When choosing the best laundry appliances, you should consider the area available for your appliances, the capacity that would best suit your laundry needs, and how the appliances might impact your bills. The area you have for your appliances is an important consideration, as this can dictate the size and type of appliances that might work best for you. You should also make sure you choose appliances with sufficient capacity for the amount of laundry, especially large items like blankets, you need to regularly wash. The best laundry appliances are also likely to be those with high energy efficiency ratings, which can help you keep your energy costs low.
Laundry appliances are machines used for washing clothes, typically a washing machine and a clothes dryer. One of the first considerations you should have when choosing laundry appliances is the amount of space you have in which to place the machines. If you have a great deal of space, for example, then you can choose side-by-side machines that are freestanding and typically have a greater load capacity than some other machines. For a smaller space, you might instead choose stacking machines, which often come as a pair, with one machine sitting atop the other.
You should also consider the amount of laundry, particularly large articles of clothing or linens, that you regularly machine wash. Different laundry appliances have different capacity amounts, so some machines may not be able to handle a large comforter or heavy load of towels. If you do not have large linens, then you may be able to choose appliances with small capacities and have them work for you. Laundry appliances with larger capacities, however, may be more effective for your needs and can potentially require less water and energy by cleaning more garments in a single load.
There are also a number of laundry appliances specifically designed to help you reduce energy and water costs. Such machines are often advertised and labeled as “Energy Star” or “high efficiency” (HE) machines and typically use less electricity and lower water amounts to clean and dry clothing and linens. While these machines are often more expensive than other laundry appliances, the cost can be offset over time by the reduction in your utilities payments. There are also some regions that may reward the use of high efficiency machines, often through tax rebates or other compensation to promote reduced energy use.