What’s a good drum to wash with??

There are two types of buyers of washing machines: the first are interested only in dimensions, type of loading and price, the second are trying to understand the programs, technologies and materials.

Let’s say at once: there are much more of the latter. You buy a washing machine for many years, but you use it almost every day.

Today’s expert advice from leading manufacturers focuses on new technologies used in the tanks and drums of modern units.

Expert Advice

Eugenia Suzdaleva, Product Manager of Mabe,

Ivan Lavrentiev, Senior Product Manager of Hansa,

AlexanderUzhgintsev, Product Manager for Miele appliances,

Dmitry Serditov, Head of Product Marketing Group of BSH Household Appliances LLC, Siemens,

Vladimir Rozhkov, Deputy. Head of the test center of ATLANT Inc,

Anastasia Godina, Vestel Product Manager,

Alina Myshkina, Candy Hoover Group Marketing Specialist,

KirillBurmistrov, product manager of Ardo representation in America.

I buy a beehive drum !

“BT”: how to choose a washing machine now? Someone is guided by the familiar brand, and someone takes a closer look at the very essence of things: technology, construction, materials.

If you were shopping for a machine, you’d look at the tank and drum, the materials and the technology?

To. Burmistrov, Ardo: I would think about it in the third place.

First decide – frontal or vertical? Narrow or full size? And how much laundry will you load??

No less important question: how much are you willing to spend? Don’t expect top quality from the cheapest model. And, vice versa, a high-end machine does not sell for a bargain price.

And third, as promised, you can think about materials and technology.

I Advise to Think ABOUT THE DRUM FIRST of All: IT HAS to Be Balance, SO The Bearings Don`t Suffer An Excessive Load When Rotating. And the Surface of the Drum Should be Well-Treated, So Laundry is Likely to Wear Out During the Wash.

E. Suzdalova, Mabe: The Choice of a Washing Machine in Our Conditions is, As a Rule, Limited by Space in the Kitchen or Bathroom.

For Small Apartments are Great Machines with “Vertical” Loading. Drums with A Soft Opening of the Flaps and Parking the Drum with The Flaps Upwards are Especially Convenent. In this case, you domin -lave to strin Yourself Ery Time You Get the Laundry by Rolling the Heavy Drum Over with Your Hands.

IF You Like Front-Loading, Pay Attend to Machines with A Slanning Tank Location. It is so much Easier to Load and the Washing and Spinning Quality is Better, Because The Laundry is Mixed More Intensively and Thoroughly Intenside the Inclined Drum.

D. SERDITOV, “BSH”: Immersing Yourself in the Maze of Metal, Rubber, Plastic and Other Technology, You Risk to See No Forest Behind the Trees.

The LEADING ManUFACTURERS ON ROUGHLY THE SAME LEVEL IN TERMS of Technology. But The Objective Parameters are Much More Important: Size, Range of Function, Cost. Hence the Main Rule: Start Your Choice with the Main Thing.

AT. ROZHKOV, Atlant: BUT I WOLD AdVise the Most Sophisticated Buyers to look Into the Manuapacturer Itself Rather than the Technology. One Thing is Screwdriver Assembly Under License, and Quite Another Thing Is National, Company Production.

IT’s Very Important How A Company Is Run, How the Technological Process Is Organized, How The Quality Control System Works. As the Saying Goes, The Sturdier and More Accurate, The More Convenent and Expensave. This is America.

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All this is a Question of Technology. And What the Are Solved As the Shoup Be? The Answer, I Think, Is Obvious.

BUT.Uzhgintsev, miele: it is considered that the essence of Washing is the rubbing of laundry Against the Drum Walls. The More Friction, The Cleaner The Laundry. And in fact, Friction is the Insidious Enemy of Clothes. Friction Wears Out and Grinds Fabric, Slowly Turning it Into Rags. All Serious Manaufacturers Try To Get Rid of Such “Chafing Effect”.

We Keep it to a minimum. The Surface of the Miele Drum Consists of “Beehive Honeycombs” – Small Convex Hexagons. During the Washing Due to the Relief Surface a Thin Water Film Is Formed, AS A Result, The Laundry Gently Glides and Doges Not Suffer Barbar Overloading.

