Antique Clothes Dryer
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laundromat
Well-known member
Brand name would help. My guesses are Hamilton or Blackstone.
dryer
I think it's for drying table cloths.
I think it's for drying table cloths.
That is kind of drying rack clothes dryer. These were made by a number of manufacturers and this was the only kind of clothes dryer available until the tumble dryer became commercially available in 1936. They could be heated with wood, coal, oil, steam, gas or electricity.
They were usually only found in upper class homes. I know that the Glensheen mansion in Duluth has one that is steam heated.
They remained popular to some extent after the 1930s as an easy way to dry flatwork such as sheets and tablecloths with fewer wrinkles than a tumble dryer. Martha Stewart has one at one of her estates expressly for drying flatwork and delicate items.
In terms of monetary value I would say little or nothing. In terms of historic value there may be a smaller history museum or historical society that would take it as part of an antique laundry collection. Depending on it's condition and how it's heated (gas or electric being the most sensible), you might even find a member here or a buyer on CL that would take it off your hands.
The company still exists and specializes in commercial flatwork laundry equipment.
Here is some information from 1920 about them:
They were usually only found in upper class homes. I know that the Glensheen mansion in Duluth has one that is steam heated.
They remained popular to some extent after the 1930s as an easy way to dry flatwork such as sheets and tablecloths with fewer wrinkles than a tumble dryer. Martha Stewart has one at one of her estates expressly for drying flatwork and delicate items.
In terms of monetary value I would say little or nothing. In terms of historic value there may be a smaller history museum or historical society that would take it as part of an antique laundry collection. Depending on it's condition and how it's heated (gas or electric being the most sensible), you might even find a member here or a buyer on CL that would take it off your hands.
The company still exists and specializes in commercial flatwork laundry equipment.
Here is some information from 1920 about them:
I think this type of drying cabinet was in some apartment houses where my parents lived and might have been one of the reasons it took so long to talk my mom into getting a dryer. These tended to dry things stiff and were not the best things for drying terrycloth towels unless you frequently flapped and fluffed them during drying.
My parents kept their Maytag Master in their storage locker and hauled it out to do laundry in the apartment building's basement laundry room where coin-op wringer washers were provided. Using a wringer washer in an apartment house laundry room in the late 40s must have been a lovely experience. It's bad enough with automatics, but all the time you would have to spend with a wringer--ugh!
My parents kept their Maytag Master in their storage locker and hauled it out to do laundry in the apartment building's basement laundry room where coin-op wringer washers were provided. Using a wringer washer in an apartment house laundry room in the late 40s must have been a lovely experience. It's bad enough with automatics, but all the time you would have to spend with a wringer--ugh!
Congrats On Your New Home
As well as the niffy drying cabinet in basement. Now you can look Martha Stewart and the Vanderbilt Estate in North Carolina in the eye.
http://www.themarthablog.com/2013/12/
Have a brochure form Chicago Dryer Company showing these appliances. As for value sadly little to none I should think beyond scrap. Problem is these units were built into the home/assembled on site. That probably means you'd have to take it apart to get it out which limits resale value.
The museums who most often have such units it is normally because as with the Biltmore estate they were original to the house
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/biltmore-techtour/1309
If it were me unless they are taking up too much space and or interfering with renovation plans I'd leave them where they are. When spare time is plentiful give the thing a good cleaning and testing for hopeful use. You can dry heavy blankets and other items in those things. Not to mention being able to "line" dry even when outside weather isn't that great.
As well as the niffy drying cabinet in basement. Now you can look Martha Stewart and the Vanderbilt Estate in North Carolina in the eye.
http://www.themarthablog.com/2013/12/
Have a brochure form Chicago Dryer Company showing these appliances. As for value sadly little to none I should think beyond scrap. Problem is these units were built into the home/assembled on site. That probably means you'd have to take it apart to get it out which limits resale value.
The museums who most often have such units it is normally because as with the Biltmore estate they were original to the house
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/biltmore-techtour/1309
If it were me unless they are taking up too much space and or interfering with renovation plans I'd leave them where they are. When spare time is plentiful give the thing a good cleaning and testing for hopeful use. You can dry heavy blankets and other items in those things. Not to mention being able to "line" dry even when outside weather isn't that great.
