John G (Boston)
TVWBB Super Fan
We currently have a front load Whirlpool set (stacked) that is European size - a little smaller than what is common here in the USA. The dryer is a ventless heat pump dryer. I think they are about four years old and so far, no trouble. Washer does a good job cleaning clothes. We leave the washer door and soap drawer open when not in use and no mold problem. I do remove the drawer now and then and clean it. We have used these machines heavily - so far so good... I believe the washer was made in Italy and the dryer I think is from Turkey. Got them at Best Buy as "open box" units.
The dryer saves a lot of electricity over a regular dryer however, it has a few quirks. Some things take a little longer to dry. Since it does not use heat as the primary drying media your clothes don't come out all warm and snuggly feeling every time. Sometimes they are warm, sometimes not. Seems to depend on where in the cycle it was when the computer decided things were dry. The secondary filter lets lint through and it will eventually clog the heat exchanger. So far, I've just cleaned this lint off the fins but I can see that eventually I will need to dismantle and clean the whole thing. At that point I will try to make a better filter.
If there is any interest I can get the model numbers - or explain the heat pump dryer in a little more detail. Even though it's got a few quirks, I'm totally sold on the dryer.
The dryer saves a lot of electricity over a regular dryer however, it has a few quirks. Some things take a little longer to dry. Since it does not use heat as the primary drying media your clothes don't come out all warm and snuggly feeling every time. Sometimes they are warm, sometimes not. Seems to depend on where in the cycle it was when the computer decided things were dry. The secondary filter lets lint through and it will eventually clog the heat exchanger. So far, I've just cleaned this lint off the fins but I can see that eventually I will need to dismantle and clean the whole thing. At that point I will try to make a better filter.
If there is any interest I can get the model numbers - or explain the heat pump dryer in a little more detail. Even though it's got a few quirks, I'm totally sold on the dryer.