Does a Heat Pump Dryer Work if You Have a Low Spinning Washing Machine?

LMonty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 12:58

Hey guys.

We are looking at buying a clothes dryer now given the crappy Sydney weather we have experienced so many times this year. Time to get a dryer now.

Heat pump dryers are good for low energy usage but do they still work if your washing machine doesn't spin very fast? We have a Speed Queen top loader and are very happy with it. Unfortunately it uses old tech so it doesn't spin very fast. Only 710 rpm high spin speed. So of course the clothes/towels are quite damp at the end of the cycle.

I know front loaders can spin up to 1200/1400/1600 rpm spin speed.

During sunny weather we always use the clothesline. It works for us. During Summer 2 hours or so and everything is dry. During winter 4-4.5 hours.

I have read with front loaders you don't need to keep clothes/towels in very long for them to dry. Maybe 1.5 to 2.5 hours tops with front loaders. Now with my Speed Queen are we looking at 4-4.5 hours to dry everything?

Is it a good idea to get a heat pump dryer if your washing machine doesn't spin very fast? It seems like it could take a few hours more to dry compared to a front loader.

Or should we just stick to a vented dryer?

Before anyone asks no way we will be getting rid of our Speed Queen top loader lol. We spend quite a lot of money on it and we love the agitator. Also we can get a full load of clothes and towels out in under 35 minutes. Sometimes even quicker.

Thanks for any help.

Electrical & Electronics Clothes Dryer

Comments

  • Cheaplikethebird on 25/07/2022 - 13:15
    +2

    Spin speed on my Samsung top loader is 700RPM and I haven't had any issues with my Essato EHPD7. Full load is done in about 2 hours.

    • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 14:21

      Thanks. How long roughly do towels take? It's good to know there aren't any issues with the slower spinning top loaders.

      • Cheaplikethebird on 25/07/2022 - 14:52

        2 hours. It's pretty much only towels and sheets that I use it for.

  • slowmo on 25/07/2022 - 13:44
    +1

    heat pump can dry wet washing just as well, the only difference is where the heat is exhausted.

    i used to grow up with top loaders, but the water usage and slow spin cycle is always there (worse when you are doing heavy things like curtains/quilts)

    i ended up using a frontloader with a heatpump dryer stacked ontop, which not only frees up extra space, i had savings in water, and dryer washings and I don't have to worry about exhaust vents.

    that said, i've washed things like pillows in 700RPM on the front loader, and it dries just fine in the heat pump.

    using bosch serie 7 washing machine and bosch serie 8 heatpump dryer.

    • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 14:24

      Thanks. Yeah the extra water usage and low spin speed will always be there. An exemption is F&P top loaders that can spin up to 1000/1100 rpm. Amazing for a top loader.

      However none of these top loaders are built like Speed Queen with suspension springs. We have had our Speed Queen for almost 10 months and never had an out of balance load.

      But good to know if you haven't had issues with 700 rpm speed and using the heat pump dryer.

      I think i might get the Esatto 7kg heat pump dryer or wait for the Solt 7kg heat pump dryer to come back at that recent deal price again.

  • JimB on 25/07/2022 - 14:21
    +1

    I'm sure it will still work but take more time and consume more electricity.

    I know the Speed Queen is a bit of a legend but yeah, front loaders are the way to go, just make sure you bring a tape measure with you and measure the size of the drum of your potential new front loader. Some are tiny.

    • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 14:27

      I guess this is where maths is required to work out the costs compared to a vented dryer in terms of running time costs.

      We used to have a 8kg Bosch front loader but we bought it online without checking in store the size of the drum 🤦‍♂️
      The Good Guys allowed us to return it (had to pay a restocking fee). We changed it to a Simpson top loader then fast forward a few years we bought a Speed Queen top loader.

      I guess in 10 years or so time if we have to change our washing machine (if the Speed Queen is too costly to repair) then we will get a big front loader that spins up to 1600 rpm.

      • JimB on 25/07/2022 - 14:38

        Vented would be quicker.

        If you have solar (and can vent the moisture outside), then just consider getting a cheap vented machine.

        After using a front loader that spins to 1200rpm, the top loader feels thoroughly wet at the end of the cycle.

        I only switched to a front loader once I found a machine with a (relatively for a front loader) huge drum.

        FYI, also consider that front loaders clean better and is more gentle on clothes.

        • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 16:23

          I do agree about the top loader feeling wet. We can definitely feel how wet it is. In summer it is fine though. Only problematic during winter especially if it's cloudy.

          Vented dryers are fairly cheap however I have noticed vented dryers seem a lot smaller in drum volume compared to heat pump dryers.

          Which front loader did you buy? One thing I did notice about front loaders were the numbers don't necessarily matter like 10kg, 12kg. Sometimes the large drums are still small.

          • lgacb08 on 25/07/2022 - 18:18
            -1

            @Monty1089: Only bosch does the dodgy by putting digital scale on their washer to limit the load, doing so they make 7, 8, 9 and 10kg skus out of pretty much the same drum and charge a nice mark-up for extra kg.
            It's about time you do the switch to front loader and ditch the colossal top load. You'll find new dryer won't fit all single load anyway.

            • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 18:36

              @lgacb08: We had a Bosch front loader and the 8kg felt so small. It was more like 6kg. My lesson is go in the shop and measure first which we neglected to do the first time.

