Haier XQJ50 31 Portable Electronic Control Washing System with LED Display
Haier XQJ50 31 Portable Electronic Control Washing System with LED Display
* 1.98 Cu. Ft. Tub Size * Electronic Controls * 2 to 24 Hour Delay Start * Space-Saving Design * 4 Wash Cycles * 3 Water Temperature Settings * 3 Water Level Settings * Fabric Softener and Bleach Dispensers * Load Balance System * Removable Lint Filter * Dual Inlets (Hot & Cold) * Quick-Connect Sink Adapter Included * Heavy Duty Casters Included * Unit Dimensions (WxDxH): 21-5/16″ x 22″ x 37″ * Unit Weight: 73 lbs * Shipping Dimensions (WxDxH): 26-5/8″ x 27-13/32″ x 42-13/32″ * Shipping Weight: 86 lbs. * Carton Cubes: 17.91 cft * Warranty: 12 months parts & labor * Agency Approval: UL/CUL Model: XQJ5031
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars My best purchase ever!
I bought this washer back in August 2006 from Amazon for $280. I’ve been using this washer at least twice a week since I bought it. Surprisingly I haven’t encountered any problems. This is a super reliable small washer.
I did perform one small hack on my washer. I rigged the washer (it has been a while but I think I used a small alligator clip) so it still runs when the lid is open. Again, everything has been running perfectly since I purchased it.
I highly recommend using high efficiency front loading detergent. They make less bubbles and works great with this small washer. A full load in this washer is usually equal to a medium load in a regular washer. So always use less detergent per wash with this washer (although I do have to run 2 loads usually).
My typical routine is to start the machine at normal wash and medium water level (default setting). When the washer starts to agitate (wash), I pour in the detergent and wait a few seconds for the the agitator to mix it up. I then add my clothes in and wait another few seconds for all the clothes to get mixed in. If the clothes doesn’t move much, then the washer is probably overloaded. I then turn off the machine and back on again at high water level. This way, the detergent is evenly distributed and the clothes are more likely to get clean (if you didn’t overload the washer).
I don’t recommend doing your sheets with this small washer. However, pillow covers are okay. I don’t think it does a decent job of washing anything bigger than a bath towel. I go to the laundromat once every month or two to wash the sheets.
The washer runoff into my sink has also been keeping my white porcelain sink whiter and cleaner. Thus saving me time of cleaning the sink.
I highly recommend a small spin dryer to complement this washer. I’ve had this addition for a year now and they both work synergistically together. I hang dry most of my laundry except when I’m in a hurry. The spin dryer cuts drying time in half easily. Most spin cycle on washers go about maybe 600 - 800 rpm. My little spin dryer spins at 3000rpm. On a small wash (2 bath towels) it can spin out over a quart of water (over 32fl oz) in less than 2 minutes. That is a significant amount of water to evaporate using normal dryers and hang time. This will shorten your drying time and also save your clothes from heat damage from the prolong drying times. The only catch is trying to balance the load in the small spin dryer. I find it easiest to load all the heavy cotton clothes on the bottom and the lighter synthetic clothes on the top. Then give it a good shove and compress everything tightly down. Thats has worked really well for me. [...]
4 Stars Great service, price; fast delivery
This machine was a little difficult to assemble exactly according to directions, but we were able to get it together and working well in a couple of hours. There seems to be a slight leak in back because we haven’t been able to properly level our unit. Still, it works very well, runs quietly, arrived quickly (without any big dents!), and was less expensive than simpler models sold in local stores. We are very pleased.
3 Stars Two-month ordeal trying to get parts
Haier has a problem knowing one thing from another. First they shipped me a beer dispenser! I refused delivery, and eventually got the washer. It does have an outward dent in the front,par for the course,apparently.
It also has a leak. I called Haier and they immediately set up a visit from a local repair shop. Very pleased so far. The problem is in getting parts. Linda, the parts lady for the repair people, has been very diligent, but the large distributors they usually rely on don’t carry Haier parts, so you have to order from Haier, which is like breaking into Fort Knox.
This saga started September 24, 2008, and finally on November 23, after contacting a Haier field supervisor for this region, Linda got the parts.
Only problem is they didn’t send all the right ones. The one thing she mentioned was that instead of a rubber grommet they sent a screw! First a beer dispenser, then a screw. Is there a message there?
She’s sending the repairman to do what he can and assess the further leaks it’s developed, as I’ve used it (and mopped up) several times while waiting. Then she’s going to call the field superintendent and tell him he needs to give me a new machine. I was going to call Haier and demand one, because I’ve wasted three months overall on this project, but I kept thinking she could get the parts.
However, having said all that, I like the machine itself if I can ever get one that doesn’t flood me out. It will serve my purposes just fine.
4 Stars I hate laundromats
But I’ve been enduring them for the past 9 years thanks to no laundry in my apartment building. However, with our first baby on the way, we finally decided we needed to try to find some solution so we wouldn’t have to make daily trips to the laundromat.
As others have said, dings are pretty much par for the course thanks to the packaging inadequacies of the product. Ours arrived with a couple on the outside, and there was also a mystery plastic part that was in several pieces — we had no idea what it was or what its functionality was, but since we’d already lugged this thing into the car from my husband’s office and then dragged it up the flight of stairs to our apartment (not that the nine-months pregnant woman was much help), we figured it was worth trying out first to see if it worked.
Setup was fairly easy to figure out — we swapped in the casters and then screwed on the bottom pan (thanks to those who warned about putting it in the right way, as my husband was about to screw it on the wrong way). We’ve also got a single faucet sink rather than separate connections for hot and cold, but instead of buying the Y connector, we just hooked up a hose to the cold section on the recommendation of another reviewer. One word of warning on this — be sure you hook the hose up to the cold output and then be sure you’re always running cold/cold cycles if you do this. We initially had it on the hot input and then realized no water was getting into the washer.
Once we got that stuff figured out, we did a short cycle with low water as a test run to make sure that the broken (and therefore non-functioning) mystery plastic parts weren’t going to cause crazy leaks or malfunctions with their absence. They didn’t, and the laundry came out beautifully. We’ve done a few loads since then, and they’ve all come out great. While we’ll still use the laundromat for heavy-duty/large-volume items like our sheets/jeans/towels, it’s SO nice to know that when this baby finally gets here, that I’ll be able to keep up with her laundry needs without having to leave the apartment. Now I just need her to get here.
1 Star Well, there’s SOME good news
The great news is that the shipping and purchasing was easy. The return was easy as well. The bad news is that we never got to use our washer because we got the E2 error and when the repairman came to try fixing it, he determined that the machine was not worth repairing due to extensive and non obvious cracking of the cabinet and top. According to him the transmission was also jammed, so even if we hadn’t gotten the E2 error the machine would have failed.
