Washer Dryers - Give them a miss?

greyskymorning

Hello all

I just bought my first flat yesterday (:j) and it comes with an integrated washing machine in the kitchen. However, I cannot live without a tumble dryer and there's no space in the kitchen to even remove cabinets to put one in. There's a storage cupboard just outside the kitchen door and I was thinking about getting a new washing machine, putting it in that cupboard and getting it plumbed in through there, then getting a new dryer to put where the washing machine used to be. However, that will obviously be a wee bit pricey as I'll need a plumber and need to buy two new appliances, and it would mean dipping into my "oh crap!" money!

So, my other thought was to get a washer/dryer, but I've heard from a lot of people that they are absolutely rubbish. Can anyone advise me on how efficient they are, and whether they're worth bothering with? If so, which is the best one on the market at the moment?

Thanks MSEs!

lindens

We had a washer dryer and it was next to useless. It does neither job very well atall, in fact drying took hours.
If there is only 1 or 2 of you, I think you will find you can live without a tumble dryer quite easily with a bit or organisation. And your electricity bill will be alot cheaper:T

jaytar

Hi

Why not get a condenser tumble dryer and put that in the cupboard.

greyskymorning

Thanks lindens, but I feel I need some sort of tumble drying facility, as I hate the feeling of non-tumbledried towels (crunchy towels... *hiss*), there may be times when I have to dry clothes quickly and living in Scotland means I don't have much opportunity for sun to dry my clothes in! It's just a good thing to have, even if I'm not constantly using it.

jaytar: I was a bit worried that might cause mould on the walls due to the heat. I read a thread earlier and some MSEs said it should be okay if you put a vent in the wall and/or leave the door open when it's in use, but it still makes me a little nervous!

marcowil

I had a condenser dryer in a cupboard in my last flat and just left the door open when I was drying - had no problems at all

shazrobo

had a washer drier years ago and they were crap.
however i purchased a new one last year on recommendation from friends and its brill, dries quickly too, bout 30 mins.
hotpoint aquaries, is the one i got, and had an a energy rating from comet

sleepymy

We don't have much room either so I'm thinking of getting this which apparently can be wall mounted.

Our old candy washer/dryer was £199 from woolworths and did us 6 years. Didn't dry the fastest but wasn't expensive to run so I think it paid itself.

ic

Lots of comments in this thread from a couple of days ago. In short I've had no problems with my Zanussi washer/dryer .

andrew-b

I wouldnt get a a washer dryer as if you have more than one load of washing you have to wait for the first load to dry before you can start the second.

Maybe not ideal, but could you not put the tumble drier in another room? We used to live in a flat 5 floors up and had a vented tumble drier where we just put the vent pipe out the bedroom window. Not so great when it was cold and windy (we were right on the sea front) though! Vented driers are cheaper and better IMHO with less to go wrong.

Andy

greyskymorning

andrew-b wrote: »

I wouldnt get a a washer dryer as if you have more than one load of washing you have to wait for the first load to dry before you can start the second.

Maybe not ideal, but could you not put the tumble drier in another room? We used to live in a flat 5 floors up and had a vented tumble drier where we just put the vent pipe out the bedroom window. Not so great when it was cold and windy (we were right on the sea front) though! Vented driers are cheaper and better IMHO with less to go wrong.

Andy

Well we could put it in our second bedroom, which is going to be our study, but I'm a bit crazy and OCD, and like to keep my rooms sort of... allocated! So first and foremost trying to figure out if I do this without resorting to putting it in another room.

HelenYorkshire

My friend had a dryer in the cupboard (one of either type over the years) - horrible damp and mould.
I've got a Candy washer dryer (CMD-something. CMD 146?? ). Picked it as being the most efficient out of the selection available. It dries a full load in about an hour, less time if you take out small stuff to dry naturally, and longer for things like jeans.
It's been my only machine though so I don't know how that compares.
HTH