Customer Reviews

Frigidaire King Size 3.5 Cu. Feet Front Loader Washer - Frigidaire ATF6000FS

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is my first Frigidaire appliance and I must say that I have never owned a Frigidaire product -- neither have my parents or anybody else I have talked about appliances with. With my appliance (Sales and Service) experience I can also vouch that one machine can be a gem and the next one off the line a lemon.

Price:
When shopping for a washer I admit that I was price-driven. I couldn't spend $1300.00 on a front load machine at the time so I looked further down the line. This Frigidaire washer was purchased for $649.00 at Lowes Home Improvement along with a Four-Year Warranty ($89.00). I had them deliver it since I know that these washers wiegh over 200 pounds.

Capacity:
3.5 CF is a good size drum for a front-load washer. My wife crams all she can in that machine and holds the door closed so that the door will lock when she presses start. Keep reading...

ICare and IWash:
What? (IWash) This is all about the gentle tumbling action that is created by a few turns of the drum clockwise and a few turns counter-wise, the law of gravity and the fact that the machine (ICare) optimizes the temperature of cold water so that your detergent is able to disolve in water to clean your clothes thoroughly.

Stainless Steel Drum:
Stainless is the way to go. There are no rough areas inside the tub to catch clothes on. Stainless steel is optimal becuase of strength and the fact that it is contnaully polished smooth by clothes unlike porceline that roughens-up with time and wears your clothes out faster.

Electronic Controls:
Love 'em. No mechanical timers that over time fail due to modern cheap materials. The electronics are sealed to keep away mositure but even with electronics vibration, power surges and time can make them fail (buy an extended warranty if available for this reason). The buttons for the controls are easy to push and easily read. The main cycle selection knob is smooth and 'clicks' into is cycle selection places. LED's tell you what cycle you have selected and a digital readout tells you how long you have til the load is done. (The digital count-down timer does not factor in spin cycles -- read on).

Wash Cycles:
Everything you will need for your regular laundry cleaning needs are right here waiting for you.

Advanced Rinse Technology:
Complete clean water rinses and high speed spins get all the detergent out of your clothes AND this washer has a an extra rinse cycle and extended spin option selections if you are skeptical.

14-Hour Delay Start:
My wife loves this because she hates leaving and knowing that there are wet clothes in the washer. For me I like knowing that my wife is satisfied with her washer.

Press Saver Setting:
this option keeps your clothes moving in the tub for an extended amount of time allowing your clothes to 'loosen' and stay 'loose' which helps avoid those nasty wrinkles.

Control Lock:
This handy little features keeps my two-year old daughter from changing/stopping the cycle during its preset cycle. It also makes it so that little fingers don't accidently open the door letting wet clothes fall out on the floor.

Door Lock Light
Can't figure out why you can't open the door or wonder if the door is locked and the washer is ready to start? This light tells you.

Alright. Those are the a few of the features. I like the fact that: (One) My wife loves her machine and (two) my clothes are cleaner then they were before when we were using that P.O.S. machine we ended up buying out of desperation at Sears.

Pros: I haven't had one problem with it in the year I have owned it. Wife loves it. It's very quiet. The glass door has offered hours(!) of entertainment to myslef and my kids. It's easy enough for me to use. It uses between 12 to 15 gallons of water per load (EFFICIENT). This machine wants to wash LARGE loads

Cons: (Yes I do have a couple.) The water pump that ejects the water out of the machine is noticable. It doesn't like small loads (a couple shirts and maybe a pair of pants), it has a hard time balancing small loads.

Things to know if you do buy this: When you hit the start button give it about 10 seconds to start filling with water (I don't know why it does it). If a load is out of balance it will deal with it on its own terms (it spins the clothes back and forth til the clothes are balanced -- this adds time to the cycle!) Buy the extended warranty through the dealer or through Frigidaire itself The cost of parts and ceritified repair services is enough to put a person into cardiac arrest. Let the dealer you bought it from deliver and install it since it is so heavy (see cardiac arrest).

Enjoy!

I bought this machine (from another store) in 2006 and it broke in 2008. It wouldn't spin during the rinse cycle. It's not under warrenty anymore and the Frigidaire people aren't helpful. When it worked it worked great -- got clothes very clean and was quiet. But at a cost of several hundred dollars I expect it to work for more than 2 years! I received a quote to fix of $500 -- so I'm deciding whether or not to just purchase a new one (a different brand of course).

This unit was purchased in November 2007. My primariy mechanical complaint is that the spin cycle does not always perform properly. With smaller loads, sometimes even with a full load, not enough water has been removed for the clothing to be transferred to the dryer. The articles must be wrung out by hand and then an attempt made to dry them. This occurs especially with a small load containing towels. The "spin only" cycle does not do anything to solve the problem. They are as wet at the end of the cycle as they are at the beginning. The repairman did not help. It appears that small loads with towels are not to be washed in this machine.

