dj-gabriele
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Equator machine are water condensor so they need cold water turned on whenever they're running.
condenser dryer question
- Thread starter vacuumfreeeke
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I tried the Equator with the cold water left turned on to it with same results. It is unvented. I scrapped the piece of shit out to an old man who hauls tin. Maybe it's in a better place by now. I like d the machine but right before I scrapped it, it developed a timer problem in the wash cycle. It seems that every time I used the machne it would have a mind of it's own. Like it developed a new problem between every wash.
You did not say what type of laundry you were drying,nor how full the machine was.
1. Heavy cottons and linen fabrics will take longer to dry then man made fibers. Especially with the low heat and air flow of 110v dryers. Unless the final spin is in excess of 1200rpms, count on one, to perhaps two hours to dry a "full" load.
2. Being as the above may, as you were already told, combination washer/dryer units are NOT the best dryers simply because of their design. Dryers normally have much larger drums than front loading washing machines of the same rated capacity, simply because larger drums provide for the air flow and movement required for heat and air to get at the laundry, fluff it and evaporate the moisture. With combination units, one either has to load the unit half or less full when using automatich "wash and dry", or take half or more of the laundry out of the machine before starting the drying process. If the machine is over loaded you will be drying items for hours and probably not even then get them totally dry.
3. Your post above is confusing, as you state the water was turned off, then you say you tried with the water on. Equator only made combination W&D units which used cold water (unvented), so you need to have water running into the machine. Keep in mind the unit requires "COLD" water, the colder the better as the difference in temperature between the hot air coming from the dryer, against the cold water is what causes the condensation which dries the laundry. If your area's cold water is above 86F, as it can be in some areas of the United States, during warmer times of the year and or warm weather, then drying times are going to be longer because you are actually using luke-warm to tepid water instead of cold.
All and all combination units are not the best thing since sliced bread they are promoted to be. Even in Europe, most consumer rating/guides suggest consumers if at all possible try for separate washers and dryers, and that is with 220v power heating the dryer.
Equator units have been plauged with problems for years now, though earlier models seemed to do their jobs reasonably well.
L.
1. Heavy cottons and linen fabrics will take longer to dry then man made fibers. Especially with the low heat and air flow of 110v dryers. Unless the final spin is in excess of 1200rpms, count on one, to perhaps two hours to dry a "full" load.
2. Being as the above may, as you were already told, combination washer/dryer units are NOT the best dryers simply because of their design. Dryers normally have much larger drums than front loading washing machines of the same rated capacity, simply because larger drums provide for the air flow and movement required for heat and air to get at the laundry, fluff it and evaporate the moisture. With combination units, one either has to load the unit half or less full when using automatich "wash and dry", or take half or more of the laundry out of the machine before starting the drying process. If the machine is over loaded you will be drying items for hours and probably not even then get them totally dry.
3. Your post above is confusing, as you state the water was turned off, then you say you tried with the water on. Equator only made combination W&D units which used cold water (unvented), so you need to have water running into the machine. Keep in mind the unit requires "COLD" water, the colder the better as the difference in temperature between the hot air coming from the dryer, against the cold water is what causes the condensation which dries the laundry. If your area's cold water is above 86F, as it can be in some areas of the United States, during warmer times of the year and or warm weather, then drying times are going to be longer because you are actually using luke-warm to tepid water instead of cold.
All and all combination units are not the best thing since sliced bread they are promoted to be. Even in Europe, most consumer rating/guides suggest consumers if at all possible try for separate washers and dryers, and that is with 220v power heating the dryer.
Equator units have been plauged with problems for years now, though earlier models seemed to do their jobs reasonably well.
L.
A friend lived in a condo in FL where they had GE combos. During the warmer months the ground water was so warm that the condensing system was inefficient to the point of being almost ineffective. Most of the drying was accomplished by the steam leaking out under the rinse dispenser drawer since that was the top of the condensing system, such as it was.
110 volt condenser combos are going to take hours to dry a 6 lb cotton load, especially if it includes any towels. Unlike a portable vented dryer on 115 volts where you have the motor and heating element, the combo has to power a heavier motor to cope with washing and spinning, a heavier, but smaller tub, again for strength to withstand spinning, the separate motors for the pump and the blower or recirculator plus the heating element. The maximum load is 1500 watts on a single circuit to allow a bit of capacity for safety. The portable dryer can devote more wattage to the heater since the smaller motor is turning a lighter weight drum and running the blower off the other end of the motor shaft. The combo has the same wattage but has to split it up differently. Heating on 110 volts does not allow the dryer to heat quickly to the point where there is a proper temperature ratio between heated steamy air and the temperature of the cold water. Not only does hotter air hold more moisture, but makes a greater thermal difference between the air inside the dryer and the condensing water causing the condensing process to be more effective. It is not a fast process under the best of circumstances. The larger LG combo only pulses the water on for brief periods. It sprays against a plate to make the metal cold, giving the steam a place to condense and owners can tell you how long those machines take to dry.
If the drying was the same whether the cold water was on or not, perhaps the condenser was clogged with lint, the water jet for the condenser might have been clogged by a mineral buildup (highly likely in many parts of Florida where the water is hard) and not supplying the condenser with enough water or, and this seems to be a biggie with these machines according to users who post in the Laundry Room, the little fan blades in the blower quickly become covered in lint, reducing air flow.
