best brands for washer and dryer?

ge, maytag?

They are pricey, but I have heard good things about Miele, especially with the automatic shut-off features in case of leaks. LGs seem to have good reviews as well for durability and quality. Do you have a means to vent the dryer externally? If not, you options will be limited. Whether your outlets for the W/D are 110 or 220 will also make a big difference. In particular, if you have a non-vented, 110 dryer, expect to run 2 cycles before things get completely dry. We have old Malbers in our apartment, and they have proved to be good workhorses with multiple kids.

Bosch also. Anything German!

Maytag for stackable. As far as Bosch goes, the only thing German is the name. German means Miele which actually makes their product there.

Be also carefull of the noise

Have Electrolux and really like it. Heard that Samsung/LG are ok but customer service is terrible. Miele is great as well. You should go to gardenweb.com forums to get a lot more info on this type of stuff.

i like my miele's..they are nice and quiet.
not sure how green they are, but i don't really care about that.

How about Asko? The apt that I'm considering has their washer dryer which look dated and not very impressive....ventless as well. How much will I be in for to replace them? (still ventless sadly)