Originally Posted by Triple_Se7en
If you think it's rough there in California, try watching various episodes of Life Below Zero TV and see how some Alaskans deal with not having any pipeline water.
I have the HE Washer and use it just like I did for the past 48 years (and two Whirlpool agitation washers) of doing my own laundry. I have very sensitive dry skin and need to do double rinses from November thru March. That's using the best "sensitive and free laundry soaps and no added softeners, bleach......etc.
If one cannot afford their water bill and are not wasting water, sacrifice another expenditure like booze, cigarettes, fast foods, cable TV.....etc..... and quit counting the gallons of water you use. Most of us are resigned to the future governmental dictation of preserving as much water as possible. But until they mandate restrictions here, I'm not getting rid of my HE washer. I think it cleans clothes well. Spot treating stains and pre-soaking clothes that are stained, are all part of the clothes washing conundrum.
Did you mean to say that you're not giving up you NON-HE washer? "H.E." stands for High Efficiency, which is meant to mean less energy and water used per standard cycle.
I don't agree with you that we shouldn't worry about washer energy/water use, especially if there is a way of doing so WITHOUT sacrificing much, if anything. You gave great examples of how one can save money (cutting out a beer every day, one or more fancy frapadapachinos or other expensive coffee drinks, eating smaller home-made portions for meals, etc.) Why not add appliances to that list?
I feel like my current Samsung front-load washer does the best job of any washer I've ever owned, using very little of everything. It cost a lot more than the cheapest Admiral brand, but I know it does a better job, using fewer resources, and I'm hopeful it will last longer. If it doesn't last 20 years without any expensive fixes, I'll eat crow.
//
With all of the praise I have for Samsung's washer, I can't say I'm impressed with the dryer (same with our previous LG dryer). Both dryers, using the max dryness setting, would never result in completely dry clothes, regardless of load size. This usually required AT LEAST another 20 minutes on low heat to be fully dry. This is interesting and frustrating to me, because my dad had a dryer with a moisture sensor that worked perfectly, and this was more than ten years ago, on a five-year-old dryer.
So, it appears we've regressed recently in the search for energy savings in some areas that do affect performance negatively. What this means for us, is if we start a load in the dryer and won't be able to immediately check it (within 12 hrs to prevent any mildew buildup), we have to set it to the Timed setting at a value conservatively high. This ensures our clothes are always dry, but probably wastes a lot of energy, all because they didn't design the moisture sensor correctly. I can't imagine they designed it this way on purpose, assuming people were cool with damp clothes at the end of every cycle.
)
