Ah, laundry. Except for those few special folks among us, there aren’t too many people I’ve come across in my lifetime who enjoy doing laundry. Sure, the more organized among us might take some small pleasure from folding clothes, and yes, the feeling of clean, fresh, warm sheets and towels is hard to replace. But for the most part, even when using one of the best washing machines, laundry is not something most of us likely enjoy.
Thankfully, a good front-load washer can help laundry feel less chore-like. The ASKO Steel Seal washing machine is a surprisingly compact washer that packs a lot of great features into its small size. Plus, it’s easy to use and blissfully quiet.
It’s pretty expensive, though, and for all its great features, a few things are missing, like Wi-Fi connectivity. I used the ASKO Steel Seal washing machine for about six weeks to wash all our family’s clothes – including my 16-month-old daughter’s and 5-year-old son’s – along with our towels and bedding. Here’s how it went.
ASKO W4114CW: Key specs
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Row 0 - Cell 1 |
| Capacity | 2.8 cubic feet |
| Spin Speed | 1400 revolutions per minute |
| Wash Programs | Standard cotton; Easy Care; Time program; Quick; Mix/synthetic; Wool/hand wash; Jeans; Everyday wash; Heavy |
| Noise Level | 72 dB |
| Vibration Control? | Yes |
| Smart Features? | No |
| Energy Star? | Yes |
| Dimensions | H33 1/2 x W23 1/2 x D27 inches |
ASKO W4114CW: Price & availability
The ASKO Steel Seal W4114CW washing machine is quite pricey at $2,049. That puts it at nearly a thousand dollars more than even front-load washers such as the GE GFW550SSNWW, and it is closer to what you can expect to pay for a good washer/dryer combo these days. However, it’s packed with many features, and the build quality is outstanding, so you’ll have to decide if it’s worth the price. You can get it in the US from Best Buy or several local dealers (check ASKO’s website to find the one closest to you).
ASKO offers this washing machine model in white or titanium, which should match almost any aesthetic.
In the UK, the best bet is to check ASKO’s website to find a dealer near you. There’s no exact match for the W4114CW in the UK, but the W4096R.W.UK/1 is probably the closest comparison.
ASKO W4114CW: Setup
I received the washing machine and the ASKO Tumble Dryer together, so they arrived on a pallet. The driver dropped them in my garage, and my wife and I had to figure out how to get them into our laundry room. Thankfully, it’s not too far from our garage, and I could borrow our neighbor’s hand truck, so it wasn’t too bad.
While tedious, the installation was not overly complex and could be done without professional assistance. If you feel uncomfortable doing it yourself, it’s always best to call a professional, but it is possible to do it yourself without much complication. It took me about half an hour to get everything hooked up, and all the tools were included with the machine.
ASKO includes instructions and all the tools necessary for the installation, but I found the instructions vague in some places. I realize they tried to be as generic as possible for everyone, but they could provide more instructions.
The washer and dryer are almost the same size, meaning they can be installed side-by-side or stacked depending on your space, which is nice. The units I received included everything you need to stack them. ASKO also has a few accessories you can add to your washer and dryer if you decide to stack them that they refer to as “hidden helpers,” including the pull-out basket that I received, a pull-out ironing board, a pull-out basket/shelf combo, and a pull-out drawer.
First, remove the three transport bolts and plastic plugs from the back. After you’ve positioned it in your laundry room, adjust the feet on the bottom to ensure the machine is level. The included wrench allows you to adjust each of the four feet.
Once it’s level, you’ll need to connect the water hose. Thankfully, the W4114CW unit I got has an included heating element, so you’ll only need to worry about connecting one hose. You’ll then need to connect the attached drain hose to a sink or other drain, and they recommend that it be between 24 and 36 inches above the bottom of the washer (both hoses come attached to the back of the washer).
The washer is designed to be plugged into an ASKO dryer, so you can plug it into the wall from the dryer. If you use another dryer, you’ll need to swap out the washer's plug for one that works with the wall outlet.
Once we had it in place, we were amazed at how small the washer was. It measures 23 7/16” W x 33 7/16” H x 27 9/16” D, and even in our small utility room with a closet and water heater, we now have much more room than our old washer and dryer.
ASKO W4114CW: Design
I’m a big fan of the design of the ASKO Steel Seal washing machine. It’s a front-loading washer with a clean, modern, minimalistic design, which I’m here for. There’s no big display or tons of buttons; all the controls are laid out nicely along the front at the top. The top left corner is where you add the detergent, which supports powder, liquid, and detergent pods.
The power button is next to the detergent drawer, with the selection dial to the right. The long, rectangular LCD and start/stop button on the right edge follow. Just below the LCD are six small pill-shaped buttons for selecting the washing mode, temperature, spin speed, additional options, start delay, and dose assist.
One of the standout features of the ASKO Steel Seal washing machine is the steel seal around the door. Most other washers use a rubber seal, which degrades over time and can trap dirt and smells. The stainless-steel seal here lasts longer, doesn’t trap dirt and smells, and allows for a larger door opening than most washers of similar size.
For a washer this small, the ASKO Steel Seal has a surprising number of programs, 22.
Depending on the wash program you select, you can use the buttons under the display to customize the cycle even further. The washing mode button lets you choose between standard, green mode (saves energy, less water, longer wash time), speed mode, allergy mode (extra water, extra rinsing, longer wash time, more water and energy use), and intense mode (better cleaning, more water use, longer wash time).
You can also adjust the temperature and spin speed; some programs let you customize them even further. Depending on the cycle, you can add a super rinse, prewash, high water level, or anti-crease setting. Finally, the last two buttons let you delay the start of the cycle for 30 minutes to 24 hours and ask the machine to recommend a detergent amount for the specific cycle.
