Delay wash will delay the start of the wash cycle. I sometimes use it if I am going to take a shower...I load the washer first, set the delay for an hour, take my shower with lots of hot water and then the washer will start later on. Some power companies also give you a break on rates late at night, so running your washer then will save a bit of money. And some people don't want a noisy washer going during the day so you can set the washer to run when you're not home or in the evening.

I do use the delay wash fairly often. I may set it so that a load finishes just before I wake up in the morning, or when I get home from work. I am not an "overnighter*," and don't like having wet clothes sitting in the washer for any length of time.

While the majority of the cycles I used take less than an hour, some take longer. If all the options on a sanitary cycle (soak, stain treat, heavy soil, extra rinse, extended spin) are selected, then the cycle can take over 3 hours! When I want to run a longer cycle, using the delay wash takes advantage of the time I am asleep or away. Saturday is often wash day, and when I wake up I can put the first washed load right into the dryer and start the second wash first thing in the morning. It feels like a jump start on the day.

If the weekend is going to be busy, it is easy to have a load finish in the morning, pop it in the dryer first thing out of bed, and folded before leaving for work.

So for me, delay wash is an important feature.

Joe

*For those newer to the laundry forum, an "overnighter" is someone who leaves a wet load of clothes in the washer overnight. It has proven to be a rather amusing topic of discussion in the past.

Joe & the others above did a great job of describing the how they use the tool of delay wash.

Do you *need* it? Only you can answer that.

But I think a better question might be -- would you *use* it? If the answer is yes, get it. If this feature is rather superfluous to your washing habits, then by all means consider buying a machine without it.

In Arizona we have a time-shift plan for power -- it's 1/4 the cost after 9pm and before 9am. I routinely use the delay features of my washing machine as well as dishwasher. I load them up when I have time and set them to start after 9pm when electricity is least expensive. I don't have to be home to physically start the machines at those times, which is very convenient.

Being that I don't like to leave clothes in the washer for extended periods of time and if I need to do a load at night and dont feel like waiting up for it; it is nice to load up the washer, dispense the detergent and set the delay feature to about an hour before I actually go downstairs in the morning. Once I am downstairs the clothes are ready to be popped into the dryer. I do the same when coming home, so once I walk in the door from work the clothes are ready to be dryed. Personally, I love this feature.

I don't want to use my delay button so how do I do it ???

How do you do what?? Set the delay??

This post is 8 years old. I think shortycake is long gone.