Best heat pump dryer? Any recommendations?

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davecla

61 posts

Master Geek

#316179 23-Sep-2024 09:31

(this question was asked a couple of years ago, but locked now, so here's a new one)

I need a new dryer for a new laundry, I really, really don't want to cut a big hole in the wall for a vent so heading down the heat pump path.

I've only ever had a vented dryer, they just work, super simple, and cheap (to buy), but in this case it's not an option.

The reviews for heat pump dryers are so polarized, with a lot of very negative positions, mostly to do with stuff coming out damp.

I'm leaning towards a Bosch (only because it matches the washing machine), but lots of grizzling about balling up of sheets.

Anyone got any first hand experience with current models to share, good or bad?

Cheers,

dave

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640 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3285374 23-Sep-2024 09:54

The reason for mixed reviews is because the performance will be very different from a vented dryer. My experience working on these in the past are:

Vented are quick, mechanically simple and get the job done, but huge waste of power as the heated air is dumped outside after one pass on the items.

1) A 8kg rated HP dryer will take close to 6 hours to dry a load, but this is normal. They are very efficient but the downside is they dry much slower.

2) When clothes clothes come out with the dry crunch feeling of a vented dryer they are actually over dried, a slight damp feeling is normal.

3) Best to plumb the drain if possible, otherwise you'll be constantly emptying it.

Brand wise - Miele hands down the best build quality but is it worth the price? Probably not. All the major brands are fine.

Quinny

885 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#3285384 23-Sep-2024 10:27

I got the AEG one from Harvey Norman. The built-in 5-year warranty was the deciding factor. It's about 4 years old now. I'm very happy with it. I did get them out as it was struggling a bit to dry some loads, and he changed some settings. He said he has had to do a few. No charge. I got the matching washing machine later, which is the 9000 series. It has phone notifications, which is really good.

Heat pump dryers can be slow, which is fine, and it's not too horrid on the power bill. I was using most days now I have moved to Contact Good Nights (9pm to midnight) we use it every day and never use the line. Both are the 10kg version and cost $3500 each maybe.

Edit - seeing a later post; I thought I should add no plumbing is required as the tank is a pull-out container.

Benjip

943 posts

Ultimate Geek

ID Verified

#3285386 23-Sep-2024 10:45

We have a matching set of LG washer and (heat pump) dryer and no complaints from me, other than the balling up of sheets which sounds like a common issue for all dryers.

If you can get the drying rack included, that's a big bonus too, it's great for drying things like shoes.

The Wi-Fi control is great, especially as you can download new cycles via the LG app.

I would definitely recommend plumbing it (just a simple hose that goes to your tub, like the washer) as I'm not sure otherwise how often you'd need to empty the water tank.

tehgerbil

1102 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Subscriber

#3285397 23-Sep-2024 11:36

We have a 'cheap' Haier heat pump dryer from Harveys we've had for a couple years now.

A couple things to note:

I wish I'd checked for adequate backlighting to swap over clothes and start a load in the pitch dark. I have to use my phone as Haier are so greedy as to forgo 2c in an LED backlight in their 'entry level' $1500 model.

There are 3 points of maintenance you need to be aware of:

1 - The water reservoir.

2 - The lint trap(s).

3 - The heat exchanger fins. Our model has an access port to pop out a cover to access the exchange fins, often covered in a fine layer of congesting dust and lint.
I carefully use an old toothbrush to remove the extremely fine polyester and cotton dust after every dozen loads or so and vacuum the remaining dust with a long bristle brush vacuum attachment, carefully as to not bend the fins.

And they (like all heat pumps) work better with a temperature differential from inside the drum to outside the unit, so if you're drying in a warm room it won't be as efficient and take longer than if you use it in a cold room.

They're really expensive to repair as they're very time consuming to dismantle, require specialist training to manage the refrigerant and are still a relatively 'new' technology, so not all repair agencies will deal with them or have spare parts.

Which is why the 3 points of maintenance is really important to prevent any expensive failures that may not be covered by warranty.

And I worked out we were saving roughly $200 a year in energy (at least on our kW/h rate!) by switching so an extra hour or two drying time was a small price to pay.

rp1790

738 posts

Ultimate Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#3285400 23-Sep-2024 11:50

I have the $1500 Haier heatpump dryer and greatly regret buying it. Reasons for getting it was the greatly reduced electricity usage and not needing a vent. However, it takes 2-3 times longer to dry the clothes and often come out damp. Also getting an F4 error now (drum heating fault). If the vent thing is your main concern look at condenser dryers, they also have a reservoir and a small hose that drains the water into your laundry sink.

My personal experience says don't buy a heatpump dryer.

djtOtago

1149 posts

Uber Geek

#3285432 23-Sep-2024 12:56

I've got a basic 8kg F & P Heat pump dryer. https://www.noelleeming.co.nz/p/fisher-paykel-8kg-heat-pump-condensing-dryer/N201828.html

About 2 hours tops for a load. I have it draining into the same waste pipe the washing machine uses, so don't have to empty the tank. It does ball up sheets a lot more than out previous dryer (Electrolux condenser) but I have found using the Sheets setting does help. Overall happy with it. It was an emergency buy. Previous dryer crapped out 2 days before we were heading overseas and need a drier for house sitters.

scuwp

3885 posts

Uber Geek

#3285469 23-Sep-2024 15:20

We have an LG 9kg dryer and love it. Yes, they are quite different to the old blast-hot-air dryers, which I suspect is why a lot of people complain, because their expectations are off.

