Fisher & Paykel AquaSmart

So Tired Of This Machine!! – Having purchased this machine 9 years ago, it has given me a long good service, my only complaint has been that despite my very careful loading of the clothes, it seems to wash and then stop and beep to inform me that the clothes have bunched up in one spot and I have to reorganise the load in order for it to keep going, (sometimes twice a load… Read more

which becomes very frustrating,) I don't overload the machine, no more than 3 bath towels plus some undies and it still stops at least once each load, my kids keep telling me to change to a new machine, but basically it still works and I only ever had one repair man to fix a minor problem . I hope that the manufacturers have changed the design before I start looking for a new machine!!

Works better than the 8kg variant – Many years ago I owned an 8kg AquaSmart (DW1 model) from new and was not pleased with the amount of issues it had… ended up giving it to my father and it only lasted for a total of about 7 or 8 years. Fast forward about 15 years (and significantly lower financial security) later, my Samsung 6.5kg top loader had died the day before New Year’s Eve;… Read more

so I trawled through Facebook Marketplace for a quick, cheap replacement and this AquaSmart 7kg (DW1) was for sale.

At first I was a little hesitant due to my experiences with the first AquaSmart; but it was less than $200 and the seller offered to drop it off at my house for free, so I thought “why not?” It was at my door by New Years Day

Turns out I made a good bet! I notice this machine’s “smart drive” and cycles behave differently than my last one, resulting in less errors and out-of-balancing (I’ve always properly levelled my machines)

My textiles are significantly better cleaned and rinsed compared to the last one - in both high efficiency and conventional modes!

One thing I wished this machine had was a quick cycle - regular and heavy duty cycles run for almost an hour, some even longer like bulky

Has done the job over the last 12yrs but with a few issues along the way – We bought this 7kg top loader 12yrs ago. At the time, I loved the idea of no agitator in the bowl and the preset water efficiency settings. The touch buttons rather than dials to turn were also appealing. I still love the lack of agitator but have felt frustration over twisted clothes & unbalanced loads despite taking care to spread out. I'm… Read more

guilty of overloading at times. The lack of lint filter becomes an issue particularly if you use Cold Wash a lot like me, but provided you make use of the "Bowl Clean" function more frequently than the 100 washes it alerts you on, it's manageable. I found my clothes were not clean enough on a "Regular" cycle or if I used one of the Water Efficient modes (the Efficiency light glows when selected) and used a "Heavy" cycle most frequently. Over the years we've replaced the control board (approx 7yrs ago by a F&P tech), as well as the suspension rods & main belt drive (approx 3 & 4yrs ago by my "Mr Fixit" husband who purchased the genuine parts off eBay). Reading other reviews these seem to be the most common parts needed. He swore when the motor went we'd buy a new machine. A month ago an ominous clunking starting and the machine could no longer move/spin but could fill and drain water fine - we took that as a sign it was time to move on. After our new purchase, he pulled the F&P machine apart to find the only thing wrong with it was the main bolt needed tightening under the bowl - tightened, works great, now selling 2nd hand.

Nursed along for 14 years – When we received the Aquasmart it was pretty innovative and we liked the top load ease with the front loader benefit. Lasted 14 years but that is because we really pushed it. Finally when it began cutting the power to the washing machine we called it quits. This unit had a water saver feature but we didn't use it as the detergent and lint seemed… Read more

worse if you did. Also the clothes didn't wash well so it was better to just run it on a regular wash. We could not use all the features as if you used the sheets wash it refused to lock (switch it to normal and it worked). We became very frustrated with it and you could not leave it in good faith it would complete a full cycle. We used it for typical family washing, towels and bed linen. It had a good spin feature initally, but got worse over time. The system was on a hard level floor and still wobbled itself around. Over time we had 3 services to attempt to fix the display/wash cycle reads and even the technician said to just run it on normal wash and gave up when he could not solve the lock issue. The lock hook was pefectly straight and worked intermittedly. a real hassle.

About 5 years in the lock feature then needed to be completely nursed .. so every turn on we waited until it attempted to lock, then failed (cycle will not progress unless machine self locks), then pressed start again until it finally worked, and it would continue.

Then the balancing became more dodgy and it began to be very noisy when running. You could hear if it was on at any point in the home. We began to not trust it, both to work or to be safe electronically.

The final straw was the system turning itself completely off mid cycle. With the system making strange noises, the frustration with the lock issue, and only being able to use 'regular' cycle regardless of what we washed for the majority number of its life years - I won't buy another Fisher & Paykel.

This machine I can NOT recommend due to reliability and noise.

