Units with Combined Washer/Dryer

[sbradley]

Has anyone purchased a unit with a combined/washer dryer? Do they work? How long does a load usually take? The unit I am looking to buy does not have ventilation for a regular dryer so most condos in the building seem to have combined units.

It is really the only drawback of the condo so I would like some feedback as to whether or not it should be a major concern.


Thanks!

SB

 

[neuhaus]

Never had real experience with these combo units, but I was looking on spec'ing them on one of my projects.

They are more common in Europe where space is at a premium and dryer venting is not ideal.
From the reasearch I have done the faults is that the capacity is not as generous as a conventional washer/dryer, and it also takes much longer to do a load than a separate washer & dryer.

Personally I am not a fan as you can't do a load of washing and a load of drying at the same time, which saves a lot of time if you are doing mulitple loads (whites & colour particularly).

Do some online searches on reviews on these laundry units to get a better perspective.

 

[simuls]

They put washer/dryer combo's in DNA2 and almost all the owners had massive problems. It might just have been the maker, I don't know who, but almost all have been replaced. Most appliance people will tell you to avoid them, and they don't really have much incentive to do this as they're quite expensive and would make the retailer a pretty penny i would assume.

 

[Wooba]

They put washer/dryer combo's in DNA2 and almost all the owners had massive problems. It might just have been the maker, I don't know who, but almost all have been replaced. Most appliance people will tell you to avoid them, and they don't really have much incentive to do this as they're quite expensive and would make the retailer a pretty penny i would assume.

I've purchased 2 condos with these units in them and I found them to be quite good considering they were cheap things. In fact in the 2nd condo the maintenance guy told me that the people who had upgraded to the front loading energy efficient ones were having all sorts of problems. The place I'm renting now has the energy efficient ones and quite frankly they suck. I'm moving into my new place in about a month which will also have front loaders and am considering getting rid of them and replacing them with an all in one unit.
Neuhaus, they can dry/wash at the same time.. no problem.

 

[neuhaus]

[video=youtube;364dzVsBs2o]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=364dzVsBs2o&feature=player_embedded[/video]

sorry, I can't help myself.

 

[simuls]

Oh man, his wife is gonna kill him for ruining her flowers!! Hilarious.

 

[cdr108]

Omg ... Wtf ?!?!?

 

[iSlutsky]

Has anyone purchased a unit with a combined/washer dryer? Do they work? How long does a load usually take? The unit I am looking to buy does not have ventilation for a regular dryer so most condos in the building seem to have combined units.

It is really the only drawback of the condo so I would like some feedback as to whether or not it should be a major concern.

Hello,

I have a combo unit, and LOVED it while I was a bachelor. However, once my fiancée moved in we quickly realized that they are excellent for one person, terrible for two+ people. Reasons below:
1. VERY slow - 6ish hours per load
2. VERY small load sizes - two towels!
3. VERY noisy - it is like a train coming through our condo for 6-hours.

I should mention that mine is also ventless, which I imagine adds to the slowness.

M

 

[Eug]

I'm no expert, but a couple of things I picked up when looking for my laundry pair.

1) Separate dryers are usually much larger than their matched washer. Obviously in a combined combo, that is impossible. Given that these combo units are small to begin with, by dryer standards they're often comparatively absolutely tiny.

2) Many are built to run on 110 V AC only. I don't know if these are inherently slow or what, but if they're 110 V only, then that makes them even slower.

3) They don't save any floor space compared to small stacked washers and dryers.

 

[bAuHaUs]

LG has a 2.7 cu.ft. washer/dryer combo model #WM3455HW...runs on 120V, requires no outside venting for dryer, direct drive system so super quiet and can hit 1,400 rpm on the spin cycle (cutting down the time needed to dry) for about $2,400. Worth looking into.

 

[Eug]

LG has a 2.7 cu.ft. washer/dryer combo model #WM3455HW...runs on 120V, requires no outside venting for dryer, direct drive system so super quiet and can hit 1,400 rpm on the spin cycle (cutting down the time needed to dry) for about $2,400. Worth looking into.

The "runs on 120V" part is the problem. The drying time might be faster than other combo units, but it's still limited for heating by the lower voltage.

 

[bAuHaUs]

The "runs on 120V" part is the problem. The drying time might be faster than other combo units, but it's still limited for heating by the lower voltage.

I agree. It's a one-size fits all system.

 

[Catapult]

We have one of these combo units at our vacation place and while they work ok for light loads they do not work for heavier loads such as towels. Our towels never dry.