Which kitchen appliances actually last?
Discussion
Bosh, Siemens & Neff are all part of the same group of companies - some of their stuff is made in Germany, others are made elsewhere, and the quality varies according to where in the range it sits, and where it is made. The higher-end products made in Germany do last well, but stuff that is from the lower end of the range, not built in Germany doesn't.
Going back to the OP's microwave, closing the door immediately after heating the food / drink will trap in a lot of condensation and therefore vastly increase the likelihood of rust forming on non-stainless steel... It's hardly rocket science, but by leaving the door open for a few minutes after the end of heating (and using a kitchen extractor when using any kitchen heating product) will increase the life of appliances.
Going back to the OP's microwave, closing the door immediately after heating the food / drink will trap in a lot of condensation and therefore vastly increase the likelihood of rust forming on non-stainless steel... It's hardly rocket science, but by leaving the door open for a few minutes after the end of heating (and using a kitchen extractor when using any kitchen heating product) will increase the life of appliances.
DonkeyApple said:
The thing we have is a Maytag. I find the freezer size useless, all the fancy bits in the fridge just seem desperate to break and it sticks out screaming look at me I’m a big fat, ugly Septic larging it in the middle of your kitchen. 
We did have the lugs break off off one of the door bins in the Maytag due to someone putting containers too large into it and pulling them out forwards instead of upwards first - but they stuck back on using the correct adhesive for the high impact polystyrene the bins are made of. Touch wood, ours has worked fine - it's effectively integrated, we had the kitchen units custom built (not high-end, just at a local kitchen manufacturer) so all you see is the stainless steel front of it.Edited by Sheepshanks on Monday 6th May 23:03
I have a 20 year old Toshiba microwave in daily use and working perfectly. In all that time I have replaced the bulb, ( requires cover removed and soldered in), and a couple of bits of mica card. As for washing machines, fridges, dishwashers etc, there is no longer any point to buying an expensive brand. I have mostly Hotpoint appliances these days but when the dishwasher gave up the will to live I bought a BEKO. It`s cheap and cheerful in a basic design but it works perfectly and even if it only lasts 5 years it will have been a good purchase. I will do the same as the other appliances require renewing. A trip to your local recycling centre brings home the point that expensive brands do not last any longer than the cheap ones.
Sheepshanks said:
We did have the lugs break off off one of the door bins in the Maytag due to someone putting containers too large into it and pulling them out forwards instead of upwards first - but they stuck back on using the correct adhesive for the high impact polystyrene the bins are made of. Touch wood, ours has worked fine - it's effectively integrated, we had the kitchen units custom built (not high-end, just at a local kitchen manufacturer) so all you see is the stainless steel front of it.
That’s a smart idea having the units moved out to integrate the fat oaf. I’ve had the lugs break and ended up scouring Ebay for a shelf. I think my main grip is that the other people in my home have become accustomed to the ice machine which I see as a totally pointless future cost. Edited by Sheepshanks on Monday 6th May 23:03
Our Maytag "zig-zag" double door fridge freezer has suffered continual breakdowns of the water filter unit (3 in total) over the last 11 years and the last time (last year) the relevant parts became obsolete and unobtainable even from the US, I ended up cutting the pipe and bypassing the filter unit completely.
So said:
We generally buy the cheapest appliances that will fit in the holes. All ours are fully integrated, so I don't care if they're CDA, Electrolux or Miele. So long as the fridge keeps things cold, the freezer keeps things frozen, the washer makes clothes clean and the dryer dries them I am quite happy.
In terms of longevity I think the White Knight dryer is winning at about 8 years.
I take this approach, with a preference for Beko these days. Everything we've bought has lasted fine, and if a £200 washer breaks after 5 years well it doesn't owe me anything, don't need to piss about trying to get an 'engineer' in, order a new one for next day delivery and they'll take the old one away.In terms of longevity I think the White Knight dryer is winning at about 8 years.
That said, Beko dryer is probably 6 or so years old now, has broken twice (in last two years) and both times I've been able to strip down and fix with a cheap part (button assembly, heater).
People saying "My Miele has lasted 16 years" etc, I'm sure that's true but I don't believe the items of today are made to the same standards
We're about to do an extension with new kitchen and wanted some fancier cookers etc, but I won't be expecting them to last any longer than Beko.
My Bosch washing machine and Bosch tumble dryer both broke down about the sometime. One of them appeared to need new brushes and whilst brushes for most brands were £20, Bosch brushes were nearer £50 and there was no guarantee that the new brushes would solve the fault. Throwing £50 at an appliance, not knowing if it would solve the problem just didn't make sense to me when a brand new Beko was only £200 with warranty.
I won't single out any single manufacturer but, for those considering buying cheaper appliances, the savings might be considerably outweighed by a house fire:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/househo...
Me, I'd rather spend a few bob more and avoid the risk...
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/househo...
