Obsessions: Miele washing machines
At Umbrella we appreciate the details. So we understand when our readers are into something – really into something. In this instalment of our regular Obsessions feature, engineer Andy Parsons reveals his love for the German washing machine manufacturer.
I don’t like most washing machines. It’s form before function with a lot of them. But I have a fascination with Miele. When you get to see the engineering behind them, it’s fantastic.
A few years ago we sold a new washing machine to this old lady, her daughter thought she should have a new one. She had a Miele, which she’d bought in 1983 for £1200 – it was still perfect. I took it home, and had it for five years before I ended up giving it my dad when my wife and I split up. It’ll last for ten more years – Miele machines last for 30-plus years.
The old models had a motor in them that looked like a big bomb. There’s no mistaking them, the sound is like a deep rumble, it reminds me of the days when a motor sounded like a motor. My dad likes to sit with the kitchen door open and listen to it working, he says it’s like a Swiss clock. And it’s 30 years old. People change stuff too easily, they’ll want one with a digital screen because it looks flash.
Miele have a different way of looking how washing machines work – they were the pioneers of the ‘honeycomb drum’ which doesn’t pull your clothing about as much. It’s only Samsung who do them out of the new manufacturers.
Because of emission laws in Germany, Miele are now made in Turkey so they come in different colours but in the old days you just got them in stove enamel. My dad’s one weight 94 kilos, twice as much as an average washing machine. It’s got stainless steel covering it and that motor weighs a ton. You can buy an everyday washing machine for £200, but you’ll need a new one in a couple of years’ time. As they say: buy cheap, buy twice. I’d buy Miele.