The Biltmore
in Asheville, NC has one similar
in Asheville, NC has one similar
Cool
you can have the flatest tableclothes & bedsheets in your neighborhood -hands down !
you can have the flatest tableclothes & bedsheets in your neighborhood -hands down !
"you can have the flatest tableclothes & bedsheets in your neighborhood -hands down !"
IF it can still be heated. It might have been disconnected from the hydronic heating system long ago.
IF it can still be heated. It might have been disconnected from the hydronic heating system long ago.
michaelman2
Well-known member
I guess this is the same concept as my laundry room racks, clothesline and a space heater or fan in the laundry room? Items dry very, very quickly. The only items I place in the tumble dryer are towels and underwear. Even in the Summer with a fan in the room, the air conditioned, dehumidified air drys items surprisingly quickly .
Except the drying cabinet, not to be confused with the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, does not have a fan. They go through a whole word salad to describe the ventilation, which includes natural circulation, minimal loss of heat etc, but it's sort of a bake oven for laundry.
Best of my knowledge these drying cabinets had several forms of heating (stoves, steam, steam and gas, etc..) but none used hot water. In fact do not even think they were connected to the home's main heating supply which back in the late 1800's early 1900's could have been any of several various methods.
Things dried in these contraptions are the same as hung on a line or rack indoors. Stiff, and often lacking the sweetness you get from outdoor line drying. As with modern condenser dryers the purpose was to solve a problem; how to dry laundry independent of outdoor weather and or more quickly than anything else.
Smaller versions of these drying cabinets could be had in Britain and other parts of Europe. They were nothing more than a hamper sized metal container with suspended racks and a heating element at the bottom. If the latter was exposed and or your laundry hung to low there was risk of scorching and or things going on fire.
Yes, the idea was same as hanging laundry in a heated room and using a fan/other method of ventilation. That had been done for years (well without the fans until electricity came along), but caused many problems. First and mainly having to deal with wet dripping laundry hanging all over one's home or kitchen. This often created dame and moist indoor conditions. That plus often one's washing took on a whiff of whatever air was indoors. So if the laundry was hanging in the kitchen or near it would be scented with whatever cooking went on. Nothing like Kipper scented undergarments and linens.
As mentioned upthread until vented tumble dryers became smaller and installed in homes, these drying cabinets were state of the art. Commercial laundries by the early 1900's could get steam heated tumble dryers, but these were large affairs not suitable for even great estate homes.
Commercial laundries grew to prefer tumble dryers where possible for the reasons we do so today; things dry more softer and often smoother than simply hanging and being baked dry.
With all these methods one worry was constant in the days when soaps were the main detergent for wash day. If washing was not totally rinsed free of soap the residue could and often did turn brown when exposed to heat. Normally this would occur when ironing, but using any sort of heated drying (cabinet, tumble or even too close to a fireplace/range) produced the same result. In fact laundry manuals of the period warned that things dried in these cabinets often came out with a yellow cast.
Things dried in these contraptions are the same as hung on a line or rack indoors. Stiff, and often lacking the sweetness you get from outdoor line drying. As with modern condenser dryers the purpose was to solve a problem; how to dry laundry independent of outdoor weather and or more quickly than anything else.
Smaller versions of these drying cabinets could be had in Britain and other parts of Europe. They were nothing more than a hamper sized metal container with suspended racks and a heating element at the bottom. If the latter was exposed and or your laundry hung to low there was risk of scorching and or things going on fire.
Yes, the idea was same as hanging laundry in a heated room and using a fan/other method of ventilation. That had been done for years (well without the fans until electricity came along), but caused many problems. First and mainly having to deal with wet dripping laundry hanging all over one's home or kitchen. This often created dame and moist indoor conditions. That plus often one's washing took on a whiff of whatever air was indoors. So if the laundry was hanging in the kitchen or near it would be scented with whatever cooking went on. Nothing like Kipper scented undergarments and linens.
As mentioned upthread until vented tumble dryers became smaller and installed in homes, these drying cabinets were state of the art. Commercial laundries by the early 1900's could get steam heated tumble dryers, but these were large affairs not suitable for even great estate homes.
Commercial laundries grew to prefer tumble dryers where possible for the reasons we do so today; things dry more softer and often smoother than simply hanging and being baked dry.
