One thing you want to be careful of with a front loader is washing a quilt that might bleed. When there is very little water, the bleed is concentrated in what little water there is. In a washer with a lot of water, a small bleed is diluted so much it doesn't stain anything.

Someone did this awhile back on the QB -- washed her new quilt in a front loader and many of the reds bled. Fortunately she was able to re-wash it in Synthrapol in a large bathtub with lots of water. Synthrapol in combination with lots of hot water lifted out all the bleeds. The problem could have been avoided by initially washing with Synthrapol in a machine that uses a lot of water.

Once bleeding is no longer an issue, a front loader is fine for quilts. Also, large laundromat front loaders probably use enough water to be okay for a first-time wash. When using a top-loader, it's important to not allow the machine to agitate; stop the machine, hand agitate by pushing up and down, then advance the knob to spin.

I have a front loader..just throw it in and I use the one that says hand wash. I use Tide and a color catcher.

My front load washer calls for using an HE detergent.

Same here and I use Woolite HE which is a lot more gentle than regular detergents.

Synthrapol works fine in front loader. Do an extra rinse.

Some have VRT (vibration reduction technology) It really self-corrects quickly if a load goes off balance.

Throw them in with other stuff. Never a problem. I use cold wash for everything anyway.. Always use HE detergent.

Thanks for all the input everyone! I never use real "detergent" on my quilts as they can actually begin the bleeding process. I will try to mix up a more liquid version of my quilt soap and try that...will let you all know if the results later!

Woolite makes an HE version!

I've used my front loader often and never had a problem. I do use color catchers if I think there is a possibility they might bleed. The one thing I have found is they do not do a good job with raggy quilts. They just don't agitate them enough to fray them the way we like.