Washing Machines

Wanting a washing machine that isn’t going to look out of place or take up too much room? Then why not get an Integrated Washing Machine? It definitely won’t look out of place because no one will know it’s there! Perfectly hidden and made to look like just another cupboard in your kitchen, it’s not going to take up that much needed space.

I’m going to go through five top integrated washing machines if you’re on a budget.

First is the Baumatic 6KG Integrated Washing Machine – BWR1206. At a mere £299 you can’t afford not to buy it! With 15 wash programs including Delay start, digital countdown indicator, overflow protection, safety door lock, blocked filter indicator, failure detection system and aqua spray.

Baumatic Integrated

Second is the Hotpoint 6.5KG Integrated Washing Machine – BHWM129. This machine will only set you back £329. It has 16 individual washing programmes and a half load function. And you won’t need to worry about noise levels as it is only 55DB. It also has a cold fill water supply for class A efficiency.

Hotpoint Integrated

Third on the list is the Indesit 5.5KG Integrated Washing Machine – IWME126. At a very affordable £359 you can be sure that it won’t be burning a hole in your pocket. With its great awards with an A for washing, A+ in for energy efficiency and a B for spin speed you can’t loose with this great machine.

Indesit Integrated

Fourth in line is the Smeg 7KG Integrated Washing Machine – WMI12C7. At a respectable £398 this is reasonably cheap for a Smeg appliance! It features 15 different washing programmes including mix and superfast. It also has a child lock, delay timer and spin speed selection. Using only 47 Litres per load of washing you can be guaranteed to be saving pennies as most washers use on average 67 litres per wash cycle.

Smeg Integrated

And last but not least is the CDA 6KG Integrated Washing Machine – CI330IN. Coming in at only £439 you’ll still have money spare to play with. The CDA comes equipped with 15 washing programmes including delay timer, variable spin speed, quick wash, delicates wash, child lock, anti – crease function, extra rinse function and intensive wash programme.

CDA Integrated

So go on, be daring. Get out there and buy yourself an integrated washing machine to fit in your perfect homely kitchen. I can promise you won’t regret it. Happy shopping!

Need a new washing machine? Has yours broken? Or just looking for a new washer but don’t want to break the bank? Well, it’s not a problem! I’ve found some great washing machines that won’t burn a hole in your pocket from Appliances Direct. I’m going to give you my top 5 washing machines that fit the bill of a budget buy but will last you for years.

First on the list is the Beko freestanding 5KG slim depth Washing Machine – WM5100S. Coming in at £179 it’s a bargain and comes with all sorts of functions to keep you and your washing occupied. The features include 16 programmes including handwash and woollen, large door 180 degree opening, slim depth for space saving and easy installation, mini wash programme, LED indicator lights, automatic half load, time delay, extra function function so you can give your wash an extra rinse or a pre wash, programme progress lights, spin speed reduction knob, safety door lock, water level control and an easy access filter.

Beko Washing Machine

Coming in second is the Indesit Freestanding 5.5KG Washing Machine – IWB5113. And costing a mere £227 you can’t go far wrong with this one. The Indesit sports a 5.5KG load limit, 1100rpm spin speed, 16 programmes, special sportswear programme, Eco time, 15 minute express wash, programmes for both wool and delicates, up to 12 hour time delay function, a separate jeans wash programme and a 52 litre per cycle usage.

Indesit Washing Machine

In a comfortable third place is the Zanussi 6KG freestanding Washing Machine – ZWF14070W1. Coming in at the best price on the marketplace at £239 you will be saving yourself over £100 with this one. The Zanussi comes fully equipped with Variable spin cycle speeds with a maximum speed of 1400rpm, time delay function, half load option, cold water fill, HiCarboran tub, is energy class A, Wash performance A and spin efficiency B.

Zanussi Washing Machine

Coming in at position 4 is the Hotpoint 6KG Freestanding Washing Machine – WML540P. This machine is coming in at just £259 which isn’t even touching the sides of your wallet! The Hotpoint features are Variable temperatures and spin cycle, baby cycle, shirts cycle, lingerie cycle, choice of eco cycles, Fast Wash, silk wash, super wash, extra rinse, reduced creases, mini load, energy rating A and programme progress indicators.

