Kenmore 28" Top-Load Washer with Triple Action Agitator and 4.2 Cubic Ft. Total Capacity, White

Nice basic machine with no frills. I would prefer one that was even simpler where I could just set my own water level instead of the "auto", which is just one more thing to go wrong. I like that it has a flat metal top as we often store heavy pots on it. I didn't want glass or a curved aerodynamic top. The machine it replaced was a high end LG that only lasted 5 years. The LG has "smart" diagnosis that linked to a cell phone. This feature didn't work as it it just gave us an error code that was no help. Previously we had an expensive front loading Maytag that similarly didn't last very long and had mold issues. This machine is similar to our older machines that lasted many years so we have hope. The price is low enough that I wouldn't feel the need to ever repair it. It has an old fashion real agitator center post and does as good job of cleaning. After all, the purpose of a washing machine is to get clothes clean not not to save water! (I could save even more water by wearing dirty clothes!). Amazon has a great price. I paid $588 at Sears and was told it was "on sale". The next week I kept getting pop-ups on my PC that the price was $499 at Sears. I called for a price adjustment and after spending a long time on the phone I was told I need to go to the store to get an adjustment. I went to the store and was told that the $499 sale was over and the price was now $620!. I even had a print out of the Sears ad at $499, but they wouldn't honor. Then I noticed the Amazon price was only $449, so I returned the washer to Sears and got the identical one delivered from Amazon for $449! Yes, it took considerable efforts, but I am now happy and saved $184. Sears also wanted an additional $25 to remove my old machine and $20 for hoses that I didn't want. Amazon removed my old machine for free and also was going to supply hoses. I didn't want the hoses because I wanted to use the upgraded stainless hoses that I had already purchased from Amazon. I originally told Sears I didn't want to buy the hoses, but they put them on the order anyway. It has been over a month now and we are still very happy with machine. My wife was very happy about being able to wash our largest comforter without getting a "balance error" like our old LG use to often do. This machine works hard and doesn't complain!

The best thing about this washer was the two wonderful delivery guys who provided excellent service and made sure the washer was plugged in and running before they left. They communicated with me on delivery day and showed up exactly when they said they world. Having said that. I don't remember ever doing a heavily negative review, but I'm completely dissatisfied with this washing machine, which is so disappointing, since I've never owned a new washing machine before. I had no idea that "Auto Load Sensing" meant that I would both (a) have absolutely NO control over the water level in my machine, and that (b) the "auto sensed" water levels wouldn't be high enough to cover the clothes in the drum. On most loads, if I fill the drum more that 25% of the load capacity, I literally have to stand there and fill the machine by hand from the bathroom sink or there isn't enough water to cover my clothing. I've had clothing go through full wash/rinse cycles with parts still dry and with detergent still on them/on the drum. I've uploaded several pictures. The pictures 2 and 5 show a load of "Bulky/Bedding" which is an option on the load type knob. There is no way to manually adjust the water level. For the First full wash/2-rinse cycle I didn't realize that my bedding wasn't submerged--I didn't buy a new washing machine to have to stand there and babysit it. I tried running another full wash/rinse cycle. For this load, I stopped the machine before it started "agitating" and filled the water manually to cover my clothes. My plan was to stop it again on the rinse to do the same. By the time the water filled for the rinse, it "agitated" a few times, and then started draining to spin. It took me THREE full wash/rinse cycles to finally get enough water in manually (2 quarts at a time from the sink) to wash the soap powder off of my bedding. Even small loads don't get enough water to cover them. Pictures 3 and 6 show the size load and a close-up of the water level. I had to manually fill it again to cover the clothes. If you want to soak your clothes for a while before washing, don't bother trying. There is a Soak setting. In my old-fashioned mind, "Soak" means that the washer fills with water and just sits there SOAKING the clothes until I tell it to do otherwise. Nope! Soak to this Kenmore means fill with a little bit of water, agitate a little bit, and then DRAIN. And you can't bypass that by just telling the machine to STOP, because after 3 minutes of being stopped, it drains on its own. Okay, I thought maybe the "Deep Wash" setting might mean I could get a deeper water level... I tried this on my bedding. Silly me! Despite the fact that the Owner's Manual STATES, "Provides additional water and alternating wash action for heavily soiled mixed loads. Water-level sensing process may take longer for some items than for others because they will absorb more water than other fabric types." there was No...More...Water. My clothes were still not submerged. I can't even rate this an "energy efficient" appliance, because I've had to run so many extra cycles to get things clean! There are a couple "pros" if you can overlook the fact that you either stand by the machine the entire cycle to manually fill it or you don't get clean clothing. The 4.3 cu ft drum is really big, so it will hold large loads, and the impeller-style means that you can actually put bedding, pillows, or rugs in without them being damaged by an agitator.