Urgent Washing Machine Advice

[KitKat]

I have one too. Scary price tag. But the sales guy told me one thing that sold me. They go in dry, they come out dry.


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Yep, first time I ran my front loader, I was amazed that all the clothes were dry in less than half the time of the top loader. I put it down to superior spin (have an AEG which has done 2 major moves and is 10 years old but still silent as new)

 

[vertisol]

+1 for appliances online. Our washer was delivered to Canberra next day for less than the local shops could get near

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[JohnK]

....shopping online is not always the cheapest!!

So true. My parents always want to see the goods before they purchase and generally they can get a good saving by paying with cash as well.

 

[AdMEL]

We have had a couple of machines over the years (17 years of marriage in fact) and both (mrs m) agree that the Fisher & Paykel machine we have is the best we have had.

Our reason for purchase was after searching the interwebs for info - I wanted reliability, don't care about water usage, wanted quality wash, ease of use finally price (it was mid range).

The one key factor I was unaware of, the F&P is locally (NZ I think) built, so spares are easily provided / sourced if you ever need them. The product came with a 5 year warranty as well but that may have been a store warranty rather than the manufacturer - can't remember. I can say though, we have had 5 years trouble free use.

Home & Kitchen Appliances - Fisher & Paykel Appliances - Australia

Fisher & Paykel is a NZ publicly listed company. Their main facility is in NZ, but I am not sure how much they actually manufacture there now. Most of their products are now manufactured in countries such at Thailand and Brazil, as with the majority of the major brands. They do have a significant presence in Australia and did manufacture appliances in Australia (Brisbane) in the 90's.

 

[pshepvic]

One word: Miele. I wouldn't buy anything else.


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[docjames]

Ok, so here's the outcome. Went to a nearby large shopping centre. Those who know Brisbane can guess which one it was (south of the river).

Pimply sales "assistant" at Hardly Normal - useless, didnt tell us anything we didnt already know.

"Mature" sales assistant at DJs - useless, didnt tell us anything we didnt already know.

No sales assisant to be seen at Myer, and they had a range of 4 machines on the floor. All marked t RRP so nowhere near price competetive. To be fair, this particuar Myer is currently undergoing renovations (further clue to location) so wasnt expecting much and had my expectations met!

Prices between DJ/HN/aol were all within ~$20 of each other (and this wasnt adding delivery fee etc from HN/DJ although if it'd come to that I probably would have collected and installed myself). I was helpfult o go and look at a few in person - mrsdoc didnt like the "look" (styling) of a couple of them (partcularly the Electrolux and the Samsung).

We havent had a paritcularly bad word said about any of the brands, so we decided that going for a Miele would be pointless - we could replace the other brands 2-3x and still have commited less $$ than the Miele.

So result is an order for a Bosch, done online via appliances online. Factor in they'll deliver, install and remove the old machine (which would cost money to take to the tip - machine broke 4 days after hard rubbish collection!) and it was a no-brainer. And given the total lack of help at any of the major retailers we didnt feel particularly inclined to give them $600-$1000 worth of our business!

So now we await delivery (Wednesday) and provided it all goes smoothly we'll have some clean clothes to wear!

Thanks all for your input - a tribute to AFF that I could have so many helpful replies within such a short space of time.

 

[Moopere]

... And given the total lack of help at any of the major retailers we didnt feel particularly inclined to give them $600-$1000 worth of our business!

We're at the end so I hope no-one minds if I go off on a tangent to the main thread.

I find your observation of the selected snippet above matches my own, and I find this really curious given that every second night on TV you hear someone whinging about how retail is dead and GST free imports and online shopping are to blame.

More often then not, the "sales assistant" is no more than a cash register assistant ... someone who barely knows how to run the till and knows nothing at all about the products on offer. It must be obvious, surely, to the various big chains, that the old school retail shopping model, which has deteriorated more and more over the years, has to evolve into more than a warehouse experience for the customers - because the warehousing idea has been completely taken over by online merchants.

 

[docjames]

Agree, the retail model is shifting to one where the goods are shipped direct from warehouse to home. Not the customer coming to an intermediate warehouse (Harvey Norman being the best example of this).

It's cheaper with one less handling step, which also means its "greener" due to less transporting.

The storefront will become more about display of goods rather than sales. Purchasing for taking home that day will incur a premium, and cost of displaying goods to the public will shift to the manufacturer rather than the retailer. Eg. You'll visit the Bosch "store" to look at the machines, but the ordering/delivery will be done online.

IMO that's where retailing is heading especially for higher priced goods.

 

[Sprucegoose]

we are a flexible knowledgeable lot when we have to be!!!

 

[Moopere]

The storefront will become more about display of goods rather than sales. Purchasing for taking home that day will incur a premium, and cost of displaying goods to the public will shift to the manufacturer rather than the retailer. Eg. You'll visit the Bosch "store" to look at the machines, but the ordering/delivery will be done online.

