Appliances for use with Economy 7? Timer.

[Ferdinand]

I am about to replace our washing machine - I think for mum this is only about the 4th one since 1961 so it will be with us for some time.

 

The question is .. for potential use with overnight cheap tariffs, is there any reason to go for an integrated delay timer in the machine itself, or to go for one which plugs into the wall socket?

 

As I can see, the reasons for wanting a delay timer in the machine are:

 

- machine has to be removed to access plug.

- insufficient space behind machine.

(Obvs. A well designed kitchen will have the plug in the next cupboard, but that is still tricky to access).

 

And the reasons to have a separate timer include the extra cost.

 

At a previous house we had E7 but the plug socket was at the front of a cupboard so access was fine,

 

What do Buildhubbers do?

 

Ferdinand

[PeterW]

Very rare these days on machines over £200 to not have the delay timers already built in. The main reason is they fail safe under a no power situation, so in setting a programme, then setting the timer, you will fail the programme unless its an analog dial and button type machine as they use logic controllers to define programs these days.

[ProDave]

I doubt modern machines now would work with an external timer. That was in the days of clockwork programmers, but now you have to choose your program and press "start" something that won''t happen on it's own when the power comes on at night.

[Ferdinand]

41 minutes ago, PeterW said:

Very rare these days on machines over £200 to not have the delay timers already built in. The main reason is they fail safe under a no power situation, so in setting a programme, then setting the timer, you will fail the programme unless its an analog dial and button type machine as they use logic controllers to define programs these days.

 

interesting .. in Currys yesterrday looking at a range of Bosch 8kg 1400rpm machines in the £300-£400 range, and only one was described as having a self-timer.

 

A little more digging required, perhaps.

 

Cheers

 

(Update: digging, all of the machines have timers claimed in the documentation )

 

F

Edited March 12, 2019 by Ferdinand

[ryder72]

Get  one with a timer on the machine so you can set a programme and delay the start typically for up to 19 hours to conincide with cheaper tariffs.

[Jeremy Harris]

We've been surprised at how good the LG condensing washer drier we bought just over a year ago is.  We bought it in a hurry, as our old washing machine went wrong just before Christmas, so no time to look around, just had to buy what we could get delivered quickly before the holiday.  It has a very solid feel to it, a nice wide door (makes it a lot easier to load and unload) runs quietly, washes and dries well, has a timer so it can be set to run at off-peak times and has an easy to use operator interface.

 

My only criticism is that the damned thing plays silly tunes when you turn it on and when it's finished a programme, and I've yet to find a way to stop it from doing this.  It seems to be the plague of our time having things playing tunes and going "bong".  My car does it too, and I can't find a way to stop it sounding like an amusement arcade, either.