Description
What the GTW500ASNWS is and where it fits
This is a traditional agitator top loader rather than a high efficiency impeller machine, and that distinction is the most important thing about it. GE fits a dual action agitator, which is the central post that reverses direction to move clothes through the water, and a deep fill option that lets the user add water beyond what the load sensing would choose. Both are features that high efficiency machines deliberately removed, and both are the reason a household that dislikes low water washing buys this. The cabinet is 27 by 27 by 44 inches, the basket is stainless steel, and the machine weighs 147 pounds.
Living with it day to day
Deep fill is the feature people actually want here. Modern washers use a fraction of the water older machines did, and while that saves money it also means laundry is not swimming, which many households dislike for heavily soiled work clothes or for anything that needs a proper rinse. A button that adds water on demand puts that decision back with the owner rather than with the control board, and it is a genuine functional difference rather than a marketing one.
Thirteen cycles are listed with push button controls, and GE names a Deep Clean cycle and Speed Wash among them. The Deep Clean claim in GE’s description is worth flagging because it is incomplete: the listing states 67 percent more cleaning power than the most commonly, and then stops mid sentence, so the comparison basis is missing entirely. Treat it as an unsupported claim rather than a figure. GE publishes no decibel rating. An agitator machine is generally harder on fabric than an impeller machine, which is the trade for the mechanical scrubbing action, and it also means the usable capacity is smaller than the stated figure because the agitator post occupies the middle of the tub. A 4.6 cubic foot agitator machine does not hold as much as a 4.6 cubic foot impeller machine, and that is worth knowing before comparing capacity figures across formats. Households that would rather have the front loading approach should compare the GE GFW550SSNWW.
Controls and connected features
There are no connected features. The console is push button, and nothing in this listing describes WiFi, an app or any smart platform, so every function is selected on the machine and will keep working for its whole service life regardless of what happens to any manufacturer’s software. There is no account, no firmware and nothing that can be discontinued, which is a sensible specification for a machine likely to end up in a rental property or a garage laundry room.
The corresponding absence is a cycle end notification and remote diagnostics. A top loader also has one inherent advantage over any front loader, connected or not: the lid can be opened mid cycle to add a forgotten item, and there is no rubber door gasket to trap water and grow mould. That removes the maintenance chore that generates most complaints about front loading machines, which is worth more to some households than any app feature.
Running cost and upkeep
No electrical specification is published. There is no voltage, no amperage and no circuit requirement, so the installation manual is the reference. A washer alone is normally a plug in appliance, but that is general practice rather than something GE states here and should not be assumed for a specific outlet. There is no gas connection and no venting requirement, because this machine does not dry, so a separate dryer with its own utilities is part of the plan. Water supply and drain requirements are also unpublished, and a washer needs hot and cold hoses and a standpipe or laundry tub.
No annual energy or water consumption figure appears and no efficiency certification is claimed, so running cost cannot be calculated from this listing. What can be said honestly is that an agitator washer with a deep fill option will use more water than a high efficiency impeller machine when that option is used, which is the trade for the washing action, and that heating water is the dominant energy cost in laundry either way. Upkeep is minimal: no gasket to wipe, no drain pump filter routinely accessible, and a stainless basket that resists rust. Leaving the lid open between loads is enough to keep it fresh. Three contradictions in this listing need naming: capacity reads 4.6 cubic feet in the title and 4.5 in the description, maximum spin speed reads 800 rpm in the specification and 750 in the description, and the special features field reads Portable for a 147 pound appliance. Other formats, including the value priced Amana NTW4519JW and the unitized GE GUD27ESSMWW, sit across the washers section, and the natural dryer partner is the GE GTD42EASJWW.
Highlights
- Deep fill puts the water level decision back with the owner rather than the control board.
- Dual action agitator, which is the mechanical washing action high efficiency machines removed.
- Stainless steel basket that resists rust and does not snag fabric.
- Thirteen cycles including Deep Clean and Speed Wash.
- No door gasket, so none of the mould maintenance front loaders require.
- The lid can be opened mid cycle to add a forgotten item.
Things To Consider
- Capacity is 4.6 cubic feet in the title and 4.5 in the description.
- Maximum spin speed is 800 rpm in the specification and 750 in the description.
- GE’s Deep Clean claim breaks off mid sentence, so the comparison basis is missing.
- The special features field reads Portable for a 147 pound appliance.
- No electrical, water pressure or drain requirement is published.
- An agitator is generally harder on fabric than an impeller.
Who it is not for
Anyone with a laundry closet needing a stacked pair cannot use a top loader at all. Households washing delicate fabrics regularly will get gentler results from an impeller or front loading machine. Buyers chasing the lowest water and energy use should note that a deep fill agitator washer is the opposite of that design philosophy, deliberately. And anyone who wants app notifications, steam or a sanitize cycle should be looking at front loaders several tiers higher.