110 volt condenser combos are going to take hours to dry a 6 lb cotton load, especially if it includes any towels. Unlike a portable vented dryer on 115 volts where you have the motor and heating element, the combo has to power a heavier motor to cope with washing and spinning, a heavier, but smaller tub, again for strength to withstand spinning, the separate motors for the pump and the blower or recirculator plus the heating element. The maximum load is 1500 watts on a single circuit to allow a bit of capacity for safety. The portable dryer can devote more wattage to the heater since the smaller motor is turning a lighter weight drum and running the blower off the other end of the motor shaft. The combo has the same wattage but has to split it up differently. Heating on 110 volts does not allow the dryer to heat quickly to the point where there is a proper temperature ratio between heated steamy air and the temperature of the cold water. Not only does hotter air hold more moisture, but makes a greater thermal difference between the air inside the dryer and the condensing water causing the condensing process to be more effective. It is not a fast process under the best of circumstances. The larger LG combo only pulses the water on for brief periods. It sprays against a plate to make the metal cold, giving the steam a place to condense and owners can tell you how long those machines take to dry.
If the drying was the same whether the cold water was on or not, perhaps the condenser was clogged with lint, the water jet for the condenser might have been clogged by a mineral buildup (highly likely in many parts of Florida where the water is hard) and not supplying the condenser with enough water or, and this seems to be a biggie with these machines according to users who post in the Laundry Room, the little fan blades in the blower quickly become covered in lint, reducing air flow.
Washer dryers in my experience are an absolute waste of time and money. I have had a few in rental accomodation in Ireland and the UK over the years and none of them, from any brand, were capable of drying clothes satisfactorily in anything like a reasonable time.
Washing machines and tumble dryers are very different beasts and combining the two usually gives you a normal washer with a small fan heater attached! The machine can't get the airflow necessary to dry effectively nor does it usually have the space in the drum.
Washers also have a lot of rubber door seals and are wet in side, so the dryer part has to first dry out the washing machine before it even has any impact on the clothes in the drum.
Also, I've found that many of these machines produce a horrible hot door seal smell as the various rubber components of the washing machine heat up. Your clothes come out whiffing of hot washing machine!
On top of that, many of the models I used heated the clothes FAR too hot and were totally unsuitable for delicate laundry.
I've now got an Electrolux Inspire Condenser-dryer that is producing excellent results and has reasonable drying time. Quite a nice capacity too for a machine that's a standard Euro kitchen module size.
Washing machines and tumble dryers are very different beasts and combining the two usually gives you a normal washer with a small fan heater attached! The machine can't get the airflow necessary to dry effectively nor does it usually have the space in the drum.
Washers also have a lot of rubber door seals and are wet in side, so the dryer part has to first dry out the washing machine before it even has any impact on the clothes in the drum.
Also, I've found that many of these machines produce a horrible hot door seal smell as the various rubber components of the washing machine heat up. Your clothes come out whiffing of hot washing machine!
On top of that, many of the models I used heated the clothes FAR too hot and were totally unsuitable for delicate laundry.
I've now got an Electrolux Inspire Condenser-dryer that is producing excellent results and has reasonable drying time. Quite a nice capacity too for a machine that's a standard Euro kitchen module size.
I guess nothing will ever compare favorably with the Bendix Duomatic. The electric condenser drying machines usually dried a full 8 pound load of cottons in 45 to 60 minutes, 60 minutes being a rarely needed amount of time.
YeahBut
How much electric power or gas did those units draw?
Even today's full sized electric dryers are not rated the same as they were in the past. Heck one or two housewives using a Hamilton dryer at the same time probably took out the electic grid for the area! *LOL*
Seriously, dryers back then ran much hotter in most cases to deal with laundry that was wetter than even today's puny top loaders spin things.
L.
How much electric power or gas did those units draw?
Even today's full sized electric dryers are not rated the same as they were in the past. Heck one or two housewives using a Hamilton dryer at the same time probably took out the electic grid for the area! *LOL*
Seriously, dryers back then ran much hotter in most cases to deal with laundry that was wetter than even today's puny top loaders spin things.
L.
Yeah, I think older dryers (including European ones) were far more power hungry than their modern counterparts.
I've seen 3-phase European dryers for residential use dating back to the 1960s !!!
380V 50Hz 3 Phase. They possibly drew about 6 KW
I've seen 3-phase European dryers for residential use dating back to the 1960s !!!
380V 50Hz 3 Phase. They possibly drew about 6 KW
Actually, the older dryers like the Hamiltons, because of their low air flow did not use high wattage elements. The Fiiltrator dryers used 4400 watts for heating. The high drying temperatures of Hamilton-style dryers were maintained at the top of the drying chamber by having air moving underneath the drum pulling the heavier, moisture laden air out instead of introducing lots of air into the dryer that had to be heated. The late 30s Hotpoint dryer we have that is like the first GE dryer with the square window, needed new heating elements and both elements were the same wattage as the Filtrator's heaters. To achieve the high temperatures in a typical air flow dryer, the 50 amp 8000+ watts of input is needed because the evaporation of water holds down the drying temperature in an air flow type of dryer. I can get fast, high heat drying with my gas KitchenAid dryer with a 37000 BTU burner, but that is about 15000 more BTUs than the original burner. Any input will let a dryer get very hot after the clothes have dried. The secret to using high temperatures to speed drying in an air flow dryer is for the dryer to be able to reach a high operating temperature within 10 minutes or so of starting.
