Gas or Electric Halo-of-heat

[waterwitch]

Recently my room mate purchased a set of Maytags. He got a great deal on the pair. Only $40.00! The dryer is electric. I have only been around gas dryers growing up, the same goes for him, and all my other room mates. Which do you guys and gals prefer? Gas or electric, and why?

 

[easyspindry]

they both do the job.

Personally, I've only had gas dryers. Years ago, gas was much more efficient to run but not so much so anymore.

My mother had an electric HOH dryer, and it was great.

Given a choice, I guess I'd stick with gas if it's available.

Jerry Gay

 

[cleanteamofny]

I use both and for some reason the electric is slightly quicker than gas.
But when it comes down to preference, it would be gas all the way because the heating put moisture into the clothes while electric completely removes it!

 

[akronman]

either/or

I was raised with gas dryers only, and was always a fan of gas. Here in Ohio it's cheaper than electric. But this hobby has introduced me to some great electric dryers, fast, accurate controls, etc. So I somewhat favor electric now, but the price still makes me use my gas ones more.

 

[joefuss1984]

Electric

I was raised with gas dryers but quickly came to love electric.  To me, the electric is easier to hook up, cheaper to repair should one arise and dries much quicker.

 

[pierreandreply4]

me i was raise using electric dryers as an electric dryer drys clothes more quickly.

 

[kenmore71]

Generally speaking, I prefer gas dryers over electric dryers. That said, when it comes to the Halo-of-Heat design, I prefer the electric version. I currently own (and occasionally use) both a DE806 and a DG806. I did a near total restoration on the DG806 about a year ago and have done rudimentary service on the electric one.

Here are some observations:

The entire concept of the HOH dryer seems to have been designed with the electric version in mind. The gas version is a very odd setup that really looks to be almost an afterthought by the engineers. Electric HOH dryers actually dry pretty quickly given the rather paltry 4500 watt element that is in them (compared to the 5200 to 6000 watt element in other electric dryers of that era.)

The two drawbacks to the HOH electric design in my experience is that the front of the drum gets VERY hot during operation. If you overload the dryer, there is a danger of scorching if items stay pressed up against the inlet area for an extended period of time. Secondly, you need to be pretty diligent about keeping the front drum felt seal in good condition. Thousands of HOH elements have been prematurely shorted out by a stray coin, paper clip or safety pin that worked its way down into the element area and then there is a tripped breaker and a service call. Also, as the felt seal disintigrates it can break off and fall onto the heating element creating a definite fire hazard. I would never leave a HOH dryer unattended while it is drying.

Now the gas version is sort of crazy complex compared to the electric version. In the gas version, the burner is crammed in perpendicular to the drum at the very front of the cabinet. The flame cone sits directly under the front of the drum just inches away from a 3" wide felt seal that circles the entire drum. Because of this situation, Maytag throttled the burner output back to only 18,000 BTUs (compared to the 22,000 to 25,000 BTUs of comparable dryers of the period). Also, the gas version of this dryer used a standing pilot light. Not only does this waste energy, but the by-products of the pilot light burning for years makes a heck of a mess out of the mechanical and electrical "guts" of the dryer. After the restoration, I only light the pilot light in mine minutes before I want to dry. I then turn the gas off immediately after I'm finished.

In my personal experience the gas version of this particular design is slower than the electric. A normal load of towels takes about 50 minutes in the electric HOH. The same load in the gas HOH takes 60-65 minutes.

I'll post some pics of the curious design of the gas HOH dryer.

Here is the front of the dryer with the cabinet removed. See how the burner and cone sit under the front of the drum.

 

[kenmore71]

Here is the inside of the cabinet looking at it from the back. Note the wide felt seal that the entire front of the drum is "seated" in. The burner cone seats in the galvanized plenum at the far lower right corner. The heated air is then drawn up into the drum.

 

[kenmore71]

What the felt looked like in one spot after 45 years.

 

[revvinkevin]

 

 

I prefer gas because it's less expensive (here anyway) and seems to dry noticeably faster then electric.   Though I'm not comparing apples to apples here, one brand of electric dryer, a different brand of gas dryer.   They probably have different heat outputs and airflow numbers.

  

Kevin

 

[combo52]

Gas Vs Elecrtic Dryers

Basically there are few important differences in the way these two different heat sources complete the job of drying clothing, in fact most of our customers don't know weather they have a gas or an electric dryer. This is not the case with gas or electric ranges where their are major differences and advantages when comparing these two appliances. That said I would always chose a gas dryer over an electric model if your home has natural gas service for the following reasons.

 

Gas dryers are always better for the environment as their use causes only one third of the amount of carbon dioxide to be released into the atmosphere. And the air pollution produced by burning coal oil etc is much worst in general.

