I have been doing some research and have been interested in the Electrolux Wave Touch pair. When I asked the E'lux rep, Chris Polk, this was the response
: "In general hot water is 130-140 degrees Fahrenheit (54.4 Celsius) or above. Warm water is between 110 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit ( 43.3-32.2 Celsius). Cold water is generally between 80 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit (26.7-15 Celsius). If cold water is below 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15 Celsius), clothes are unlikely to be cleaned very well." So it appears that not all manufacturers consider 80 to be 'hot'.

I was dissapointed to find that the Electrolux washer they tested and compared to all the other washers was the 'bottom of the line' one, in the 55 series. I'd have liked to have seen the newer Wave Touch washer compared to the higher end Whirlpool and LG washers. I'm not sure that the earlier models of the Electrolux had the recirculating pump that the newer models have. This could account for performance difference between the newer Whirlpool and the older E'lux that were compared, but there isn't any way of knowing that for sure.

The reviews said that the Electrolux IQ Touch in the 55 series was "harder on clothing" than the other washers, but they didn't say why this was. Alex, do you have any ideas? I can see how a front loader could be easier on clothes than a top loader (please, let's not start an argument there, OK?), but I'm not understanding how one front loader might be significantly harder on clothing than another. Being on the verge of making a purchasing decision, I'm concerned about the lesser performance and 'hard on clothing' issues, and really wish they had a review on the newer Electrolux models. I'm hoping to get a quality product that will last at least 10 years, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Cj

"In general...."

An item of considerable annoyance to me because there is no industry-wide standard. "Hot", "warm", and "cold" now mean whatever a particular mfgr says they mean. If you want to know what temperatures your particular machine will actually provide in its various cycles, you have to ask before you buy. It seldom appears in the manuals and they often resist disclosure in e-mail inquiries or even by telephone.

Yo Whirlpool Trainee....

Good site...thanks for posting.

LOL, Asolo, I knew you'd pick up on that...but, this tells me what their definition of 'hot' is. I'd love to be able to check on that if I get this pair--but, at a certain temp you can't unlock the door to stick in a thermometer, so it won't be possible.

I do agree with you that temperatures should be in the manuals, and that the consumer should not have to be a supersleuth to find out what the machine does. You are absolutely right that it is very annoying.

Cj

Older Mieles got this right. They had a knob marked with the actual temperatures, mostly in 15 degree increments. You want 120F? Set the dial to 120. The regions are also marked with cold to hot labels secondarily.

Went up to 190, and whatever you choose, it gets there fast thanks to 240V power.

Thanks for the link to that cool site. I spent quite a while there as well. I mostly focused on water usage for front load washers just out of curiosity & I'm thoroughly confused!

Some of those cycles use a LOT of water for an HE 2012 front load washer! The whitest whites used the most. I mean, on the Kenmore (LG) it was like 22 gallons! I'm thinking, HUH?!!

And most of that 22 gallons was cold water with only a small amount being hot water.

My 2005 Duet uses a decent amount of water, but I don't think it comes close to using that much. My whitest whites cycle defaults to HOT, starts hot & heats it even hotter. I'm trying to imagine a whitest whites cycle using mostly cold water. Strange

The cited gallons usage is for the entire cycle(s) start-to-finish, including rinses ... it's not just the wash period. The so-called Whitest Whites cycle typically runs an extra rinse to deal with the LCB that's recommended to be used.

I find these temps interesting as well. Note that The Allergen cycle on the WhirlTags gets almost as hot as LG's Sanitary cycle. Too bad LG seems to claim much higher temps in their advertising than what their washers actually can produce. Speaking of the Allergen cycle: this one used 73 gallons on the Bravos X! 22 gallons is nothing... My Duet, when set the Baby Laundry, uses 33 gallons for 24 lbs. of cotton clothing as this cycle includes an extra rinse. I could even add one more rinse. I suppose with that amount of water, I might as well run a traditional top loader.

Alex

Glad to see the LG Waveforce rated so highly.

As for our washers water temps they are fairly close to claimed temps when I tested it.
Sanitary got to 152 degrees, not quite to the stated 158 but so what.
Bright whites got to 120 instead of 122 again whoopidy do.

Cleans great which they say it does.

When I checked the difference between what our washer would use in Electricity and Water VS the only FL that I could find that was even close to the Cu.Ft in size it only came out to less than $10 per YEAR total cost difference which to me is completely meaningless.
I will gladly pay the extra .80cents a month to have a nice TL.

FWIW......When I finally badgered the Whirlpool techs sufficiently to get the info. on my Duet FL seven years ago, I was told the targets were +/- 5F. My own measuring verified within a couple degrees of target so I know what to expect in-operation....but I had to work for it. I've read about other mfgr's reported as saying recently +/- 10F....which I think is too much variation.

Very annoying. We're still on our own for this most basic of information.

Hey Dadoes-

I realize that was for the entire cycle, start to finish (including extra rinse to deal with bleach often used in that cycle), as my 7 year old Duet does. I've personally never measured what it uses and I realize that you have to account for the absorbancy of the load etc and it will add water accordingly, but even still, I don't think my Duet uses THAT much water in the entire whitest whites cycle with even the most large absorbent load. I think that's what shocked me since most FL washers I have heard are way more stingy with water now than even a few years ago.

Try catching ALL the water drained out of your machine for a typical load/cycle (including from all the spin periods) ... or several different loads/cycles for comparison ... you may find the machine uses more water than you expect.