Tried and Tested: Does Hotpoint’s GentlePower technology give clothes a deep and gentle clean, while saving water and energy too?

As a Mum of three children, I do a lot of washing. It’s the job that never ends in our house and I would say that 99% of the clothes I wash aren’t my own. I will never understand how children manage to create so much laundry!

Cleaning and washing are my least favourite tasks and so whenever it comes to appliances, I look for the one that’s going to get things done both quickly and easily. I’m up for anything that makes life easier, which is why I loved the sound of this washing machine.

Hey Kerry! What were your first impressions of the washing machine?

I’ve always heard good things about Hotpoint products, so my expectations were high and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed. The washing machine was delivered by the nicest delivery men I’ve ever had and was easy to set it up once we’d got it in place.

The washing machine has a large 9kg drum, which is perfect for families like ours who do big loads of washing.

That’s great. We asked you to try a few different loads – how did you get on?

AO challenged us to do three different loads of washing, one heavy, one light and another with heavily soiled items, like kids’ clothes.

This washing machine uses gentle power technology to carefully spray water onto your laundry like a waterfall, providing a thorough wash, whilst optimising water and energy use by 65% and 59% when using the GentlePower and load detect function.

I started off by washing some of our bed linen. This is always a heavy wash and the machine handled it perfectly. The big 9kg drum meant there was plenty of room for all our covers and enough room for the bedding to get a good clean. Sometimes I find if you overfill a washing machine, the fabric doesn’t clean as well, but this wasn’t a problem here.

I love that the washing machine has a steam function! It keeps the washing moving, helping to reduce creasing and I also found it kept the washing smelling fresher. It didn’t have that slightly musty smell you get when you leave washing in the machine for a few hours after cleaning, because let’s be honest, we all put a load of washing on before walking away and forgetting all about it.

As for the Gentle Power tech, I found that it worked equally well on a heavily soiled load, as it did on a more delicate wash with just my summer dresses in the drum.

Were there any other features that you really liked?

My favourite function is the super silent wash. We are mid kitchen renovation now and don’t have a door on our utility yet. When I put a load of washing on in our old machine, it was loud and annoying in the kitchen, whereas I don’t notice this one is on at all.

Another feature I love is the fast wash. It’s a must-have for me. If I’ve had a busy week, the washing can pile up fast and this helps me to get several loads done more quickly, giving me more time to get on with other things, like ignoring the piles of washing that need to be put away.

I’m also a huge fan of the load detect function, which weighs the load and then changes how much water is used. It keeps monitoring how much is being absorbed too, so it’ll always save as much energy and water as possible.

Finally, as a household full of hay fever sufferers, the anti-allergy function is super useful. Anything that means I’m less sniffly in summer is a win in my book!

It sounds like you’re a fan – did anything else catch your eye?

One of the things I really love about this washing machine is that the clothes come out much more wrinkle free than I have experienced with other washing machines. I think that might be down to the steam function and I love it. Anything that means I don’t have to pick up an iron makes me very happy!

Absolutely – anything for fewer chores, right? So, would you recommend this washing machine?

Yes, I would absolutely recommend this product. I think it’s a great washing machine for families – with the size of the drum and all the features, it really helps get through the laundry basket quickly, and the GentlePower tech will save money too without compromising the clean – the perfect balance!

@kerryvillers is using the Hotpoint GentlePower washing machine

This article includes a conversation between our product expert and @kerryvillers, and has been written up by our copywriter.