Front Load Vs. Top Load Washing Machines
Front load washing machines for home use resemble the big washers you'll find at laundromats. These models have some significant advantages over top load machines, but they also have a few disadvantages that may affect your decision of which to buy. Does this Spark an idea?
-
Advantages of Front Load Washing Machines
-
According to Lowe's Buyers Guide, front load washing machines use less water to wash a load of clothes, and they also spin faster than top load machines, thus wringing more water out of the clothes. This means that clothing washed in a front load washer doesn't take as long to dry as it would if you washed it in a top load machine.
Front load machines also treat your clothes more gently. Furthermore, with many front load models, you can stack a dryer on top of the washer, so the entire unit takes less floor space.
Disadvantages of Front Load Washing Machines
-
On the downside, you have to buy special detergents to use in front load washing machines that may be hard to find and usually cost more than standard detergents. The big issue, though, is the initial expense of the washer---a front load machine will cost you 30 percent to 40 percent more than a top load washer.
-
Advantages of Top Load Washing Machines
-
The tub of a top load washing machine is easier to get into, which can be important if you have trouble bending or stooping. There are a lot more models of top load machines than front load machines, with correspondingly more options in colors and special features. These machines also use regular detergents. Finally, top load washing machines cost quite a bit less to buy.
Disadvantages of Top Load Washing Machines
-
You can't, however, stack a dryer atop a top load washer, so you'll have to count on finding floor space for the dryer as well as the washer. Also, they do use more water and energy than front load washers.
Performance Issues
-
In June 2007, Consumer Reports (CR) alerted its readers that many top load washing machines weren't performing their fundamental function of getting clothes clean very well. CR opines that this is because in January 2007, the U.S. Department of Energy required all new washing machines to use 21 percent less energy. Thus, many models of top load washing machines with center agitators were not doing even an adequate job of cleaning clothes.
Top load models without agitators, called "HE" for "high efficiency," tended to get clothes cleaner than their agitator-less cousins, but the cost of these units rivals that of front load washing machines. Thus, Consumer Reports did not recommend that its readers buy any of the top load HE washers.
-
