Thanks. I considered Speed Queen at first, but their latest top loader has gotten some surprisingly negative reviews. At this point, I think we'll go with something bare bones and inexpensive. I'd still consider their front loaders for our primary residence when the Whirlpools we have there bite the dust.

I’ve had the 2018 model for 16 months and I’m very happy, zero complaints and comfort knowing I have a 7 year warranty.

Speed Queen brought back one old-style transmission-type model a few months ago, the TC5, aka the "Classic." A potential glitch is it has no water level selector other than a Deep Fill option. All cycles have only two fill levels ... default which is approx 1/2 full, and the Deep Fill option when adds 3 or 4.5 gallons more depending on the selected cycle.

The LG WT7100CW 4.5 cu. ft. Top-Load Washer is well-rated by Consumer Reports and has very good owner reviews on Home Depot and Lowes. It's $719 at Lowes.

Be careful with those Speed Queen washers. Per CR, the 2018 models (models TRx000WN) washed poorly but apparently the company went back to an old design with the 2019 Speed Queen TC5000WN ($1029) which washes well though CR says it's not energy-efficient and is noisy.

Since you are looking for a "very basic top load washer for a second home" and "something bare bones and inexpensive" why not look for a reconditioned 15 or 20 year-old top loader from a reputable seller? Is there is one anywhere near your second home?

If you want to buy new and are looking for durable, basic, old-style toploaders with agitators, and would be willing to pay the premium price for the Speed Queen TC5000WN recommended above (suggested at $1039 but sometimes can be found for less) you could also consider the competing Maytag Commercial model, the MVWP575GW (usually $850 or so). Both have spawned considerable discussion here and at the automaticwasher site if you want to search for user and servicer reports. Also, Lorain Furniture has some youtube video tests of both including a head to head comparison which you can find here.

FWIW, Speed Queen is offering a 10-year full factory warranty on all residential models including the TC5000 if purchased and delivered before the end of the year.

Almost all newer ones have automatic temperature control so it’s hard to get true hot no matter how high your water heater is set.. you can with the Speed Queen but even the Maytag commercial tempers the hot. I agree with looking for an older model if that’s important to you.

Off topic a bit, but it is pretty easy to manually override the limitations of automatic temperature controls (ATC). Just route some hot water to the washer's cold water intake.

Several ways to do this. One is to use garden hose "Y" valves, setting the valves to mix your desired proportion of hot water to produce anything from warmer warm washes on up to as hot as comes out of the hot tap. There was a recent discussion thread at automaticwasher about doing this with the Maytag Commercial "575" model washer; link is here if interested.

A more elegant option (also found at automaticwasher) is to run the cold water hose to an inexpensive 120v in-line point-of-use water-heater and from there to the washer's cold intake fitting. (Many of those units cost less than $200 and can be wall mounted.) When wash temps are wanted that are warmer or hotter than the ATC provides, switch on the in-line unit on and set it to the desired temp about 15 minutes before starting the wash cycle. Switch the heater off after the wash fill.

@JP Haus, curious what issues you're having with your Whirlpool? What model do you have?

Thanks for all of the feedback and tips. I've been looking for something simple to use that isn't easily thrown out of balance and which won't be difficult to repair. It needs to be readily available at a local store, which significantly limits options. I would love to be able to purchase a reconditioned older washer (and just about all other appliances, too,) but that's not happening here. When we build our next (and last) house, I will look into reconditioned vintage appliances.

The new Whirlpool I'm replacing is a pretty inexpensive one: WFW5620HW. As mentioned earlier, most of the time I do smaller loads. Two company CSRs and the service tech said that this machine is not designed to do less than full loads. I was advised to add clean items to any smaller load, which will shorten their lifespan due to getting washed far more often than needed. A set of king size bedding or two bath sheets plus hand towels, wash cloths and bath mats are apparently not sufficient. Baby clothes, washed with or without mesh bags, have never completed a cycle properly. I was told to ignore laundry tag instructions regarding anything delicate calling for low speeds and low heat.

I've had to babysit the washer while in use due to frequent out of balance error codes. It also often fails to clean well, even in hot water, and rarely spins the clothes to a reasonable dampness, resulting in much longer drying times. In over four decades, I've never owned a washer that was so finicky.

I can't simply wipe out the detergent dispenser as it still holds 2 - 3 tablespoons of water after a cycle. I have to remove it and dump the water out in the sink before drying. We're in a very humid location and I cannot risk mold. A Whirlpool rep said that "water droplets" are normal in this machine. Droplets would be okay but there are several tablespoons sitting in the bottom of the drum in addition to the water on and inside the gasket. I was concerned about others not thoroughly drying out the washer which I thought would take less time.

Since I have chronic back problems I wanted a pedestal to reduce bending. Unfortunately, that resulted in my being unable to see into the dispenser. This is another reason why I'm getting a small top loader. It seems I've lost an inch of height in the past few years.

I have to use unscented, allergen-free HE detergent which is often supplemented with Borax. At times I've used white vineger to rinse, too. The service tech lectured me on the amount of detergent to use (which I was already doing properly) as well as really loading up the machines. He said that laundry must press against the dryer's sensor beneath the door or the load would not dry, and that only a very full load could do that. I was also told that the dryer is designed to not dry laundry completely, no matter if the more dry setting is used, as it's better for clothing to be left slightly damp. Maybe that's okay in a dry climate but not here.

I realize that some of my complaints are about things that might not bother other people. Perhaps this machine would be fine for a family of four or more who generate large wash loads. As much as I hate to buy another Whirlpool owned product, it looks like we'll be getting a basic Amana top loader. It will handle the routine laundry and a relative has offered to use of her washer for anything that won't fit in the Amana.

@JP Haus, thanks for describing the problem. I'd be pretty upset if this happened to me. It seems Whirlpool released a poorly engineered product and should take responsibility. I wonder if only this particular front load model has issues with small loads? I'd avoid any Whirlpool products, spend a little more and get a Speed Queen TC5 as others have recommended. You'll have a washer that lasts far more than a few years and have the peace of mind knowing your washer has a full 10 year warranty.

Just get a SQ and never look back.

"I have to use unscented, allergen-free HE detergent"

Perhaps the problem is the low-quality detergent. In Consumer Reports tests, the performance of detergents varied dramatically.

"it looks like we'll be getting a basic Amana top loader."

The Amana NTW4516FW performed dead last in Consumer Reports testing (score=32 out of 100) and agitator washers as a group performed worse than front-load and HE top-loaders. HD owners seem to like it though and at $400 it is cheap. I wouldn't switch until I tested a better detergent, though, and not worry about the water in the detergent dispenser (my washer leaves some too).

"laundry must press against the dryer's sensor"

My dryer also requires a load large enough that the clothes touch the sensor which is beneath the door.

Frontloaders may have trouble spinning very small loads due to inability to distribute the few items evenly around the drum for balancing.

I would not wash items such as sheets (which are fairly light-weight fabric) with towels which retain a lot of water and are much heavier. 1) The towels may get caught in the sheets, particularly in the pockets of the fitted sheet, which makes them impossible the machine to "loosen" for spin balancing. Or 2) if they're not caught then the towels may tends to congregate together from the sheets which also leads to imbalance. Best to wash sheets alone or with other items of similar fabric weight. I sometimes wash sheets with cotton/synthetic button-down shirts ... same fabric weight.

The part about the dryer sensor is correct ... but that's the reason for having a time-dry cycle when needed. A potential workaround is to tilt the dryer slightly forward off-level enough to promote the clothes to tumble toward the front for touching the sensor bars.