Show Me Your Dark Arts: Front Load Washer Edition
July 2, 2018 4:04 PM Subscribe
What techniques and tricks do you employ to not have your front load washer decide to flee your abode? Heck, what are your superior techniques to washing clothes, in general? What about line drying?
I have an LG front loader that likes to crawl, walk and sometimes run while in spin mode. My exprience with three front loaders has been: in kitchen where it too would try to flee and I had to brace with my legs while lying on the floor (It was like a practice run for getting into position for labor.) Large LG on a pedestal that worked like a treat and loved me enough to stay put and now, the third, whose love is fickle and I cannot put on a pedestal due to space restrictions.
The auto selection gets me mixed results. Sometimes the washer crawls and sometimes it just vibrates. Even with very specific settings to a specific item e.g., duvet. I use 1/2 the amount of detergent called for and I check the filter and all that.
I also want to know how to deal with clothes in preparation for line drying. So tell me if there are alternate techniques for front loader voodoo if it is line drying vs. dryer.
I have an LG front loader that likes to crawl, walk and sometimes run while in spin mode. My exprience with three front loaders has been: in kitchen where it too would try to flee and I had to brace with my legs while lying on the floor (It was like a practice run for getting into position for labor.) Large LG on a pedestal that worked like a treat and loved me enough to stay put and now, the third, whose love is fickle and I cannot put on a pedestal due to space restrictions.
The auto selection gets me mixed results. Sometimes the washer crawls and sometimes it just vibrates. Even with very specific settings to a specific item e.g., duvet. I use 1/2 the amount of detergent called for and I check the filter and all that.
I also want to know how to deal with clothes in preparation for line drying. So tell me if there are alternate techniques for front loader voodoo if it is line drying vs. dryer.
Who is installing them for you, or are you doing it yourself? I've only had front loaders in my adult life and I've never had one try to walk in the way you describe. I've generally had them with a levelling board or with pads under the feet.
I wonder if you aren't overloading and the wash is getting unbalanced?
I line dry everything and use a front loader and I don't do anything special.
posted by frumiousb at 4:12 PM on July 2, 2018 [3 favorites]
I wonder if you aren't overloading and the wash is getting unbalanced?
I line dry everything and use a front loader and I don't do anything special.
posted by frumiousb at 4:12 PM on July 2, 2018 [3 favorites]
Make sure the shipping bolts are removed and the unit is leveled (and hopefully the floor isn't waaay out of level itself) and it should be fine, though it may still shake a bit while it's getting up to speed and passes through a resonant frequency.
If it's been run with the shipping bolts in or worse moved with them out, there's a good chance the suspension is broken and will have to be repaired if you want it to stop walking.
There do exist rubber mats made for the purpose that should cut down on the noise a bit and keep it mostly in the same place. You can get them on Amazon.
posted by wierdo at 4:34 PM on July 2, 2018
If it's been run with the shipping bolts in or worse moved with them out, there's a good chance the suspension is broken and will have to be repaired if you want it to stop walking.
There do exist rubber mats made for the purpose that should cut down on the noise a bit and keep it mostly in the same place. You can get them on Amazon.
posted by wierdo at 4:34 PM on July 2, 2018
Mine will do that when overloaded. Being less ambitious about load size more or less caused the issue to go away.
posted by Candleman at 4:45 PM on July 2, 2018
posted by Candleman at 4:45 PM on July 2, 2018
Wrinkle-prone stuff will come out of the dryer smoother if you dry on low setting and don't over-dry. And if the dryers' not too full. Try it with sheets...huge difference.
Line-drying: for clothes that come out of the washer with wrinkles, I put them in the dryer for a short time before hanging them up to dry. 10 minutes or less.
If you have a quick-wash setting, it's more than adequate for those not-so-dirty loads, which is almost all of them in my house.
HE washers used with liquid detergent really do have to be cleaned periodically. I usually run the empty washer with hot water and bleach once a month to prevent odor.
posted by wryly at 5:11 PM on July 2, 2018
Line-drying: for clothes that come out of the washer with wrinkles, I put them in the dryer for a short time before hanging them up to dry. 10 minutes or less.
If you have a quick-wash setting, it's more than adequate for those not-so-dirty loads, which is almost all of them in my house.
HE washers used with liquid detergent really do have to be cleaned periodically. I usually run the empty washer with hot water and bleach once a month to prevent odor.
posted by wryly at 5:11 PM on July 2, 2018
Response by poster: In reply to questions: The front loader on a pedestal that did not crawl ever was installed by professionals at my house. The other two, including the present one, came installed with the rental of the apartments.
Very full loads do not crawl. Towels are tricky and so are small loads. Blankets are OK if not with anything else. Duvets and pillows very iffy even with the presets.
So, do you adjust the spin lower or higher to load size?
posted by jadepearl at 5:12 PM on July 2, 2018
Very full loads do not crawl. Towels are tricky and so are small loads. Blankets are OK if not with anything else. Duvets and pillows very iffy even with the presets.
So, do you adjust the spin lower or higher to load size?
posted by jadepearl at 5:12 PM on July 2, 2018
The only issue I’ve ever had with line drying is psychology. Some people will never tolerate the feel of line-dried underclothes or towels, but I’ve grown to appreciate it. Most light synthetics can be hung inside, but thicker or natural fiber stuff does much better outside.
