Your recommendations for a condensing dryer
jollygreenshortguy
| Posted in Energy Efficiency and Durability on
Do any of you have personal experience and recommendations for a good brand of washer/dryer?
I currently use an Indesit (Whirlpool’s European brand) combined washer and dryer. The condensing dryer takes literally 6-8 hours to get through a cycle and as often as not the clothes are still slightly damp.
This is my first experience with a condensing dryer and if this is typical then it’s a useless alternative to the traditional dryer.
Thanks.
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Big fan of the Miele. It beats the washer and the clothes come out so hot I have to turn the heat back a bit. It is a heat pump dryer, so it does require cleaning the plinth filter from time to time which is a hassle, but hardly a thing. I keep a small vac nearby.
Thanks.
I agree! We've had our Miele for 2 years and love it. Can't do big down comforter though. Runs on solar PV system it's so efficient.
Another vote for Miele. Clothes come out soft. Love the set.
I have a Whirlpool W11184587A. It's not condensing but it is ventless, heat pump.
It gets the clothes dry. We've had it for a year, family of five. Takes about 90 minutes to do a big load. No issues to date.
Any issue with lint accumulation on the heat exchanger of your Whirpool? It sounds like a common issue
So far, no.
I did have an early Bosch condensing dryer and every so often I'd have to take the whole thing apart and clean it.
Good to know thank you!
3rd for Miele heat pump dryer. Heat pump driers are way better than the old-school condensing dryer.
4th for the Miele, no need for a dryer vent, no need for 240v plug, why go condensing, when you can do heat pump? I'm literally building my laundry room around this dryer. A key to lowering air infiltration is eliminating the wasteful vent... A key to lowering electric bills is the heat pump. A key to simpler and cheaper laundry room build is eliminating the 240v wiring and venting... This dryer is key on several fronts.
I love the simplicity angle. The older I get, the more I appreciate simplicity. Less wiring, less vents = a good thing for several reasons as you indicated.
I generally agree that the ventless makes laundry room design simpler. However, on the electrical, keep in mind that the NEC requires that installed appliances drawing more than 50% of the capacity of the circuit have a dedicated circuit. A 15A 120V circuit can supply 1800 Watts, the Miele dryer is rated 1000 Watts so it needs a dedicated circuit. A 20A circuit supplies 2400 Watts, so it could be shared, but normally those are only used in the kitchen and bathroom and can't be shared outside of those rooms. I don't know what the rating is for the matching Miele washer, but most washers are at least 600 Watts so the washer and dryer can't share a circuit.
Most likely what you're going to end up doing is running dedicated circuits for the washer and dryer anyway. You might save a little by being able to use lighter wire than with a conventional dryer, but there's really no cost savings from 120V vs 240V.
Too funny! I did not know that the new heat pump dryers were 120V until I read your post. I don't see that as a benefit, though -- that's a potential problem!
Basically, my laundry closet is sized for a stackable washer/dryer combo and it has one 240V and one 120V outlet. Swapping out the existing electric dryer with the Miele would require re-wiring the dryer outlet -- a notable additional cost.
I do see that other heat pump dryers use 240V (like the LG) so there would still be options for those moving from an existing electric dryer. Looks like maybe Miele's primary market are those moving from gas dryers?
Rewiring 240V outlet for 120V is a five minute job for an electrician.
Miele has a really nice adaptor that plugs into the dryer outlet (240V) and gives you 2 120V outlets for the washer and dryer. it's what we have:
https://www.mieleusa.com/e/nema-adapter-adapter-nema-14-30-2x5-15-10983750-p
We’re about 5 years in using the older version of this whirlpool heat pump dedicated dryer. It’s full size at 7.4 cubic feet. It works very well for our family.
https://www.whirlpool.ca/en_ca/laundry/dryers/electric/p.7.4-cu.ft-front-load-heat-pump-dryer-with-intiutitive-touch-controls,-advanced-moisture-sensing.ywhd560chw.html
5th for Miele ;-) We've had the most basic heat pump model for a bit over a year now and have been happy with it. It dries well in under an hour, holds everything we need, and the laundry room isn't left feeling humid like I've experienced with other dryers.
Thanks so much for your recommendations. I'll definitely be looking into Miele.
Some of the full size heat pump dryers in NA require 220V as they offer resistance heat "assistance" to speed up drying times by increasing heat. In the newer Whirlpool full size heat pump dryers there is an ECO button to toggle heat pump only operation. My older unit only lets you "toggle" this behaviour by choosing lower heat cycles...which works fine :-) It uses a lot less power than the electric unit it replaced.
Two things you'll likely need to know with regard to a new unit:
1. Even self cleaning condenser models will need to be pulled apart for cleaning in 3-5 years depending on use.
2. Make sure you can access the rear of these units (easily) to vacuum out the equipment cooling fan grills, and cooling intakes on the rear of the units. On the Whirlpool units, they advise doing this every few months.
GE has a new washer dryer combo that is a heat pump/120V. I know other combo products have had issues, but this seems like a new design.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5uYBQIbgoE
I'm glad to see that becoming an option. Home Depot already has a listing with price of $2899 while they say it wont' be available to order until June. I spent a similar amount on the Miele set last year and the price has gone up since. Once this shows itself to work well I could readily see recommending it. It would be nice to have just one unit taking up space and not have to switch from washer to dryer. In the video they also point out that having the dryer built in means that you don't end up with the issue of moisture remaining in the washer door even when left open. Hopefully my current setup will be good for many years but I like seeing new possibilities.
Wow, thanks for posting. That looks amazing if it performs as advertised!
I know combo units have had reliability issues, but this looks like it was designed from the ground up. Time will tell on reliability, but could be a game changer if it holds up over time.
I especially like the filter design with a regular lint trap and washable foam filter on the back.
Strange follow up question for this thread.... I am curious what sort of temperatures heat pump dryers produce in the drum. We live in area with a notable tick population and one recommendation out there is put your clothes in the dryer on high heat for 10-15 minutes to kill them. I have to assume heat pump dryers operate cooler than an standard vented version. Any thoughts/data on the drum temperature?
I can't speak to the 120V heat pump units, but the 240V Whirlpool version we have can get quite hot if you choose "Temp: High" as resistance heat is added to what the heat pump outputs. It's easily in excess of 130F.
https://danielcameronmd.com/kill-tick-clothes/
"If a tick survives a wash cycle it’s still possible to kill them in the dryer. But, the temperature must be even higher. “When subsequently dried on a high heat setting [54–85°C (129–185°F)], it took 50 minutes to kill all ticks (95% confidence limit, 55 minutes).”
Thank you Dennis - this is a great article you posted! Very helpful. And, knowing that some heat pump dryers have auxiliary heating is great to know, I will keep an eye out for those options.
ASKO. Love, love, love ours. Never going back to a vented dryer. No issues!
+1 on the Miele. Working for a couple years for a family of 6.
Anyone have experience with the new-ish Bosch 500 heat pump dryer? I'm curious about those; I can get a decent Bosch discount so that's my first choice of brands usually. I've never used a heat pump dryer, but it's on the list of house changes...
A lot of the Bosch stuff is manufactured a few hours down the road too, so some products are local products.