Supurb Washer

The agitator of our 14 year-old Whirlpool top loading washer recently quit moving and so we were in the market of shopping for a new washer. After reading many buying guides and product reviews, we decided to go for a front loader. At first, we were inclined to get a Whirlpool front loader because there is a 3.5 cu.ft. Whirlpool on sale at Costco where the price and the warranty (2 years) are the best and we still has a working 14 year-old Whirlpool gas dryer. After more research, we decided to go for LG.

We checked out the LG washers at several stores in mid September. At Home Depot, we found the best prices for LG washers. At first we were looking at the 4.0 cu.ft. WM2455 at $899 but my wife was willing to spend more to get a Tromm Steam Washer. So we went for the WM2487HWM and got it at $1,149 with a rebate of $100 in HD gift card, rebate of delivery and haul-away charge, and energy star rebate from our electricity company. We didn’t go for the top of the line WM2688 because we don’t think the LCD display and an extra 120 rpm spin speed were worth paying $200 more. After about ten days, I saw from the web that HD dropped the price to $1,099 and I got $50 refund on the original price I paid.

The washer could be delivered within one week and we could schedule it on Saturday which meant we didn’t have to take time off work. Delivery was right on schedule. I asked the installer to make sure the washer was level by letting him use my level. Apart from asking the delivery/installation persons to level the machine, remember to ask them to leave the adjusting wrench and the 4 shipping bolts. You need the wrench to level the washer yourself and the shipping bolts in case you move to somewhere else. I forgot to do this and had to call HD and LG to get them. I got the missing tools a few days after I called LG. I found the customer service from HD and LG both very good.

We have had the new washer for 3 weeks and have used it for at least 10 loads of laundry. So far, we are very happy with its performance and we have no regrets for paying more to get the steam feature. Below are our comments and impression of LG WM2487HWM.

Control and operation: Dial-a-cycle is extremely easy to use. It gives you good feel when you turn the dial and the selected cycle is lit orange. The LED Status Indicator displays the function in process (e.g. wash, spin) with flashing green light. We found that this is better than the higher-end WM2688’s blue LCD display.

Noise level: We installed the washer in our 1/F laundry room with ceramic-tiled floor. It’s much quieter than our old top-load washer. We can hardly hear any noise outside the laundry room when the washer is in operation. Even when it spins at extra high speed, the noise is at an acceptable level but don’t expect to hear nothing. When we stand right next to the washer during its extra high spinning cycle, we feel a little bit of vibration from the machine on the tiled floor but we think it’s normal.

Cleaning power: Although we didn’t find that the washer turns white clothes whiter, we found that it did its job very well. It uses noticeably less water than a top-loader and spins the clothes much drier. As a result, drying time in the dryer is significantly shorter. If the new washer doesn’t save us much in electricity bill, we definitely can expect savings in water and gas.

Steam Cycle: The steam feature was one of the major factors that we bought this washer. We have used the Steam Fresh Cycle to treat the cleaned shirts of different fabrics (polycotton, 100% cotton and linen). They did come out a little bit damp but the result was the shirts were much less wrinkled. I was able to wear the cotton shirts without ironing. The Owner’s Manual does not recommend steaming 100% cotton, but we have found that it’s ok.

Odor: We didn’t find that the washer had smelly odor after use as some of the reviews on this washer claim. We do leave the door open and empty the water left in the detergent dispenser after each use. We think this is the key to keep the washer free from any odor and mildew.