              Once the warranty period of our Speed Queen washer passes (4 years left then 1 year extra with Amex) then if it fails we can upgrade to a bigger front loader. But we paid over $2k for this Speed Queen and are very happy with it.

              I just need to figure out if vented is still better for us or just deal with the longer dry times with a heat pump.

          • JimB on 25/07/2022 - 19:30

            @Monty1089: We have a whirlpool 10kg machine, but the drum and machine is larger than other machines 10kg.

            The machine will not fit under a bench.

  • AB100 on 25/07/2022 - 15:08
    +1

    i also have the Essato EHPD7. Initially, I was using a F&P 7.5 kg top loader washing machine, and then swapped to a Bosch front loader recently when the top loader died. I've had no issues with drying clothes using the Essato Heat pump dryer with either washing machine. The difference that I've noticed is that the clothes from the Bosch front loader need less time in the dryer, due to the faster spin speed removing more water.

    • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 16:25

      Thanks for sharing. Roughly how long extra did it take drying from the F&P top loader compared to your Bosch front loader?

      Also how is your Essato EHPD7 going? Have you had any issues or does it work quite well?

  • AB100 on 25/07/2022 - 16:58
    +1

    Unfortunately, I didn't take much notice of the time. Maybe around 15-20 minutes. I did however use my Power-Mate Lite (power consumption meter), to check the power usage of the Essato dryer. Drying 1 bath sheet, 1 bath mat, and 3 hand towels cost 22.72 cents from the F&P and 21.3 cents from the Bosch. For comparison, the same load dried in my old F&P vented dryer cost 35.12 cents from the F&P washing machine. I've had the Essato for 2 years, and it has worked flawlessly in that time. Compared to the old vented dryer, it is only marginally slower to dry clothes. Clothes are just as dry when they come out, plus there is no moisture / heat build up in the laundry with the new dryer.

    • AB100 on 25/07/2022 - 17:03
      +1

      The only negative so far, is that you can't properly "air clothes" in the heat pump dryer, as the air is recirculated. I have kept the old F&P vented dryer to perform this task.

      • AB100 on 25/07/2022 - 17:18
        +1

        One thing to be aware of with the heat pump dryers, is they can't be wall mounted due to their weight, and also can't be inverted (not much of an issue when you can't wall mount them). So you will need space next to your top loader washing machine. (They can sit on top of front loaders). I had to extend the dryers drain hose to get it to reach the sink, but it was worth it so that I don't have to manually empty the water from the dryer.

        • KeplersLaws on 26/07/2022 - 10:05

          thought I might ask — which dryer are you using? I'm using the classic EHPD80 and the manual seems to suggest it can only be drained to a floor drain (which is impractical as most floor drains I know are smack bang in the middle of the laundry). wondering if there are gravity/flow issues if I have it go laterally to the laundry vanity

      • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 18:42

        What is the issue if the air is recirculated in the heat pump dryer compared to a vented? I would like to know if we decide to go for the heat pump dryer.

        • AB100 on 26/07/2022 - 08:41

          As Eatslikeacat states below, the benefit of recirculating hot air in a heat pump dryer is that they're cheaper to run as you don't have to constantly heat fresh air. This is actually a good idea when drying clothes. But, if you're trying to freshen (air) clothes, you want fresh air circulating through the clothes, rather than recirculating the stale air in the clothes. This to me is the only benefit of a vented dryer, but as it's likely that most people mainly use a dryer to dry clothes, it's probably not worth wearing the extra cost of running a vented dryer just to have the ability to air clothes.

    • Monty1089 on 25/07/2022 - 18:41

      Thanks for posting this. It's not a huge difference compared to a vented dryer in terms of drying costs. Of course the difference gets larger and larger the more you use it throughout the year/ We will only use the dryer when it rains.

      If we do go for the heat pump dryer it will most likely be the EHPD7 Essato since it is Ozbargain's favourite heat pump dryer.

  • Eatslikeacat on 25/07/2022 - 22:02
    +1

    A vented dryer uses more energy because it blows all the hot air out the vent and wastes energy. The assumption that a heat pump dryer is worse at drying clothes because it uses less energy is false. A heat pump dryer is heavy because it's basically an air conditioner inside. The moist air blows across the evaporator coils which causes the moisture to condense and is taken away, then in the condenser coils it gets hot and that heat is blown back into the dryer. It's a closed system inside which is why it uses less power because it doesn't waste heat by blowing it out of the machine. A vented dryer heats a heating element so at most it's 100% efficient. A heat pump uses that electricity to move heat so it's more than 100% efficient. Same concept as split system air conditioners.

    There is one catch with heat pump dryers which is that clothes are a bit more moist when it's finished. If you want crispy dry clothes you need to choose the right setting. Because it doesn't vent moist air there's last bit of moisture that it can't get unless you run it a bit longer.

    • KeplersLaws on 26/07/2022 - 09:59

      makes sense, the ozbargain favourite esatto I bought leaves clothes that tiniest bit damp, but I'd say it's not enough to be annoying or a real issue

  • KeplersLaws on 26/07/2022 - 10:02

    side question, I wonder whether now that I have a heat pump dryer should I use a slower / shorter spin phase on my top load washing machine… is squeezing out that extra bit of water with high / longer RPMs cheaper, or tossing it straight in the dryer…. 🧐

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