I just moved to a new city and there was no washer/dryer in this new house. I chose a front load machine. Wow! No fraying of the edges - even flannel! I washed 8 yards of flannel without a problem and then my next load was 23 yards of normal cottons. Each fabric was removed from the washer and dryer without threads being tangled and without the fabric being all twisted. Pre-washing fabric will be a joy in this house. With the top load wringer machine I used to have I would pink the edges of all flannels using a wavy rotary blade. For the regular cottons I simply (not really simple at all) wrangled them apart when removing them from the washing machine and then I had scissors handy in my laundry room for cutting out the tangles that I couldn't rip out. I suggest a new washing machine if that is in your budget.