Maytag A206 Rinse Temp Question:

[70series]

On the Maytag A206 that I had growing up, it had the three basic temperature selections: Hot, Warm, Cold. All rinses were cold, at least on the Permanant Press cycle. However for some reason I remember that on the regular cycle there was a warm rinse after a hot or warm wash. Am I remembering correctly, or is my mind on a picnic? Thank you in advance.

Have a good one,
James

 

[toggleswitch]

With my mom's Maytag of 1965/66 in the Normal cycle there was:

Hot wash / warm rinse
Warm wash / cold rinse
Cold wash /cold rinse

I remember this because my aunt's RCA Whirlpool (of a similar vintage) was comparable except it had:

Warm wash /warm rinse.

Of course cold rinses with Permanent Press cycle makes sense
Hope this helps!

 

[bobbyderegis]

James, you are right on the money. The A606 is exactly the same, warm rinse after the hot wash, cold rinse after the warm wash, except on the perm press cycle.
Bobby in Boston

 

[tomturbomatic]

It used to be on all but the next to the TOL model with the little dial on top of the control panel that gave the option of automatic or cold rinse temps, that hot and warm washes were followed by a warm rinse, unless you had the all push button machine. It was the only model with a Wash and Wear cycle until the 06 series. Several times Consumer Reports mentioned that the optimum Wash and Wear cycle could not be preset because the operator had to wait until the wash fill was complete or return to the machine before the rinse fill to push the cold wash button to get a cold rinse. Our 502 was like that.

 

[dirtybuck]

Warm Rinse

This was also an option on our '67 Frigidaire as well.

Bill

 

[launderess]

Warm rinses were pretty common on many automatic washing machines right up until the first "energy crisis" of the 1970's.

For one thing, when laundering with pure soap (which apparently still was going on judging by sales of Ivory Snow and such), hot washes must be followed by warm rinses to assist in rinsing all that soap out of textiles.

Also many housewives trained in "old ways" firmly believe warm water rinsed laundry better than cold. Such ladies would only purchase a washing machine with warm rinse option, and my guess is it relates as well to above in those looking for "diaper washers".

L.

 

[70series]

Thank you everyone. You have helped a lot. I am glad that my memory on this was accurate. It was only a few times that I remember us washing in Hot, as most of the time the Warm button was pressed in. A neighbor of mine had an A606, and almost always washed in Hot, but insisted on using the Permanent Press, or as he referred to it "the short cycle". So that is why I was unclear. Interesting note: Both of our machines were from 1972.

Launderess: Thank you for explaining why washers offered a warm rinse. That question was next on my mind.

Have a good one,
James

 

[tomturbomatic]

I must be trained in the old way because while a cold rinse will produce few suds, if you follow a cold rinse by a warm one, the water instantly clouds with detergent going into solution. This is dependent on temperature of course. A cold rinse is much less effective when the cold water temperature is below 70 than when it is above 70; the same for cold wash temps. Norges washers, once they got beyond the HOT/WARM wash temp selector of the first Timelines which used warm rinses only, had water temperature switches on most models that combined the wash and rinse temps. On all but very deluxe models, hot wash was only available with a cold rinse. Maybe it was to keep total hot water use down because of the overflow rinse.

 

[launderess]

Many commercial laundries use warm water for the first of a series of rinses following a or warm water wash. However that practice has been totally frowned upon for American consumers. Every where one looks from detergent boxes to laundry guides, one sees the same advice "cold water is just as effective as warm water for rinsing, and saves energy".

L.

 

[tomturbomatic]

That notice reflects EPA propaganda for energy savings and to keep in step with washers that only offer cold rinse temperatures. The instructions on the box of powder say the detergent will not dissolve well in very cold water, yet say that cold water will rinse it out. Cold water temperatures range from above 90 in some places during the summer to 40 or below in other places durning the winter. In the wash, you are trying to get the detergent to go into solution. In the rinse, you are trying to get the concentrated detergent/soil solution in the fabrics to move into the clear water. Water that is below 60-70F will impede either process, even with liquid detergents.

I don't think American consumers frown on warm or tempered cold rinsing. In fact, some WP toploaders offer a cool rinse setting. Of course, it replaces the warm rinse temperature setting, but it's not stone cold. I doubt it matters to 95% or more of the people doing laundry. They select warm or cold wash for their gray and dark loads, fill the softener dispenser if available, and walk away. The softener masks any harshness from detergent not rinsed out of the fabrics.

 

[fa_f3_20]

I recall my mom's early-'60s Kenmore having a cold wash / warm rinse setting. What would that have been good for?

 

[DADoES]

Machines with separate button arrays or knobs or toggleswitches for wash and rinse temps could be set for cold wash and warm rinse simply because the settings were there. In practice, that combination probably wasn't required for specific laundry chores.