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Washing Machines (Yes I know it's a boring subject)


Grecian
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Having being told this morning that our UK purchased 3-year old Hotpoint washing machine which has recently gone wrong, will cost us a grand total of 375 euros plus labour to put right, we have decided to purchase a new machine, rather than have the old one repaired.

Sorry Hotpoint if you thought I was going to leave it there, what an absolute load of **** your washing machine turned out to be. I do not expect the programmer and various other bits to clap out after only three years, and will certainly not be purchasing another one of your appallingly made machines ever again. There rant over, now to the point of my thread.

Having looked around our local Gitem who currently hold our now defunct machine, two machines caught our eye, mainly due to the fact that there are a lot cheaper than some of the better known brands. The two machines in question are Brandt and Fagor, after doing some research on the Internet it would seem they are both owned by the same company. Does anybody out there own either one of these two brands? If so what do you think of them?

When we make our minds up as to which machine to purchase, it will then come down to where we purchase it from. The very nice lady at Gitem this morning said that delivery would be free and the engineer would install the machine. Plus obviously if the machine were to go wrong within the guarantee period it would be a whole lot easier to sort the problem out face-to-face. On the other hand having done an internet search it would seem that a lot of machines are upto 100 euros cheaper even after paying 40 euros or so delivery from online suppliers. Another question has anybody purchased a washing machine from somewhere like Darty, if so what have you had any problems with your purchase?

Many thanks to anybody who is kind enough to reply.

Now back to that e-mail to Hotpoint!
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[quote user="Grecian"]Another question has anybody purchased a washing machine from somewhere like Darty, if so what have you had any problems with your purchase? [/quote]

A friend found herself much in the same situation as you just after moving to a flat. After looking around on the net she settled on a cheap Indesit - 305€ - from Darty. Darty delivered said new machine and installed it after removing the old machine and thoroughly cleaning and washing the floor beneath. Delivery/installation was free. She bought Darty's 5 year guarantee for 126€; so far she is very pleased with her purchase.

Re programmer breakdown/fault, whilst still in the UK - so some years ago - the programmer on my new AEG washer went after about 5 months! After being repaired under guarantee the machine worked well and was relegated to the tip - in France - after 14 years hard labour.

Sue

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Not a washing machine (see below) but we have purchased dishwasher, hob, oven, microwave and wireless router all from Darty.

We found them an excellent company to do business with.

As it happens I bought the wrong router and it wouldn't work with my computer. By the time I found out the reason my 10 day reflection period was over but they (eventually) let me change it anyway. (Might have had to cry a bit down the phone)

Their engineer installed the dishwasher and took away all the packaging.

We had to call them out some time later when we were worried about the flame on the hob being too fierce. (they didnt install it as it was bought well in advance of our kitchen refit). It turned out our fitter had used the wrong set of jets - town gas and butane being different apparently, but I'm just a girlie.

He changed them over, smiled and there was no charge at all.

Our washing machine was bought in But back in 1989 and was still going strong when we moved out of our French house last november. Never needed a repair. Can't remember going for a top notch model at the time but I do know it wasn't Hotpoint. It just might have been Fagor but of course I can't check now.
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We have a Fagor induction hob and pyrolytic oven, we have bought another Fagor hob to replace the induction one so we can bring it with us.  Very happy with Fagor as a brand, they came with a 5 year garanty.  We have had Indesit washing machines for many years and whilst things did go wrong they were easy and cheap to fix, nothing like a programer.  I would choose Indesit over any other make, they are basic, cheap and simple, that's what I want, I don't want a washing machine that can paint the shed too I want it to wash clothes.

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Before the next white goods purchase I will check out E spares to make sure parts are available.

I do not believe any European white goods are better or worse than the rest because they all seem to be badge engineered versions of the same products.

What used to be called Herrisons/Hedgehogs - the clock like connectors which revolved as the dial went round on the dishwasher or washing machine were fairly tough. Their solid state equivalents seem to be much more vulnerable to lightening strikes and power surges
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We've had 2 incidents with white goods, a lieberre freezer which was repaired under warranty but charged for labour cost a fortune and took forever normally fantastic products but after care in France appalling. Secondly a bosche washing machine which was bought at our local independent shop he came out immediately fixed it quickly and didn't charge labour (which I don't think is normally covered in France under the warranty) So I agree Darty is a lovely store but if it is a long way from where you live , think about the aftercare you get and the cost.

We have various split clims that I've bought second hand while we wait for planning for the real thing to come through and have to say that the Brandt one is probably the best even though its the cheapest make.
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[quote user="Anton Redman II"] I do not believe any European white goods are better or worse than the rest because they all seem to be badge engineered versions of the same products. [/quote]

I believe that Hotpoint is a brand now owned by Indesit, which also owns Ariston.

American Hotpoint is owned by General Electric and is not related to European Hotpoint.

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[quote user="Anton Redman II"]Before the next white goods purchase I will check out E spares to make sure parts are available.[/quote]

I ordered parts for our washing machine from espares and after waiting 2 weeks for delivery ordered from eBay as I could wait no longer. The eBay items were delivered within 3 days, a few days later the espares package arrived with a second class UK stamp. They had charged me the full international postage which was five times the UK postage. The eBay items were half the price to boot and good quality!

I suggest you look on eBay before ordering from espares, particularly if you are having delivery to France.

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Has anyone purchased electrical white goods from Pixmania? Their

prices for dishwashers seem cheaper than Darty so I'm weighing up the price benefit against the convenience of having a Darty shop 20 minutes away.

Best Regards
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Thank you all very much for your input on this less than exciting subject. I guess it is very much pot-luck when it comes to purchasing white goods, one person may think a specific brand is brilliant, whereas somebody else may have had a bad experience with the same brand.

For our part we have decided to buy the machine from the local Gitem which is only 5 minutes up the road. I fully take onboard what people have posted regarding after-sales service if things go wrong with the machine in the future. The temptation to purchase the machine from somebody like Darty is very tempting, but with our grasp of the French language at the moment I think it best to stick to face-to-face discussions rather than telephone calls in French, if the need arises.

It now comes down to which machine to purchase, having said we will never buy another Hotpoint, which includes Indesit and Ariston, and after having had a bad experience with a Whirlpool we had back in the UK our options are somewhat limited. Looking at things I think we will try either the Fagor or Brandt, might as well save something like 100 euros on the purchase price and put that towards the first repair bill!

Not sure whether to choose the 6kg or 7kg drum model, our Hotpoint was a 8kg drum, but the lady at Gitem reckons the larger the drum the more problems come with the machine, which I guess makes sense, with more strain put on the machine whizzing it around when drying.

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With regard to the spinning, I've got a spin speed of 1000 but found that keeping it at about 800 is more than adequate, especially if you are hanging things outside to dry, and stops the machine sounding as though it is going to take off! 
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