How is this possible? 1968 Hotpoint washer

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Hotpoint Duo-Load Washer

this was a very unique washer that was a solid tub machine with a lift out mini-basket type smaller top wash tub which was also a solid basket. Both tubs filled seperaturley with different temperatures if disired. To my know algae no one has one of these interesting machines, this washer has been discussed on this foram before so you can probably find it in the archives.
 
Our Local Dealer...

Said he remembered this, but never sold one of them, he said they never carried anything that was too different in their store.
 
late model ST hotpoint

i would like to find a classic solid tub hotpoint-parents had one bought new in 1970 that lasted to 1981;no problems at all for first 9 yrs then fairly regular breakdowns after that;pump seal went out,friction pad came off clutch,fault that finally"did in"this washer is when the aluminum sediment tube corroded and broke off with a fragment jamming in the pump.In 1981,pump kits were still readily avalible,but other spare parts were not-had to drag home a 2nd ST hotpoint for a parts stash(that one slightly older and in good physical condition...)Pump repair was a bit of bother as the bronze hub of the 4-blade plastic impeller was secured to the motor shaft with a setscrew-usually rusted solid to motor shaft...This washer was interned in the landfill in 1981-stood and watched as it was covered over...
 
Here's the short version:

The fill for the upper, mini tub was metered to fill into the mini tub through holes in the lid/cover (what looks like a huge funky filter-pan in the illustration below) up to capacity. Once that water meter closed, one fill solenoid would shut and a separate solenoid would activate for water temperature change and float valves in the lid/cover of the upper mini tub would close from the water level, redirecting the lower tub water through channels in the mini tub/lid assembly, to drop into the lower tub to fill it up to the bottom of the mini tub. Then the whole show would start agitation.

The upper mini tub used a combination of seals and floats to keep its water inside the tub during the fill and wash/rinse periods and to allow the "throw" of its water out through a ring of holes around the circumference at the top of the lid/cover that were aimed at channels put in the balance ring over the main washbasket during spin (those white triangular things pointing upwards in the illustration below). The two separate tub waters would never touch each other until they met in the outer tub for drainage.

It was a clever idea and an ultimate bell & whistle. It is one of my holy grails; a "Duo-Grail" if you will.

John is right; I posted two big threads all about this with lots of illustrations. You can use the Super Searchalator to find them. You can also see a dandy set of pictures of how it works in the model's cut sheet in the Ephemera collection for 1968 Hotpoint Washers.

bajaespuma++12-26-2012-08-28-1.jpg
 
Oh, Puh-leeze!

Dating from the time I first began helping my Mom with the wash, I've been doing laundry for fifty years, and I can think of like TWO times this feature might have come in handy.

I'm willing to bet that's why it didn't fly; it wasn't really needed.
 
It would be a fun washer to find, but like Sandy said, there's a good reason not many were found. By the late 60's & early 70's the gimmick would have been a difficult sell for those who had been using an automatic washer for a while. They would recognize there was little need for this feature as well as the fact that even a quick glance at a current Consumer's Report magazine would dissuade most buyers from jumping into more gadgets for a relatively low-rated machine.

Still...

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I really like the look of these Hotpoints. I prefer them to GE washers of the same period. Too bad they weren't as long lasting...

If I had a washer like this, I'd certainly use the small basket for whites. I usually don't wear white clothes but I have too often washed a white T-shirt or dishcloth with other dark items and they weren't white anymore after being washed!

I like to overload, mix fabrics and colors!

Strangely, I like to pre-rinse my dishes until they look clean before I put them in the dishwasher and I often start the dishwasher it when it's still half-empty!
 
Quality control was weak on Taylor Avenue.

Chicago Hotpoints were, to my knowledge, never high-rated machines nor were they built well. Time and time again I've read reports and opinions that in the Fifites and early Sixties GE let Hotpoint operate somewhat autonomously to develop innovations and take design risks that GE could later trash or choose to incorporate under their own label. When bean-counters rose to power and started to slash and burn, Hotpoint just wasn't profitable enough for the cut. That's show-biz.

One of their persistent gizmos, the "sediment ejector" seems to have been there Achilles Heel. Probably the reason that they are so rare; most were replaced early on so they are deep in the land fills. It was interesting to note from what pictures we have of Aberdeen, although I wasn't there in person, you don't see many Solid Tub Hotpoints sticking out from that pile. They were probably down near the Iridium layer.

What they were was imaginative, interesting and featured good industrial design if not engineering. For folks like us, who are all about bells, whistles and oddities, they are interesting collectibles. I've used a couple of these machines and they do not distinguish themselves as cleaners or as extractors. I've always said that these would have made perfect washing machines for Ladies and Grannies with lots of lightly-soiled delicates to launder. My Mother's Mother would have kept a Hotpoint running for decades. In that context, the Duo-Load would have been appropriate for lots of customers. But even I have to admit, that although the Duo-Load might have appealed to some gear-head husbands, most housewives would have been put off by its complexity.

I'll be a very happy camper when I find another one.

bajaespuma++12-27-2012-11-36-4.jpg
 
The first washer we had was a 1964 Silhouette model (at least I think it was Silhouette). Never got to see it, as it quit after 8 years when I was only 2. The transmission leaked oil, and subsequently wore out. I wish I had seen what it looked like and how it worked. I have only one photo of it that is marginally good, which was made as a slide, and is buried away somewhere.
 
clutch

one bad feature of these washers is tranny oil leaks will foul the clutch pads-the stamped metal tranny pulley is formed into a drum on it's upper side in which the 3 friction pads operate,any oil spilled onto pulley will go straight to friction surface when pulley rotates
 
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