Re: The Home Appliance thread First of all let me begin with thanking this thread.
Our BPL full auto WM lasted for good 18 years. We had no budget limitations as we understood WM is a long-lasting commodity and very useful at that, hence wanted the best one. Was open to both FL & TL, more interested to try FL this time. Searched thoroughly before buying- on net, in showroom etc. Tried to dig out all the pros & cons of both FL & TL. Then decided based on our requirements. You would be surprised to know what was bought!
FL pros : Requires less water & detergent than TL. Supposed to give better wash than TL. Claims to consume less electricity. Silent operation, longer warranty period on inverter drive motor.
FL cons : Costs more to buy. Repairs not covered under warranty are costly. Sensitive to water and detergent quality. Level mounting is very important, otherwise it shakes, walks and runs the risk to fall flat on the face. Water can't be filled manually, continuous flow of water is required, hence you cant wash if your overhead tank runs dry. During a wash cycle if power gets cut off then the whole cycle is repeated from the beginning. To avoid this you have to be alert and run to the machine as soon as the power is back. If the power cut is too long and you decide to do hand wash, then you need to drain all the detergent water manually and then take out the clothes. In process you lose water and detergent. Clothes need to be arranged evenly to balance load in the tub. Tub of FL can't be loaded in same quantity as a similar sized TL.
TL pros : Cheap to buy. Not as sensitive to water and detergent quality, hence proven to suit indian needs. Sturdy than FL and can take more abuse. Easy to repair and maintain. Not so sensitive as FL regarding leveled mounting. Water can be loaded manually by buckets if you are in a hurry to finish the wash, hence the waiting time to fill the tub through inlet hose is minimised. You can add hot water from your solar, so no need of inbuilt heater and hence electricity savings. Wash cycle starts from the step where it was before power cut. Generally more forgiving in case you overload the tub.
TL cons : Consumes more water, detergent and electricity than FL. Noisy operation(not much with new tech), less warranty.
Now coming to the practical point of view. Agree that FL is more gentle on fabric like woolen & silks. Now tell me who may wash woollen & silk clothes in the same cycle along with school-uniforms, denims, socks and inner-wears? Anyways even if you decide to wash them together you run the risk of mixing colours on delicate pricey garments. Silks are better off with dry cleaning or hand wash instead of putting in the machine. Who would want to run a separate cycle for washing 2-3 woollen sweaters, then again a different cycle for 1-2 silk kurta/sarees? If you have a tiny baby, would you wash 8-10 tiny handkerchief sized baby clothes in a 6.5kg WM?
If you decide doing heavy wash, a 6kg FL cant take more than 1 bedsheet.
A TL offers more flexibility. The tub in TL takes more water and this actually works better where more water is needed for washing certain items. Things like bedsheets, curtains, daris, car seat covers can be done effectively in a TL. More than the delicate items, it is the daily laundry and heavy items for which a WM is much useful. Small delicate items as I said, better should not be put in any machine, FL or TL not withstanding.
A few months ago, just before the price hike, I bought a full automatic LG 6.2kg TL just for Rs. 12,500. It doesn't got any digital display, clock, alarm etc. What's most important is present there, like the stainless steel turbo drum, four level water selection, turbo wash, delicate wash etc. all necessary features are there. The > 15k Rs. saved can take care of the detergent for a few years. Saved money by not buying the extended warranty, as TL doesn't needs it that badly as an FL. The old BPL was sold for 2.5k and is still running in someones house.
Also bought the 30Lit convection MW along with the WM. Gifted the old, almost unused 10 years old 19Lit MW to a near&dear one.
Other brands may have similar products, but LG was chosen because its dealership is < 100m from the house.
Sorry guys for this long boring post. The only purpose was to show how this thread helped me choose wisely and saved me money.
Thanks a lot to this thread, especially SG Sir. Just because of this thread I understood what was the right product for our type of use. I got to read all good and bad experiences from all of you which helped immensely in the buying process.
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Last edited by Technocrat : 28th November 2013 at 04:07.
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