ASKO W4114CW: Performance
One of the best things about the ASKO Steel Seal washing machine is its easy use. Our previous washer had these weird capacitive buttons that I always found difficult to use, but this one is blissfully simple. Just turn it on, scroll to select the program you want, adjust any settings you want, and hit the start button.
Honestly, it’s nice not to have one on this washer in an era when everything is a touchscreen. All the controls are physical, tactile buttons. The Child Lock turns on by default at the start of every load, so the kids can’t mess with things. However, they can pause and restart the load, so it’s not entirely immune to their meddling. However, it’s much better than if there was no child lock.
Most modern washers can intelligently add the precise amount of detergent required for each load. While the ASKO Steel Seal washer I have can’t quite do that, it can recommend the correct amount of detergent you manually add. So, it’s halfway there. There’s also no Wi-Fi connectivity or any other smart features available.
This washer may look a bit small, but we were able to fit almost as much as we could in our previous Maytag top-load washer. We have two small children and a dog, so we are constantly washing clothes, towels, sheets, etc., and while we couldn’t exactly measure it, we haven’t felt as if we ended up doing more loads than before.
We don’t have a comforter, so we weren’t able to test that out, but we could reliably wash eight bath towels at a time, so it’s a fairly decent-sized drum.
An interesting fact about ASKO machines is that they all have basically identical height and width, so you wouldn’t have to redo your entire laundry space to accommodate a new machine. The only difference is in the depth, with some models having a deeper drum than others.
My wife and I tested as many of the different programs as we could and were quite impressed with the performance across the board. As far as we could tell, the differences between Universal Wash and any of the more specific modes are the temperature of the water, duration of the wash, and duration and intensity of the spin cycle.
In our unscientific testing, we didn’t seem to notice too much difference between the programs. The Universal Wash did a great job with everything we threw at it, so we never saw any significant difference when using the other programs.
We put a white rag with a few different stains on it through the normal cycle, and it turned out pretty well. Some of the deeper stains were still visible, but for the most part, the surface stains all came out fine. We were impressed.
One of the programs I was most interested in trying out was the shirts program. The idea is that it adds a steam cycle to the wash to remove any wrinkles in the shirts. I work from home, so I don’t wear many business shirts, but I have a few for date night and other fancier occasions. I crumpled these up and threw them in the Shirt cycle and was quite impressed with how they came out.
The shirts weren’t as wrinkle-free as they would have been if I had ironed them, but they were certainly good enough to wear out again.
We were also instantly impressed with how quiet this washer is. I don’t know how loud our old washer was, but this one was noticeably quieter. During the noisiest part, the spin cycle, my decibel meter only clocked at 67.2, which is no louder than a normal conversation or a modern dishwasher. At the quietest, it was only about 54 dB, which is equivalent to a light rainfall.
Regarding the spin cycle, the standard load of laundry we weighed out was 11.5 lbs. before going in and weighed 16.5 lbs. after the spin cycle.
My wife and I agree it’s the best washer we’ve ever used.
ASKO W4114CW: Maintenance
The first recommended maintenance tip is to leave the door open after each cycle to let it air out and wipe down the seal between washes.
About once a month, or every 40 washes, a “Sterile Tube alert” will display on the screen, indicating it’s time to run the Drum Cleaning cycle. The instructions say you can add a bit of vinegar or baking soda to the cycle if you want, but it’s unnecessary. It will still clean it without anything added.
Aside from that, two items can be cleaned manually. The first is the filter behind a small door at the bottom left corner. Run the Drain program to remove all the water, unplug the washer, and then use the included tool attached to the back of the washer to pop open the door and rotate the filter counterclockwise to remove it. Wash it off in the sink and replace it.
The second item is the detergent drawer. There’s a tab at the back of it you can press to slide the whole thing out. Then, rinse it off in the sink as well and pop it back in. That’s it.
Would I buy the ASKO W4114CW?
| Attribute | Notes | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Installation | straightforward and can be completed without professional assistance; instructions could be clearer in some areas; flexible installation options, such as side-by-side or stacked configurations | 8/10 |
| Washing Performance | excellent washing performance, effectively handling various loads and stains; Universal Wash program performs well; steel seal design prevents dirt and odors | 9/10 |
| Rinsing Efficiency | good rinsing efficiency; options to customize cycles for extra rinsing if needed; allergy mode, which uses extra water and rinsing, is particularly beneficial | 8/10 |
| Spin Cycle | spin cycle is efficient and quiet; noise level during the spin cycle is low | 9/10 |
| Maintenance | periodic tasks like running a Drum Cleaning cycle and cleaning the filter and detergent drawer; steel seal reduces the need for frequent cleaning compared to rubber seals | 8/10 |
Buy it if
Don't buy it if
How does the ASKO W4114CW compare?
If you have a larger family, the LG WM9500HKA is a good choice. It can hold up to 5.8 cubic feet of clothing, so you can spend less time washing clothes. It’s also Energy Star certified and cheaper than the ASKO Steel Seal. However, it’s not stackable, so if you need to save space, it’s not the best option.
If you’re looking for something with many great smart features, check out the Samsung WF53BB8700AV. It’s not quite as big as the LG washer, but it’s got more programs than the ASKO. It connects to your smartphone and even has AI features built in.
Lastly, for those looking for a simple, basic, affordable washing machine, Samsung’s got you covered again. The Samsung WF42H5000AW isn’t the biggest or smartest washing machine on the block, but it gets the job done and can often be found for around $700.
How I tested the ASKO W4114CW
My wife and I used this ASKO washing machine for about six weeks. In that time, we washed dozens of clothes, bedding, and towels using as many different programs as possible. I unboxed and installed the machine and tinkered with nearly every setting to get an accurate assessment of it.
Learn more about how we test.
