Picture Of The Day (28-2-08) - Salvo Tablets

[sparkymarky1973]

Hi Guys

Wanted to ask about the salvo and laundry detergent tablets.

I was wondering if you still have Salvo and if you still have detergent tablets in general?

Ive never seen them mentioned and wondered if you guys in the US still use them?

Here in the UK we have loads of various makes to choose from but ive noticed in the posts about detergents it all seems to be powder or liquid. I may have missed tablets being mentioned though.

Thanks in advance!

Mark.

 

[~sudsshane]

Hi Mark

I don't ever remember Salvo being sold in the US in any form. This could be before my time however.
As far as Detergent Tabs, Wisk and Purex did sell them a few years back, but they have since been discontinued.
Unfortunately, Liquids seem to be the detergent of choice for most Americans.
Powder detergent is becoming harder to find in most parts of the US. Here in Florida, powder detergent is still widely available, but who knows for how long =(

 

[whirlcool]

I remember them back in the mid 70's. They came in an orange and yellow box. There were three rather large tablets in each cellophene wrapper with three "packs" to the box.
So they were sold here in the U.S. From what I remember the tablets were white with blue specs in them.

 

[DADoES]

I nagged my mother enough about it that she conceeded and we used Salvo for a short time in the late 1960s (or maybe early 1970s).

 

[tlee618]

We used it as well. I remember getting a free sample of 4 tablets in the mail when it first came out. We did use it for quite a while and it did a good job. Made almost no suds so rinsing was great. My neighbor had a Bendix combo and she used them for as long as they were available, one tablet and no suds problems.

 

[MikeS]

Interesting Snapshot Of Detergent History

Speaking of Salvo and Vim, here's an interesting historic snapshot of the detergent wars from a 1964 "Time" article.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,897126,00.html

 

[rocketeer500]

We used Salvo tabs

I remember my mother alternating between Dash and Salvo in the late 60s - early 70s, when I was growing up. She liked the tabs better than power, because they didn't suds that much and they were very convenient: open the cellaphane packet, drop the tabs into the water and close the lid. But, they were more expensive than a box of Dash. One draw back of the tabs was that they didn't always dissolve thoroughly. When she did use these tabs, it was for a large load at the highest water setting.

I remember when she did had Salvo, I got to drop the tabs into the water. Great fun!

 

[retro-man]

I remember my mother using Salvo tabs in the 60's. She didn't really care for them cause of the non-suds issue. You need suds in a 56 Frigidare. Usually she used powder Tide and sometimes Surf detergent powder also.
Jon

 

[polkanut]

My grandma used them also, but would break them up with a hammer before opening the wrapper. She didn't believe that they would dissolve unless she did this.

 

[gyrafoam]

I remember them marketed in the Atlanta area in the early 1960's.
There were two (plastic) sleeves to a box (I don't remember how many tablets per sleeve)and two tablets did a full load.

 

[paulg]

Salvo

I have an old box of SALVO. I too remember the stories of them not dissolving. Polkanut's HAMMER story is very funny!
I bought the WISK tablets a few years ago and loved them. They were especially good when going to the laundromat to clean comforters. I'd just throw a tablet or two in the tub with the comforter and we're done. Worked great. I miss the WISK tablets.
The official "Automatic Washer.ORG Hockey Team" has been using SALVO as hockey pucks for years without failure! (OK, now I'm kidding).

 

[jeb]

salvo tabs

One of my earliest washer memories is seeing that orange box next to my grandmothers Westinghouse slant front. Sometime she would let me put the tabs in and watch them bounce around before they desolved

 

[bajaespuma]

Do any of you who remember Salvo and Vim remember "ACTION" bleach packets in the little dissolving cellulose packets? I used to love putting those suckers in the Filter pan and watching them burst. Can't help but wonder if they gave somebody the idea, years later, to smuggle cocaine the same way.

 

[tlee618]

I remember Action bleach packets too. I believe they were a clorine bleach. They really seemed to get the whites really white.

 

[launderess]

One can still find boxes of Salvo tablets at estate sales or fleaBay. Remember someone saying he used to use the things as hockey pucks, well until his mother caught him at it that is! *LOL*

 

[laundromat]

We faithfully used Salvo for years and my friends,the Bairs had a Westinghouse Laundromat set.They used Vim but only 1/2 tablet per load.Mrs.Bair(Alice) used Bold and sometimes Wisk too for collars and other stains.I'd go there every other day to watch.they had such neat appliances!!A 1949 FRIGIDAIRE 30 inch range,a 1962 Whirlpool gas refrigerator and a 1955 Westinghouse Laundromat washer with a 1956 dryer.they were the folks that gave me my first set of Laundromat twin salt and pepper shakers.Mr. Bair(Cub),would take me along when he went to get car parts at the junk yard and we'd always come back with the parts as well as a washer or two to try and fix.That was where I realy learned a lot about washers and their mechanics.The neatest one we found was an old Bendix rubber tub top loader.It needed a new tub and pump.We went back to the junkyard and found the pump but had to order the tub.We went to Tribble's to get it.They were at that time downtown so I got in the back of the truck while he drove us there.They had some old relecks there too.He cussed it out as we were putting the tub on but he did it and he used that washer for old rags and his workclothes(overalls)and still had it there before they sold the house back in 1969.The buyers imediately threw out the Laundromat twins and I got them before the junk man got there.I never saw the Bendix again but I bet Cub took it with him when they moved.My Dad was furious but I didn't care.A few months later,I came home from school and they along with my old Bendix front loading Economat washer were gone.My dad and brother took them back into the woods and shot holes through them with their shotguns so I couldn't bring them back.But it was o.k. for my brother to have a piece of junk non working Rambler station wagon/rat infested car out back for 10 years.what's wrong with that picture???

 

[kenmoreguy64]

My grandmother used Salvo and I thank you guys for helping remind me of the name. I remember the orange box and her dropping two or three tabs in her Whirlpool back in the late 60s/early 70s, but I could not remember the name of the brand. I just mentioned this to my mom the other day in fact. My mom liked All mostly, unless I talked her into buying Breeze because it had a towel in the box for free....so seeing something like those tabs was really cool to me. One of the things I remember most was when one of the freshly dropped-in tabs would hit a vane on the surgilator - you could hear the knocking it made and then the sound would disappear as the tablet dissolved.

I remember the Wisk tablets from a couple years ago, something tells me that we had Surf tabs too? I had a bunch of them, and even in nice warm water they didn't dissolve for five or more minutes sometimes and I would have to reach in, catch them, and break them. A good way to wash your hands though!

 

[mrsalvo]

I remember Salvo with fond memories.To this day I miss the scent. If I remember right it was kind of a clean sweet smell but not overbearing, like some of todays detergents. You could also be sure the clothes rinsed clean.

 

[phillygrl]

Was Salvo the one that had the ad on tv with the arm coming out of the washing machine? Anyone remember that?