Another troubling issue is the plastic panel surrounding the control knobs. The paint/decals labeling the cycles has almost melted away. The dealer from whom I bought the machine said he had heard of that, and it was from "Spray and Wash" type products. "You just can't use them around the machine," he said, AFTER the damage had been done. Get REAL!!! A washer is in a laundry environmnet, and must be able to SURVIVE in a laundry environment, which may, from time to time include chemicals such as are found in stain removers. The panel, in addition to losing its lettering, is also turning yellow, creating a noticeable difference in color between it and the rest of the machine. Very unsightly. The dealer said that he would probably not be as successful at solving the problem with his Frigidaire contacts as I might be calling customer service. That comment told me that he was not interested in solving the problem for me or for customers in the future. He said he didn't really know about stain removal products; he never used them. Not an excuse.(He has seen the last of my appiance money.) When I did call Frigidaire customer service, in a foreign land, I was told that as a "one time special courtesy" they would replace the panel for me. It has been almost a year, I suppose, and no replacement parts have come to me. I doubt that there was ever an intention to send a replacement panel.

While this model may have been replaced by later ones, and perhaps improved upon, I am disappointed in my machine, and would probably never purchase a Frigidaire washer again. And one should probably never purchase THIS model, if still available, without spraying the control panel with a laundry stain remover, to see if the decals can withstand the stain remover!! (For what is is worth, the dryer has worked well.)

I bought this washer and matching dryer to replace a 10 year old set that was broken down. I only wish I would have done it sooner.Fast wash and dry time , clothes come out super clean and wrinkle free!.Be sure to dry out the rubber seal in the washer after each load or leave the door open so it will dry out.(to avoid moldy smell)

If it is possible to hate an inanimate object, I hate this machine. I've had it for a bit over three years, and I initially liked it. I knew that I needed to leave the door open between uses to prevent mildew problems. It didn't use much water and seemed efficient. I accidentally left the door closed just *once* and it had already developed that mildewy smell after only a couple of days. You are not supposed to leave the door open if you have small children, to prevent accidents. So it seems that people with children are doomed to have a stinky, mildewed washer.

Worse, after about two years of use, it gradually left the clothes wetter and wetter. The information that came with the machine offered no help, at least none that was relevant. I researched online and found that other people had problems with a filter that needed cleaning. A filter - you would think the product guide would tell you about it and that it would be easy to clean. But nooooo...my husband had to take the machine out of the laundry room so he could get to the side/back (I don't remember which, but it was definitely not the front) and there was not even an access door to get to the filter. It was a royal PIA to clean. This is for routine maintenance! If I had not found other owners' help online, I would have had to call a repair person, which would have been expensive, I'm sure. For a filter! The display that shows the time remaining before the load is finished lies. And usually by several minutes.

It doesn't clean especially well either. I've tried several different HE detergents and used prewash treatments, and still have stains that should come out relatively easily. My clothes sometimes smell bad, worse than before washing them, to the extent that I will not wear them without re-washing and hoping them come out better the next time.

I sent an email to the company when I first encountered the filter problem, and got no response.

The only reason I gave the washer two stars instead of one is because it hasn't completely broken down; it keeps working albeit poorly. Sometimes I wish it would break down and I could justify getting a decent washer.

We were going to open up some space in a crowded washroom by replacing our functional, yet oldish side-by-side, top load washer and dryer. This model was strongly recommended in several reviews of stackable front-loading sets, as well as the sales folks at Lowe's. In not more than a month or so, the rubber gasket was covered in mold and mildew stains and the washer had that characteristic odor. We scrubbed and scrubbed with bleach and formulated mold/mildew remover. It is impossible to get all off.

Now, we both are having problems with allergic reactions that bloom occassionally if we don't scrub this thing regularly to fight back the spore-producing mold.

It's a giant pain to constantly have to deal with this, not to mention the labor involved. For something that was supposedly designed to be more energy efficient, I think it fails here as well. The only tips I've gotten from sales and support folks is to weekly run empty, hot loads with a mold preventer. I'm wondering if that 50+ hot loads were included in the efficiency rating...I doubt it. Not to mention the additional expenditure to purchase this "specially formulated" mildew prevention detergent.

(We also experienced problems with the electrical panel of the dryer which went on the fritz after just 4 months - it was replaced. The technician says "it's pretty common". This did not reassure us.)

Do yourself a favor and stick with efficient top-loaders if you can. From what I have been reading, this problem is not unique to this model in the front-loading washer field. However, if you have to buy a front-loader, do a LOT of due diligence before making your significant purchase...

...And do yourself a favor. Skip this model or set completely.

I've had the Frigidaire Affinity pair for about 4 months now. Overall, they are nice and I have been quite happy with them. They do a great job at cleaning. And it holds more laundry than I expected. Plus it's nice that both cycles are about the same length. That's very convenient if you are doing several loads. And considering the very high RPMs of the washer, I was very surprised how quiet it runs. But it might not be the same for if you don't have a solid floor.

However it does have a few issues worth mentioning.

The most significant is that the washer door has begun to sag. It needs to be lifted in order to close smoothly. This could just be an adjustment. Will be calling the shop today.

The another thing, and this may be inherent to all front loaders, but it tends to leave a little water and soap in the gasket at the front of the washer. The instructions do recommend leaving the door open to allow it to air out. Not a big deal, but as a former top load user, it was surprising to see some residual water there.

And the last thing is that there are too many options for my taste. That's just a personal preference though. And that is also probably true of most new washers these days. For some that may be a plus. But for me, it's just one more manual to read.

Overall though, if you have a solid place to put it, it's a very nice upgrade. And I have seen a nice difference in both water and energy bills.