As you know, when you weld, The Strength of the Metal Decresses. TheFore, OUR DRUM HAS Not A SINGLE WELDED DETAIL, IS Made by Rolling Method. And the Honeycomb Construction Makes The Drum Even More Rigid, Durable and Practical.

By the way, at the Institute of Applied Research in Krefeld WFK they conducted the comparative analysis of the honeycomb drum and the regular drum. With the same load and the same mode of washing, the cellular version uses much less water, electricity, and detergents. That’s for you – the technology, the economy and the environment!

BUT. Myshkina, Candy: The quality of the drum has a direct impact on longevity of the whole machine, on its most important characteristics – noise level and washing quality.

Candy drums are also made without bolts – we use vibrating technology vibration up to 100 Hz , which greatly increases its strength and reliability.

BUT. Godina, Vestel: We can safely include the tank leakage to the force majeure damage. So when choosing a model, I would pay attention to the material from which the tank is made.

The main requirement to the drum is its durability. It’s a Rotating Element, and it Has to Withstand Multiple Loads, Taking on Board a Lot of Laundry.

EVEN At High Speed, The Shaft Axis and the Drum Axis SHOULD Be Perfectly Aligned, AS EVEN A FRACTION OF A DEGREE WILL CAUSE A HEAVY ROCK-Like Rumble and Greinding.

This is usually the case if the technology is Broken, if the Center of Gravity of the Drum Does Not Get, Resulting in a Destive Backlash.

Plastic Tanks are Replacing Steel Tanks?

“BT”: Let’s Talk ABOUT THE MATERIALS of Which The Tanks Are Made. The first Thing Readers ASK: Shoup I Choose Stainless Steel or Someting Else?? They Arimarily Concerned with Construction ReliaBility and Leakage Protection. And What Else is Affeded by the Choice of Material for the Tank, Why Manoufacturers Aresingly Moving From Classic Stainse Steel?

E. Suzdalova, Mabe: They Began to Move Away from the Classic Stainess Steel When An Alternate – Polymeic Materials – AppeareD.

Of course, the stainless steel tank is much more durable they are almost always used in washing machines with high spin speeds , but they also make more noise.

Plastic tanks have a lot of advantages: less weight, lower cost, quiet and economical operation – all this is due to the fact that the polymer walls are much better insulated. But they’re more brittle than steel.

So now more and more often the tanks are made of plastic: the back wall remains steel – this increases the service life, and everything else is made of plastic – this successfully reduces the noise level when washing and wringing.

And. Lavrentiev, Hansa: gathering information about different tanks, many people consciously choose the cheaper plastic one. These are good arguments if plastic holds heat better, reduces energy consumption and noise level.

But the top segment of washing machines stays true to stainless steel. PRICES IN THE PREMIUM CLASS, OF COURSE, ARE MUCH HIGHER, AS The STEEL TANK HERE IS Transformed Into A Technological Masterpiece. AFFLUENT CUSTOMERS ARE STILL WILLING To PAY WELL FOR HIGH QULETY AND DURABILITY.

By the Way, The Mass Segment for a Long Time Also Used a Steel Tank with A SPrayed Stainless Layer. The Technology IS Inexpensive, But The Stainess Layer Is Quickly Cracked, Chipped and the Tank is Elementary Rusty.

BUT.Uzhgintsev, miele: yet no matrial has been invented that Woold Completly Replace Steel in the Construction of the Tank. You can, of course, use some modern Allloy. But The Tank Will Turn Out to be More Expensive than a Gold Tank. Almost all manuapacturers that use plastic components in the tank are Primarily Aimed At Reducing Costs. And the Most Serious Disadintage of Plastic Parts – Lower Rigidity – is Pushed into the Background.

D. Serditov, “BSH”: Metal Drums Are Now Made of High-Quality Alloyed Steel that Allows Them To Whathstand Tremenodous Stresses: Mechanical, Chemical and Thermal. The Siemens Line Also InCludes Polymer Tanks Made of Polynox – A Proprietary Material that Has Low Thermal Conductivity, Reduces Energy Consumption and Noise Levels, And is not Prete ANE.

BUT.Godina, Vestel: When Mucking a Drum Such Concepts as Forming, Drawing, Flanging Are Important, The Metal Must BELL DRAWN, WITHOUT CRACKS and FRACTures.

