Twin Tubs, Twin-tubes?
There were several. Domestic, European and Japanese. I’ll give a quick brush-through for the domestic and Japanese machines. I've covered some of the highlights below:
Hoover:
Basic and the most popular of the bunch. Early models range from 1957 and production stopped 1984ish. Early models had high quality stainless washtubs while later machine went to a lighter and more stylish tinted polypropylene, one-piece tub design. NO, I repeat NO US Hoovers had heaters in them.
Design is very straight-forward: Washtub, Spinner. Sidewall mounted impeller goes in one direction only, spinner and pump run on separate motor, approximately 2400rpm spin speed. Pretty aggressive wash action as well. Later models introduced things like a spray-rinse spigot and even an automatic rinse system. 29" wide.
Had several small matching dryers, one is the D910, but all the dryers are the same mechanically, strange bi-directional timer, very slow dryer. Dryer is 24" wide.
Maytag:
The Maytag Porta-Washer or the A50. This was Maytag's own design, introduced in 1970. Very over-built machine, 2 large induction motors, reversing impellers (every 30 seconds), poly-belt wash drive, adaptation of a full-size poly-pump this was surely a Maytag approach to portable washing. Overall the machine is not bad. Unlike the Hoover, this machine not only utilized a reversing impeller system, but it had 2 impellers that ran in sync. This was necessary as the tub was very tall and narrow due to the narrow proportions of the machine. Do not be fooled, the machine holds the same amount of water as the Hoover machine due to the depth of the tub. This machine went through a few revisions: Different impeller colors, and lightening of the chassis in various ways. Spin speed was 2000rpm.
Some trouble spots are the wash belt and the diverter valve. The wash belt is made from polyurethane gets brittle and breaks with age, and the diverter valve, which is actually a suds-saver flap from a full-size machine, has a pot-metal stalk that will dissolve and break causing water to bleed over between tubs. Production for the washer ranged from early 1970 - late 1980.
The dryer is the DE50, and it is essentially a mini Halo-of-Heat dryer with nylon glides and an over the drum belt. Very nice little dryer, nice porcelain drum, gets pretty hot for such a small dryer. While I can't speak for wear, I've had no issues with mine, and the guides seem like they would be the wear point if used heavily. This unit also uses a poly-belt for it's blower which can break.
Both machines are the exact same dimensions and were later referred to as the Porta-Pair. The dryer could be wall-mounted with a kit and Maytag also made a stand for the pair. The dryer curiously, came before the washer dating back to 1968 in literature. The dryer was discontinued in 1980.
Speed Queen:
This was the most interesting of the Domestics. This machine actually had an agitator much like a normal top-loading machine. Spinner was an independent unit with its own electric pump. Basically this machine was 2 completely separate machines in one housing.
The wash side has a transmission, motor and pump to itself. US models under the Speed Queen brand utilized a wheel-on-pulley pump much like a wringer washer to drain the wash tub. There was a small grommet under the lid opening where the fill hose could snap in and be used to drain the tub. The pump was controlled by a knob on top that connected to the rod on the pump swing arm. Small capacity but a fascinating machine to watch. 1-speed, mechanical timer.
There were of course variants. Simplicity, a Canadian brand also sold this machine, but in a slightly different form. The Simplicity machine was setup a little differently. The transmission on the Simplicity machine is horizontal and the shaft exits from the top whereas the SQ has a side-mounted vertical pulley. The reason for the side pulley is the manual wheel pump that must ride on it. The Simplicity does not have this wheel pump or grommet in the tub. Instead it uses 1 electric pump for both sides with a pinch-valve much like a later Hoover machines. Timer is electro-mechanical and the 2-speed models used a double-sided timer to control the speed setting. 2-Dials on top for wash and spin controls. Spinner is direct-drive much like the SQ but the outer-tub is much shorter. In the Simplicity, there is a chassis brace “shelf” that the tubs anchor to. The spinner outer-tub has been shortened to accommodate this.
This machine is 32” wide and VERY heavy. Also probably the most complex of the twins. There was also a dryer, but I have never seen one in the flesh. The machine is a Servis UK design, you can lookup Servis SuperTwin on YouTube and find a lot more of them, they were much more popular there than here.
As for Japanese machines, the white Fridgette in this post is actually mine. It’s an early 70’s Hitachi machine underneath. As far as I know the Toshiba branded machine was also a Hitachi. There were also Sanyo and Panasonic machines, but there were not a lot of variations in the Japanese machines that I can see. The earlier ones had more individual characteristics to themselves than later machines. The Hitachi’s for instance used a belt-drive pump and that pump was driven off the wash motor not the spinner, which makes emptying interesting. These machines also suds-lock like crazy. The next generation introduced electric pumps which helped greatly. Still all very unique machines.
More typing than I had anticipated. If anyone has specific questions feel free to ask.
-Tim