 

Gas dryers are almost faster at drying clothing, the only documented case where I ever saw an electric dryer was faster was when CRs tested MT HOH dryers many years ago and actually found that the gas HOH dryer took one minute longer to dry the same load. The HOH dryers in general suffered from air-flow problems as the blower drive belt had a very light tension and the lint filter was too small so they did not maintain good airflow especially if the vent system was anything but short. The 18,000 BTUs of the HOH dryers was  not the problem when it came to slow drying, many other gas dryers used 18,000 BTU burners including MTs first gas dryer designs. The gas HOH dryer because of the burners placement had to have a very sensitive hi-limit safety thermostat and as a result the burner often did not stay on enough of the time especially as the machine and it seals etc aged. The electric HOH also suffered slow drying because they had to use a 170 degree safety thermostat compared to WPs 390 degree thermostat.

 

But the best reason to always chose a gas dryer over an electric dryer is that they are FREE to own over the long run. In most cases a gas dryer will pay for itself over a 3-10 year period of time and over a life time of use you will be thousands of dollars richer. Just think if there was an option on your next car that will make owning and operating it free over your life time, wouldn't you buy it ?.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

It's GAS for Best Value & What I See Mostly Used!

Gas is cheaper & more plentiful & constant, especially in commercial & industrial use!

So, naturally, I see gas, at least in the way of dryers used in nearly every household, whereas there are countless uses of it in commercial & institutional laundries, as well as in restraunts, whether it's a pizza oven, deep fryer, food warmer (a coney island I ordered my chili dog at had an un-guarded open-flame right under a table I saw while I waited for my order) or steamer!

-- Dave

 

[maytag85]

I know the gas Maytag halo of heat dryers used a standing pilot, but where is the pilot located?

 

[askolover]

probably just inside the heat tube because the burner resides in that vicinity and the pilot would have to be by the burner or at least in close proximity thereto.

 

[maytag85]

The standing pilot is most likely located near the burner. I know the electric halo of heat dryers are better, but if I find a gas version I may get it since the gas halo of heat dryers aren't that common.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

I still think gas is more widely used where I live--people/families with electric ranges would even have gas dryers (a friend's mother opened the WARD SIGNATURE pilot door to let me see the flame), and the rest of the appliances with the exception of a no-name electric cook top and Frigidaire French door wall oven were what made these folks Norge-Nuts! Though it was only a couple refrigerators, and a plumbed-in portable dishwasher that sat in a nook under a small "L" counter...

However, some electric range homes (including my maternal-grandparents and mine) had an electric dryer for the matter of convenience, as would at least one home with a gas range out of many, maybe to get out of the dryer having a standing pilot light that needed to be lit, or just a matter of its treatment or performance drying the clothes...

Electric dryers might make sense in apartment and logic laundries, as that's where they tend to be widely used, even as expensive all that DC power, efficiency-wise can be...

-- Dave

 

[goatfarmer]

<blockquote>
The standing pilot is most likely located near the burner. I know the electric halo of heat dryers are better, but if I find a gas version I may get it since the gas halo of heat dryers aren't that common.  

</blockquote>
You answered your own question. Around here, I see as many gas dryers, as electric.

 

[wft2800]

I know nothing much about Maytag, but I would never use a gas dryer. Electric dryers are easier to hook-up, they're considerably safer, don't require constant maintenance to avoid fires (although one does of course take care of the lint filter), don't fill your home with carbon monoxide fumes (or leak un-ignited gas)...

 

[maytag85]

Since I do own a Maytag DG306 (a DG606 I converoto a DG306), and I will say the gas HOH dryers are somewhat of an odd setup, but at least Maytag offered a gas dryer in the late 50’s as well as WP/KM, GE, Westinghouse, and Frigidaire didn’t offer gas dryers until the 1960’s. I believe GE didn’t even offer gas dryers until the mid to late 60’s, but I may be a little off with that though.

 

[wmjpate]

You wrote that the Maytag burner output was throttled down?

You wrote: Now the gas version is sort of crazy complex compared to the electric version. In the gas version, the burner is crammed in perpendicular to the drum at the very front of the cabinet. The flame cone sits directly under the front of the drum just inches away from a 3" wide felt seal that circles the entire drum. Because of this situation, Maytag throttled the burner output back to only 18,000 BTUs (compared to the 22,000 to 25,000 BTUs of comparable dryers of the period). Also, the gas version of this dryer used a standing pilot light. Not only does this waste energy, but the by-products of the pilot light burning for years makes a heck of a mess out of the mechanical and electrical "guts" of the dryer. After the restoration, I only light the pilot light in mine minutes before I want to dry. I then turn the gas off immediately after I'm finished.

