Customer Reviews

Maytag Bravos Series MVWB850WL 28 5 cu. Ft. Top-Loader Washer - Lunar Silver

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

 

 

After 5 years of 'hating' my Whirlpool Duet frontloaders, I got rid of them and after MUCH research (probably 20 hours) decided on this set. I found negative comments on every set I researched. Negative comments whether you're researching front or top loaders. My towels are RUINED from the mold smell of my frontloader. NEVER again will I own one of them. I had to go with the machines that had the least of downside. Downside of this one? It SPINS so dry it wrinkles. So.....just give a good hard shake BEFORE putting in the dryer, and the wrinkles come out. The dryer is finished drying WAY before a 'normal' load is done washing. With my 'Duets'....I had to dry for 80-90 minutes, and Whirlpool could never find a reason for the problem. This set of machines, typically dries in 30 minutes! My typical wash load is for 50min with the selection I'm using. Everyone that came to visit me (thats close enough to me to tell me the truth) HATED using my 'frontloaders'. I ALWAYS had to RE-WASH my husbands food stained shirts, second time around being sure to 'pre-soak' them. NOT with my Maytag Bravos TopLoaders! They're clean the first time around. I do have to make myself remember to 'push' the "OxiClean" button for the Borax I'm using in the separate dispenser. Otherwise its still sitting there dry and unused. I love the huge size too! I'm so happy with them I could become a professional wash-woman!! Haha....

Recently I retired my Whirlpool after many years of heavy use. Then I made an intense research in many web sources, read many consumer reports and with the data I started actual store shopping.

First, let me tell you that we are 5 persons in our house and produce clothes like it was 10 and we wash around 6-8 loads 3 to 4 times a week, so I needed some heavy duty washer.

This new technology with the new agitator, low water use is new to me so I did some research too.

When it first arrived we had a little slow learning curve, reading the instruction manual and actually test and error in the buttons, programs, but after some 3 to 5 loads we mastered the thing.

1. Once you select the desired program and hit the "play" button, the door locks and begins a series of spins and sounds. In this process the washer is "sensing" the water level it will use for the size of the load, it lasts about 1 or 2 minutes, then it begins to actually fill. You must know that this system uses a low level of water in the washer, so you will not see the clothes "swimming" in the usual manner, but enough to spin and the agitator makes the water soak and wash your clothes with the help of the HE (high efficiency) detergent, wich produces little or no foam, but acts with this system to really wash well. If you use regular detergent, there will be a lot of foam and possibly a bad rinse, and "cardboard" stiff clothes at the end of the cycle, and maybe you'll feel a little disappointed. The key is to really read and understand the manual. For instance, if you overfill the fabric softener dispenser, this will cause it to enter to the load before it's actual ideal time in the cycle, resulting in stiff clothes or clothes that don't really smell that nice in the end.

2. The noise level is dramatically reduced, as well as the spinning vibration of the washer body, even though it spins at very high speeds, this results in very dry clothes at the end of the cycles. Of course you have the option to choose a slower spinning speed.

3. The results are very good in terms of clean clothes, smelling nice if you follow the instructions well.

4. We decided for this model based in the 10 year warranty of the motor, stainless steel basket (and the slightly sturdier heavy duty inner components, wich made it around $100 more expensive than the 700XL). Then we asked the owner of a laundry store about her experience with Maytag, she said her washers are working 12 hours a day 6 days a week for over a year now with perfect results and no down time or problems whatsoever, (different model from the subject of this review but to evaluate the Maytag experience).

Overall we are very pleased with its performance and the loads are 'getting better' every time reflecting our learning curve and our "sticking to the rules" clearly stated in the manual, wich, by the way is very clear and complete.

If you are willing to learn and master its features, switch to HE detergent from now on and forsake your desire to see the clothes "swimming" always, adapt to the low level of water but high efficiency results, then you won't regret your decision.

Pros: Heavy duty, sturdy but nice looking, low noise and vibration level, excellent results after you have learned, many automatic programs, that can be modified by your preferences, 10 year motor and stainless steel basket warranty, Maytag proudly Made in USA (Clyde, Ohio Whirlpool\Maytag, the largest washer factory in the world), water saving, good, complete and clear instructions manual.

Cons: Learning time, if you depart from "the rules" you have bad results in your laundry experience, slightly higher price (The equivalent elements are found in Whirlpool Cabrio top of the line series and you get them at an even higher price)

Thanks, I expect your feedback.

Added comment Oct 22 2011: An ever nicer washing experience, clothes smelling fresh an looking very clean. Every time I take the clean clothes to wear that day i smell them and it's a very pleasant moment to see the whites white, the socks fluffy (maybe fluffier) and clean like the first day I used them, everything smells fresh and these brief seconds feel great! ('Whites' program + OxyClean + Kirkland HiE detergent + Kirkland Fabric Softener + 'extra rinse' option). Not a hint of damaged clothes. Overall great product. OxyClean used sometimes is a great help and complements very well the HiE detergent. The combination gives us a great result every time; we literally find ourselves looking forward to the laundry time!

