Cheap washing machine suggestions?

jfh7gwa

My washing machine has just packed in, and needs to be replaced.

I've been looking online at new machines and see that the budget ranges start from around £150 upwards from retailers like Tesco/etc. (we're not fussed about having specific features, just needs to wash clothes - e.g. no requirements on spin settings or a really fast cycle etc.)

Bearing in mind that I have a Quidco account, what do you guys reckon is my best bet for buying one as cheap as possible? I'm assuming online is my best bet rather than going into a shop.

Also feeding into this is that I'm not really sure about makes and brands, any feedback on the cheaper makes would be fab (the cheapest I'm seeing are makes like Beko).

KG91

I'm also on the lookout! Ours decided to pack in too :mad:

I was looking at a few on Tesco the other day, pretty reasonable and good reviews. Ideally I want another washer dryer, but things are tight at the min and I haven't found any in my budget.

Obukit

What's wrong with your old one? I work as a washing machine engineer and a lotm of faults which seem pretty terminal can be repaired cheaply.

Otherwise the best machine depends on your budget and how much you'd use it. Personally I'd choose a second hand Bosch over a Beko any day, they are much more reliable and will outlast the Beko for less money. But, if you really want new, Beko are the best of a pretty poor bunch of budget machines. The new ones have sealed tubs so expect about 800 cycles out of it.

Otherwise if you can afford it go for a Bosch with a curved door handle, not a square one, which should last about 3,000 cycles.

santer_2

You can check the running costs here, the lowest they show at the moment is 16 pence per cycle and the most expensive at the moment is 35 pence per cycle.

http://sustit.net/energy_saving.php?id=1&start=0

If you use a tumble dryer then a washing machine with a higher spin speed and rating should help with cheaper drying.

This has a B rated spin

http://www.electrical123.com/products/ProductDetail.asp?ProductCode=BEK-WSH-WMB81241LW-W

This has an A rated spin

http://www.johnlewis.com/231204563/Product.aspx?source=63257

david39

On a recommendation from a service engineer when our last machine failed, we bought the cheapest Zanussi/Electrolux washing machine - 5 years ago - and it has never had to be repaired, despite using it for several washes per week.

Also, he told us, buy washing machine and dryer as separate units. In combined units, the heat from the drying cycle causes the printed circuit boards to go brittle and then the spin cycle vibrations cause them to splinter. We had three combined units of various makes in 10 years before we followed this advice.

jfh7gwa

Thanks for all your help, folks - just to clarify, the old one is over 7 years old now - we only use it twice a week (1 whites, 1 colour load), with homeade gloop (not powder) and we don't use a tumble dryer either, so no worries on that score -- appreciate the advice if we're ever flush enough to think about that part though!

jfh7gwa

Obukit wrote: »

What's wrong with your old one? I work as a washing machine engineer and a lotm of faults which seem pretty terminal can be repaired cheaply..

Ok I have nothing to lose since you have been so generous with your replies... thank you - basically it is a 7 year old Miele washing machine, not heavily used, it is put on a wash load and about 5 minutes into the program the "Rinse" light starts flashing. The two items above the rinse light remain constantly on during the Rinse light flashing. Clothes come out drenched but not that much water left in the drum, for the record.

Hubby has taken the thing apart last night and has checked the motor brushes, they are perfectly fine apparently, not worn down or needing to be replaced (hubby had done a bit of online searching before he let me know the bad news).

He's also checked the fuse (es?) as there was an internal wiring diagram inside the machine.

Not sure what else to try, really.

Funnily enough, we tried a load in after it was kaput (smaller load, just wanted to test to see if it still worked after hubby had its bits out!) and THAT appeared to go fine. Then we tried a second small load again yesterday and it did the "start wash program, blinking Rinse light after 5 minutes" thing again. Arrrrgh! :rotfl:

*niptuckfan*

i had a beko washer/dryer cost £200 and lasted over ten years and as far as i know its still going (the marriage isnt though haha)

peterpan567

*niptuckfan* wrote: »

i had a beko washer/dryer cost £200 and lasted over ten years and as far as i know its still going (the marriage isnt though haha)

haha I shoud join your club :beer:

i recently bought 1 year used, good quality wasching mashine from gumtree, still better to have it slightly used than to buy some cheap dodgy brand from tesco.

mrs_T

If you have a costco card have you checked their prices? Got my TD there and it was the best price around.