I get your concerns but could the burner be modified to output a 25,000 btu level? I would assume the tube could be insulated with asbestos or some other insulator. With that in mind do you know how Maytag modified the burner unit? Did they they just change the orifice? As for the standing pilot, I agree and turn mine off when not in use. During the summer .... clotheslines are much more efficient!! As to electronic start units, I have converted my residential boiler and am not happy with the electric start which has failed when I least want it to due to a poorly designed spark unit, ergo, standing pilot's are pretty darn dependable and not significantly less efficient in my mind. Just sayin'. Also, it depends on what state you are in when it comes to the earth friendly benefits of electric units. Coal states are just not there.

 

[maytag85]

If you upped the BTUs to 25,000, it would ruin the felt seal that helps direct air through the burner and would be a fire hazard since the burner is that close to the drum. Here’s a photo of how close the burner is to the outer felt seal and to the front of the cabinet. It’s a Rube Goldberg setup since it has a felt seal that helps direct the air through the burner and air mixer assembly and has standing pilot ignition and I usually light the pilot on mine every time I dry a load of laundry in mine and don’t feel like going through wiring each year and having to repaint the surfaces inside the cabinet and such. One nice thing about the gas HOH dryers is there isn’t a heating element to short out and if coins do fall into the heating shroud they’ll just sit there until you disassemble the dryer for a cleaning and servicing.

 

[wmjpate]

Insulating the burner tube and adjusting the btu safely?

I see your image but couldn't you use a product such as below to effectively insulate the tube?

JC Performance 100% Virgin Basalt "Titanium" Lava Wrap

Tested to withstand 1800°F of continuous exposure, UP TO 2500°F radiant heat

Wrap Dimensions: Length: 25 total feet, Width: 1 inch, Thickness: 1/16"

Our wraps are proudly made without Asbestos

Designed to provide maximum heat retention for the user with Premium Lock Weave Technology

 

[combo52]

HOH Maytag Gas Dryers

Many gas dryers only had 18,000 BTUs including Mts earlier design and I am sure that drilling the orifice to 25,000 BTUs would not create a problem as long as vent was clean etc.

 

Standing pilots were a huge waste of energy, In many cases the pilot burns up to 1/2 or more of the total gas a range or dryer will use in a year. Even though a standing pilot was a simple system the number of repairs we did on CP dryers were actually more than models with electric ignition.

 

Maytag was always conservative in their approach to appliance design, lower HP motors, shorter wash times and maximum dry times available, smaller capacities and generally more mediocre performance, but they also used a little less water and electricity etc.

 

John 

 

[maytag85]

One of these days I might look into converting my Maytag DG306 to electronic ignition but I’ll have to obtain all the parts to do the conversion. Since I haven’t been using my Maytag DG306 all that much ever since I acquired my Whirlpool Imperial Mark XII set, I might just leave everything alone for now plus I plan on putting my Whirlpools into service later this month to give my Maytags a break since there is some tweaking and adjustments I’ll need to make to them to keep them running in tip top shape.

 

[wmjpate]

They actually made an electronic starter for the DG606?

If they actually made an electronic starter for the DG606 I might change my tune regarding reliance on a standing pilot? As I will have the unit apart, I might consider it if there is a wiring diagram and the components aren't obscenely expensive and still available. Thanks for the input!

Bill

 

[maytag85]

No HOH that I am aware of ever came with electronic ignition when they were new and all came standard with standing pilot ignition. The electronic ignition conversions have been done by John/combo52 and AW user RickR along with a few others in the past 10 to 12 years.

 

[combo52]

MT Gas Dryers

Were all electric ignition till they brought out the HOH dryers around 1958. 

 

MT cut cost with the change to the HOH dryers in many ways, they also were going after gas company business for sales of dryers because gas sellers preferred selling dryers with CBPs so every additional dryer sold guaranteed them a certain amount of gas burned every year whether the owner ever started using the new dryer or not.

 

Around 1976 California banned CBPs so that was part of the reason MT gave up on the unpopular and poor selling  HOH  dryers.

 

John L.

 

[maytag85]

I don’t think it was necessarily standing pilots were banned here in California it’s just Maytag wanted to keep up with the times and probably got feedback from customers and repair techs and decided to switch to electronic ignition since you didn’t have to worry about a standing pilot going out or having to light the pilot every time you wanted to dry something.

 

[sprog]

Electric all the way

Rationale: natural gas (methane) combustion produces
methyl alcohol
formaldehyde
formic acid
carbon monoxide
carbon dioxide
water

Over time, some of these byproducts of combustion eat away at older appliances... my 2 cents.

 

[combo52]

Constant Burning Pilots In Califorina

Hi Sean Yes they were banned on dryers and gas ranges in the late 70s, unfortunately it took the US Government till the Obama administration to catch up with California and do the same thing nationwide.

 

John L.