I absolutely hate this washer. I've owned it for 6 months now and every time I use it I regret the purchase. Here are some of the reasons I hate it.

1. It uses waaaaay too little water. When I bought it the salesman told me that the machine fills to the top of the clothes plus 1 gallon. That is simply not true. The clothes stick out above the top of the water by 9 inches. The water level is slightly adjustable by the soil level setting but this only changes the level by an inch or two. I have experimented for hours to try to increase the water level - the machine is determined to keep the level low probably so that they can get their highest-level energy star rating. Now you may think that it is a good thing for it to use too little water but when you see how harsh it is on your clothes (item 2 below) and how wrinkled the clothes get (item 4 below) you will change your mind.

2. It is extremely harsh on clothes. When I bought it the salesman told me that the machine is more gentle than older style agitator machines. That is completely untrue. This washer pills clothes visibly with every single wash. Brand new towels appear old and worn after a few washes. Here is why it is so harsh. The clothes throughout the load are wet but they are not submerged in water. Only the bottom of the load is submerged in water. The washer tries to pull the clothes up and down into and out of the water at the bottom. It does so by twisting and spinning them, similar to the way clothes are twisted when you wring them out. This is harmful for clothes. When clothes are submerged in water (as in older washers) the water acts as a cushion against rubbing. The water is moved by the agitator and the clothes glide around in it. The higher the water-to-clothes ratio the more gentle it is on the clothes. The lower the water-to-clothes ratio, the more tightly the clothes are packed and the more abrasive the rubbing is. This washer is the most extreme case of a low water-to-clothes ratio because the clothes aren't even submerged at all. They are wet and rubbing hard against one another. To make matters worse the wringing action, which is done very tightly, is very harmful for anything but the sturdiest of fabrics. Imagine taking a wet shirt and twisting it as hard as you can from end to end in a wringing action. This is what clothes endure during each load.

3. There is no way to wash delicates in this washer. For all the reasons mentioned in 2, there is no setting on this washer that is acceptable for delicate clothes. The handwash cycle on this washer is much harsher than the normal cycle was on my old washer. None of my work clothes can tolerate it.

4. Clothes come out incredibly wrinkled, twisted, and knotted. As mentioned in 2, this washer needs to twist and knot items to move them in and out of the water. When the load is done they remain this way. Bras are all knotted together in one giant mess that takes forever to undue. I have to first shake items out to untwist them and then dry them on a higher heat setting than I would otherwise use to get the wrinkling out. Use of the lower-speed spin cycle doesn't really help much because the problem is largely due to the washing portion of the cycle. The high-speed spin cycle only sets the twisting in even harder.

5. There is no way to change washer settings after the load has started. How many times have you started a load and then decided, "oops I'd rather use handwash" or "I'd rather use high-speed spin after all". Well forget about changing your mind on this washer. This washer goes through an extensive calibration cycle at the beginning of each load to figure out how much water to use. The calculations it does during this time are based on the cycle settings such as soil level, load type, etc. It can't let you change settings once the calibration cycle has started because its calculations will get messed up. Maytag says that all you need to do is press cancel and restart but what makes this so incredibly annoying is that cancel drains all the water from the washer. It often happens to me that I want to change settings after the washer is partly full of water plus soap. To make a setting change I have to throw away the entire load of water and soap. This annoyance more than offsets any water the washer might save by underfilling the tub.

6. The calibration cycle takes a long time. As mentioned in 5, this washer goes through an extensive calibration cycle at the beginning of each load to figure out how much water to use. It takes about 5 minutes and makes the cycle take that much longer with the only benefit that it is deciding on the "optimal" amount of water to use. I would much rather have the level manually selectable and the cycle 5 minutes shorter.

7. The electronic smarts are very limiting and annoying. The salesman told me "this washer is so great that it won't allow you to damage your delicates". What he meant is that the washer limits your options depending on what cycle you have selected. So for example, if you have the washer set to the handwash cycle, it won't let you use high-speed spin or let you use warm-warm water. There is no way to override their setting limits. How ridiculous. I know better than some engineer at Maytag what options are appropriate for me. To think that they advertise this as a feature?!?

8. The lid locks. Sometimes when washing delicates I like to be able to keep the lid open during agitation so that I can assist with special pieces. This washer won't allow any cycle to continue with the lid open although I did find a way to bypass the lid lock function.

There is only one positive thing about this washer. I like the glass lid because it lets me see how harshly the washer is twisting my clothes.

The first day after I got this washer I tried to return it but the store wouldn't take it back. I called Maytag and begged them to tell me how to increase the water level. I tried to pay a service person to increase the water level. I kept being told there is absolutely no way to increase the water level.

