The LG WashTower was the newest, most revolutionary unitized washer and dryer introduced almost four years ago.
Since then, competitors like Samsung and GE have developed their own models comparable to the LG WashTower.
This raises an important question: Do you need the WashTower at all?
In this article, you will learn the features, new models, and reliability of the WashTower and the newer models from Samsung and GE.
Let’s get started.
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LG is a Korean company manufacturing washers and dryers in Clarksville, Tennessee.
I asked LG Vice President of Sales Randy Warner how LG navigated the pandemic better than any other major brand.
LG makes more of its major components, like motors and compressors, making them less dependent on outside suppliers. This served them well in 2020-2022.
Also, by not outsourcing and understanding their parts and machines, LG makes the most reliable washer on the market.
You will see if that is still true this year.
Let’s dive into the LG WashTower’s key features.
The design of the WashTower is more streamlined at 74 ⅜ inches, compared to 80 inches when stacking two full-size units.
The controls are also in the middle of the LG WashTower, which is incredibly helpful instead of reaching up to 6 feet and 3 inches for the controls of a stacked unit.
The dryer is a bit lower, so that, too, is fully accessible.
The depth is only 30.16 inches, which is almost 1.5 inches shallower than the next shallower brand, so it's great for closets.
You can vent out the back and both sides with an optional kit. You also don't need a vent for the new WashTower, thanks to its heat pump drying technology (more that later).
With 4.5 and 7.5 cubic feet of capacity in the LG WashTower’s washer and dryer, you also don't sacrifice any cubic footage as it equals LG's most popular front load washers.
Reliability is the single most important consideration in buying laundry.
You want a reliable machine because the average repair wait of –4-8 weeks translates into a pile of unwashed clothes.
LG is again the most reliable laundry brand sold at Yale.
Their washers need just 2.1% service in the first year based on over 33,000 service calls completed by our service team just last year.
Compare that to the average of 5.4% for washers and 9.7% for appliances overall.
Let's look at LG’s WashTower models and then competitive brands.
We will be publishing our 2024 reliability guides soon. Click here to subscribe to be first notified.
The LG WashTower has five models to choose from.
The first four WashTower models have similar features and start at $1,499 during promotions.
Their most basic model, the WKE100HWA, has six cycles and nine options.
All of the LG WashTower models feature smart functionality, steam in the washer, and five wash temperatures.
Their middle model, the WKEX200HGA for $200 more, offers steam in the dryer to refresh and de-wrinkle clothes.
Additionally, this model has LG’s signature TurboWash 360 cycle. The TurbWash360 option uses five high-pressure jets to turn any wash cycle into 30 minutes rather than an hour.
Below is a breakdown of the main washer cycles:
These cycles provide a wide range of options to handle different types of laundry, allowing you to choose the one that best suits your specific needs for each load of laundry.
As for the dryer, the LG WashTower offers various drying cycles to suit different needs.
Here are some of the drying cycles and their explanations:
These drying cycles provide flexibility and efficiency, allowing you to choose the one that best suits your laundry needs.
The inclusion of Sensor Dry technology helps ensure energy-efficient and precise drying, protecting your clothes from over-drying.
The next two models feature AI programming for cycles and include AI DD (Artificial Intelligence Direct Drive), which offers built-in intelligence and sensors.
Their top model, the WKEX300HBA, priced at $100 more than the WKEX200HGA, offers a larger capacity of five cubic feet for the washer and includes additional wash cycles.
However, due to its larger size, the WashTower has a depth of 33 inches, so it's important to measure your space before making the purchase.
You have 26 wash cycles and 18 options, along with 23 drying programs and 14 dryer options. With AI, you can set any cycle or option.
The Studio is their best-vented model. Like the WKEX300HBA, it is five cubic feet but has an 18-31 load automatic dispenser, depending on the load size.
Auto dispensers are worth your consideration because they dispense the exact amount of detergent required at the right time.
In front loads, people tend to add too much detergent. Those additional suds stay in the machine for an expensive future service call.
The Studio has a better warranty of two years, and the dryer drum is steel, not aluminum, like in the other series.
All of these models also have a gas dryer option if you have a gas hook-up.
Their newest model, the WKHC202HBA, has the same capacity as the first two WashTowers.
However, it adds the ventless heat pump dryer.
So now you can place a WashTower anywhere with power and water because it does not require a vent.
We have other articles exclusive to heat pumps, but below is a brief explanation.
Heat pumps are more efficient than drying elements by using an evaporator to remove moisture and a compressor to heat the air through a heat exchanger.
Normal, vented dryers draw cooler air from your laundry room, heating with elements and projecting that hot air outside.
Heat pumps run on a closed loop, recycling increasingly warm air instead of continuously drawing colder air in.
You will save 50-60% by buying a heat pump.
Before you read about the features, you should know your regular dryer is expensive.
In Boston, a dryer will cost you 96 cents per load with an average dryer or roughly $350 per day when operated daily.
A family of five with an older dryer could spend $800 or more.
One Word of Caution: Heat pumps were invented in 1856 but were only placed in smaller compact dryers in 1997.
The LG WashTower is the first generation of larger dryers with a heat pump. Stay tuned for reliability.
The WashTower incorporated the latest of LGs technology back in 2020
AI DD
The Artificial Intelligence Direct Drive, or AI DD, washes your clothes by determining weight and softness.
It uses 11,000 data points to decide the ideal cycle, time, and motion.
The dryer will save up to 22% drying time by sensing moisture and softness in the dryer.
The best part is you just hit a button without choosing any cycles and options.
AI Cycles
Wi-Fi Connectivity
Lastly, the WashTower is Wi-Fi driven and can be operated from your phone. It even sends you a notification when it's done.
You can also download customizable cycles that are not available onboard the machines.
TurboWash 360
Other cycles include TurboWash 360. LG adds five high-pressure sprays to shorten any cycle to 30 minutes.
Steam
Like we mentioned earlier, both the washer and dryer have steam in the top two models.
In the washer, steam is used to power out tough stains. In the dryer, steam is used to refresh and de-wrinkle your clothes.
Have a favorite shirt? Place it in a steam cycle to wear it out that night in about 10 minutes.
Auto Dispenser
Like other brands, the main missing feature is an automatic detergent dispenser. It's only available on their most expensive Studio series and not on the other models.
GE and Whirlpool now have 32 and 40-load dispensers, respectively.
Mold Protection
Mold can build up in front loads due to standing water. LG has the "TubClean" feature to reduce mold and mildew.
However, LG has not adopted GE's extensive mold protection. GE uses Microban anti-microbial surfaces and a fan to evaporate standing water.
You can greatly reduce mold by wiping down the gasket and keeping the door open.
You also want to run the washer in a high-temperature wash like LG's TubClean every few weeks.
Reversible Door
You can't reverse the washer door like GE and Electrolux, so that could be a problem in some laundry rooms.
Now let's compare the WashTower to all your options.
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Most of the one-piece stacks, like Frigidaire, GE, and Whirlpool, were designed when I started at Yale in the 1980s.
Not only is the WashTower more advanced, but it is also less expensive.
The others are simple top-load combos with less capacity and fewer overall features while using more water and electricity.
You shouldn't consider any other one-piece except for special long-run duct applications.
Then again, instead of ducting a long way, you should buy the WashTower with the heat pump for a much better machine with much greater overall cost savings.
What you should consider is whether you need a WashTower at all.
GE is a better brand for preventing mold with its micro-ban anti-microbial surfaces in the gasket, dispenser, and hoses.
You also have the fan to dry the gasket where mold tends to develop.
Their 32-load dispenser will release the right amount of detergent at the right time and prevent service calls.
When you pour too much detergent, the oversudsing stays in the machine and becomes an expensive future issue.
Again, you must jump to the LG Studio WashTower, while a GE set will be more reasonably priced.
GE doesn't have a one-piece unit like the WashTower, so you must stack the dryer, which was a problem in previous years.
However, the washer now controls the dryer through their SmartHQ app, so it doesn't matter as much.
Ditto with Samsung.
The new Samsung has the AI capabilities of the best WashTower model and antimicrobial technology to reduce mold build-up.
But like GE, you can control the dryer from the washer.
Yes, I think other companies have duplicated the ease of use of the WashTower by smartly controlling the dryer from the washer.
The WashTower is still shallower, and LG is the most reliable washer and dryer on the market.
It should be on your list, but you do have options.
If you want a cool comparison between the New GE Profile UltraFast Combo vs. the LG WashTower with a heat pump dryer, click this link.
Thanks for reading.
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