Mmm. Yes, I think so too. Related to this thread, the "Miele Galleries" which are dotted around the country. You can't buy from these showrooms and so far as I can see they are owned by Miele (Aust) and staffed by knowledgeable company folks. You go there, touch, feel, get some info, then wander away and do the actual buy from the retail channel.

One does wonder, as you suggest, how long it will be until the sale is completed at such demonstration stores, then product shipped to you from main warehousing elsewhere.

 

[Kceips]

Yep, this is my belief now as well. After many years of random choices I've settled on Miele for the washer, dryer and dishwasher ... all reliable and hard working. 10 years+, still going.

I only have one word of advice - MIELE - absolutely fantastic front loader - ours has been going 10 years and still going strong. Family of 5 with 2 boys - lots of really dirty clothes to wash! Lots of different cycles ranging from 40 mins to 2 hours. Also has delicates cycle which I use successfully in place of hand washing. They are expensive but well worth it.

 

[Cynicor]

I always like to see the products, so I find myself buying from the warehouse stores, but only if they can beat the online price significantly. Most recently bought a SMEG stovetop and was offered $200 off the appliances online price without any need to haggle, and including free delivery. That said, I go to the competition partly because they do not have their own WA warehouse yet and still charge for shipping over here. I may soon be asking them to do a price beat as they have a decent range and apparently excellent service.

 

[awilcockson]

I'm only going to say two things:

1. Investigate the service life of front loaders vs top loaders (hint: it's rubbish)
2. Shop at applianceonline.com.au. Not only are they cheap and fast delivery, but you can get bonus VA points of you go through the virgin shopping portal wish I'd known that when I bought a $1200 fridge with them

 

[AdMEL]

Mmm. Yes, I think so too. Related to this thread, the "Miele Galleries" which are dotted around the country. You can't buy from these showrooms and so far as I can see they are owned by Miele (Aust) and staffed by knowledgeable company folks. You go there, touch, feel, get some info, then wander away and do the actual buy from the retail channel.

One does wonder, as you suggest, how long it will be until the sale is completed at such demonstration stores, then product shipped to you from main warehousing elsewhere.

Interestingly, my understanding is that was sort of how Kleenmaid operated, albeit under a franchise model. You visited the franchise demo store, saw the demo and ordered from them, with direct delivery direct from the central warehouse to your home.

 

[JohnK]

I find your observation of the selected snippet above matches my own, and I find this really curious given that every second night on TV you hear someone whinging about how retail is dead and GST free imports and online shopping are to blame.

Perhaps you are right but with many products shopping online does not make sense unless you have already seen the product on display somewhere.

So what will happen when retail stores cease to exist? We will all just blindly buy online....

 

[pshepvic]

I'm only going to say two things:

1. Investigate the service life of front loaders vs top loaders (hint: it's rubbish)
2. Shop at applianceonline.com.au. Not only are they cheap and fast delivery, but you can get bonus VA points of you go through the virgin shopping portal wish I'd known that when I bought a $1200 fridge with them

Is dot point 1 based on any sort of survey? Just curious, not disputing it, as my Miele front loader has lasted longer more reliably than 3 top loaders I've had put together.


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[awilcockson]

Is dot point 1 based on any sort of survey? Just curious, not disputing it, as my Miele front loader has lasted longer more reliably than 3 top loaders I've had put together.

It's based on the front loader I purchased and then took to the tip 2 years later. Called out the service guy when it failed and he said "they all do that after about 2 years, the motors just aren't up to the task". Cost to repair was almost as much as the purchase price. Went back to a top loader which has so far lasted me 8 years.

 

[KitKat]

It's based on the front loader I purchased and then took to the tip 2 years later. Called out the service guy when it failed and he said "they all do that after about 2 years, the motors just aren't up to the task". Cost to repair was almost as much as the purchase price. Went back to a top loader which has so far lasted me 8 years.

Which front loader did you get?

 

[QF029]

It's based on the front loader I purchased and then took to the tip 2 years later. Called out the service guy when it failed and he said "they all do that after about 2 years, the motors just aren't up to the task". Cost to repair was almost as much as the purchase price. Went back to a top loader which has so far lasted me 8 years.

Sounds like a reasonable sample!

 

[Moopere]

2. Shop at applianceonline.com.au. Not only are they cheap and fast delivery, but you can get bonus VA points of you go through the virgin shopping portal wish I'd known that when I bought a $1200 fridge with them

Seriously? Wow!

Goes to check it out ...

Appliances Online Australia - Earn Velocity Points you can redeem on Everyday Items

2 points / $ spent. Good stuff. Thanks for the tip, I'd never _ever_ have looked for that.