Great for the Eco-friendly Citizen

Author's Rating:

Pros: Cleans clothes well, quiet, easy to install and use, great for small spaces.

Cons: Drain hose leaks after 8-9 mo.

The Bottom Line: 
This machines does what it promises. It cleans your garments as well as a regular-sized washer and the price is right. I highly recommend it.

Author's Review
Yes, the same old story - my fiance and I were sick of dragging giant bags/baskets of dirty clothes to the coin laundry. We live in an old (c. 1920s) building with no hookups, so we decided to investigate. I like to think I'm a "wise buyer", so I spent 3 months or so researching. Every epinions review I read highly recommended the Danby, so we took the advice and settled on it. We also own a Danby dishwasher - we love it.

It took way too long for the item to ship and even longer for it to arrive. But 5 minutes after I got it out of the crate, I was washing my first load. I never expected a compact washer to clean as well as this one. The machine seems very sturdy, and also quiet. The control panel is intuitive. And the set-up instructions were clear.

I usually fill it to capacity (10lbs.) every time. It uses 1/4 the soap, and the cycles are much shorter than a regular washer. But it seems to do as well as my neighbors full-size washer. Sure, it takes a while to wash a week's worth of dirty laundry, but at least I don't have to spend 6-7 hours at my neighbor's house. I can only wash 10lbs. at a time, but in between I can get other things done.

My only problems: 1) the drain hose began to leak about 5-6 months into my experience. I think it may have been damaged in transit, and had finally deteriorated. Regardless, I contacted the Danby service center via email, and I had my new hose within 4 days. Installing the new hose was a serious pain in the neck. I only hope I fitted the hose around the drain spout tight enough - so far so good 2) Also, the rubber foot leaves black rubber marks if you have to roll it across the floor like we do. I guess we could leave it in front of the kitchen sink, but it would block out counter space. So, we are forced to roll it back to its corner when finished. The marks are easy enough to clean.

12-31-06

The faulty drain hose has rendered the machine unusable again. It took a few months for Danby to send me another. Since it first broke, we have purchased a brand new full-size washer & dryer. The Danby is in the garage collecting dust. It has been a life-saver for us over the past few years. I highly recommend this machine for college students, or anyone living in an apartment or house without washer/dryer connections.

Otherwise, I highly recommend the washer - great company, great product.