Since a washing machine is not a lifestyle item but a purely functional consumer goods one tends to buy a machine only the one in use breaks down or is considered ?beyond repair? So was the case with our old IFB washing machine(T-2400).
It served us for ten long years without any problems and when it finally broke down, the repair bill estimate amounted to almost the cost of a new machine and it was therefore time for a new purchase.
Mind you, with regular maintenance the IFB washing machine should be able to last for ever(or almost) but they have made the annual service contract fee very high and not viable. So there we were in the market for a new washing machine.
Specifications were clear? a front loading machine without any frills and fancies but with hot water washing facility.The front loading choice was decided by Mouthshut itself where there is a section for front loading vs top loading. The model that we finally selected based on the specifications was the cheapest front loading washing machine in the market which is what the IFB ELENA is.
After ten years of washing machine usage we knew exactly what we wanted-essentially a few wash cycles and hot washing facility. The buttons on the machine are all sundial types and not digital ones which tend to give problems earlier than mechanical ones. The number of washing cycles available are not too many but we found from our previous experience that we never needed the intermediate wash cycles;just heavy, medium and light wash was sufficient.
What the Elena doesn?t have is a light indication that the machine is ?ON?. This is a feature that is being missed as you have to come right near the front of the panel to know if the washing is over. Another facility that the other IFB models have and which the ELENA doesn?t have is ?half load? washing facility. This machine either runs on full capacity or nothing. You do tend to have times when you have just a few clothes to wash or when you want to wash a few dirty clothes separately.The earlier IFB that we had was quite a nosy one .
The Elena is better in this respect but not completely noiseless. But be warned-the IFB has a problem with balancing of the machine, ie if the machine has not been installed on a flat floor it tends to vibrate a lot and this is to be rectified by the installation technician who adjusts the legs accordingly. Be sure that this is done properly otherwise your machine will always be a noisy vibrating monster.
The wash quality is of a very high order with even collars being washed clean. The internal parts of the IFB machine have not been changed/modified for some time now and this is an added advantage as the machine can be readily serviced. We were never sure about this about the other front loading machines like LG.
As the machine has quite a number of moving parts it is advisable to get the machine serviced at least once a year but the annual service contract rate has been made quite prohibitive and presently this is not a machine that can be serviced by your local hardware shop.
All in all the IFB ELENA is an excellent washing machine for the washing needs of a family of four.