Washing Clothes - Advice

I am more nervous about washing clothes in the UK, then the actual moving part.   

I have heard that the Washer/Dryer combos aren't great and take very long.  Most people hang their clothes everywhere.  I have also heard that the washers are harsh on clothes (temparture-wise).

Are there certain brands of w/d that are better than others?  Is there a certain way to wash clothes (certain settings) that is better than other ways?  I am confused by the detergent options.  What is most similar to liquid Tide and fabric sheets?  Is there a better option than liquid Tide and fabric sheets?  I have seem a kind of dryer thing from Argos, where you hang your clothes, zip it up, plug it in, and it dries (like an electric airating cuboard) -- is this a good compromise to hanging your clothes to dry on ever surface in your household?

Please help me!

I think that the washer in the UK seems better for clothes than the US .. The one here has temperature settings so you can set what temperature you want to wash clothes on :-) .   Don't know about a tumble dryer..  Just hang clothes on everything in the house.   The dishwasher is the same and set by what temperature you want to wash dishes.

I have a Hotpoint washer and a Creda tumble dryer.  I'm pretty happy with both of them and have never had a wear and tear problem with my clothes.  I know some poeple say that, but it's not something I've ever come across.  And I'm a great believer in buying a dryer if you can't live without one. 

washer/dryer combos are not very good for drying - better to have sep washing and drying machines; my favourite detergent is Ecover liquid, it makes everything smell wonderful and is also good for washing at low temperatures AND is especially good for anyone with sensative skin.

I have a normal front load washer. It takes ages for a load to wash but the good news is the clothes seem to get cleaner in it than my old toploader in the USA. When I first moved here we rented a house that had a washer in it. I asked hubby where the dryer was and he told me most people hang their "washing" out on the washing line. But its the middle of winter? He said "Oh we just hang everything on radiators" WHAT?? I went to my SILs one day and she had every radiator in the house stacked with wet clothes. YUCK. I made hubby go out and get me a cheap second hand "tumble dryer" for £30.00. It worked great but we had to run a hose out the kitchen window because it wasnt vented. We have a condensor dryer now but the water has to be emptied every other load. As for detergent, there are several types of liquid and powder, bio and non-bio detergents to choose from. You can get bounce sheets most anywhere but are a bit pricey. Its funny to write about this today because when I got up this morning I noticed my husband put a pair of his jeans on the radiator which isnt even on! He will let them stay there till they drip dry and then he will IRON them. Cant get by the ironing the jeans thing. Also I think that things that drip dry have an awful smell.
Pebbles

I think I was most fixated on how I would get from the airport to wherever I ended up staying.  Maybe your laundry worries are the same sort of thing?  Laundry here is quite easy, just takes a bit more time.  My washer in the States took about 35 miutes to run a load.  Here, my washer takes 130 minutes to do one load.  I don't have a combo unit.  When I was with Anne, the only thing that the dryer part of the combo unit was ever used for was towels and maybe the duvet.  It's expensive to run an appliance for 3+ hours for only a few items of clothing to be clean.  I really wouldn't sweat laundry.  Tablets and other kinds of soap can be found at anywhere.  Besides, if you come with all your laundry clean, you won't have to worry about it for at least a week.    

We have a washer/dryer combo too.  I only use it for socks, undies, sheets and tea towels, otherwise the rest gets hung up to dry.

We have a spare bedroom which contains no bed--just the PC, shelves of books and DVDs and four clothes horses! It doesn't take long to get used to airdrying, it doesn't take nearly as long for clothes to dry as you might think, and I have grown to love the brisk exfoliating properties of an air-dried bath towel!

I think I was most fixated on how I would get from the airport to wherever I ended up staying.  Maybe your laundry worries are the same sort of thing?

Yes.  I think so.  I seem not to be stressed out about any other part of the move.  I think I have fixated on this as my stress target, so that I can relax about everything else.  But, boy am I stressed about the laundry!!     My BF thinks I am being ridiculous.   

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Instead of asking what all types of w/d are better, is it easier to ask what to steer clear of.  I am trying to get a feel, so when I am looking at flats I can know what is better.

I would say to stay clear of washer/dryer combos.  The evils of them have been drummed into my head since I was a kid (grandpa has an appliance/furniture store!), but now I know that they SUCK!  They don't dry clothes!!!!!!!!

We had a condenser-type washer/dryer combo in our first apartment and it was total crap (even though it was brand new!).  The clothes would be just as wet after two hours of drying as they were when they first went in!   

I, like you, can't stand the thought of clothes being everywhere, but it's kind of a necessary evil here.  We don't have a dryer in our current house, but we're getting one in the next couple of weeks because I can't begin to imagine an entire winter with clothes on all of the radiators.  If we weren't getting one , though, I'd be limiting the drying to upstairs only (so i wouldn't have to look at the dripping clothes!) and probably only in the guest room.

i wouldn't make that the deciding factor when renting a flat - except what you definitely DON'T want is a "twin tub" which unbelievably some people still have (that's the old style machine, not automatic). When we moved into our place there was a rather old washer/dryer which we managed with for a while before first the dryer bit clapped out and our landlord then replaced it with a brand new  zanussi dryer - then a few months later the washer bit clapped out as well and so he had to get us a brand new washing mahcine as well - zanussi again - my parents have a zanussi as well - seems to be a really good brand.

I have a "European style" washer/dryer combo here in the US.  (We have an apartment with no venting and no space to install US-style separate washer and dryer.)  It does take a while, but I haven't had any problem actually getting all my clothes dry in it, even jeans.  Are the ones typically found in the UK less efficient?

it takes about 3 hours to dry a pair of jeans in a combo machine here!

it takes about 3 hours to dry a pair of jeans in a combo machine here!

I can just about do that in my airing cupboard!

When I was with Anne, the only thing that the dryer part of the combo unit was ever used for was towels and maybe the duvet.  It's expensive to run an appliance for 3+ hours for only a few items of clothing to be clean.

Yep - it's just too expensive to use the old combo washer/dryer for drying 'cause it's just so unbelievably inefficient - unless it's in there for an hour or more everything comes out hot and damp. Yuck. I tumble dry socks and undies. Towels I hang for a while and then finish them in the dryer to soften them up a bit. But for the most part everything is on a clothes horse - either outside or in the kitchen. In the winter, even though it's not very lovely to look at, the radiators really do dry things quickly....

And I used to buy Bounce sheets when I first came over but then realized that they're really not necessary....