Consumer magazine Which? has published the results of an investigation to try to answer the question that is often asked of this industry, “Are washing machines built to fail?”
The answer/s are of course far more complex than the question, many of the topics discussed by Which? have been topics of discussion and on occasion heated debate within the industry and on this site for some years.
The article published does however get many of the points across and you can find the publicly available online version of it here but, do expect more depth in the latest magazine.
One of the major points however is the rise of the “sealed tank” that we have, frankly, been on about for many years starting with an article about sealed tanks some years ago trying to explain why this is a bad thing in the main.
It is great for replacement in warranty by stressed out repair technicians as it makes the job easier and faster (mostly) but, once machines are no longer covered by warranty, it’s not good as it prevents low cost and therefore economically viable repairs. Often when washing machines with a sealed tank fail outside warranty they will simply be scrapped, sent to be recycled.
What is worrying about this report is that Which? have found that almost all major brands now employ sealed tanks, a number of them with nothing but now being fitted.
Which? also noted, as have we, that a number of machines now come with sealed door units. This is a relatively new phenomena where the door of a washing machine is totally sealed and you cannot buy or replace items like the door handle itself, you are forced to pay for a full door unit.
On the whole it is not a good report for the washing machine or, the appliance industry but hopefully it will make people more aware that many of these changes are directly as a result of keeping prices low, perhaps artificially and that could have become a false economy for many.