It takes a lot longer - a full load of towels for us is about 2.5 hours, shorter for lighter or dryer items
It's hard to know the final time as the 'smarts' are constantly monitoring and adjusting - usually shorter than what shows at the start of a cycle.
The room doesn't get full of condensation and fluff - big win!
Clothes come out feeling nice and natural - not dried like a piece of cardboard that have been in a desert for 3 months
We haven't plumbed ours in and probably wont. Have found the water container emptying very quick and simple, we just do it after each load along with cleaning the lint filter - it's really no hassle.
Surprisingly find the WiFi connectivity handy - get an alert when the dryer is finished (yes geeky - but here we are!)
We use to avoid using the old blower dryer because of the cost - dry a lot more items now, great in winter.
Yes it balls up fitted sheets - so we do those separately. Normal sheets, towels, and clothes aren't an issue.

We looked at Bosch, AEG, and Miele. Bosch we couldn't get the model and size we wanted for about 3 months at that time, so gave that a pass. AEG were heavily pushed by HN, but reviews were terrible. Miele was nice but not nearly 3 x the price nice.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

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RunningMan

8955 posts

Uber Geek

#3285475 23-Sep-2024 15:55

Do the current Bosch ones reverse the drum rotation periodically? That was the issue with the previous gen ones, drum only turned one way so large sheets would ball up and not dry.

davecla

61 posts

Master Geek

#3285492 23-Sep-2024 17:05

RunningMan:

Do the current Bosch ones reverse the drum rotation periodically? That was the issue with the previous gen ones, drum only turned one way so large sheets would ball up and not dry.

Some of them do, this one does WQG235D8AU, but this one doesn't WTX88M20AU.

The one without reverse rotation has a better power rating though. I saw somewhere that reversing the drum makes it less efficient.

mentalinc

3229 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#3285496 23-Sep-2024 17:33

Agree with @scuwp comments above, except the drain pipe is super easy - get the installers to do the switch from container to drain and put the pipe into the waste with the washing machine hose.

Yes they take longer, yes the sheets get balled up, but still much better.

@scuwp, if you find the trying not working as well, LG have a fault where there is a wheel that fails and needs to be replaced.

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vexxxboy

4244 posts

Uber Geek

#3285501 23-Sep-2024 17:49

i have the Haier 8kg condenser dryer and i got it in a sale and paid $830 for it and it is great , it sits in the dinning room in a corner and it takes about an hour quicker than the vented one on average 50 minutes for a full clothes loads , 90 minutes for a full towel load so a lot cheaper to run not sure about the back light i just push the power button and the light comes on inside the dryer and i can see everything . i use the highest setting and it starts at 250 minutes and after about 20 minutes it will tell me how much time is left to dry and i have yet to have wet towels, clothes etc when it is finished . i would never go back to a vented dryer

Common sense is not as common as you think.

Jase2985

13459 posts

Uber Geek

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Lifetime subscriber

#3285512 23-Sep-2024 18:46

My question to you is do you use the dryer enough to recoup the extra purchase cost of it?

Our new vented dryer was $900, vs $1500 for a heat pump one. That $600, at night rate power ($.11), is about 3000h of drying on the vented dryer (1.8kw/h), or about 2000 loads of washing at 90 mins a load. Or a load a day for 5.5 years, which we would never do.

Say 200 loads a year for the vented dryer, so 10 years use. or about $.297 per load

Heat pump dryer say 3x as efficient on power but takes 1.5h per load, $.099 per load

Would take 3030 loads to break even. Even if you did a load per day that's about 9 years to break even but more likely 12+ years as mosyt wouldnt be doing that many loads a week/year.

I couldn't justify the extra money.

mentalinc

3229 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#3285515 23-Sep-2024 19:02

The heat pump drier lets you just chuck every load of wash you do and save the time of putting everything on the line.

You use it far more as its cheaper.

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johno1234

2803 posts

Uber Geek

#3285569 23-Sep-2024 19:51

mentalinc:
The heat pump drier lets you just chuck every load of wash you do and save the time of putting everything on the line.

You use it far more as its cheaper.

Exactly. Combine that with no venting and it’s worth the extra cost. More so if you value your time hanging out and taking in the washing.

allio

885 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3285588 23-Sep-2024 20:57

mentalinc:

The heat pump drier lets you just chuck every load of wash you do and save the time of putting everything on the line.

You use it far more as its cheaper.

This is it for me. I don't disagree with the analysis above, I'm not sure I'm necessarily actually saving money or ever will, but I absolutely love being able to chuck a load on without wincing at the cost each and every time, especially with power prices on the rise. I paid upfront to remove that particular stress from my laundry process and my life is better for it.

I have the LG 8kg, I have no complaints whatsoever. Even the sheets balling - the reviews I read made it sound like it was simply incapable of drying sheets. In reality a load with a fitted sheet will ball and require untangling and a short extra cycle maybe one time in five.

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