You should be aware that a "hot" wash, in some machines sold these days, doesn't mean "a wash filled with water from the hot faucet". They'll mix in cold water, to reach an energy-saving target temperature. I've heard temperatures of 100degF or 90degF. If you need hot washes, you really don't want this. You can't even rely on the information posted in a user manual online. I went through this with LG, and ended up returning the washer when the manual shipped with the machine differed from what I read online.

If the washer has steam, it might kill germs, but it won't clean dirty clothes that need hot water. And a sanitary cycle is no substitute for hot, unless the kids' clothes can take regular washing at, say, 158degF. Some might run or pucker or shrink at that temperature, or the elastic might deteriorate.

If your old washer was an agitator TL, you may have another hot water issue. That kind of machine uses so much water, it'll end up filled with hot even if the water runs cold at first. But an HE machine could end up filling with mostly cold water, if there's a long delay before the water gets hot. A machine with a built-in heater will not necessarily use it to heat the water in this case. Some of them use the heater only to "maintain" the incoming temperature, except on the sanitary cycle where they "boost" it.

Hope this helps, even though I couldn't directly answer your question.

Maytag has one of the worst repair records. But on the upside they were bought out by Whirlpool. I would suspect that HD gets some kind of incentive from Maytag to push their products.

My neighbor has LG upstairs and says they are quieter than her FL Whirlpools downstairs. So if they actually install them correctly I don't know if that would be a problem.

My issue with steam is it comes out of a tiny nozzle on the top of the washer unit. If it came out in jets as the tub rotated then I would be impressed. But I have a steamer for clothes and a shark steam cleaner, and they work great. But you do have to get it right on the item to make a difference. I would think it would be the same for the washer. So I don't know what would be the difference between steam and sanitize.

I did read that the newest Maytag is being made by Samsung. I don't know if it's using the same technology for load balancing.

Also, maybe have your hubby or your dad go in and get the sales pitch. See if the information changes.

>>I did read that the newest Maytag is being made by Samsung. I don't know if it's using the same technology for load balancing.

I doubt it, Maytag is now owned by Whirlpool. I actually came across one of the new Maytag Performance Series machines at a store a couple days ago, and it's still unmistakably a clone of the Whirlpool Duet. Open up the door of any new frontloader Maytag, Kenmore Elite, or Whirlpool Duet these days and you'll see the same design inside(same drum, same direct inject water spray on the upper left corner). Basically all 3 of these machines are made in Whirlpool's factories in Germany or Mexico. On the plus side, I'd expect a Maytag-branded machine designed/built by Whirlpool to have fewer repair problems.

Just remembered that HD's Expo Design Center sells Miele W4840, which is a premium machine that gives you great flexibility in washing temperature. Wouldn't want them to install it, though. Warranty is extended to 5 years if installed by a Miele-authorized service.

Doing 3 loads a day, you might care about cycle time. FL cycle time may take getting used to, if your old machine was an agitator TL. Personally I'm skeptical of very short FL cycle times as in the Electrolux, don't see how it can do a very good job. But then agitator TL's don't do a very good job either.

Sorry, suburbanmd, I was a little confused by your info.... Should I just look at FL's that have a sanitary cycle and no steam feature? Should an ideal FL have an internal hot water heater or not? Or, is it as you indicated by your LG experience, the HE FLs are simply not going to get hot enough even though that's what they advertise?

I do/did have a TL with an agitator - and it would fill up with mostly hot water from the tap, I guess. Whether or not my hot water temp here in the house is enough to kill germs I have no idea. At least I felt better about the kids' clothes and it got out stains.....but the waste of water, ugh!!

By the way, got my Consumer Reports issue in the mail today and they are touting two GE FL's as recommended and saying how much all LG's vibrate (no LG's were recommended)! Seems to back up what the HD salesguy said to me. But, as usual, CR didn't cover models I'm considering (the Maytag Performance series). Perhaps those were so new that CR didn't have time to test before print.

The models Samsung was making for Maytag were the 9700/8700 series. (per Money magazine, March 2007) These are the ones that were having the electrical problems in 2007. Whirlpool probably has started making all their washers and just re-branding. I'm just in a huff with a new Maytag fridge. My run-in happened when Whirlpool had just bought them out. Whirlpool personnel were just very nasty to deal with. So, no Whirlpool, Maytag, or Whirlpool clones for me.

LG Tromm Steamwasher 2688 was listed as the first one for the front load models, in the 2008 buying guide. It's amazing that now you are saying, that Consumers Reports is now not recommending them. They actually listed more than one model favorably.

Exactly, that magazine article is referring to washers made a few years ago. The Maytag machines that might have been made by Samsung have long been discontinued. All Maytag frontloaders (including both the Performance and the Epic series) are now rebranded Whirlpool machines.

The NSF has a nice database that shows the manufacturer and the facility where each brand/model of washer is made. Here's the listing for all of the Whirlpool/Maytag/Kenmore machines: http://www.nsf.org/Certified/Protocols/listings.asp?standard=&company=3T390&;

You hear good and bad about all brands. There's many happy LG owners posting on this forum. There's people who have had bad luck with all brands. That's called reality.

