Indesit IWC 6105

A few months ago I had to replace my washing machine as the one I had decided to stop working and, according to the guy that came out to have a look at it, would have cost me just as much to repair it as it would have done if I bought a brand new one. So I went out and bought a new machine and at first I was going to give it the wife as a birthday present but once I’d thought about it I realised that it wouldn’t be worth the pain if I did do.

Anyway, my search for a new machine took me down several roads, looking at many different machines, until finally deciding on one with the well known name of Indesit, of which I’d used many of their machines, with this particular washing machine being the Indesit IWC 6105

Firstly, a few specs before we begin…
It’s a free standing, ‘A’ graded, front loading, fully autpmatic machine which measures in at a 850mm high, 595mm wide and 595mm deep, so it’s about the same size as a standard washing machine. But this one has a larger door which opens up to reveal a drum that can take up to 6KG load.
It has a ‘C’ rated, fully controllable spin cycle ranging from 400rpm to it’s top spin of 1000rpm.

So what does it look like then..?
Well, it’s made up of a white metal body with plastic dials, buttons. As you look at the front you’ve go the exceptionally large door for your load to go into. Then above the door there is the control panel which consists of the dispenser draw on the left, which is covered in a myriad of symbols to help you select the right setting that you need. Such as a daily wash of white cotton at 90°, which takes about 90 minutes to complete, or a special express wash which takes about 15 minutes. There are many other options to select from with each one taking a different amount of time to complete and each one having a different purpose in life.

Then, to the right of the dispenser tray, there are a selection of buttons, dials and lights…
There are six buttons along the top, which are, (from left to right)

• On/off
• Eco time
• Intensive wash
• Extra rinse
• Delay timer
• Start/pause

The last five buttons have a little red light at the side of them to tell you when that particular control is activated.

Then there is three dials which are just underneath the buttons, these dials are, (from left to right)

• Wash cycle, numbered 1 - 13 with other options of extra rinse, softener and more
• Temperature control, ranging from 30° - 90°
• Spin speed, ranging from 400rpm to 1000 rpm, although there is an option for no spin at all.

Then there are the 6 little lights which go vertically down the right side of the panel which indicate which setting is in action. These lights have either a number and symbol next to them or just a symbol, with the bottom button turning green when the door is able to be opened.
Don’t despair at the numbers next to the lights even though they range from 3h to 12h, the ‘h’ doesn’t mean hours so it doesn’t have a 12 hour wash cycle. The actual numbers represent the delay timer selection if you are using this function, for example 3h would be a 3 hour delay, 12h would be a 12 hour delay. If you have selected a timer function the corresponding light next tot eh time selected will blink.

The start/pause button does exactly what it says, it lets you actually pause the wash cycle if you have to, and, if there is no water in the machine, the door can be released if necessary.

Here is where I could go into how to ‘plumb’ it in but as this review is about the washing machine and not the fitting of it I’ll leave that bit out, although I will say that this runs off just the cold water system and only need one tap to connect to. So as long as you have a cold tap, a mains supply and somewhere to drain the water then this can be used anywhere, Except outdoors of course, as that could be a bit dangerous.

Note:
Remember to remove the ‘transporting screws’ from the rear of the machine before using, for this you will need a spanner.
And use the little rubber feet under the machine to get it level so that it doesn’t ‘run’ around the room when it’s on a full spin.

A quick brief of how simple to use this machine…
(this can be skipped if you want to).

Anyway, using the machine is a bit of a personal choice and does depend on what you are washing and which setting you want, but in brief…

• 1- Load up the machine with your dirty laundry, this could be smelly so hold your nose and use rubber gloves if necessary.
• 2- Pour in your choice of detergents
• 3- Switch the machine on by pressing the on/off button, all the lights will flash up.
• 4- Set the wash cycle dial to your desired choice
• 5- Set the temperature to your desire choice
• 6- Select the desire functions
• 7- Press the start/pause button to start the machine. The lights will stay on to let you know what is happening.

And that’s it, you’ve now started your washing machine…
When the chosen cycle has finished the light next to the ‘End’ word will stay on, then when the light next to the padlock symbol will turn green and you can then open the door to get your fresh smelling socks and underpants out of the machine

What about cleaning the machine..?

To actually clean the machine itself all I tend to do is give it a bit of a wipe over with a damp cloth on both the outside and the inside, especially the rubber seal around the inside of the door as I tend to find that there can become a build up of ‘grime’ around there, but a quick wipe over after each cycle keep the ‘grime’ away.
Plus, every so often, the detergent draw will need a clean to get rid of the build up of ‘gunk’, this is a matter of pulling the draw out fully, lifting it up a bit then pulling once again. The draw should pull right out so you can give it a wash in the sink or under a tap. Then simply slide it back into place and away you go.

Also, there is a ‘trap’ which is hidden behind the bottom panel of the machine at the front, this catches any small solid items that you may have forgotten to take out of pockets, such as coins, small keys, chains. To access this you just ‘pop’ open the bottom panel using a flat edge, such as a screwdriver, then you unscrew the little dial that is hidden behind.

NOTE: A small amount of water will rush out so have something there to catch it.

Empty the ‘trap’ of any objects caught in it, and believe me I’ve found many strange things in these ‘traps’. Then slot the ‘trap’ back into place, making sure it is screwed in tightly enough, but not to tight.


My opinion…

This is a cracking washing machine and, due to the fact I have a couple of kids who tend to be able to find every bit of dirt and mud that is on the world, and a dog who just can’t get the hang of wiping his feet before jumping up at you, the 6kg load function is brilliant.

The machine look pretty nice too and would not look out of place in any kitchen, in fact it would almost be ashamed to have it in a cupboard, hidden behind a door.
Speaking of doors, well the door on the front of this machine looks a bit bigger than any other door on a washing machine I have owned, it almost looks out of sorts in a way, but the larger door makes it a lot easier to ram your load into the drum, which in itself is a great size indeed.

‘Plumbing it in was a breeze, although the machine is very heavy so do take care when moving it as you don’t want to pull your back out or drop it on your toe.
If in any doubt then get some help.

As for actually controlling the machine that couldn’t be easier, especially as once you have found your most common setting you can leave it as it is because you don’t have to turn any dials to start the machine going, you just have to press the start button and away it goes, so there’s no messing about really.
It just gives you plenty of choices for what ever clothes need cleaning, from cotton to wool without causing damage to your ‘delicates’.
There’s even a shoe setting for those people who have feet that make their trainers smell like a skunks bottom after a Vindaloo, which, although does tend to bounce the shoes around the drum, so do think about investing in a special bag to put the shoes in, manages to do quite a good job in sanitising the skunks bottom, I mean shoe.

I often use the quick wash option, or the express 15 as it likes to be called, as not only does this option take about, yes you’ve guessed it, 15 minutes from start to finish, but it actually does a good enough job to clean the clothes without using to much of the planets resources.
The other setting I like to use for more stubborn stains is the 60° cotton setting, or number 3 to give it its number. This one take a lot longer than the quick wash, taking about 80 minutes from start to finish, but it blasts away anything I through at it.

The spin cycle is great and, at top spin, can almost get the clothes dry, almost, so they don’t need as long in a tumble dryer, although in warm weather I prefer to hang them out on the line.

In all, this is a great addition to anyone’s kitchen, or even utility room as it is impressive to look at and, if you keep wiping it down, the white body seems to stand out quite well indeed. And as it sells for around the £170- £200 region it is without doubt one of the best washing machines for the price that I have had the pleasure of allowing the wife to use…(kidding, I do do the washing as well you know, I’m not a caveman).