I look forward to not having to be close to my future washing machine and limp it through a cycle. I chose a different brand for a replacement.

Interesting experience over the machines life – 8Kg Top loader F&P model WL80T65C It's 12 years old, so could die at any time. Or it could work for a while longer. Thought I might as well add to the reviews for historical purposes. It's being given away, as we've just replaced it while it's still working. Caveats to using the machine, as discovered over time: There's still nothing obviously… Read more

wrong with it, at this stage. ie. no strange noises or behaviour, and nothing has gone wrong with it, over the 12 years. Yes, it's on pretty level ground, and has always been levelled.

As said in a lot of reviews, it has a habit of leaving lint behind. It seems to be a well known problem with top-loaders that don't have the central agitator/lint-filter. I've lived with it, by regularly hosing down the drum, and removing and flushing out the agitator. The 100-wash 'clean-me' cycle that fills the whole tub with hot water is useless. My wife hates it, so has finally bought another machine.

You HAVE to turn OFF the 'high efficiency' water setting button every time for every wash, or it doesn't fill the bowl with enough water to work properly.

You DO have to think about how you position large items in the bowl. ie spread/open sheets out and don't just dump/stuff towels/sheets in a tangle, etc etc. It's not a magic un-tangler.

It's been used on 'regular' for pretty much every wash, which will have stressed the motor/electronics less (I believe that's the general opinion of technicians), and never been left to spin out, if it sounded unbalanced, without repositioning the wash.

It also seems to balance out better on regular - ie I never wash sheets on the 'sheets' cycle, or quilts on the 'bulky' setting, for that matter - they always seem to end up unbalanced. My wife is the only one to have used any other setting. ie 'delicates' - which does seem to work. But every time I found she'd put a blanket quilt, etc on the 'bulky' setting, I'd stop it and re-start it on 'regular'. I almost never had it go unbalanced when I did that, but I'm pretty sure it was 100% of the washes on 'bulky' would go badly unbalanced, and have to be repositioned.

Lasted 10 years so far – I’ve had my Fisher & Paykel Aquasmart2 for close to 10 years and the only thing I had get fixed was the control panel within the first 18 months. Aside from that, I’ve had no other mechanical issues used with it. I love the various dedicated wash cycles, such as “soft toys” and “sports shoes”. Probably the only annoying thing about the machine… Read more

is when I wash sheets it’s guaranteed to thump around and then beep to let me know the load is out of balance.

It’s been a reliable workhorse for me. I’m only replacing my machine because I’m moving to a house where I need a frontloader to go under the laundry bench which will probably be another F&P.

Reliable and well designed – I can't understand the number of negative reviews left for F&P washing machines. Perhaps I have been luckier than others. This is our second F&P washing machine. We bought it 12 years ago from Harvey Norman. It has worked well until the last year or so, when the drum would make loud thumping noises when spinning. Googling pinpointed the problem to… Read more

worn suspension rods, which are a wear and tear part. I replaced these and did the silicon straps at the same time. Parts were easily sourced from ebay and there are Youtube videos showing how to replace worn parts. Anyone who is reasonably handy should be able to do this. In an age where appliances are thrown away after the first break down, it is good to see a company support older models with spare parts. Would I buy another F&P? I probably would, though I'd like to see if the build quality under Haier ownership matches that of the older models.

Worst machine – This machine is trouble. It tangles clothes, leaves lint on all dark items, is frequently unbalanced and makes loud cluncking noises often, After using for only 2 1/2 years it died. I'm told it is a control panel failure. Not worth repairing so it's going out for hard garbage collection. I'm looking forward to getting a new one. Show details

Built well and very user friendly – Coming on 9 years old, and used multiple times a week, this machine is well suited to big loads. From heavy work clobber to delicates, king size bed sheets and doonas, the range of pre-set options to choose from will have a washing solution for all needs. Being able to tailor those settings to each load makes it very user friendly. And then a… Read more

reminder after 100 washes to run a "clean me" cycle makes putting the clothes in the barrel the hardest part of washing. Always one to wash with liquid (not powder), my only negative is a white residue is sometimes left on black garments - in both warm / cold cycles. Otherwise, the unit is very gentle even on the toughest of loads - a brand I would certainly purchase again in the future.

Excellent machine if used properly – This machine is excellent if you adhere to the manufacturer’s advice. It will not clean well if overloaded and will imbalance if underloaded. Use the suggested detergent in correct amounts. I use this machine 5 times a week with my family’s clothes. I also put through massage towels at a rate of 20 per week. Always a great wash. I also like the programming with is intuitive and the clean cycle keeps me up with when the machine needs cleaned. Show details