American Top Load Washer - Update a Month On

[warmsecondrinse]

Fairy! I inherited a bottle of Fairy dishwashing liquid. I've kept the bottle and just refill. It makes for a great conversation piece Below is the pic I just took.

"I've used all the cycles, and get the feeling that if I was going to be washing my own clothes in it, I'd use perm press for those as with its dilution rinse, I think it rinses better."

I noticed the same with my 96 Maytag (Thanks, GadgetGary!) although I was so enthralled with actually having clean clothes it took me awhile to notice. What I wound up doing was a regular cycle in the Maytag then putting the load into the GE "waterless" washer (which actually had a rather long spray rinse and a spin speed that was a good bit faster than the Maytag's) for a rinse & spin before putting the clothes into the dryer. As Launderess said, there wasn't much of a difference with lighter items but there was a noticeable reduction of drying time with jeans and towels. Might something similar be an option for you as you have the Siemens washer right there?

When I had a lot of laundry this improved throughput time as I could have three machines going at once.

Just a thought,

Jim

 

[mark_wpduet]

That looks like

the WP top load washer I bought brand new in 2002! Then in 2005 sold it to family member when I bought my Duet. I know they had to recently have it repaired I believe. I think it was a minor repair. But I'm not sure if they still have it. I wasn't aware WP still made these. I think the agitator was called xtra roll or something like that. They really roll a load over big time, but they are rough on clothing.

 

[chrisbsuk]

Hi all,
thanks for your replies! I’ve got three change overs over the next 3 days, plus guests staying at my own place, so that’ll generate 9 sets of king size bed linen and associated bath sheets, hand towels, flannels and tea towels to wash, and one super king set and two doubles - which means I can also test out a few of your tips too!

@appnut - I’ll try this out, thank you! I've tried the delicate wash, but I thought it still looked quite violent compared to a front loader handwash cycle. But it sounds as if it could be OK - I’ll try it when I have the time!

@yogitunes - the warm rinse is actually warm - same temp as the warm wash water AND the spray rinses are warm. Incidentally I have been using the cold cycle when I do normal clothes in the machine as this water is actually tepid as it is mixed to help detergent dissolve - so around 30*c; I felt the warm cycle was too hot for some of my jeans etc.

@cheltham - I did think there were a load of suds, but it did all rinse out! no harm done!

@earthling177 - thank you. I am going to do a low fill level, add detergent then let it agitate, then stop, add clothes, reset, and leave it alone!

@supersuds - 18 minute was is heavy cotton towels, and the like; no issues so far, but I’ll reduce it down to the 9 min cycle later on and see what happens. Guess I am coming from the school of 3.5hr washes for these types of fabrics so I have “longer is better” in my head

@Laundress - thanks for the reply! I could soak the items, but then that defies the purpose of getting this machine with its short cycles. I haven't had many issues yet though, in fact, none at all with items not being cleaned, so I think thats a good sign. Agree ref looking for a spinner - I am mindful every time I use the Siemens machine on 1400 RPM…

@combo52 - yes, I do have gas, in fact the water boiler next to the washer is gas. However, its quite hard to explain, but the duct would effectively have to go through the house, and up to surface level to exhaust - so I don't think this would be possible.

 

[qualin]

Chris, holy cripes! You put towels in there for 18 minutes?!?!

OK, you have to keep in mind that top loader agitation is quite violent, as you have already seen. You don't need a long wash time to get the job done.

Here's what I've found when it comes to top load agitation times:

6 minutes - Delicate or lightly soiled fabrics
9 minutes - Most normal loads, including synthetics, permanent press
12 minutes - Jeans, Heavy cottons or noticeably soiled clothes
15 minutes - Canvas or clothes which you are considering burning

Even my old GE washer (Thread in the link below) never went past 15 minutes.

I'm kind of surprised that your towels survived an 18 minute wash and didn't end up all torn up or full of holes. For towels, a 9 minute wash is suitable, unless they're badly soiled, then a longer wash would help.

http://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?37721

 

[chestermikeuk]

SQ

Glad your new laundry setup is working out for you Chris, is the Siemens set the one from home you had fitted in new kitchen ?

How are you finding the professional Ariel ? and how much do you use ? it does give a creamy foam and usually rinses away quickly, when I did towels in the TL i did 6 mins wash, 6 mins soak, 6 mins wash then rinse, that worked fine for me but obviously you have to be around the machine or use a digi timer...

Cheers, Mike

 

[panthera]

One or two small notes

1) A quick soak of only 10 minutes when using enzymes then straight into wash works wonders, please try it.

2) 125ml of 5% vinegar or 30ml of 15% in the final rinse will work wonders in getting that "fresh feeling' back.

3) Try cutting the detergent back to half and the 10 minute soak. Go up from there if needed, but I bet you won't need it.

4) Oxygen bleach in wash cycle? Might make a big difference.

 

[Marky_Mark]

Hey Chris

 

Great to see you're pleased with your new machine!

 

One thing I would add is that, if necessary, you could occasionally add some chlorine bleach.  Don't be afraid of doing this!  I used to feel that the idea of pouring bleach into a washing machine seemed as unusual, damaging and unwise as pouring it directly into my eyes.  However sensible use is actually ok and beneficial when used appropriately.  Most bleach in the UK is blended with detergent and thickened (e.g. Domestos) but this is not what you want.  Here in Spain (as in the USA) it's not uncommon to add bleach to the washing machine and you can easily buy pain old bleach that doesn't have any other additives and can actually be used to purify drinking water.   This is by far the most common type of bleach available in the USA and is also the most common here in Spain.  I believe this may be sold in the UK as "thin bleach". 

 

I've attached a link to the Clorox website which tells you how to perform a bleachability test, which I have followed when using an American TL for washing white shirts that also have small coloured parts.  The dosage instructions are in US cups, which are 240 ml.  The recommended dose is half to one cup of bleach added 5 minutes after the cycle has started.  This does sound like an alarmingly large quantity of bleach but it's very diluted and the wash cycle will end just a few minutes after the bleach is added.  Just out of interest, when I was in the supermarket today I took a glance at the bottles of "lejía lavadoras" (in English: washing machine bleach) and I snapped a photo!  Just €2 for 5 litres! 

 

How are you getting on with the machine?  Still loving it?

 

All the best

Mark

http://https//www.clorox.com/cleaning-and-laundry-tips/laundry/laundry-advice/