Also keep in mind that line drying helps your clothes to last longer (less beating and damage) and will also save energy costs while reducing your carbon footprint.
posted by SaltySalticid at 5:40 PM on July 2, 2018 [2 favorites]
Also keep in mind that line drying helps your clothes to last longer (less beating and damage) and will also save energy costs while reducing your carbon footprint.
posted by SaltySalticid at 5:40 PM on July 2, 2018 [2 favorites]
I line dry my clothes after washing them in an LG front loader. Mine has variable spin settings and I find the clothes to be less wrinkly if I set it for a lower spin speed (i.e., leaving more water in the clothes).
posted by HotToddy at 6:36 PM on July 2, 2018
posted by HotToddy at 6:36 PM on July 2, 2018
I have used front loaders and line drying (indoor and outdoor) all my life, living in Europe.
To me it sounds like overloading. way back in home economics we were taught to load so that a hand easily still fits on top of load, and to mix towels and other laundry as pure towel loads can get to heavy / waterlogged move unevenly inside machine and cause the machine to move around.
Also, i would think loads of duvets, blankets etc will be too much. Again those get very water logged and would cause machine to move.
Re spin, i spin everything on highest setting, shake it vigorously before hanging to dry eg grip tshirts by shoulder seams ro shake and in general hang tidily to limit wrinkles.
Also we use a rubber mat, i bought it at the store that sold the washing machine. It totally stops vibrations.
posted by 15L06 at 12:34 AM on July 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
To me it sounds like overloading. way back in home economics we were taught to load so that a hand easily still fits on top of load, and to mix towels and other laundry as pure towel loads can get to heavy / waterlogged move unevenly inside machine and cause the machine to move around.
Also, i would think loads of duvets, blankets etc will be too much. Again those get very water logged and would cause machine to move.
Re spin, i spin everything on highest setting, shake it vigorously before hanging to dry eg grip tshirts by shoulder seams ro shake and in general hang tidily to limit wrinkles.
Also we use a rubber mat, i bought it at the store that sold the washing machine. It totally stops vibrations.
posted by 15L06 at 12:34 AM on July 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
Our front loader gets stinky. Its 7 years old so maybe the newer ones are better. We've had the repair guy in twice now (some fuse gets loose) and for the stinkiness, his rules are
1- Door open when not in use. I rigged up a magnet and hook with some elastic to keep it ajar.
2- Use powder detergent, and only half the recommended amount. The liquids cause build up. He really likes Persil (From Europe) but I tend to use Tide as its easier to get.
3- Use the washing machine cleaner stuff twice a month (on the cleaning cycle)
4- Run vinegar loads (usually I do tea towels and pool towels with 4 cups of vinegar) twice a month.
5- Never ever use pods.
There's a mode you can use to cause the washer to actually fill with water, and agitate. Its one of the test modes. He didn't recommend this, but we find if we fill and agitate it gives us a good idea of if there is detergent left (bubbles). If we are getting residue, we are using too much detergent
The smell is caused from the detergent caking onto the drum.
My machine really doesn't move, it does vibrate but not so much that its an issue. We keep a bunch of stuff on it, and its only stuff thats there precariously (ie 12 year old left detergent on the side of the machine) that will fall off.
posted by Ftsqg at 7:09 AM on July 3, 2018 [4 favorites]
1- Door open when not in use. I rigged up a magnet and hook with some elastic to keep it ajar.
2- Use powder detergent, and only half the recommended amount. The liquids cause build up. He really likes Persil (From Europe) but I tend to use Tide as its easier to get.
3- Use the washing machine cleaner stuff twice a month (on the cleaning cycle)
4- Run vinegar loads (usually I do tea towels and pool towels with 4 cups of vinegar) twice a month.
5- Never ever use pods.
There's a mode you can use to cause the washer to actually fill with water, and agitate. Its one of the test modes. He didn't recommend this, but we find if we fill and agitate it gives us a good idea of if there is detergent left (bubbles). If we are getting residue, we are using too much detergent
The smell is caused from the detergent caking onto the drum.
My machine really doesn't move, it does vibrate but not so much that its an issue. We keep a bunch of stuff on it, and its only stuff thats there precariously (ie 12 year old left detergent on the side of the machine) that will fall off.
posted by Ftsqg at 7:09 AM on July 3, 2018 [4 favorites]
If there's a smell it's frequently due to closing the door between loads. Leave it open to let any residual water in the drum evaporate rather than stay down there like some stainless steel petri dish.
posted by Cris E at 8:10 AM on July 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Cris E at 8:10 AM on July 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
With front loaders, in addition to vinegar rinses and leaving the door open between washes, you need to clean the rubber gasket regularly (vinegar would work for this).
posted by radioamy at 3:27 PM on July 3, 2018
posted by radioamy at 3:27 PM on July 3, 2018
What I love about line drying is that things do not become tangled in the dryer. Also, you can sort clothes as you hang them and fold them as you take them down. Plus the smell of being dried outdoors is so nice, even in the city.
Related: I use wool dryer balls in the winter when I mostly dry clothes inside. They work remarkably well. I'll never use those over-chemically-perfumed dryer sheets again.
posted by caryatid at 11:28 AM on July 4, 2018
Related: I use wool dryer balls in the winter when I mostly dry clothes inside. They work remarkably well. I'll never use those over-chemically-perfumed dryer sheets again.
posted by caryatid at 11:28 AM on July 4, 2018
« Older how to take medication when im visiting the usa? | Help Your Granny Set Up A Stereo System - Home... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by rockindata at 4:09 PM on July 2, 2018 [6 favorites]