With all these methods one worry was constant in the days when soaps were the main detergent for wash day. If washing was not totally rinsed free of soap the residue could and often did turn brown when exposed to heat. Normally this would occur when ironing, but using any sort of heated drying (cabinet, tumble or even too close to a fireplace/range) produced the same result. In fact laundry manuals of the period warned that things dried in these cabinets often came out with a yellow cast.
Drying Cabinets
In Australia, we had refrigerator sized drying cabinets up until the late 70's.
Usually two levels of wooden dowels to drape things over and an element and fan at the bottom.
The more expensive ones had multiple fan speeds and temperature controls.
The Tumble dryer didn't come into vogue over here until the late 70's early 80's, before then you had clothes horses or a Drying cabinet.
In Australia, we had refrigerator sized drying cabinets up until the late 70's.
Usually two levels of wooden dowels to drape things over and an element and fan at the bottom.
The more expensive ones had multiple fan speeds and temperature controls.
The Tumble dryer didn't come into vogue over here until the late 70's early 80's, before then you had clothes horses or a Drying cabinet.
I have seen pictures of European kitchen with high ceilings and a movable drying rack that was mounted over the AGA. It was lowered for loading and raised out of the way and up into the heat for drying.
Those hoists on pulleys (Laundrymaid, PulleyMaid, etc...) have been around Europe/Britain for hundreds of years in one version or another. They pretty much were standard in Victorian kitchens/sculleries. In large estates they had huge ones running up and down the length of a room.
These contraptions take advantage of the fact heat rises so the air near ceilings will be warmer. So while you get the washing out of the way again you had to live with water dripping all over the place while things dried. Imagine eating a meal under such conditions. Modern washing machines remove more water than wringers or hand wringing so there will be less of that now.
Also since smoke/fumes rise with currents of air your freshly laundered items could be fouled.
Several companies will ship these driers all over the world. However installation must be done properly. That is you have to really secure them into the joists or studs. If not the weight of heavy wet laundry can yank the entire thing down.
http://www.pulleymaid.com/deluxe_clothes_airer.htm
These contraptions take advantage of the fact heat rises so the air near ceilings will be warmer. So while you get the washing out of the way again you had to live with water dripping all over the place while things dried. Imagine eating a meal under such conditions. Modern washing machines remove more water than wringers or hand wringing so there will be less of that now.
Also since smoke/fumes rise with currents of air your freshly laundered items could be fouled.
Several companies will ship these driers all over the world. However installation must be done properly. That is you have to really secure them into the joists or studs. If not the weight of heavy wet laundry can yank the entire thing down.
http://www.pulleymaid.com/deluxe_clothes_airer.htm
Biltmore's Laundry Room
click on the link below and go forward to 17:22 to see the laundry in Biltmore...they show the dryers briefly. Pretty swanky for pre 1900.
click on the link below and go forward to 17:22 to see the laundry in Biltmore...they show the dryers briefly. Pretty swanky for pre 1900.
Has any one noticed that Martha uses Neptunes? :-D
Biltmore Had Every Mod Con Money Could By For The Day
Makes Downton Abbey look like a two up and two down in Bayswater. *LOL*
While great country houses in Britain still mainly used fire places with perhaps some central heating, Biltmore had full central heating via steam convector radiators. Biltmore's boilers also supplied full hot water for indoor plumbing at (IIRC) three temperatures; hot, very hot and near boiling. This was achieved by tempering water as it came from the boilers depending upon use. For laundry and cleaning you could get
Makes Downton Abbey look like a two up and two down in Bayswater. *LOL*
While great country houses in Britain still mainly used fire places with perhaps some central heating, Biltmore had full central heating via steam convector radiators. Biltmore's boilers also supplied full hot water for indoor plumbing at (IIRC) three temperatures; hot, very hot and near boiling. This was achieved by tempering water as it came from the boilers depending upon use. For laundry and cleaning you could get
Laundress, why do you insist on saying that laundry hug up to dry will be dripping? Even a good hand wringing will remove enough water so that things don't drip and if you have a good wringer, you can remove enough water so that things don't drip when hung up to dry. I have washed in a Maytag washer with the roller water remover and not had things dripping when hung out to dry. Granted, very heavy things would probably drip, but maybe those would be laundered when they could be hung outside to drip and dry.
