Purrfectly efficient! (Zanussi FLA1001)

Member Name: Nolly

Product:	Zanussi FLA1001
Date:	16/05/01 (405 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: see opinion

Disadvantages: see opinion

When I eventually left home (at the age of 30!) in order to set up home with the woman I loved and was eventually to marry, whe were given all manner of appliances to help us. (By appliances I mean the electrical and kitchen variety, you mucky-minded lot!). A friend of one of my sisters-in-law was moving house and didn't need their automatic washing machine, an aged Hoover Aristocrat. They offered it to us to help us out. They reckoned that it was 10 years old but should give us about 6 months breathing space before we had to take the plunge and buy a new machine...

Two years, one move and one baby later, the machine stopped rinsing properly, and had developed an unnerving knack of jumping around and kicking the cat when it was revving up to start its final spin. Eventually I was faced with an ultimatum - not by my wife, but by the cat - which amounted to the fact that either the offending washing machine went, or he would pack up his spotted hankie and seek a new stamping ground. It was a tough decision... but eventually we negotiated a settlement by which we would purchase a new washing machine.

Oh my God! What a selection of washing machines there are nowadays! We eventually decided not to buy the one with in-built DVD player, and we plumped for a new model, the Zanussi FLA 1001 W, a standard machine with a half-load button and 1000rpm spin.

So is it any good? In a word, yes! It shows us now how much the previous machine was on its last legs. It is much quieter, a helluva lot more economical, and hasn't attacked the cat yet! We chose a Zanussi because both of our mothers have one. My mum has had hers for 8 years and my mum-in-law has had hers for 12 years. So we know that they aren't the most pricey, but tend to be generally reliable.

Are there any criticisms? Yes, just one! My mum's model had a little switch that could stop any prying little toddler fingers inadvertantly starting up the machine- brilliant. This
one does not, however, and the on/off button is in a particularly alluring shade of yellow / orange, which Ellie finds very tempting. However the well written instruction manual does suggest that we should check the machine for children and animals every time we switch it on. Funny, I have never had to wonder where Ellie is - her cries would startle passing ships and we live 45 miles from the coast!

But I am happy, my wife is happy, Ellie is happy, but best of all the cat has put its stuff back in the cupboard!

SPECIFICATIONS

Energy Efficiency: B

Wash Efficiency: A

Spin Efficiency: C

Spin Speed: 1000 rpm

Energy Consumption: 1.03 kWh

Water Consumption: 54 litres

Maximum load: 5kg (11lb)

Summary: