Industry Profile

Washing machine

A washing machine is a device used to wash clothes and it is normally classified into two types: top loading washing machine and front loading washing machine. This machine uses water and detergent for washing purpose. This laundry can be in the liquid or the solid form. This helps us to make the clothes clean and often uses technology to change how you want to wash.

In the top loading washing machine the clothes are loaded at the basket which is mounted vertically and contains a water retaining tub with a finned water pumping agitator in the center of the basket. The washing machine has a hinged door at the top in which the clothes are placed. After the clothes are being loaded the wash cycle starts, the outer tub is filled with water which is fully immerses the clothes and suspend the clothes freely in the basket. The water is pushed outward when the agitator moves between the paddles. The water is supplied inside the tub then the water moves outwards, upwards, downwards and sideward then the agitator repeats the same process. The direction of the agitator is repeated periodically because the continuous spinning would cause the water to spin in the same direction around the basket rather than the water is being pumped in the torus-shaped motion. Top loading washing machine is less efficient, nosier and doesn’t last so long.

Front loading

In Europe, the dominant design is the front loading washing machine. If we see around the world most industrial and commercial washers are the front-loading design. In this type are of washing machine the basket and the tub are mounted horizontally and the clothes are placed in it and then the door is closed. The door is made of a transparent window so that the process can be viewed. The inner basket is in the shape of a cylinder and it is rotated back and forth when the agitation is supplied. The paddle lift the clothes inside the drum by the inside wall and it is dropped down so that the washing process will be done. The water and the detergent are suspended inside the drum so that the fabric gets wet and starts washing. Less amount of water is needed to moisten the fabric. The advantage in front loading washing machine is that they use less soap, less water and the repeated dropping and folding action helps to produce large amounts of foam. In front loading washing machine heavy loads of clothes can be washed.

Variant and hybrid designs

The two general designs have many variations. In Asia, the top loading washing machines use impellers instead of agitators. The top loading and front loading machines are more are less similar; they have a drum rotating around the horizontal axis, in the top load the door is at the top of the machine with a lifetable lid. After the clothes are loaded the lid is closed and the machine operates and spins like the front loader. They are taller than front loaders and narrower and have a lower capacity and are used where there is narrow space. They are combo washer dryer machines that combine both the washing cycle and drying cycle in the same drum. These are very useful for overnight cleaning but heavy loads cannot be washed. These machines are largely used in Europe because they can be fitted in smaller spaces.