Hotpoint Washing Machine

And last but not least in position 5 is the Hoover 7KG freestanding washing machine – SE147. This machine is the same price as the Hotpoint washer above at only £259. The features include 7KG load capacity, variable spin speeds with 1400rpm maximum, up to 9 hours delay start, cold water fill, 12 different programmes, 29 minute quick wash option, wool cycle, half load feature, hand wash cycle and rinse hold option.

Hoover Washing Machine

So there you have it, my top 5 washing machines and all for under £260! Can’t get much better than that!

If there’s one field of industry that’s going to be moving forward leaps and bounds in the next few years, it’s that of the washing machine. OK, that might not be strictly true – the basic design and function of the washing machine has remained basically unchanged for the last 70 years, and until some kind of new technology is discovered for removing the dirt from clothes, that’s unlikely to change much in the future either. But that doesn’t mean we can’t speculate!

One such speculative possibility comes courtesy of that bastion of innovation and invention – Leeds University. They have developed a washing machine that uses just one cup of water to wash a load of clothes, saving on energy and money. The clothes are tossed around with plastic granules, that reduce the need for water and detergent – pretty nifty really! A company in the US has come up with a similar design, however their design goes a cup further than that of the plucky Yorkshire inventors; it uses no water whatsoever, and works by injecting oxygen, peroxides and small amounts of antibacterial silver into the wash. That doesn’t sound like it’ll be a cheap washing machine…

Many of the potential innovations in the field focus on the reduction of energy usage, particularly in terms of the water used by the washing machine. But how accurate is all this speculation and concept design? Well, if we hop in our DeLorean and crank it up to 88, we can see how accurate it was in the past. Alternatively, we can just use Google. At the 1970 World Expo in Osaka Sanyo demonstrated their vision for the washing machine – it wasn’t one that washed clothes though, it was one that washed you. It was basically a huge water-tight pod, in which the mucky person would sit and be thoroughly washed by a series of jets and massage balls. Surprisingly, the cumbersome, 6 foot tall monstrosity never replaced the humble bath.

So what have we learnt from this? Well, you won’t need to replace your washing machine for a new design any time soon! Most of the changes in the market continue to be superficial, but with technology constantly improving, there could be more innovations to come soon.  Try not to get too excited.

Washing Machines, or washers, as they’re known to their friends, have been doing the rounds for years. As with anything that’s been around that long, it’s inevitable that they’ve picked up some dirty laundry along the way – we’re going to sort through it by looking at the history of the noble washing machine.

Since time began, people have washed their clothes. This, I am sure, is no surprise to you; even the Romans weren’t that keen on wandering round in mucky rags. Arguably, the very first washing machines were the rocks and boulders next to streams, on which animal fat was smeared and used as soap. As you can imagine, nobody really enjoyed rubbing and scrubbing their clothes up against rocks to get out the stains of last night’s tea, but it wasn’t until the 18^th century that someone actually decided to do something about it.

First to appear on the scene were simple washboards, which boasted A Class energy ratings (because they didn’t use any) but were still a bit of a pain to use. Following on from those though, in 1782 a presumably clean man called Henry Sidgier was issued with a British patent for a ‘rotating drum washer’ – or in other words, the first real washing machine. Round of applause for that man.

The next big step in washing machine technology was the introduction of electricity; always a good ingredient when you’re dealing with water. Electric washing machines were touted as early as 1904, and were soon put into production. They were essentially the same design as Sidgier’s machine, but, as the name suggests, were driven by electricity rather than someone’s arms.

Though they were electric, they weren’t automatic; that was the next big step in the washing machine world, followed by the notion of front loading. Basically then, everyone spent thousands of years doddling around in streams or up to their elbows in basins of water, until one man’s bright idea sparked a washing machine revolution. Nowadays, it’s more than likely you’ve got an integrated washing machine sat under your kitchen worktop and you haven’t given it a second thought! Which is probably fair enough. But what’s to come for washing machines in the future? Find out next time!