If I had back problems, I would definitely look into a front loader on a pedestal. Be sure to check the door swing or if it's reversible. If it opens the wrong way to easily transfer the wet clothes, that can be awkward and a strain on your back. I bought a huge capacity Electrolux set during the pandemic and have been pretty happy with it. One repair on the dryer needed already, tho, which I thought was too soon.

The LG WM4000HWA earned a recommended rating from CR, is reasonably priced at $850, and owners like it. You can add the LG WDP6W pedestal if you want to raise it up by about 14". It has a 15-minute pre-wash.

Speed Queen machines are the best I've ever had.

I too, had seen the testing that OutsidePlaying referred to where consumer reports had rated the Speed Queen top load models, where at least one of them had performed poorly at stain removal. After that review, Speed Queen made some revisions to their cycles and resubmitted those machines to consumer reports who then improved their rating assessment on them after retesting their performance. Appliances often undergo changes whether they are announced or not and so it’s really important to have the most recent performance review on any appliance or appliance brand to understand how a new one purchased now will perform.

“It has a 15-minute pre-wash.”

Yeah, kinda. The problem with LG (I have a WM5500HVA) is there’s a pinhole in the main liquid detergent cup, so the detergent starts flowing immediately, albeit slowly. If you check that dispenser during prewash you’ll find it already empty. I don’t know if powders would fare better.

LG customer service said ”working as designed” and suggested adding the main detergent mid cycle. Just another BS workaround IMO.

You can find discussion about this online; I’m not making it up and it’s not user error. I still like my LG’s but they’re not perfect, especially considering how highly CR rated them. Not the first time I’ve questioned how thoroughly CR tests.

As far as Speed Queen goes, check capacity if it matters to you. My Maytag was 3.35, close to SQ’s numbers as I recall, and I felt like I was doing laundry all week.

That’s a great point you make regarding capacity on the SQ‘s. I find that with mine, it is not an issue because the cycle times on speed queen models are generally much shorter than on other machine brands. And so, in the end, I have to wash a few more loads, but I still spend less time than I used to with washers that would take sometimes up to three hours to complete a load, especially if it required the hot water heater in the machine to do its thing and get the wash water up to high temps.

Samsung front loader with heater on board, 12 yrs old with no issues, no mold and cleans things well I sanitize sheets and towels weekly. Persil is my preferred brand of detergent and works well on stains.

Elmer, I don't know if your question was addressed to: " What kinds of things do you like to soak for a long time, with no sink to use?"

But I do like to soak my towels, washclothes, handtowels, kitchen towels, sheets, pillowcases, mattress covers, and white clothes. I have done this for years and I have white clothing that is years old that is still white because of this laundry practice. So I understand anyone wanting to soak their various loads of laundry.

And no thank you to a sink for soaking them. Wringing them out would be laborious and very painful to my back. Just can't do it.

Elmer, sent a message to you.

“…but I still spend less time than I used to with washers that would take sometimes up to three hours to complete a load…”

Yikes!😳

Regarding Speed Queen, I looked at some when we had to replace our Whirlpool. The supply was just too limited. Most reviews I’ve seen have been good.

" I bought a huge capacity Electrolux set during the pandemic and have been pretty happy with it. One repair on the dryer needed already, "

Here's a funny/related anecdote.

Our beloved Miele died in the first year of pandemic. It gave us well over 20 years of laundry excellence and there was no thinking about what we wanted to replace it with. The spot it goes is under a built-in counter of standard height, so a Euro-size is required.

I went to our favorite appliance distributor. I learned that for them, Miele washers were unavailable and on back order. Nothing was expected any sooner than 6 months out. And could be longer.

I asked what else he had and he said "we do have Electroluxes available, but I don't recommend them. Reliability varies from one to another, they're not on a par with Miele.". I asked what he recommended, I didn't want to wait months. He replied to the effect "Of course not. Go to Best Buy or Home Depot and get a Samsung or LG. They're not at a Miele level but they're pretty good." That's what we did. It's not a Miele (from a feature and performance standpoint) but it's been very satisfactory.

Our Miele has a soak/prewash cycle. Not that I've ever used it. Front loader. Top loaders are rare here.

I'm sorry in advance, this comment isn't intended to turn this forum into the Laundry Forum. But some thoughts come to me:

Here's the thing - for those who are wedded to doing laundry "their way", or "this is how I've always done it", then you should get a machine that accommodates that. The brand doesn't matter.

We originally bought a Miele because of our many experiences with and appreciation of German engineering and German products. Y'all can have any reaction to that you want.

