Test criteria
The comparative product test evaluates the following technologies in domestic washing machines:
Automatic 2-Phase Dosing System
- The test assessed the performance of an automatic dosing system in domestic washing machines.
- Various primary and secondary washing effects (stain removal, whiteness, greying) were compared when using the automatic dosing system and the manufacturer’s detergent, against standard off-the-shelf products and manual dosing.
- The accuracy of the automatic dosing system was also assessed.
Drum technologies
- The test involved a comparative assessment of domestic washing machines featuring different drum technologies.
- A selected wash programme was used to wash the same load of laundry several times.
- The machines were then assessed on how gently they treated the fabrics and how many fibres were released from them.
- The gentleness on fabrics was assessed visually by our trained team of testers.
- To measure fibre loss, we determined the number of natural and synthetic fibres in samples of the wash water using a specialised image analysis method.