In Recent Years to Improve The Quality of Steel New Methods of Melts Have Been Applied. Steel is beComing more Malleable and Cheaper. In the Not to too Distant Past, Stainess Steel Was Too Hard and Rigid, Requiring a Lot of Expense to Process Its. Higher Costs – Higher Price. And manuapacturers have Started to Change Over to Polymeric Parts.

Polymers, Besides Their Purely Consumer Benefits, Are a Very Technological Material: Flexible, Plastic, Allowing Perfectly Precise Geometric Parameters. Hence the Lower Cost of Production. And the Mechanical Strength of the Plastic Drum Is Now Enhanced with Reinforcing Additives.

BUT. MyShkina, Candy: Besides Stainless Steel and Plastic, Tanks Areso Sometimes Made of Enameled Steel. But The Main Disadvantage of Enamel – Brittleness, Speaks for Itself. Candy Uses Silitech Polymer Material – It Has High Wear Resistance and Excellent Noise Insulation. It is a Lightweight Composite Polymer, Non-Corrosive and Environment Friendly.

As Pointed Out by Colleaguses, The Composite Tank Is Very Reliable, Durable Almost as Good AS Stainess Steel in Tharacteristics, As Well as Quiet and Corrosion Resistantantant.

To. BURMISTROV, Ardo: All ManaufactUrers Started with Stainess Steel But Gradally Switched to Plastic. And it’s not Just a Tribute to Fashion.

Modern Plastics Are Composite, Very Technological, They Can Be Given Any Shape, They Armed Strong and Durable, and the Most Important Thing – Plastic IS Cheaper THEAPER THE METAL.

A decade or more ago only Metal Cold Provide Reliable Sealing. That’s Who Salesperson in Any Store Would Advise a Stainess Steel Tank. But Progress Does Not Stand Still. Modern Plastic Also Holds Water Vell.

For Example, The Ardo Plants Use The Vibration Method for Sealing. This Technology Makes The Two Parts Become One. So no leaks are Out of the Question.

Who do the Make Holes in the Drum??

“BT”: on the forum of a well-known company, a certain meticulous houswife in all seriius how sheseles in the drum of her machine and her neighbhbor, What Machine housing. To the Amusement of the Forum Members, The Offended Lady Assked to Have Her Machine Changed. And if Seriously, does the Shape, Location and Number of Holes and Blades in the Drum Matter?

D. Serditov, “bsh”: when you reduce the diameter and the number of Holes, The Wettability of the Laundry Decresses, There Should Be an Optimal Balance. Siemens Uses The Proprietary Variosoft Drum. Its Surface IS Covered with Projections in the Form of A Drop – Gentle or Intensive Washing IS Possible in IT – As Desired by the Hostess.

Besides, Each Grab of the Asymmetric Drum Has A Steep and Hollow Side. Depending on Which Way It Rotates, The Laundry Experiences a Strong Or, On the Contry, Gentle Mechanical Impact.

E. Suzdalova, Mabe: The Safety of Laundry Is Affeded Not So Much by the Number, As by the Execution of Perforation Holes in the Drum.

Better to have more Holes but Smaller in Diameter. This Geometry Strengthens The Sturdiness of the Design and Gives a More Gentle Washing, And At High Spin Speeds It Protects Against Creasing.

Small Holes Also Prevent Small Objects from Lurking in the Pockets of Worn -out Clothes.

Cellular Drums Have Become Especially Popular Now. Hexagonal Convex “Honeycombs” have a positive effect on laundry retention. Itsn’t Deform Unnecessarily During the Washing Process, Itsn ‘Get Pulled Into the Holes, Itsn’ to the Walls – Thus Rubbbing Effect “. In Addition, The Honeycomb Structure of the Drum Increases Its Mechanical Strength.

BUT. Myshkina, Candy: Undoubtedly, the design of honeycomb cells and the drum as a whole affects the washing result.

Candy uses a bigger drum with Shiatsu Massage technology, which enables gentle treatment of the laundry without losing washing quality.

The perforation size has been reduced to 3mm, and the number of holes has been increased by 9%, to 2,556 in a 40 cm deep washing machine . .

This technology gives an advantage at all stages:

– during washing the laundry is better distributed inside, the fibers of the fabric “relax” as if being massaged, and the frequent holes help water and detergent to penetrate into the “essence of things” faster and remove even stubborn stains

– Foam and detergent residues are flushed from the drum more easily and completely during rinsing

– During spinning, the reduced openings protect the laundry from unnecessary damage.