In reading through the user manual, it was clear that the machine was designed to produce its best performance when used a certain way. Not our way, its way. That involved paying more careful attention to washing instructions on tags and following temperature, cycle and sorting approaches quite differently that what we'd done before. It involved cycles too long to accommodate our prior practice of having a "laundry day". It recommended using an imported detergent that on first pass seemed very expensive but in fact was used about one tablespoon at a time.

We did things differently, following its directions. (Yes, we were only following orders). . We got remarkably different results. We continue to follow those practices with our Samsungs and continue with very acceptable results although with less flexibility than the Miele offered. .

When you sort items down to the gnat's eyebrow to keep like with like, loads are very small. But for bath towels and sheets, we could almost get by with an interior half as large.

Our clothes are sparkling clean, stains are always lifted in the wash, the clothes last forever seemingly because front loaders are more gentle, and we're very pleased with learning new ways. No added steps, added products (but for Borax), and no added effort is required beyond producing more separate loads by trying to keep like with like.

Good luck to all.

It will be time for July 4th sales to begin. Maybe you can catch a good sale!

Good point, arkansas girl! We bought our LG w/d during a July 4th sale.👍🏻

The Persil I use is manufactured in and imported from Germany. I don't recommend it or suggest anyone use it, it's unjustifiably expensive. We buy the powder versions.

Henkel is the German company that makes Persil there. It purchased the US company Dial about 20 years ago, rejiggered its products and formulas, and started selling a US Persil version at that point. We tried it a few times and it's quite different from its German sibling.

There is also a Persil brand in the UK and a number of other countries around the world. These rights and the manufacturing of the brand in these places is owned and done by Unilever - formerly Lever Brothers. These too are different from the German versions.

I use Persil non biological powder because I can get it in large cardboard boxes which are easy to recycle or compost. It is a very long standing brand here and is reasonably priced. I can't say I notice much difference between it and other powders.

I forgot to mention: I’ve gotten quite used to wifi connected laundry. With remote start, I’ll set everything before I step out, then start it a half hour (or whatever the particular cycle length is) before I expect to be home. And if I forget to switch the laundry my phone will remind me. I also find myself texting my family: ”whoever is doing laundry please switch it!” All part of mold prevention.

I know it sounds gimmicky, but having had it in one house for a while nowI really miss it in the other, esp with basement laundry there. Probably less useful for people who aren't adhd or running out a lot.

I’d like an app that will collect laundry, sort it, load into washer, add detergent snd start.

THEN take from washer and put into dryer.

Elmer, you are correct. Improving my core muscle strength might improve my pain.

With routine chores (those that are necessary but not particularly interesting), I try to use a "minimize the number of touches" approach. If I think of something that I want or that needs to be done, it takes less effort, mind-share and time to do it then and there (if time allows) than to have to remember again (or check a list) at another time. If I think about it, I do it. Thereby, the added touch is avoided.

When I decide or need to do laundry, I do it. Full stop. If I load the machine, I turn it on. If I want it to run later, I use the delayed start. I don't want to have to think about it further, to remember at a later time to turn it on, that's an avoidable touch.

We have one machine with the Wifi capability, Also have a fridge so equipped. I use neither.

I use the timer settings on my iPhone, which I almost always have with me and when the timer goes off, it’s time to go and get the clothes that are finished in the washer and put them in the dryer. Having to use a special app for each function in life is less efficient and more time-consuming for me than simply using a basic timer.

I have a 4.5 cubic feet capacity Samsung washer and it’s trouble free since purchased over 4 years ago. It’s a top loader so may not be for people with back issues or not tall enough to reach down into the tub. It doesn’t have a soak cycle like my previous GE model, but it does have quick wash, deep wash, and heavy soil options, and I can also hit pause button to soak as long as I want, although I would set reminder on my phone to resume the cycle. The feature I like best about this washer is that it does not have an agitator column in the center of the tub, so loading and unloading large comforter, sheets, blanket are much easier. Hope this one runs for many years like my 30+ years Maytag dryer standing next to it.

HU-0092, seems to me you’d have to spend more effort setting the timer and then shutting it off, than I so to use the app for end of cycle. Because using the app takes literally zero effort. Whenever I start the laundry, the app automatically alerts me when the cycle is over. I don’t need to turn this on, I don’t need to respond to it, it just happens.

And this is 90-somethjng percent of what I use the app for.

