I Need A Washing Machine Now :-(

My Hotpoint has been making horrendous noises in the last 3 months, I
pulled it out today but I can't even get to the insides - and it seems to
be leaking as well.

Jeff Gaines...

Just to follow up I have ordered a Servis M6516W from Co-Op Electrical
which is due to be delivered on Wednesday, I also paid £12.99 for them to
take the old one away (it's about the same amount the NFDC would charge).

Jeff Gaines...

It arrived this morning at 8:20.

Amusing delivery driver, like Johnny Vegas in appearance. As he and his
mate went to pick up the old machine I said 'careful, there may be water
in the pipes'. He then dropped the machine as it it were red hot and said
'oh no mate, I can't take it if it's got water in it, I've got other stuff
in the van'. I said 'no, it's empty, but the pipes my have some dregs of
water'.

The handbook is highly technical. It talks about wash loads (I thought a
wash load was whatever was in the dirty washing basket) and measuring soap
powder and labels on clothes and so on, I'll have to find a woman to
translate it for me I think.

Anyway it's don the first wash and it's very quiet compared to the old one
so very pleased. Thanks for all the input :-)

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

When I had to get a new fridge a few weeks ago - our council collected the
old one from me free of charge. And similar when I purchased a new cooker
about 8 years ago. Wouldn't they do that for an old washing machine as
well?

Jeff Gaines...

I expect it's a bit far for them to come FN, I'm in the New Forest :-)

What they do here is charge around £12 and for that they will collect up
to 5 or so items - which have to be placed by the roadside on a specified
date. I guess the fee goes towards subsidising the Northern counties under

Ali...

I think my council charges a fiver an item.

our current government.

Ali...

According to my council, they're subsidising southern councils.

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

Yep we seem to get much less per head up here than those suvverners do too.

Jeff Gaines...

How much does a pair of clogs and a loaf of Hovis cost though?

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

But they have to clean those cobbles up that steep hill singly by hand with
a toothbrush - that's labour intensive is that. ;)

Ali...

Far too much.
I mean that about Hovis.

Actually I think we're all subsidising the private companies that have taken
over all the councils' administration.

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

The company who collect our rubbish and who came out to collect my old
fridge for free are a private company (Onyx, I believe ) so I don't think
they made much out of my fridge)

The council quote this:

How do I get a large item of rubbish removed?
Please call Onyx on 0114 273 4567
Alternatively visit your local are housing office, where you can use the
freephone.
There is no charge to council tenants for the removal of rubbish.

I think this must be an old statement, 'cos I'm not a council tenant and
they collected minre for free too..

Anybody any recommendations as to whether Calgon is likely to extend the
life of the new washer?

Aries...

I would like to know the answer to that as well. I do know that Calgon
makes water softer but with that goes the risk of over sudsing if you see

Sue...

Frankly I believe all that stuff about limescale damaging washers is a
scare story just to sell more Calgon. Our area has really hard water -
you should have seen the shale that'd filled up our venerable immersion
heater tank when it finally gave out! - but I've never known anyone's
washing machine give up the ghost due to limescale. They're far more
likely to wear out motors / bearings etc first.

Using a water softener might make washing powder go further in hard
water, but then you're paying extra for the softener so it's swings and
roundabouts.

Aries...

That's true! But I do think limescale from hard water damages and bungs up
things, especially central heating systems :(

what I mean :)

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

That's what the ads on TV imply. But do you trust them? They would say
that wouldn't they?

Jeff Gaines...

Yes Mandy :-)

MCC...

I reckon you'd be as well off using a handful of washing soda crystals.

Aries...

Would that soften the water tho ?

MCC...

Yes, and cut down the amount of detergent needed.

Aries...

Much cheaper than Calgon then :)

Jeff Gaines...

Now I remember when I was a kid that we used those instead of bath salts
and on insect bites :-)

Blue box, about the size of a small soap powder box, standing on the edge
of the bath.

It's about 5 years old so I guess it's finished, new ones seem to be
£250/£300 so I don't think it's worth trying to repair.

Any recommendations for a replacement? I live on my own so it doesn't get
massive loads, I don't need loads of confusing programmes or a tumble
dryer. I just want to bung stuff in, press a button and forget it.

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

What you want is a good old Hoovermatic twintub.

Flying Rat...

=20

Mines still going strong after 25+ years , now I've found a supplier for
spares.
Mind you I don't know where you could buy one these days. LOL

Jeff Gaines...

Thanks, FN! At least you can repair that type if you have a problem :-)

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

Sure can. Recently got two new belts and a wash tub lid from
partmaster.co.uk

Flying Rat...

I'm pretty sure they still make them, only for export markets. They=20

Flying Rat...

=20

Flying Rat...

=20

certainly still do the toploader type which are the tub and spinner=20

Flying Rat...

Nip down to your local ASDA. If you have one locally, they do Servis=20

Flying Rat...

if you have a Tesco (larger branch) nearby, they have a special on at=20
the moment. Servis washers for =A3199

machines at very reasonable prices.

You should be able to get one from them nearer the =A3200 mark, if you=20
don't want anything too fancy. Just basic machines at reasonable prices.

combined.

Flyiñg Ñuñ 2°°6 +...

I believe that they are supplied for durability test purposes, but not for
general domestic use. See here:

I have found a Bosch that only takes a cold water feed, that seems a bit
odd in view of the cost of electricity, any thoughts on that?

Any advice on making the new one last a bit longer (like Calgon for
instance) would also be appreciated, it's a boring thing to buy! I am in a
very hard water area, have to de-scale the kettle monthly.

MCC...

Which? Magazine recommended this one last month among their best buys

AEG-Electrolux L74810

* Price: £335
* Score: 62 %

AEG-Electrolux L74810

This Best Buy is almost identical to the L62810, but has a higher 1400 spin
speed. It¢s great on its 1hr 6min short wash and cleans easy care fabrics
well.

Spinning is good and it¢s easy to use. The excellent quick wash takes just
over an hour.

datasmog...

This is something I can't understand.
We've used washing machines in the US and New Zealand and a full wash
takes on average 30 minutes. And everything comes out clean.

Jeff Gaines...

It's conservation :-)

Rabbit...

In USA they have ( and have had for many years) washing powder which allows
for a whole wash to be done with only cold water, never seen either machines
or powder like that here.

Modern machines use much less water and, as a consequence, need much
longer to wash things.

It's also becoming more common for them to have a cold feed only, I was
taken back by that but it seems to make sense - since twin feeds usually
have 1 tank feed (hot) and 1 mains feed (cold) they rarely benefit from
the hot water due to the pressure differential.

I'm becoming an egg-spert due to my research :-)

Aries...

I have a quick wash that takes about 25 mins and I use my washing machine
on that setting most of the time. Now if I were a coal miner or had
footballers playing games on a muddy field then perhaps I would use a
longet time setting LOL

If you want me to let you have details of other machines recommended, just
ask. My reply-to address is valid.