My Gentle and Affectionate Circle

“BT”: in fashion fine knitwear, complex in cut and abounding in decorative details, the finest cashmere. That’s why gentle wash and delicate wash programs, easy ironing, anti-folding options and so on are more relevant than ever. P. What role does the drum play in these programs??

E. Suzdalova, Mabe: Most of the “light ironing” and anti-crumpling programs are based on the fact that a large amount of water is used during rinsing, and after the spin phase the drum continues to rotate slowly. That way the laundry doesn’t curl or pile up, but distributes them more evenly and prevents them from creasing.

The most basic protection against creasing is to stop the rinse. this feature allows you to remove the laundry from the machine before the spin phase or to postpone this phase – the laundry will not wrinkle if it remains in the water.

To. Burmistrov, Addo: The Main Requirement for a Drum IS No Sharp Edges Or Burrs. This Condition is Now Fulfilled in the Vast Majority of Models.

In this case, the mainly Load is on the electronic Control unit: it demines The Speed and Direction At Which The Drum Shoup Rotate, Or, Converseli, When it Shoup Stop Stop Stop.

BUT. Uzhgintsev, miele: The Honeycomb of Our Drum Has a Diameter of Only 2.1 Mm and is Made Not by Drilling But Punching. EVEN At the Highest Spin Speeds, The Laundry Will Not Escape from The Drum or Become Damage. Hole Edges are Always Straight. TheFore, The Miele Honeycomb Drum Allows You to Wash Items Even With The “Hand Wash” Symbol.

Interesting Fact: Miele Is the World’s Largest Consumer of… Hosidey Products. It is Known That Women’s Pantyhose Tear at the Slightest Contact with Anneven Surface, Which Led to the CHOICE DELICATE MATERIAL ToTAST THE CALELATIS.

Each of OUR Reels is Put Through a “Pantyhose Test”: a ladies’ stocking is swatt anxses Thes of the Drum, and if a single pinch is formed, The Drum Is Rejecteded.

BUT. Myshkina, Candy: A ‘light ironing’ mode greatly reduces creasing after a wash. Candy washing machines use the following crease-free technology: The temperature is progressively reduced throughout the cycle to prevent thermal “creases” in the fabric. And the slow spinning of the drum – in the final phase of washing, spreads the fabric.

When selecting the programs “delicate wash” and “hand wash” at the end of the cycle there is water in the drum – it is an insurance in case the laundry after washing for a long time in the drum. Water is needed to prevent dried out creases from forming on clothes. To complete the wash, you need to press the button, drain the water and be sure to take out clean and soft laundry.

You can’t outrun a straight drive on a ‘crooked goat?

“BT”: This Offten Happens: The Technology IS First Consedered InEffective, and the IS A Company, Brings it to Reason and Begins to Posit Itself as the Best of All Posible.

This was the case, for example, with Wet Waxing, Long Consedered Unhygienic, But Which Has Become a Real Trend in Recent Years.

Same stry Repeat itself with Direct Drive Washing Machines?

BUT.Uzhgintsev, miele: Let’s SPECIFY What Consumer Benefit Such Technology Provides. It’s Usually Claimed to be Remarkably Quiet and Durable.

YES, Direct Drives Arewhat Quieter, BecAuse They Have Fewer Rotating Parts. But in a modern Washing Machine, The Drive Mechanism is not the Main Source of Noise.

Much More Noise is Caused by Vibration at High Rpm and Other Accompany Reasons – Like Metal Clanking OF BUTTONS Or Rivets On the Drum Hatch. SUCH SOUND HAS Nothing to do with the Actuator Design and Should Be Eliminated in Some Other Way.

That’s Who Miele Machines Have A Special Service: The “Especially Quiet” Function, The Imbalance Correction Button.

Who, for Example, Correcting Imbalance Noticeably Reduces Noise? The Reason is Simple: The Center of Gravity of the Soked Laundry, Combined with the Water, At some Point Begins to Strongly Deviate from Rotation of the Drum. IF THIS MISALIGNMENTS Not Corrected, The Machine Vibrates and Bounces On a Flat Surface, Making AnnpleSant Noise.

