AskMen Selects: Whirlpool Washer and Dryer Review

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If there is one thing all of us — or at least the vast majority of us — have in common, it's that we all wear clothes. In fact, if the trend continues as predicted by the Global Fashion Agenda, Boston Consulting Group, Inc. and Sustainable Apparel Coalition, we will be plenty more clothes to wash over the next decade.

All of our clothes get dirty because that's just the nature of the lovely layers we lodge ourselves in everyday. Whether it's from sludge, sauce, or skin, the dirt, spills, and even our own oils will inevitably attack all of our favorite garments from time to time.

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So fighting to protect all of our wears from lounge to lavish can feel like a battle already lost before it has even begun. That's why, for me anyway, I put serious time and effort into taking care of my clothing. I hand wash my hand washables and dry clean my dry cleanables. Since I just bought a house, after living in an apartment for 20 years using an old, tired, communal washer and dryer, finding a new set was one of the first things I was looking forward to.

After reading reviews, walking stores, and watching videos, I decided on what would be one of the most important appliances for me, as a man devoted to testing everything from T-shirts to tennis shoes for you, the loyal AskMen reader. I landed on the Whirlpool 5 cubic feet front load washer and the Whirlpool 7.4 cubic feet front load hybrid heat pump dryer. Why, as someone who wears, reviews, and rates clothing for a living, did I pick this matching set to protect my boundless regalia? Read my review below to find out.

Upon installation, any new washer and dryer set is going to look fantastic, but there is something particularly nice looking about this chrome shadow duo from this centenarian institution.

Before we get started, I’ll let you know I opted to add a pedestal for both the washer and the dryer to achieve both height to make loading and unloading easier (it comes in at 15.5 inches tall) as well as streamlined storage space. It fit my myriad laundry accoutrement such as detergent, pods, scent beads, OxyClean, bleach, dryer balls, dryer sheets, surface wipes — you get the idea — with room to spare.

If square footage is at a premium in your home or laundry room, these babies — or even one since the price is a bit up there at just over $300 a piece — will not only keep your laundry necessities organized, but also out of site when not in use. That's a big bonus for someone like me who prefers a neat and tidy aesthetic.

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But you didn't come here for me to put myself — or rather, my new units — on a pedestal. You’re here for the nitty gritty on whether or not this combo is a good investment. Well, let's start with the washing machine.

There are a lot of great features to love when it comes to this washing machine. First, and most important for me, it has the largest capacity of any of Whirlpool brand's front loaders at 5 cubic feet. Whereas most top loading washing machines can accommodate roughly that amount, with Whirlpool's largest top loading capacity making it to 5.3 cubic feet, front load washing machines are proven to actually clean clothes better while using less water and energy than the old school top-loaders. In fact, according to Reviewed.com, while top-loaders have gotten much better at cleaning, on average they’re still about 5% less effective at their job and still use about five gallons more water per cycle.

Upon opening the door for the first time, I was greeted with a light. This may not sound like a necessary addition, but let me tell you, it is a far more pleasant experience being able to see what's going on in there. The dryer has one too, which is great when double checking for sock that might otherwise get left behind.

I do, however, wish the light would stay on a bit longer. As someone who takes each item out of the washer individually to shake out before placing neatly in the dryer, the dual lights dim and go dark a bit too early for me. One other point to note about the light, it casts a yellow tint, so every time I opened it after a load of whites, I wondered, "What have I done?"

But I digress.

After I put all my clothing in, I noticed the second feature that I honestly became obsessed with right away — the Load and Go Dispenser. I know, I know, "How hard is it to pour detergent in a washing machine" you ask? Well, It's not. However, aside from it almost always resulting in some sort of sticky drip situation, the bigger issue this resolves is not having to add it, but adding too much of it.

According to the American Cleaning Institute, too much detergent can leave your clothes less clean than using the right amount (read: less). If you’re like me, and have somehow been brainwashed to think that more is always better, then know now, that this is not always true. (It's always true for ice cream, but not laundry detergent.)

The Load and Go Dispenser does all this guessing work for me, so I add the detergent once, and up to 40 loads later (I averaged about 30 loads per fill myself) I just add it again. The large capacity detergent dispenser is ridiculously easy to remove and clean, helping prevent gunky stuff in nooks and crannies that my clean-obsessed self would surely be taking a cotton swab to.

Next, we get to starting the load. Previous machines I have seen were so basic all they had was a glorified on/off knob (I’m looking at you East Village basement laundry room) or looked so complicated, connected, and smart, the thought of navigating laundry day gave me so much anxiety I would just buy new socks and underwear in hopes of never having to do laundry again.

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The intuitive controls made it far less complicated to actually throw a load of laundry in, and go about my day. That said, I specifically opted against the touchscreen, Wi-Fi connected devices because I like buttons, and I need another connected app like I need an Alexa-sized hole in the head.

The top row of controls is for what to wash: regular, delicates, bulky items, whites, colors, and towels. The bottom row of options is for how to wash: normal, wrinkle control, heavy duty, sanitize, quick, and cold wash. This totals 35 different combinations of wash settings. They breakdown as such:

Starting the machine is easy, although it did take a little getting used to. The buttons themselves don't depress, so they are designed to respond to touch. Once the power is on, and the settings are selected, the device requires holding the start button for three seconds to begin sensing and washing the load. After a couple times of almost walking away to leave dirty laundry dirty, it became second nature.