Remote start, I’ll use when I’m going out and don’t know when I’ll be home. Like most of life’s conveniences, it’s not necessary but it can be nice to have. Palisades also sets a timer on the phone when pausing laundry, walks back to tske it off pause. Me, I’d just unpause from wherever in the world I happen to be at that particular time. You might not feel you have use for this and that's fine of course, each to their own, but I assure you it doesn't add complexity to life

Very happy with my Speed Queen top loader. I've owned it for around 8 years. No problems at all. If I have an extra dirty load, I fill the washer, let it agitate briefly to distribute the detergent/ Oxi/ etc. and then stop the washer and leave to soak. Supposedly the enzymes in detergent continue to work for up to six hours so I leave them to do their job. (For the first year or so of owning it, I kinda' regretted not getting a fancier model with a pre-wash cycle. Got over that after it dawned on me to just stop the washer and leave things to soak.)

I have the base model AWN412--old enough to be all mechanical. This model (mechanical timer) is no longer available.

ETA: We are now a two person household; it takes a while to accumulate enough dirties for a load. So no need for one of those large capacity washers.

“Hope this one runs for many years like my 30+ years Maytag dryer standing next to it.”

If only! Sadly, highly unlikely.🫤 I keep my fingers crossed for the LG we bought 9 years ago. It’s 4.9 cubic feet, plenty big for the two of us. It also does a nice job with blankets, comforters and other heavier duty items.

@ci_lantro. Of the newer speed queen top load models, I have the TR7 and that machine has a pre-soak option. I am pretty sure that the other current speed queen top load models do not have automatic pre-soak but like you said, you can always just Stop the machine and let your clothes have a manual pre-soak. I am not sure whether the speed queen front loader has a built-in option for pre-soak or not since I don’t have that model.

FWIW, the manual/user guide for the Speed Queen front loader (FF7009W) says that there is a soak option and that it adds soaking time to the start of your selected cycle. The manual says you can set the soaking time for up to 24 hours before the wash cycle starts. From page 13:

"Press the Soak keypad to enable the selection mode. The Soak LED will flash to indicate that soak time can be set. Adjust the soak time by pressing the Soak keypad again or the

up and down arrow keypads. The time will increase by 15 minutes up to an hour and then go up by one hour increments. The maximum soak time is 24 hours."

Wifi is great for end of cycle notifications and knowing if additional detergent or oxygen bleach is needed when put shopping.

Ditto what ci_lantro said - I am fond of Biz, and I think the enzymes work for about 4 hours.

I switched to Biz during the pandemic when I couldn't get laundry sanitizer, and now I prefer it. It makes things smell nice. Not perfume-y, just fresh, somehow. (I won't go into detail about the soaking, but ... ime, it is a bad idea if you eat a lot of hot sauce to also take ibuprofen. Pick one or the other. Just a friendly suggestion. )

I think it's great though if front loaders are able to soak. I'll have to look into that.

I bought an Electrolux about 3 weeks ago. So far it's the best I'd had. It also has a great smell when washing. I have no idea where it's coming from.

A compact washer might fit your needs. We are a two person household and our 3.5 cu. ft. capacity front load washer is more than we need, exept for washing the heavy bedspread.

@Need2SeeGreen 10 (SoCal) you can soak in a front loader. I don’t think my electrolux a has a soak cycle, but I just load it up, start it and let it run until the clothes are well saurated, then I switch it off and re- start a cycle on delayed start. 30 min to 12 hour delays are possible.

Miele has a soak option that can be added to most cycles.

I'm seeing lots of comments on soak discussion, some of it manual. There is no way to soak with my last Maytag - and it was not a lower end model in their line 😊

Turn it off or put it on pause for maximum of 10 minutes and it drains. All my hot soapy water pumped out and gone.

It does have a completely unnecessary cycle called drain and spin. I have no idea why or of what use that would be when it does it on its own whether I want it to or not. Any of my previous machines had a rinse and spin only cycle that I did use for exceptionally muddy clothing. That one is now missing.

Thank goodness DH has retired and had not waded through a beaver pond in quite some time or I would have him in the yard with the garden hose rinsing and wringing out his clothing....

I do have a lovely deep laundry room sink right next to the washing machine. I would much prefer that process would take place inside the appliance.

morz8 - Washington Coast: "It does have a completely unnecessary cycle called drain and spin"

It's "drain and spin" to make it clear that the water will be drained from the tub before she spin cycle begins. My GE washer has a "spin" cycle but it also drains the tub before spinning. In both cases, the cycle is to spin dry the clothes which it's not going to do with a tub full of water.

I find the "drain and spin" cycle useful when washing very absorbent items such as plush-thick bath mats, comforters, wool rugs. and blankets --- things that tend to be somewhat soggy (even dripping) after the final spin in a regular wash cycle. I find these things then dry much faster on a clothes line or in the dryer. But, Morz8, maybe your washer has sensors that keep the final spin cycles going longer so you don't need this?