I am an electrical engineer and I got so frustrated with Maytag that I spent about 8 hours working out a way to make the water level on this washer adjustable. It requires adding a potentiometer (variable resistor) to the control board that is accessible from the top of the washer. The potentiometer adds an offset of water to the level. Right now I have it set to add an extra 10 inches of water so that the clothes are completely but just barely submerged. It makes a huge difference in wear and tear on clothes and makes the handwash cycle usable. The washer is now bearable although I still hate it for the trouble it put me through. If you want to use my technique for adjusting water level, email me at sueonline@gmail.com and I'd be more than happy to share the method with you (for free). I even have pictures showing the control board modification.

I purchased this washer (and the dryer) in June of 2011 and I will admit to some user error issues initially. It's EXTREMELY good but you have to be diligent with the controls. If you use the settings correctly...you will not fail. If you think you know everything and don't need to read up on it you're not going to like the results.

For instance, I have a lot of embellished t-shirts that I used to just put in my old washer and then air dry. Well, I did that with one of my t-shirts on the normal cycle with max water extraction and it shook a lot of the sequins off it which was upsetting. Now I know I have to use it on the hand wash cycle when washing my embellished t-shirts.

The other thing was that I was used to putting a bit of bleach in the washer when I cleaned my duvet cover which is white with red trim. Well, I did that with the new washer and I ended up needing to shop for a new duvet cover because the trim on the old one got bleached. *sigh*

The washer is super smart in that it ONLY uses as much water as it needs which isn't a lot. It's actually kinda freaky how much water it uses. And you don't have to set the water level...it does it all for you based on how many clothes you've put in. With less water my brain figures the bleach is much more potent so yeah...disaster lesson learned.

The only thing I don't like is that I have to get used to cleaning the machine with Affresh. I've never had to do that before so when the indicator light came on, I was taken aback. I guess it didn't sit too well with me that I had to clean the machine seeing as though in my mind...it gets clean as the clothes are cleaned. Once I ran the clean cycle with Affresh, the light went off. I've only had to do it once so far so maybe the cost for 3 of the Affresh tablets for $9 isn't too bad.

A friend of a friend suggested leaving the top of the washer open between uses in order to have it dry out completely and combat any potential smells which may occur. I have yet to encounter these smells some people talk about but the threat of them showing up definitely made it so that I leave the top open now.

I love this washer and I love the results. I would recommend this set to anyone.

We received our washer (and dryer) yesterday! I was always against washers that use less water. I just didn't understand how it could get your clothes clean. I have done probably 10 loads of laundry, and most cycles last less that 40 minutes, and the dryer dries them in less than 30. My clothes come out smelling fresh and cleaner that when I washed them in my old washing machine.

I read the negative reviews on this washing machine and it had me worried. However, most of the negative reviews are from owners not reading the directions. This machine has a lid lock and locks after it has filled the machine with water. However, if you pause the cycle it will unlock the lid and allow you to add an item you might have forgot. When washing sheets the instructions tell you to add them around the middle piece not on top (that is why some reviewers sheets came out twisted).

The fabric softner setting is amazing. I was use to using a downy ball. So this is a big plus for me!

The washing machine also has an option that keeps the water hot all throughout the cycle, instead of it loosing it temperature through out the washing cycle.

I use the power wash on my fiances work clothes. I have never ever been able to get the stains out of his shirt, but now they come out and look brand new.

This machine is amazing. How anyone could not be satisfied with it is beyond me. We got such a good deal from Amazon on this machine but after seeing how it work I would of paid full price if I had too!

If you are having any doubts about buying this DONT! It is an amazing machine! If you don't enjoy it you are not using it right!

To deepen the Water Level in the Normal Cycles, I added 3 ft of 1/4" Vinyl Tubing with a Brass 1/4" Barb Splicer to the Water Pressure Transducer tube Connection on the Control Module (in about a 3 inch coil beside the Control Module). This can be accessed by Removing the 3 Screws in the Back of the Component Console and then lifting it forward after Unplugging the Washer first.

The Water Pressure Transducer tube is the Tube that relays the Water Pressure to the Control Module that controls water level. By increasing the Tube Lenght, it needs a little more pressure to trigger the Water level cut off...thus, allowing a greater water level depth.

This has helped Increase the Water Level about 2 inches which is I feel is a more appropriate water level.

If you want to Submerse your laundry in more Water, use the "Bulk Cycle Mode" as listed in the User Manual on Page 7.

This washer is Quiet and Spins the Water out so much, it cuts the Drying Time about 75%. It does a great job with cleaning laundry and handling big loads.

It is also made in Clyde Ohio in a brand new manufacturing assembly line.

This is the worst washer I've ever had. The water level is too low and the clothes don't get clean. I use the 'bulky' setting to increase the water level, but I still can't get my clothes to smell clean like they used to. I've tried the HE detergent liquid and powder, I even went back to the old detergent but that didn't help. Wish I'd paid to have my Fisher/Paykel fixed instead of buying this sorry appliance. Hand towels don't smell clean right out of the washer and turn sour overnight when used. I really hate this machine and hate that I spent so much money on it.