Take a look at the washing machine in most any household laundry room in American and you're likely to see a similar washing machine: a normal top load washer.
Recently I was shopping for a new washing machine, and when I went looking at the local appliance store, I saw something I wasn't expecting.
There are now front loading washing machines designed for consumer use; they're not just for commercial applications any longer.
This caught me off guard as I'd never seen them anywhere but public laundry rooms.
A discussion with the salesperson showed me a bunch of interesting facts that I believe indicate that buying a front load washer is the proper choice.
Basically a front load washer is more efficient than a top load.
They are environmentally friendly by using less water for the same size load, as the clothes don't need to be fully submerged in water, instead tumbling through the water.
The typical front load washer will generally be able to handle a larger load relative to its size, as there isn't an agitator getting in the way.
The lack of an agitator also leads to front load washers being gentler on the clothes themselves due to the nature of the tumbling as opposed to violent back and forth motion.
There is also a long term operating cost reduction with a front load washer over a typical top load.
Since a front load washer will use less water for a given load size than a top load washer, there is less energy required to heat enough water to do a load of laundry.
Due to a faster spin cycle, more water is extracted from clothes before moving to the dryer, which leads to less time spent in this energy intensive appliance.
The US Department of Energy conducted a study that found that a household experienced greater than a 30% reduction in energy usage by upgrading to a front load washer, a high efficiency dryer, and a more power and water efficient dish washer.
The sum total of these facts leads me to believe that a front load washer is the proper choice for my next major appliance purchase, despite the fact that they tend to cost slightly more than their more typical top loading configuration.
Based on the study by the Department of Energy, the additional cost should be recovered many times over the life of the appliance thanks to the decreased energy and water consumption.
Not only will I be saving money in the long term, but I will also be doing my own little part for the environment by choosing the greener alternative.