Morz8,

Auto-drain after pausing for a period of time is a safety consideration. Many machines do that nowadays. You can still do an extended soak by pulling the power cord (or turning the circuit breaker off) ... it can't drain if there's no power. It'll probably drain, however, upon restoring power, and require starting a new cycle to finish the load.

You may be able to get a rinse-and-spin by selecting the Drain/Spin cycle and the Extra Rinse option. Something to try if you haven't already done so.

It does have a completely unnecessary cycle called drain and spin. I have no idea why or of what use that would be when it does it on its own whether I want it to or not.

Useful for items that you handwash. I hand wash my underwire bras and use the last portion of my SQ's spin cycle to remove the rinse water. I just dump the bucket of rinse water & bras into the machine and let 'er spin.

Thanks, olychick - I will try to check the manual and see if I can do a delayed cycle.

This machine is a few years old. I've never tried to soak in it. It also has a darker stainless steel tub which makes it harder to see what's going on in there. I much prefer the ones with white interior. It still beats washing clothes by hand ... ; )

" You can still do an extended soak by pulling the power cord (or turning the circuit breaker off)"

I wouldn't think that would be such a great idea for a washing machine with electronic controls (as they all have these days) in the middle of a cycle.

Do you have a front loader? Is this something you have experience with doing?

Elmer, i believe you are correct about stopping a washing machine with all the electronics in the middle of a cycle would not be recommended. I read again fairly recently that one should not do this with a dishwasher so would assume the same applies to washers. Once might not do anything, but making this a continual habit can eventually damage the electronics and mess up the timing cycles.

As I said above, some Mieles come with a soak/prewash option. Some have a pause spin option.

As for pulling the plug out. It's behind the machine and the machine is usually under a countertop, so not accessible. Many people have no separate laundry room so front loaders are preferred. They can go in a kitchen or in a cupboard. They take up less space, you can use the space above them and they are relatively quiet. They also use less water and electricity.

Top loaders are very rare here and somehow people still manage to do their laundry.

dont get a Whirlpool,,got mine 2025,,,,2/1 removable agitator, fins on the bottom,,,it just keeps pushing clothes round and round,,no other motion..to start to fill water ,,stops then starts over and over..colored clothes selection the water is just covering the clothes,, I use bulky item setting to get at least 1/2 tub of water.lid is locked most of the time ,,no place to put fabric softener in,,

Carol Keskey: "it just keeps pushing clothes round and round,,no other motion..to start to fill water"

This doesn't make sense.

"I use bulky item setting to get at least 1/2 tub of water"

The cheap Whirlpool WTW4957PW ($580) has a "Deep Water Wash" option.

"no place to put fabric softener in"

The instructions say to use a Downy Ball dispenser.

I checked and our maytag front loader is about ten years old. I think the model is a w10775517b. (Here's a pet peeve: the manual is for several different models, so a lot of it doesn't even apply to our machine. So annoying!!)

Anyhow. It does have a delay feature, but the manual says that if I cancel a load, it will drain the tub. It does not refer to combining the delay with a soak. (I don't think I can reach the plug easily, plus that seems risky..)

Maybe someone out there has this model and knows how to do a soak? I tried doing a search but the web would not give me an answer. (And per the manual, this thing uses steam to get out stains - but, that isn't what I want.)

Another reason I use a pre-soak is that it is more compatible with colored clothing. I guess, I could just get everything in white and bleach the heck out of it. But I like pretty colors.

Need2SeeGreen, did you see this?

The Maytag W10775517B washer does not have a dedicated "Soak" cycle setting. However, it does offer a way to manually soak clothes during a wash cycle. You can pause the wash cycle by pressing the Start/Pause button, close the lid, and let the clothes soak for your desired time. If the lid is left open for more than 10 minutes, the washer will automatically drain. To resume the cycle, press and hold the Start/Pause button. How to Soak Manually:

1. Start the Wash Cycle: Begin a wash cycle on your desired setting.
2. Pause the Cycle: Press the Start/Pause button to pause the machine.
3. Close the Lid: Ensure the lid is closed to allow for soaking.
4. Soak: Allow the clothes to soak for as long as needed.
5. Resume the Cycle: Press and hold the Start/Pause button to continue the wash cycle.
6. Automatic Drain: If the lid is left open for more than 10 minutes during the soak, the washer will automatically drain.

Just to say, W10775517B isn't a valid model number. It's the document number of the user manual (which probably covers multiple models, each with slightly different features).

The model number (and serial number) is on a tag affixed to the edge of the loading port, visible when the door is open.