Kenmore Permanent Press I &II

[appnut]

Medium temp on 33" LK Combo filled with warm water and then onboard heater heated to 120 degrees. Medium for LK top loader was also supposed to be 120F.

 

[launderess]

Find it comical that years ago 110 to 120 degrees F was considered "moderately warm". Hot water was 140 to 160 degrees F.

 

[qsd-dan]

Find it comical that years ago 110 to 120 degrees F was cons

Well, get ready to laugh your ass off, some manufactures consider 100F and under as "hot" today, including some dishwashers. On top of that, we have the "cold" wash only movement.....eh, I don't care what side of the isle you're on about the environmental movement, just say "no" to that. Pretty please? Then everybody's scratching their heads why stinky washers and nasty buildup is the norm and we run "clean" cycles using "clean" detergent products on a regular basis now. God forbid you live in a humid environment. Un-freakin-believable.

I've said it many times here, my temper valve is set at 85F for cold and the water heater is at 160F. 120F warm is smack dead in the middle, rock solid, every time. No need for fancy detergents, most pretreatments, clean cycles, or internal heaters with loooooong cycles.....that contain products with motherboards that like to die.

 

[blockeight88]

Cold Wash

I agree entirely with your post about cold washes. Every time I see those Tide commercials promoting cold washes I cringe. I don't care what they say, cold water doesn't clean your clothes. I feel like it just makes them smell good by covering up the bacteria. The average front loader washer must stink of mildew. A lot of people I know wash exclusively in cold water.

I will gladly continue to use warm and hot for washes and warm water to rinse.

 

[Chetlaham]

Has anyone ever been able to tell the difference in outcomes between PP, PP-I and P-II?

I could be wrong, but personally I think fancy permanent press cycles are merely a gimmick as nothing is gained or achieved through fancy cool downs and low speed spins. I see it as just wasting water and energy without consumers being aware unless they read up on what the cycle does- and often user guide descriptions don't go into the full details.

As mentioned dryers are what relax and prevent wrinkles.

All dryers should have a long cool down period as this saves energy (residual heat still gives off water vapor) while assuring clothes do not come out hot enough to burn people. I've had people tell me stories of being burned by metal buttons.

It is for these reason I think the words "permanent press" should have been dropped from all washers and dryers with manufacturers focusing on just 3 to 5 cycle categories based on cloth wear alone:

1) Heavy Duty (fast/fast) with long wash time and extra rinse option.

2) Normal (fast/fast)

3) Casuals (slow/fast)

4) Gentle (slow/slow)

5) Handwash (extra slow/slow)

For drying:

1) Heavy Duty- High Heat
2) Normal- Medium High Heat
3) Casuals- Medium Low Heat
4) Delicate- Low Heat
5) Fine Delicate- Ex Low heat
6) Fluff

Intermittent tumble and buzzer if needed to get the clothes out of the dryer once the cycle is done.

Kenmore used this concept on their MOL and TOL models and I think it was the basis to their success.

Kenmore offered one main "catch all" cycle like Ultra Clean or Auto Dry. Everything else remained the same in the cycle except speeds or temps were altered by the user. Extra rinse or wrinkle guard were on/off if needed.

Brilliantly intuitive, and I think it reflected the reality of clothing care much better than the dogma established prior.