A heater isn't truly mandatory in my opionion but I think it's a good idea as long as it works on enough cycles to be functional, and raises the temperature of the water, not just maintains the temperature.

The Epics have gotten a lot of good reviews, and they should, they're Whirlpools and a proven design. Samsung does not build machines for them anymore - that's old information.

I understand your budget concerns and I think you're looking at good models. I do like the suggestion of the Miele though. Now $2000 for the washer is a lot, but considering the amount of laundry you do, you can justify it. However, with any of them, I would suggest you consider NOT getting a matching dryer. Save the money there and put it toward the washer. A large (7.4+) CF Whirlpool dryer can be bought for about $400-$500 or less and they're excellent dryers. I bought mine for $300 and would buy it again in an instant.

If you're going HE, and especially with a heater, you need to be prepared for long cycle times. 2-3 hours worth. It takes time to heat the water and the tumbling action needs more time to clean the clothes over an agitator.

You sound sold on a FL so I won't suggest looking at the HE TLs. And I haven't found anyone who can give rational reasons for steam either in the washer or dryer. I think the word is "gimmick".

If you have a laundry tub next to your washer, you can run the water in the tub to get the hot water close to the washer to have it warmer going into the tub. Keep in mind the tub itself will cool the water down. That's why a good heater could be valuable. But it's not the end all be all either. Advantage sometimes? Yes. Essential? No. People have washed and sanitized clothes for years without them.

And as you're looking, get figures on water temperatures in degrees, not ambiguous terms like "hot", "warm" or "cold". What's hot to you may well be cold to me.

Sanitize cycle is definitely worth having. It's great for towels, especially dish towels. If you have sanitize, you have a heater. But, as mentioned above, many current machines are programmed so the heater doesn't live up to its potential, in cycles other than sanitary.

Miele has somehow managed to keep the heater useful, while still getting the Energy Star rating. Apparently they did so by disabling the heater in the Normal cycle, which is thereby crippled and IMO nearly useless. You'd never know this from reading the manual. But they provide the Custom cycle to use in its place.

Having owned a Miele W4840 for a few months, I'd say the typical cycle time range would be 1:10 to 2 hours, not 2 to 3 hours. The heater is only 1000W and therefore slow. But, if heating is necessary, some of it overlaps with the scheduled cycle time. Some of your washes would likely be at Warm (104degF) which requires little or no heating, depending on your hot water lag. Sure, a full Sanitize cycle can be well over 2 hours, since it includes a prewash. But you can wash at Sanitary temperature without prewash using the Custom cycle. And, there are two temperatures between Warm and Sanitary, namely Very Warm (122degF) and Hot (140degF), which need less heating than Sanitary.

Even if CR recommends a machine, you still want to look at user feedback on sites like Sears or epinions or Home Depot. Some of their recommendations don't seem to work out so well in the real world.

Thought I'd follow up...after much research and gnashing of teeth, I decided to gamble on the newer Maytag model (Performance Series), but with NO steam on either the washer or dryer. I bought both the washer and dryer today at HD. The sanitize cycle should be enough to keep me happy; steam didn't seem necessary after all. The longer cycle times on the FL didn't seem to be a big deal to me, since [hopefully] 1) it will take much less drying time now and 2) I'll be able to do more clothes at once. Call me a sucker, but I purchased the $99 HD service contract on the washer, but said no to extra coverage on the dryer (I'll take my chances). I also get a $100 rebate from Maytag which is nice & got 10% off plus free install/delivery.

I also decided against the pedestals after seeing some of the cool laundry rooms with countertops over FL machines on this site. Has inspired me to get some cheap in-stock cabinets and have a countertop installed in my own laundry room.

In the end, I opted for a model that gave me the larger 4.0 capacity, the sanitize feature, and hopefully won't be too noisy on the first floor. I'm sure the LG's are fine overall, but decided I got everything I wanted for less $ in the Maytag without the risk of super noisy vibration....And I simply didn't care for the raised edge on the GE's - thought it might interfere with a countertop over the machine. GE's also seemed to get poorer reviews on other sites (epinions, Sears, etc.)

So I get them delivered on Wednesday. Wish me luck with the Maytags and no major problems! Thank you all for the helpful input.

Congratulations on the purchase. Looks like the washer's "whitest whites" cycle is somewhere between regular hot and sanitize, and will be a very handy feature, and not only for whites. Please remember to come back and post your experiences for the benefit of others. I bet you'll be pleased, and will wonder how you lived so long with a primitive old-fashioned washer.

I'm sure you'll be happy with your new machines.

For the record, I have a LG FL set in a first floor laundry room on a tile floor over a basement and on pedestals right next to the family room and they are VERY quiet. Heck they are way quieter then my old top loader.

susanilz5 - I bet the LG's are just fine - the Home Depot salesman said he had gotten complaints and returns for noise issues, and then Consumer Reports was down on the LG's for vibration issues this month - when strangely enough they loved LG's earlier in 2008. However, LG's generally got favorable reviews on big box websites...So who really knows!

I'm trying not to have any buyer's remorse over not getting LG!