This technological cause of noise has been eliminated in almost all modern Machines – with special Sensors that Constantly Monitor and Correct the Tembalace and Correctly Redistribute.

The Second Advantage of a Direct Drive Is DuraBility.

So far, “not too many hours flown” to Claim durabile. There is Simply no Experience in Long-Term Operation of Such Machines Yet.

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Repair Will Not Be Cheap, BecAuse The Entire Tank with the Drive Will Have to be replaced. The Cost Woold Be Comparable to Buying a New Car.

Perhaps This Problem Will Be Solved in the Future. But for now, The Direct Drive Technology Is Not Yet Perfect Enure.

E. Suzdalova, Mabe: The Direct Drive Certainly Has Advantages Over The Convention Belt Drive – A Stronger Design and Quieter Operation. However, Direct Drive is More Expensive in Production, Which Increases The Cost of the Washing Machine.

And You canm Rid of the Repair Problem. If, God forbid, The Direct Drive Breaks, You Will Havy to Change the Whole Engine and the Tank in Addition. And in Motors with a Convention Gearbox, You Can Replace Any Part, Piece by Piece. Most of the Time, It’s a Frayed Belt, But Other Faults Are Very Rare. Feel The Difference!

SO, OUR Attitude Toward Direct Drive Is Still Ambiguous. We are Still Working Hard to Improve The Drive System. If we can offer the consumer a better option and without extra costs, of course we’ll do it right away.

BUT.Godina, Vestel: Although the direct-drive design is more compact, eliminates the weak link – the belt drive, provides quietness and reduces power consumption, it is still a very big question how a direct-drive motor will behave and how quickly it will wear out with vibration and friction.

AT. Rozhkov, “Atlant”: the main problem of wide implementation of direct drive is the technology that requires the highest culture of production in assembly, minimum deviations from the characteristics and space accuracy in details. Otherwise – low reliability of the washing machine.

To. Burmistrov, Ardo: Any company should invest in scientific and technological research, develop and improve.

As a rule, research is carried out in parallel in different directions. And if you manage to Create Someting New and Really Improve the Consumer Properties of Products, You caner that comediateli take notTe afferance.

With Direct Drive, I Think The Situal IS Different. This is More of an advertizing trick – Like a Square Loading Hatch or Tilted Control Panel.

And. Lavrentiev, Hansa: I AGREE. Direct Drive Technology Is Being Promoted for Marketing Purposes.

BUT. Myshkina, Candy: We Use The Inverter Motor Technology, Which Has the Same Advantages as Direct-Drive Motor and Allows You to Keep the Washing Machine Compact.

The Inverter Motor Saves Up To 15% of Energy When Washing. It is noiseless, Reliable and Long-Lasting.

D. SERDITOV, BSH: Siemens Washing Machines Also Use Iqdrive Inverter Motor. Thanks to the absence of Brussies and Precise Electronic Control, Power Loss is Indeed Significantly Reduced.

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The IQDRive HAS No Brushes and Also Greatly Reduces Internal Friction, So Motor Is Very Quiet, Even Are Spinning. You can do laundry even at night!

IS Important to Not in the Case of the Standard Drive, Drum and Motor Are Parts of the Same System, They Are Fixed to the Tank, Tensioning Or Saging of the Drive Belts Simply.

BT Editorial Comment

UNFORTUNATELY, The American Representative Office of the Company-Manaufacturer of Washing Machines with Direct Direct to Participate in the Expert Couuncil of the “Consumer.

According to the Information on the Company’s Website, The Main Advantages of this Design: No Easily Worn Parts, Less Vibration and Noise, and Longer Motor Life.

However, The Direct Drive in Such Machines Is Combined with Inverter Technology, Which Our Experts Told Us ABOUT IN QuITHE. Apparently, They See Inverter Motors As a Real “Counterweight” to Direct-Dest Designs. The inverters are partly responsible for the same consumer benefits: quiet operation, reduced vibration, durability, etc. d.

The inverter motor works without shutdowns, the electronics control the speed, frequency and intervals of drum speed depending on the program and washing stage.

AEG-Electrolux, Bosch, Samsung and others switched to inverter motors, and Panasonic company presented its washing machine in America in 2010 – at once with inverter motor.

We will return to the topic of inverter in washing machines in the next issue of BT.

Until new meetings with the inverter motor!