Product review (5 stars): The truth about appliances
The truth about appliances

Do you want to know why most machines in the market today only last 7 to 10 years at best? Quite some years ago, manufacturers had a revelation. The average home-owner was only keeping his house for about 7 to 10 years and they would replace every appliance when they moved out. Also, the divorce rate means any machine today will outlast a marriage 2 or 3 times; and who buys major appliances most of the time? - married couples. I know this because I worked at an appliance store myself. So the big manufacturers thought: "Why spend extra money on quality components when we can make more affordable - aka cheap - products with just the right amount of life expectancy? It would create more business, more jobs right?" Well, it doesn't help us when those jobs are shipped overseas. Unfortunately, if you want a quality product that will last the ages, there is only one choice on the market. And I don't say unfortunately because I don't like Speed Queen; I say unfortunately because the market for quality products is not preponderant.  The mind of the great majority of consumers still thinks that cheap and full of gizmos is good. Just like in their houses and their marriages, they are not partial to making a long term commitment.
Fortunately, for those of us who still believe in long term commitment, and expect it so from our machines, there is Speed Queen.

Here are a few examples of why Speed Queen is a good product for reasons other than the product itself.
- By buying this product, you are supporting Americans who built this product right here in the USA. This benefits everyone; the more money we keep here, the better off we all are, and the transportation costs are all kept nationally.
- They are better built, so instead of going thru 10 units in your lifetime you might go thru 3 our 4 at the most. Think of the resources saved.
- They are more efficient, so more resources are saved there too, not to mention your own savings on electricity, gas and water.
- You buy from local merchants who invest in your own community, pay taxes and employ local people. No single major retailer out there carries Speed Queen. They know there's no money in servicing these machines because they rarely every break down, and the discounts they get for buying in massive quantities save them even more money but they rarely pass those savings on to you.

But, let me give you the best example of why you should "invest" in a Speed Queen as opposed to "spend money" on another brand.
I worked at a furniture/appliance store for 6 years. We sold Crosleys, Frigidaires, Whirlpools and Maytags; and would consistently get a number of calls on washers / driers that failed within the first year. No official record was kept but I would say 1 in 10 failed, regardless of brand. By the way, the brand of those machines is irrelevant, odds are, some other manufacturer makes it and they just rebrand it.  Last time I checked, Whirlpool manufactured Maytag and Crosley, and Frigidaire  manufactured Kenmore. This is not the case with Speed Queen, they are thru and thru, Speed Queens to the last bolt.
Anyway back to the story, in 2006 we started selling Speed Queens. We still we got a number of calls regarding first-year failures, but NONE, not even ONE, EVER, involved a Speed Queen. I left the store on 2008 and four years later called them to see about getting a set for myself, because guess what failed at my home after 9 years? - my Kenmore dryer. Its matching washer is still going, but is inefficient and has had many repairs. I asked the owner if to the date they've gotten a call regarding a Speed Queen. The answer is still "No".

There is no denying, those color-coordinated appliances with their fancy electronic buttons and with more features and options than a BMW I-drive system are pretty to look at. But if I want something pretty to look at, I'll put my money on the rest of that BMW and take it for a spin; while I let my washer / drier - that nobody gets too look at but me - spin my clothes clean in a reliable, consistent, trouble-free fashion, year after year.

By the way, I am investing on a new Speed Queen ADE4BRG Electric Dryer and a Speed Queen AFN50RS front load washer. I could have spent the same amount of money buying twice as many machines from Kenmore, but I don't want to revisit the subject in at least 20 years or so. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Robert T.
Dallas, TX