ACHOUGOO’s Guide For Buying Washing Machines
I hope my guide on refrigerator buying has been some help. One another important equipment that is an absolute necessity after refrigerators, for new households is the Washing Machine.
So with so many brands available and some talking of heavy wash, some claiming 1-2, 1-2 action, some showing a gentle wash with an egg put in washing machine which gets cleaned without cracking, things can get confusing. So are you planning to buy one? Which one to get? Do not worry cause Achougoo’s guide is available.
«« WHAT CAPACITY? »»
As in fridges, here too, this is the first question that a salesman may land up asking leaving us bewildered. A capacity of 4 Kg is what a family of 3 should be looking. Families with around 5-6 members can go for 6 Kg capacity. So on average it comes to 1 Kg per member. Note that higher capacity does imply washing of more clothes at one go and can be convenience but it may also imply more power consumption.
«« WHAT LEVEL OF AUTOMATION? »»
It may sound ridiculous but semi-automatic machines sell even today! So we have two levels of automation here.
Semi-Automatic: It usually has one big tub meant for wash/rinse actions and a small tub for spin dry. It requires human intervention to remove the washed clothes and then transfer it to spin dry tub. The buttons are usually big and timer options are available, usually as electro-mechanical controls. But now microprocessor based controls with feather touch buttons are also available. But why would one want a semi-automatic machine? Simply because it consumes less power! Secondly in many regions in India, water supply is unreliable. The SA WM’s are best as you do not need running water.
Fully-Automatic: It has a single versatile tub that carries out all the action you want. You add clothes, water, detergent and then program the wash cycle. Then you sit back and relax or prepare breakfast. The machine does all the washing/rinsing/drying and then beeps after it’s done. But then it requires a reliable running water supply.
«« WHAT IS FUZZY LOGIC? »»
FA WM’s also have three levels of sophistication.
Conventional: My BPL ABS-45(I have a review on it) falls in this category. It does as mentioned above but ultimately it requires the user to program the wash cycle. There are timing options such as 12 min, 6 min, 3 min for say wash and similar options for rinse and spin dry and user selects these settings. There may be presets for woolen clothes or heavy wash etc for that one touch operation. Water level selection is also left to user.
Fuzzy Logic: This one has more finer range settings i.e. less discrete than above, which permits higher flexibility. Moreover it has a lot of internal sensors that decide the water level based on the wash load, the detergent based on load and ambient temperature, the power drawn from supply, the wash timings etc. If you are awed read ahead.
Neuro-Fuzzy Logic: This is the ultimate control one can ask for. Besides the above, it has optical sensors that sense the level of dirt in water, a fabric sensor that adjusts wash cycles by detecting the type of fabric etc. Unbelievable!
«« FRONT OR TOP LOADING »»
Top loaders permit easy removal of clothes even during power failure, without back bending exercise. They are compact and save space. Also one can use normal detergents.
But they usually do not have hot wash.
Front loaders are bulky because of heavy steel drum. Also it requires 15 A plug, consumes high power, require special less lather detergents, one cannot open door in case of power failure due to water in the drum besides the need for extra space on the front side. But with hot wash option, the cleaning is generally better.
«« WASH TECHNOLOGIES »»
Pulsator Wash: It has a pulsator disc at the bottom which circulates water upwards in large circles while rotating, that provides great washing but yet is gentle on clothes. Both Videocon and BPL use these.
Agitator Wash: Some machines have a rod at the center, some have fin design on the rod. There is a rubbing action(Whirlpool) that squeezes the dirt out of the clothes, but then it restricts the space in the tub and the clothes also tend to get entangled.
Tumble Wash: Only available for front loaders. The steel drum rotates along a horizontal axis and the clothes rub against its metal surface due to centrifugal force. The cleaning action is high but there is risk of ruining gentle fabrics.
«« PRICES »»
SA WM’s are least costly. 3 to 3.5 Kg would be between Rs. 5, 000 to Rs. 7, 000 and 6 Kg would hover around Rs. 10, 000. The FA 4.5 Kg models are between Rs 13, 000 to Rs 14, 000 and 5.5 - 6.5 Kg models are between Rs. 16, 000 to Rs. 19, 000. The best buy currently would be Samsung Karishma range as their pricing is extremely aggressive.
The front loaders are way too expensive. Electrolux brand is quite famous in this segment and its 5.5 Kg models costs Rs. 23, 000 to Rs 36, 500. Whoa!
So at the end I would suggest a 5 Kg pulsator type fuzzy logic machine as a good, economical and quality buy for a family of 5.