Sam Kazman of the Competitive Enterprise Institute has a withering critique of dumb government policies that have taken away our freedom to buy low-cost and effective washing machines and instead forced us to buy expensive machines that don’t do a good job of cleaning our clothes.
I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that politicians are undermining our quality of life. These are the same jackasses, after all, that are in the process of requiring us to use crummy light bulbs. And they’ve already coerced us into ridiculous “low-flow” toilets that don’t work very well if you happen to…um…deposit something that reminds you of Washington.
Here’s an excerpt from Sam’s column, but read the whole piece since he also discusses how the Senate wants to make a bad situation even worse, and he also reveals how corrupt big businesses favor these mandates so they can eliminate low-cost options.
…for decades the top-loading laundry machine was the most affordable and dependable. Now it’s ruined—and Americans have politics to thank. …The culprit is the federal government’s obsession with energy efficiency. Efficiency standards for washing machines aren’t as well-known as those for light bulbs, which will effectively prohibit 100-watt incandescent bulbs next year. Nor are they the butt of jokes as low-flow toilets are. But in their quiet destruction of a highly affordable, perfectly satisfactory appliance, washer standards demonstrate the harmfulness of the ever-growing body of efficiency mandates. The federal government first issued energy standards for washers in the early 1990s. When the Department of Energy ratcheted them up a decade later, it was the beginning of the end for top-loaders. …Front-loaders meet federal standards more easily than top-loaders. Because they don’t fully immerse their laundry loads, they use less hot water and therefore less energy. But, as Americans are increasingly learning, front-loaders are expensive, often have mold problems, and don’t let you toss in a wayward sock after they’ve started. When the Department of Energy began raising the standard, it promised that “consumers will have the same range of clothes washers as they have today,” and cleaning ability wouldn’t be changed. That’s not how it turned out. …even though these newer types of washers cost about twice as much as conventional top-loaders, overall they didn’t clean as well as the 1996 models. …We know that politics can be dirty. Who’d have guessed how literal a truth this is?
Hat tip to Advice Goddess.
This is stupid. There are much bigger issues to focus on.
Interesting points
The site http://Ceolas.net goes into that too,
how energy efficiency regulations are wrong in affecting products etc
doesn’t yet mention top/front loaders though!
Energy Use: Why Regulate It?
Introduction
What energy efficency regulations are, and what they seek to achieve
Summary
Adequate energy supply rather than enforced energy savings:
Apart from affecting product choice, regulations are anyway not the best ways to save energy, compared firstly to market competition, secondly to taxation
The Manufacturer and Consumer Sides
How Regulations affect Buildings, Cars, Washing Machines/White Goods, TV sets and Computers:
Product Performance
Construction and Appearance
Price Increase
Lack of Supposed Savings: Money, Energy or Emissions
Regulation versus Free Markets to achieve Desired Sales
(etc…)
I had no idea … and was under the impression that front loaders were the ‘cleaner-clothes’ option.
1)As an early adopter, I can tell you – front-loaders suck.
2)Government has no earthly idea of the ECONOMIC impact of their “energy-saving” regulations.
3) Assume we achieve the Greens’ wet dream of all power produced by “renewable” energy – they had better pray, rather than save energy, that people use as much energy as possible in order to call forth more production….
As a major appliance tech with a large national appliance service company, I can tell you that the only entities who win with the newer machines are the manufacturers and the retailers. Consumers rarely win. Most new machines these days are packed with electronics, meaning that repair is increasingly complicated and soon to be relegated to the companies with only the deepest pockets. No sane consumer would own a front loader without a maintenance plan, increasing cost of ownership. And yes, front loaders are prone to mold and odor problems, which can’t be mitigated by current technology. High-water top load washers can still be found, if you look hard enough. Buy one before they are gone.
BTW, I am hoarding light bulbs, over 700+ to last me until I expire.
I bet you didn’t realize that they changed the formula for dishwashing detergent because of a lawsuit in Washington state. They took out the phosphates which actually get the food off the plate.
You have probably heard that because of low flow toilets San Francisco smells like sewage. They are getting ready to pump bleach into the sewer system.
Amazing!
About the ceolas.net website
it has a section on all the politics behind the light bulb ban
“The Politics behind banning Light Bulbs:
The involvement of manufacturers and other vested interests,
as seen by official USA and EU documentation and communication”
http://ceolas.net/#li1ax
.
True, I recently purchased a substandard washer from Whirlpool that claimed to “comply with 2011 energy standards” by using less water and mixing cold with hot, resulting clothes that are not as clean. And yes, it is almost impossible to find a washer that is inefficient now. But is this really a result of federal regulation? If so, which federal regulation and what act of congress is mandating it?
[...] used to think it was bad news that politicians wanted to force us to use inferior light bulbs, substandard washing machines, and toilets that don’t flush [...]
