and for loose threads and turn things inside out before washing.

Be careful about overloading the machine, too.  Items that are just too big to fit go to the laundrette.

I love my Bosch!  It was £300 two years ago.

What has actually gone wrong with it? 

What has actually gone wrong with it? 

We thought it needed new brushes.  On inspection, they were ok.  The motor and board however are kaput 

We have a Servis combo unit that's lasted two years with only one real problem (the belt came off after an unbalanced load, but it was still under warranty and the repairman showed us how to fix it if it happened again).

Can't remember the price, but it certainly would have been under £300 (probably under £200) from Argos.

It's fairly quiet. Gets a little noisy during the spin cycles, but only really bad with a big load.

We thought it needed new brushes.  On inspection, they were ok.  The motor and board however are kaput   

Ah, you're at the mercy of how much it will be for replacements then, as the manufacturers tend to price spares quite highly.   

I've got to buy one sometime next week. They certainly aren't cheap, are they? I'm leaning toward a Hotpoint from Argos. I want one with a decent energy rating (which adds a bit of money up front but purportedly saves money over time), a reasonably high spin rate, and a dryer with a sensor. I'm with expat - I'm quite picky about things to do with laundry so I'm probably going to suck it up and buy one that's somewhere around the 400 mark.

Ah, you're at the mercy of how much it will be for replacements then, as the manufacturers tend to price spares quite highly.   

Yup, Was told that the first visit will be 109 quid + parts and I am not guaranteed it will be fixed on the first visit - so weighing it all up - I am going to have to pitch it.  Its a real shame as I loved that machine