Most disappointing wash ever

[arbilab]

Thanks to all. The machines could be as much as 15 years old, age of the building. Possibly older as the building doesn't own them. They are leased and the company cleans out the coin boxes, not the building. The building provides 'free' hot water and electric so they are substantially cheaper than a commercial coin-op laundry. Wash + dry is only a dollar (20min dry).

It's therefore necessary to make the best use of what's available, as the alternatives are much more expensive and questionably more effective. Building management doesn't accept suggestions or petitions about ANYthing. They are an extension of a government agency, oblivious to user needs or desires.

 

[tomturbomatic]

In the two senior facilities where my mother lived up here, the hot water temperature was kept low enough to prevent scalding injuries so the machine in question probably does not have very hot water supplied to it to begin with. You might have to take to boiling your whites on the stove and get a washin' stick to lift them out of the hot water.

 

[pierreandreply4]

maybe they have the water heaters of the residance set up not to go over 50 degrees like maybe the water heaters there have there temp set to like 50 degree or 49 luke warm to cool so it might affect the water temp of the washer

 

[mrb627]

Two Choices

It sounds like your two choices are to either 1)Learn to Live with it, or 2)Find another location to do your laundry.

[I suppose the other residents do not care, right?]

Malcolm

 

[washer111]

Tempered Water

As we have "tempered" hot water supplied at home (120º, 48ºC), I can tell you that even that temperature will scald you very quickly. Not quite as bad as if the temperature was straight out of the Solar Water Heater, but it ain't too good either!

 

If you can afford it, try getting a wash that has more temperature or takes longer or use some sort of chemical (Borax, OxyBleach, etc) to try and brighten your whites.

 

[arbilab]

The building is set at 120F. I've seen the thermometers in the boiler room. My calibrated fingers tell me the thermometers are right. 120F will NOT injure you. It's only transiently uncomfortable.

What I don't yet know is whether the coinops are diluting the 120 when set to 'hot'. I will know next time I use them, see 'calibrated fingers' above.

Everwhich, I have ALWAYS used 120F household water and NEVER had a laundry problem until now. "Always" is 50 years, a gamut of detergents, and a range of machines from MT to GE to WP to Twintub to the Electrofrigiwhite I own but am not allowed to use in this institution.

Remember One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest starring Jack Nicholson? That's where I live and I'm him. The only thing we don't have is 'medication time'. We DO have Nurse Ratched watching us on surveillance cameras. You wouldn't believe. Or would you?

 

[peterh770]

From a laundromat owner

1) Maytag did not make the coindrops -- no commercial manufacturer makes coin drops... Maytag used Greenwald drops... Yes, they are fussy and tempermental...
.
2) Most machines are installed with the default cycle... Most owners might tweek it to save time, water and energy... Very few will tweek it for a better wash (more wash time, extra rinse, higher water levels, tap hot water, etc)...
.
3) If the 'super cycle' option is activated, it will do one of three things:
-- increase wash time by 3 minutes
-- add a rinse
-- both increase wash time and add rinse
.
4) The real reason for that short prewash on the Neptune was to dilute the overdosing detergent that laundromat users LOVE to do... So the overdose of detergent gets into the machine and clothes, and is pumped out before it has a chance to make too much suds... Then the machine refills, the detergent is then diluted enough to get through the cycle without causing sudslock... Some owners removed this predilute prewash because it would save water and just dealt with a poor spin out if/when it happened because of suds... Many would hear the motor straining to spin and would add Downy or a cheap softener to the machine to kill the suds...
.
5a) Orbital MT tops are workhorses... I love my 6 of them... They replaced FF GE machines...
5b) Mine are set for a 10 minute wash and a 3 minute rinse... My customers love them... All cycles are $2.00 and 'super' is activated for .50 extra (both increase wash time and 2nd rinse)...
5c) They do like to go through belts...
.
6) Skip the bleach and add 1/2 cup of ammonia instead, especially to boost detergent and remove oily stains...

 

[arbilab]

Everybody in the building--knowledgeable or not--complains about the MT toppers. They are a very fast agitation, whichever that transmission is. Word is, to get them to work properly, run two cycles. One with detergent and a second to remove it. Otherwise one gets scum streaks on darks and the same residue is in lights just less obvious.

Of course we're all stuck with US 'save the whales' gutless detergent and hard water.

Thing being, I've been washing the same stuff in the same water with the same detergent for 15 years in my Electrofrigiwhite FL and it has no problems at all. While the MTs are nothing BUT problems.