People in these past 10 or 20 years have given up on the idea of manually washing their clothes. There really is no reason why anyone should wash by hand when washing machines today are so affordable and efficient. Not only does it take a lot more hours to wash by hand, but it is also a method that inefficiently spends water. A proper washer will save both electricity and water. But, if you are going shopping, you will be met with two different types. A frontload and a top load washer.
If you have not had this kind of machine in your home previously or if you want your next investment on a washer to be done smart, you will need to figure out the differences between these two types. Some would say that there are not any major differences except for practicality, but I do not think I agree with that statement.
That is why I decided to make this article to write about all the differences I could find about these two different types of machines. I hope that you will be able to use this article to figure out what exactly you need for your home and your needs.
The difference in physical appearance
One of the main things you will notice that is different between these two machines is their physical appearance. The name themselves are quite explanatory. A top load washer means that the load of clothes you have is put through the top. The lid is opened and closed from the top. On most toppled products, the washing powder or other detergents are putting from the top.
A front-load washer has its lid on the front. This type can most commonly be found in Europe and Asia. While North America uses the other kind. Usually, the lid on the front has a window that allows you to see into the drum. I am not exactly sure why this is the case unless you want to stick around and watch how your clothes are turning at 1000 RPM inside of the drum.
Now let us get into the interior. In the top load washer, there is a centerpiece inside of the drum which is usually referred to as an agitator. This centerpiece inside spins around in the opposite direction of the drum, making the washing process more aggressive. In other words, this increases the chances of cleaning even the nastiest stains.
A front loader works a bit differently. There is no agitator in the middle of the drum. There are small bumps or lips which grab onto the clothes, spin them to the top, and then drop to the bottom. This is how most of the stains are removed.
Capacity
That this is one of the factors that you definitely have to consider. This will determine just exactly how much clothes you will be able to wash in one go. Well, usually, front loaders have a lot more capacity because there is no agitator in the middle which takes up a lot of space. But, I believe that even the drum is usually bigger than a top loader.
However, this means that the machine is quite bigger. It is not taller, but it can be quite wider. That can be a problem if you do not have a lot of space in your bathroom or in your basement.
A top load washer provides less capacity, but it is not that wide and it is a bit taller. If you do not exactly need a lot of capacity, you should definitely go for this type. It could save you a lot of money and maybe even some money. You could also do some extensive searching and find a top-loader that does not come with an agitator. After a few minutes of research, I managed to find GE GNW128PSMWW which is a top-lid machine without an agitator inside as suggested by washingmachins.com and it is considered as one of the best top load washers ever.
Pricing
Another very important thing we have to look at is the price of these different types of devices. I assume that this is a factor that will heavily influence your decision.
Well, there is not a lot of talk about this. The fact is that front-lids are usually more expensive while the other ones are cheaper. But, the difference in pricing may not be as large as you might think. It might be a difference of a few dozen dollars which is not a whole lot. Forking out that extra bit of cash may be very beneficial.
In the end, it is up for you to decide just exactly how big you want your budget to be for this device.
Stacking
There is one major benefit of front lid machines that I definitely have to mention. This is something that a lot of people doing their homes after purchasing this type of device.
That benefit is the ability to stack one machine over another. Yes, that really is a thing. People have been doing this for the past few decades. Why would you want to do that? Well, by doing this, you can save up on a lot of space and making the transition process from washing to drying much more efficient and faster.
For example, your dryer is on the bottom while you are washer is on the top. You put your clothes in the top machine and when the cycle ends, you take them out and put them in the dryer which is located just under the washer.
This is something that you cannot achieve with a top lid device.
Electricity efficiency
A lot of people like to talk about the electricity usage of these two different types of machines, but I do not think that the difference is big enough to be important in any way. I do not believe that this should be your deciding factor, so I would ignore it.
These are the five main things I believe were important enough to be compared. I hope that after reading through these major differences, I have helped you make the right decision.