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Recent Maytag history My mom still owns two Maytag A-412's; one in her year-round home and one in her vacation home. I had the factory run the serial numbers, and they date from '87 and '88. If I'm not mistaken, they are the successors to the "center-dial" machines. These machines, though I'm...

Wascomat innards I used to work on these machines back in the '70's and early '80's; structurally they were very sturdy and heavy. They used a "2-winding" motor. It had an 8-pole winding (850 r.p.m.) for tumble speed and a 2-pole winding (3450 r.p.m.) for spin. They used electromechanical...

Reliable f/l's I'm not sure what reviews rp2813 has been reading, but I've seen little or nothing in the way of complaints about the Whirlpool Duet. I bought one, (and matching dryer) and have nothing but praise for it. They've been on the market since '99 or '00, and have an excellent...

New appl. For a clothes washer, I'd avoid the Speed Queen. From everything I've been hearing, the quality is good, but the wash cycles are so short that they simply don't get clothes adequately clean. I used one once at a truck-stop laundry when I was on the road (a coin-op version of the...

Graying whites I meant to add in my previous post-one of the best cures for fading or dingy whites is the use of liquid Calgon water softener, available at many supermarkets. I put about a capful in the tub with the clothes, and add some to the bleach dispenser if I'm not using bleach. This...

HE detergents HE detergents are not hype, as far as I can tell. Any detergent which oversudses will eventually damage the bearings in any front-loader which has inadequate tub shaft seals, particularly the Frigimore (Kenmore made by Frigidaire). I lost mine this way, and know several others who...

Changer, spin speed C'villewasherbo, the changer is a kind of transmission used in early front-loaders. It drives the tub through a low gear ratio for tumble speed, and for spin a solenoid (electromagnet) pulls a lever to engage a clutch for the high (spin) speed. Unfortunately, the spin speed...

Go with Duet HT Out of 5 "Frigimore" (Frigidaire-built Kenmores)-mine, and four others I recommended to family and friends, three of them have developed bad bearings. These models all had mechanical timers, too-terrible spin balancing protocol; if they didn't balance out pretty much right away...

Does anyone (like Seventh Generation) make a powder detergent for HE (front-load) washers? Whole Foods Market carries an HE liquid, but not powder.

Old fridges The earliest monitor tops used sulfur dioxide; later they went to methyl chloride, and finally to R-12 ("Freon" 12). Some of the old belt-drive refrigerators used sulfur dioxide (SO-2) as well. This stuff is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS-when it comes in contact with moisture-like in your...

K-A mixer disassembly Taking the rear cover off only gives access to the speed governor. Also, the two plastic screw-on black plastic buttons, one on each side, access the motor brushes. If they're worn too short, the motor will lose power and eventually not work at all. Very easy replacement...

Old fridges I've been a commercial refrigeration repairman for over 30 years. A vintage refrigerator is likely to be more reliable than a new one, provided that the refrigeration system itself has never been opened. This can usually be determined by checking for the presence of add-on charging...

No more Maysung! They've quit making the "Maysung-" and good riddance as far as I'm concerned. I had one-briefly-the MAH6700. What a piece of junk! The Duet HT is a far better machine, and undoubtedly the new Maytag Epic will prove to be so as well since it's basically the same machine.

Must be a Neptune.. It's a Neptune-right down to the "Turbo-Clean wash system."

Siphoning Either the hose doesn't come up far enough from the bottom of the machine (at least 6" above the maximum water level) or it extends down into the drain too far. This either must be corrected or you must install a "siphon breaker" (availabe at appliance parts stores or plumbing...

Duet HT vs. Sport Oxydolfan1: I doubt that the slanted tub of the Duet HT vs. the horizontal tub of the Sport has any effect on reliability. That's strictly a materials and workmanship issue. It does affect the circulation pattern of the clothes. The clothes not only tumble, but also circulate...

to Molly: I have a Duet HT; the seemingly low water level freaked me out at first-I had previously owned a "Frigimore" machine from '99 which filled up higher but held far less clothing (about 2.9 cu. ft. as against 3.8). However, the proof is in the pudding; it does a superb job with my...

To Oxydolfan: My only direct experience is with the full-size Duet. These are made in Germany in the former Bauknecht factory, bought by Whirlpool. The Duet "Sport" is made in Mexico. Actually, I haven't heard any negative feedback on them, in these pages or elsewhere; but products made in...

Sears repair centers I just bought a vacuum cleaner for my mom from Sears, and asked several Sears people, including their local service center, whether Sears was closing down its service operation. Everyone I mentioned it to said it was news to them...

Best machines I'm partial to front-loaders. In my opinion, both as a consumer and a repairman, I'm convinced that the Whirlpool Duet (full-size, not "Sport") are the best on the market. Not only are they super efficient, they have by far the best reliability record, the best pre-spin load...