Me, I'd rather spend a few bob more and avoid the risk...
rsbmw said:
People saying "My Miele has lasted 16 years" etc, I'm sure that's true but I don't believe the items of today are made to the same standards
This is the general problem with everything in life these days. Insane and unnecessary levels of human consumption and a loss of desire or understanding of quality complicit with the willingness of institutionally owned manufacturing and its desire to strip costs has meant that very, very few brands in existence today carry the same quality that they once did. You see it with clothing where premium brands have reduced the quality of their cloth, reduced the quality of the stitching but you’ll never see a consumer checking the quality of goods these days.
With white goods, long gone are the days of being given a fridge for your wedding and that fridge still being in operation 50+ years later. Consumers don’t want to pay the premium for quality and manufacturers don’t want the low volumes that quality brings. Consumers want to buy whatever Gary from Love Island is associated with and manufacturers want to pay Gary to be associated with their product.
Pretty much everything for sale today is cheaply manufactured crap and pretty much no consumer has any genuine concept of quality.
It’s basically all ‘s
t for schmucks’ and even if you aren’t a schmuck it’s almost impossible to escape the st. Incidentally, how have we reached the point that washing machines are being differentiated by the number of buttons, dials and programmable options? What kind of consumer maniac pulls up a chair to their washing machine and spends time feeding in instructions for individual items of clothing? How have we reached the insane point that the concept of being able to spend hours programming a big white box to do tiny, specific tasks is seen as a positive sales feature that allows you to charge more money.
DonkeyApple said:
rsbmw said:
People saying "My Miele has lasted 16 years" etc, I'm sure that's true but I don't believe the items of today are made to the same standards
This is the general problem with everything in life these days. Insane and unnecessary levels of human consumption and a loss of desire or understanding of quality complicit with the willingness of institutionally owned manufacturing and its desire to strip costs has meant that very, very few brands in existence today carry the same quality that they once did. You see it with clothing where premium brands have reduced the quality of their cloth, reduced the quality of the stitching but you’ll never see a consumer checking the quality of goods these days.
With white goods, long gone are the days of being given a fridge for your wedding and that fridge still being in operation 50+ years later. Consumers don’t want to pay the premium for quality and manufacturers don’t want the low volumes that quality brings. Consumers want to buy whatever Gary from Love Island is associated with and manufacturers want to pay Gary to be associated with their product.
Pretty much everything for sale today is cheaply manufactured crap and pretty much no consumer has any genuine concept of quality.
It’s basically all ‘s
t for schmucks’ and even if you aren’t a schmuck it’s almost impossible to escape the st. Incidentally, how have we reached the point that washing machines are being differentiated by the number of buttons, dials and programmable options? What kind of consumer maniac pulls up a chair to their washing machine and spends time feeding in instructions for individual items of clothing? How have we reached the insane point that the concept of being able to spend hours programming a big white box to do tiny, specific tasks is seen as a positive sales feature that allows you to charge more money.
Since several failures in a stupidly short period of time I now only buy the cheapest appliances (fridge, freezers, washing machine, hoover - all the "branded ones" have failed) that have the features I need, and treat them as disposable. Sad as it is, it's true. When a £160 washing machine develops problems after 2-3 years - I just buy another if I can't fix it. (oh, include dishwashers too - replaced my Hotpoint after many attempts to repair - with a £120 ish el cheapo that is working just great)
Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 7th May 12:37
dobly said:
Bosh, Siemens & Neff are all part of the same group of companies
I mentioned this on another thread as having just had our kitchen done I went for Bosch/Neff appliances as I get a discount through work and quickly realised they are not just part of the same group but quite often the products are almost identical save some aesthetics. For example, we bought this microwave instead of this one purely because it matches other appliances we already have. Others would have chose the Neff option because... Neff.
LeadFarmer said:
My Bosch washing machine and Bosch tumble dryer both broke down about the sometime. One of them appeared to need new brushes and whilst brushes for most brands were £20, Bosch brushes were nearer £50
Appreciate not everyone can, or would want to, do this, but I've changed them twice in our Bosch machine at something like 7yr intervals and each time paid a couple of quid for brushes. I also changed the drum shock absorbers fairly recently - thank Goodness for an old design where the front basically lifts off with the machine in place and shockers are bolted in. Most now use plastic pins that need to be drilled out. I used pattern shocks and they were about a tenner, but the Bosch pnes weren't madly dearer.
I've hung in with it as it's fully integrated with the door hinged on the right. No one makes them that round way now.
psi310398 said:
I won't single out any single manufacturer but, for those considering buying cheaper appliances, the savings might be considerably outweighed by a house fire:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/househo...
Me, I'd rather spend a few bob more and avoid the risk...
I'm not quite getting this? You click the link and pretty much every brand is on there for recalls, both cheap and not cheap? (eg, Siemens, Meile, Bosch, Neff, Beko, Indesit, Hotpoint)https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/househo...
Me, I'd rather spend a few bob more and avoid the risk...
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff