Who loves their NEW washer and dryer?

I forget the brand.  LG I think?  But I would STRONGLY suggest a front loading washing machine.  They are simply incredible.  Clean better and easier on the clothes and water efficient.  PLUS they was large things like comforters and blankets well.

I like my gas dryer as well.  Electric is too spensive.

ETA:  I have had both for over 10 years.  No problems yet.

Fisher & Paykel, TOP loading washer AND dryer.

Don't mess with front-loaders.  They're a pain in the tookus with doors swinging every which way, bending over to see what the heck you've left in there, etc.

http://www.fisherpaykel.com/us/laundry/

We've had the washer for almost 10 years, and the dryer for about 4.    Very efficient and do a great job.  

I can't wait to get back home to use them.  The 2 washer/dryer combos we have here (one Bosch, one Siemens) SUCK.

x40. 

Front-loaders can't be stopped mid-wash, seem to be plagued by leftover liquid / then mold in the gasket, and require an entirely new level of cleaning to stay sanitary. I've had two, same story, wouldn't go there again. Not worth the sex factor of being able to see your wash, IMO. 

Get the rockstarriest top-loaders you can find.

All the anti front loader posts?  That's crazy talk! 

Swinging doors and having to bend over?  Can't interrupt the cycle?  Those are your cons?  (BTW, you can put them on stands that have drawers to keep your detergents and stuff in and bring the door to a more reasonable height)

The ONLY thing I used to think was a downside was the high efficiency detergent they say you need.  fogetaboutit...  Standard detergent works FINE.

HOWEVER, don't use liquid detergent.  I once did that, ONCE.  I did an reenactment of all the cheesy sit coms where they added too much soap  to the machine.  Same goes with a dishwasher - standard liquid dishwashing soap is no good, unless you need to mop your floors at the same time.  Yeah, I don't follow directions well. 

I can't give a recommendation on what to get, but I'd recommend what not to get.  We bought a Whirlpool Cabrio H2Low.  Basically a low water usage top loader without the agitator (3 or 4 years ago).  Basically just like a front loader, only loads on the top (if that makes sense).  It sucks horribly, and our clothes still come out with soap lines and rings on them.  We've tried cleaning it with everything under the sun, but it still sucks and my wife hates it.  I'm planning to replace it with a high end front loader. 

Perhaps an anniversary present... buhaha.  ;-)

I have had two sets of front loaders.  The first ones were bought used (3 years) from a friend and did not have stands.  The only inconvenience without stands was that I could not open the door while the laundry basket was sitting immediately in front of the washer because the door would run into the laundry basket.  #firstworldproblems

Not sure on the brand, but they were fairly basic.  When I first got them from my friend the washer did smell a bit mildewy.  A little bit of bleach and a "washing machine cleaning solution" later and they were fine.  I always left the door open so it would air out and NEVER had another problem with it smelling moldy or mildewy again.  And you could see straight into my laundry room from the kitchen.  The open door has never bothered me.  I eventually put a curtain up across the laundry room door opening but that was just for pretty. :D  The gasket gets junk in it every now and then but I just swipe it out with a paper towel (especially when I have recently washed the dog towels).  They have drain holes in the bottom so there shouldn't be too much standing water in there.  If there is the drain holes are probably clogged and need to be cleaned out.  But I think I have done this like TWICE since I got the thing?  And the front opening door sure looks a heck of a lot cleaner than the cracks and crevices of the upper portion of a front loader...don't know about anyone else but my old front loaders used to get SO dirty on top...you know the part under the lid but not in the tub??? Yeah.

I had to leave that last set with the last house.  I bought brand new front loading Kenmore's in CHERRY RED for my new house.  They are gorgeous and I love them.  I bought the pedestals to avoid the dreaded "can't open the door with the laundry basket there" "problem".  They do look huge with the pedestals but there is less bending over and plenty of storage now. :D  Mine have all sorts of fancy settings including one for WORKOUT CLOTHES.  Steam refresh has been useful a few times as well.  And did I mention they are a gorgeous cherry red color?  They had another model in a nice "lemongrass" color that was SO pretty.  I had a hard time deciding.  I still leave the door open between uses to avoid mildewy smells but it opens against a wall so it's not in the way.  It's so dry in Abilene I could probably close it after a few hours because everything dries so fast...you probably wouldn't have much of a problem in Tucson either!

My receipt (on my computer) doesn't list the exact model number so I can't tell you EXACTLY which one it is.  I know I didn't go for the super capacity but didn't go for tiny capacity either.  The one I had in Florida could BARELY fit a queen comforter so I wanted something slightly bigger than that.  I could tell you the model if I went home (I have the manuals).

Anyway, they are Kenmore and I love them.  Sears has always done me right with appliances.  And if you get lucky and hit a sale you can get them up to 30% off.

If your washing machine and dryer are THAT old I bet you will see HUGE savings even with the least efficient washer and dryer on the market today.  I think my mom's dryer is from the 70's (original to the 1974 house) and I keep telling her that for what she pays in electricity for a year she could pretty much buy a new one. :D