This energy efficieny is a myth…you have to run the washers twice to get clothes clean, you have to flush the toilets twice to do the job. There is no efficiency in that. I suppose the next thing they will try to regulate is toilet paper!
[...] jackasses in that town are requiring us to use crummy light bulbs. They’re mandating sub-standard washing machines. And they’ve coerced us into ridiculous “low-flow” toilets that don’t work very well if you [...]
[...] war on consumer-friendly light bulbs (and also similar attacks on working toilets and washing machines that actually clean), so I’m generally not surprised by bureaucratic [...]
[...] war on consumer-friendly light bulbs (and also similar attacks on working toilets and washing machines that actually clean), so I’m generally not surprised by bureaucratic [...]
[...] on consumer-friendly light bulbs (and also similar attacks on working toilets and washing machines that actually clean), so I’m generally not surprised by bureaucratic [...]
[...] war on consumer-friendly light bulbs (and also similar attacks on working toilets and washing machines that actually clean), so I’m generally not surprised by bureaucratic [...]
I have always found that front loaders clean better than top loaders and they don’t chew up my shirts like the other type does either, being generally gentler on the load. If you cram one full though, of course it won’t work very well.
I disagree on the claims of cleaning ability. Last year I switched from a truly excellent top loader to a front loader. The difference is that the front loader isn’t as hard on the clothes.
As for warm vs. cold; cold water detergent.
Luckily when I got the new front load washer I took the older top load to our rental.
I go to the rental to wash hand towels that the front loader will NOT clean …even on Hot and with bleach. I hate my washer!!!!! It sucks royally!!
Three Words – Speed Queen Commercial. Low price, 3/10 warranty on washer / transmission, and it is conventional, meaning the clothes actually come CLEAN. This purchase was precipitated by my junk-ass Whirlpool Cabrio, which crapped out after 375 days, just beyond the warranty period…
[...] war on consumer-friendly light bulbs (and also similar attacks on working toilets and washing machines that actually clean), so I’m generally not surprised by bureaucratic [...]
May I simply say what a relief to discover somebody that truly knows what they’re talking about on the internet. You actually understand how to bring a problem to light and make it important. More people have to read this and understand this side of your story. It’s surprising you
aren’t more popular since you certainly possess the gift.
All of this is well and fine, but it is my experience that front-loading machines wash my clothes more thoroughly. They come out of the wash visibly cleaner and they smell better, too. Front loaders for me.
One other thing: I am for LESS Government interference on my life, so don’t construe my comment above to be a statement approving of governmental regulation over my laundry.
It’s true….front loaders suck! For Dan: yes my LG front loader did a very good job at the beginning but as time goes by my whites are getting dingier and dingier. I can’t wait for it to break down so I can go buy me a top loader.
Not only does our new GE front loader not clean our clothes, many of our clothes do not get wet all the way through (and no, it is not because the spin is so strong – they literally are still dry in parts). (That’s why the clothes dry so fast – they’re not wet!) So, here’s what we do: pretreat stains and rinse out stain remover before wash, we do small loads, and we add pre-wash and extra rinse to the wash. Also, we only use one of the two longest cycles – the regular or whites – that are both one hour (or about 90 mins with pre and post rinses). All other cycles don’t work – they simply come out dry, even with extra rinses. Also we wet the clothes after they’re in the washer by pouring about 5 gallons of water on them. The water flows out immediately, and the clothes are not sitting in the water after we pour it in, so that’s the reason for needing 5 gallons – to make sure everything gets wet. Also, we pour in a gallon in the detergent dispenser after the cycle starts, after we’ve already put in our detergent. This certainly adds a lot of time and effort, but as we’re renting we’re opting not to buy a used top loader until we move. The top loader we intend to buy used will also be very inexpensive in comparison to what these probably cost.
I’m desperate for a solution to my clothes stinking after being washed in my he washer. It is 3 years old and my clothes are not clean and stink…even my Sunday clothes. We don’t have smelly clothes but by the time my he washer gets done I can’t stand to smell them. I clean my washer and gasket faithfully and use bleach. I use the recommended he detergents. I never close the door except while washing. I’ve tried to add borax, vinegar and just about every suggestion I have found. I work in an office and even my office at work is beginning to stink like my clothes. I’ve tried different he detergents and fabric softeners to no avail. I had my husband to up the temp on our hot water heater and am now washing my clothes with the hottest water I can get on 90 minute cycles with extra rinses and washing only 4 garments at a time and washing them 4 times to try to get the smell out…nothing is working. If we can’t get these he washers to do better, then the detergent people had better come up with a solution…also all of the he detergents stink…Oh, maybe that’s my answer. Can you use regular detergent In your he washer. I got so desperate last week, I added some pine cleaner. HELP!!!!!! If I’m upping my temp, using all the right products, did not buy a cheap front loading machine, and am washing my clothes 4 times with small loads, can someone tell me a solution to my problem? And yes we are clean people..we take baths every day!