Now it's onto the dryer — a uniquely American device villainized around the world for just how much damage it can do to clothes and how much electricity it can use while doing it.

Well, with about 80% of Americans reporting using a dryer at home, this heritage brand — with manufacturing facilities in Iowa, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Ohio, and Massachusetts — aims to take care of both my clothes, and our Earth, because the items I have dried have never been softer, without fabric softener or dryer sheets and I have not seen a noticeable increase in my kilowatt-hour usage.

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Side note, both fabric softener and more specifically, dryer sheets can coat the quality fibers of clothing, over time, the build up can lead to children's sleepwear — required by law to be flame-resistant — to become more flammable due to the coating left behind. Additionally, this coating reduces the water-absorbency of cotton and microfiber towels and reduces the sweat- and moisture-wicking action of athletic wear.

But back to the dryer, it's not just the clothes that get affected over time. These softening agents from dryer sheets can cause the dryer lint filter screen to clog, reducing air circulation, which can increase the likelihood of fires. Dryer sheets can also cause the electronic moisture sensor found in most modern dryers to become coated with chemical residue, which means it may not function properly, leaving clothes still damp, or it may run much longer than it needs to, potentially ruining clothing and upping the electric bill.

All this to say, I used dryer sheets sparingly during testing, and the soft and static-free results still did not disappoint. I prefer using wool dryer balls (like these from Cleancult) and achieved near identical softness, especially where it really counts — towels. I like big, bright, fluffy white towels, and I own a lot of them, which means, I can go a long time until I need to wash a fresh set. I bleached eight full size bath sheet towels and put them in the dryer soaking wet. After hitting the Towel setting, they were dry in about an hour. That to me was all the test I needed, but I continued regardless.

Next was a set of sheets — King with four pillowcases and a duvet cover. Aside from a slight tangle between a pillowcase and the fitted sheet (spoiler, the fitted sheet won), the full set, minus one pillow case, was completely dry. I hung the ever-so-slightly-damp pillowcase up and by the time I went back after the dryer completed another cycle, it was dry, and I was ready to roll.

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Additional attributes to love about the dryer are it's sublime symmetry to it's sister machine (I said I’m a sucker for aesthetics) and it's optional drying rack. This rack nests itself into the dryer and remains in place while the dryer rotates, allowing for delicate and hand wash items including cashmere sweaters and shoes to be dried without tumbling.

The intuitive controls carry over to the dryer as well. Even being as care label obsessed as I am, I am always open to a little direction when it comes to care for my clothing. The button options mostly mirror the washer controls, with a few, dryer-specific amendments. Like the washing machine, the top row of controls is for what to dry: regular, delicates, bulky items, whites, colors, and towels. The bottom row of controls is for how to dry: normal, wrinkle control, heavy duty, sanitize, timed dry, and quick. They breakdown as such:

After the dryer had run its course, regardless of the settings chosen, the items came out dry and fairly wrinkle-free. I did remove from the machine upon completion, for most loads, but I had similar results when using the Wrinkle Shield option, which keeps clothes moving periodically for up to two and a half hours.

I empty the lint screen after drying (some folks do it before drying and the thought of forgetting gives me anxiety) and the process was easy, with the exception of needing to line the lint screen up pretty much perfectly before it would return to it's trap. There was very little wiggle room. For someone in a hurry, the need for exact precision may be a bit of an annoyance.

The last point I’d like to make about the dryer has little to do with drying at all. It's about about refreshing. The Steam Refresh option is used to reduce both wrinkles and odors from already dry items. The cycle time depends on the number of items, and it cannot be run with other cycles, so it is perfect for those times when something needs a little zhuzh.

The Whirlpool 5 cubic feet Front Load Washer WFW8620HC with Load and Go XL Dispenser retails for $1,299 and is available at Whirlpool.com.

The Whirlpool 7.4 cubic feet Front Load Hybrid Heat Pump Dryer WHD862CHC retails for $1,899 and is available at Whirlpool.com.

Home improvements of every stripe — from minor updates to major overhauls — have been on the rise in the past year, and upgrading appliances has certainly been no exception. Just look at the historically long list of backorders. So as our collective wardrobe shifted into a new WFH normal and time spent in our homes increased dramatically overall, I couldn't think of a better time to update to this washer and dryer duo.

Doing laundry has become an easy addition to days of the week instead of a chore relegated to weekends, and because of that, I have had the opportunity to get to know the new devices I put my trust into to take care of all my laundry needs.

Are there less expensive washer and dryer combos on the market? Of course. Are there washers and dryers so smart (and expensive) they do all but actually gather my dirty laundry off the floor for me? Certainly. Does this stylish, stackable, quiet washer and dryer from Whirlpool give me everything I need, and then some, without requiring me to refinance my home? Yes. Yes they do. And that's why after seemingly endless research, I whole-heartedly recommend this Whirlpool Front Load Washer and Whirlpool Front Load Hybrid Heat Dryer.

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