Actual water temperature?

[dj-gabriele]

OK, yesterday I did my usual load of whites...
as I feel that the 2 hours and 20 minutes needed for the cottons 60°C cycle is otrageous I always use synthetics 60°C that is 1:30 and gives me good results (after all I never roll myself in the mud after the rain), plus the benefit of high rinse levels.

This time the load was really dirty, spilled ragu sauce, coffe and wine, so I decided that the extra 50 minutes of wash time could be of benefit. Throw everything in the washer and load the detergent.
Halfway throuh the cycle I go checking the wash, what do I find? The door was only warm so I stopped the washer and stuck my hand (and a thermometer too) in the wet clothes: the temperature was 45,1°C... now, I have a shower at that warmth!
Why on earth if the cycle is labelled "cottons 60°C" the machine washes at a lower temperature than "syntetics 60°C" that actually reaches 60°C?!?!?
If this is to get a non-existent A+ (istead of A) class on energy use, I wonder what more gimmicks are the guys at Whirlpool planning?!?
I think that I'll continue to use the shorter and hotter synthetics cycle... and I'll try out the cottons 95°C and see what happens...

Is only my crap machine doing this or your machines do the same on the "energy label" cycle?

Anyway the machine is a Whirlpool AWOD3080 that I hate, it washes badly and rinses worse, plus it struggles spinning everytime!

 

[askomiele]

The termperature of the water is not the same as the temperature of the load... mostly there is a difference... yet the only way to proof your point is the do a load and measure the temperature 5-10 min before rinsing. That's the point where the temperature should be reached.

 

[favorit]

Gabriele, many machines have stepped heating 4 better stain removal (first 20 minutes are run @ 40/45°C to activate enzymes). Whirlpool/Bauknecht have it, as BSH and Electrolux brands. Then water is heated up to the selected temp.

When I run those endless programmes, water temp may drop down of some degrees after the firts heat, so my machine heats it up again as many times as needed.

Don't know if other brands have permanent temp ctrl. Even the old W780 checks temp before the last 15 minutes step and heats again if required.

 

[favorit]

@askomiele

"The termperature of the water is not the same as the temperature of the load... mostly there is a difference..."

Are you sure ?? My Mieles haven't the enzym-phase and reach real 60°C by 15/20 mins (with 2KW heaters and @ full load).
Temp is quite equal in every part of the load because they keep on tumbling while heating (you know it). By the way, all machines tumble while heating today, am I wrong ?

I agree with you only about the Wool/Handwash programme that has very few tumbles, this may cause differences

 

[askomiele]

On second thought you are right about my quote. But still I think if you control the temp. of your whirlpool right before the rinse, it will be equal to the one you've selected.

 

[dj-gabriele]

I'll do that today! Let's see what happens, anyway, I was really disappointed!

 

[dj-gabriele]

OK, I promised that I checked the water temperature...
well I did it past week on all the cycles, here are the results, something quite disappointing!

On Cottons 95° the temperature is 85°C without holding (there is a cooldown phase before spinning for the first rinse)
on Cottons 60°C the temperature never reached more than 50° and there wasn't any holding during the 90 minutes of the wash phase, the water is barely warm when it is pumped out for rinsing.
Cottons 40°C is 40° and the temperature is held all the time during the wash.
Syntethics 60°, 40° and 30° do what is written on the dial and there is temperature holding. Plus on synthetics 60° there is a cooldown as the temperature is really 60° at the end of the wash.
Is just my machine doing this or is it common to other makers too?

 

[vivalalavatrice]

On Cottons 95° the temperature is 85°C without holding

I suspected that!! Otherwise why there would been written NC85 on several heating element fuse? Somewhere ther's a safety termistor instead...alwasy marked with NC85.

 

[mrboilwash]

Gabriele, now you confirmed what I always suspected.
It looks like manufacturers dropped the temperature of the 60°C cotton cycle in favour of the energy lable.
When I got my first PCB contolled A-rated washer my clothes developed a funny smell. Now I wash my former 40°C loads at 60°C and my 60°C loads at 75°C to compensate.

I remember in the late 1980s our testing magazine measured the actual temperature of the 95°C boilwash cycles. The clear winner was Miele with 89°C most others were around 85°C.