• Top Loading vs. Front Loading
• High-Efficiency vs. Regular Cycle
People often choose a washer based on their budget and overlook any long-term considerations. Up front, high-efficiency washers cost between $200 and $600 more than regular washers, but after all of the long-term costs of electricity, water and detergent are added up, regular top-loading washers cost considerably more. And besides being cheaper to operate, high-efficiency washers are convenient, environmentally friendly and nicer to your clothes.
COST
• Pay less for water: front-loading, high-efficiency washers use less water than conventional washers. They repeatedly tumble clothes through a small amount of water, so the water level does not need to rise to the top of the clothes as with conventional washers.
• Pay less for electricity: up to 90 percent of the cost of washing clothes comes from heating the water; using less water means using less power. Plus, the high speed spin cycle squeezes more water out of the clothes, so they dry faster afterwards and require less energy from your dryer. Then there is the larger capacity of front-loading, high-efficiency washers: you will do fewer loads overall, another good way to save energy.• Pay less for detergent: front-loading, high-efficiency washers use less detergent as well, in tandem with their low water usage. When you are using only a tablespoon of detergent per load, a box of detergent can often last more than a year.
• Pay less for dry cleaning: you can wash delicate clothes and large, bulky items, reducing the need for laundry services and dry cleaning.
• Rebates: this kind of washer will save you money on its own, but in many localities just having one will earn you substantial water and energy efficiency rebates. Contact your local water and power companies for details.
In 1997, the US Department of Energy funded a real-world test of front-loading, high-efficiency washers in Bern, Kansas, population 204. First they spent two months gathering data on the water and energy consumption of normal washers. Then they replaced all the machines with high-efficiency horizontal-axis (front-loading) washers and kept tabs for three months. The results were staggering: average water use per load dropped from 41.5 gallons per load to 25.8 gallons, a savings of 38%. Total energy use fell by 58%. Even more was saved due to the fact that the moisture content of each load was reduced by around 7%, shortening the drying time. Not only that, participants reported that their high-efficiency washers did a better job on their clothes.
CONVENIENCE
• More is less: the larger capacity of front-loading, high-efficiency washers allows you to do fewer loads.
• More is more: larger items fit inside a front-loading washer, so you can wash them yourself instead of taking them to a shop.
• Shorter dry time: high-efficiency washers sometimes take longer to finish their cycles than a regular washer, but because the clothes come out with less water content (due to the high speed of the spin cycle), they can be dried much quicker. This reverses the usual chain of events, which goes like this: the second load in the washer is long-since done while we wait impatiently for the first load in the dryer to be really dry. Instead of this, many owners report that the first load is dry and folded in time for the second load to go into the dryer.
• Stackability: many (but not all) models of front-loading high-efficiency washers can be stacked on top of each other. Not only do they fit in a smaller space, but with the washer on top the clothes are at eye level. Compact models exist that can be placed in your master bathroom, so you don't need to go far from your bedroom to take care of your clothes. These are also ideal for small apartments.
ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY
• Less is more: the fact that front-loading, high-efficiency washers use less water, less detergent and less power makes them better for the environment.
• Less noise pollution: these washers usually make much less noise than conventional washers.
FABRIC CARE
• Longer-lasting clothes: front-loading, high-efficiency washers are easier on clothes, due to the fast that they tumble the clothes in a flat-sided drum rolling on a horizontal axis, instead of pulling them violently around a vertical shaft like in top-loaders.
• Wash anything: for the same reasons, high-efficiency washers also allow you to wash the kinds of things you would usually bring to the cleaners or wash by hand. Wool sweaters and lingerie are gently tumbled instead of being stretched like in a conventional agitator. Large, unwieldy items such as bedspreads can also be washed with ease.
• Truly clean: high-efficiency washers rinse with clean water multiple times so no soap is left in your clothes, and dirt really comes out. Whites and colors are both brighter as a result.
HIGH EFFICIENCY WASHERS AT CROSSROADS APPLIANCE
At Crossroads we sell six brands of front-loading, high-efficiency washers (click to go to the manufacturer's website in a new window):
The best of the best among high-efficiency washers is Miele. You pay more for Miele, and get more. These washers can last a decade or more with little to no service. If you are willing to pay more up front, they will pay for themselves in the long term.