POD 10/8/13: Hotpoint Washer

[frigilux]

Love the look of the console, but oy vey, can you imagine the steady hand and precision pouring required to get two weeks' worth of softener into that Pez dispenser-sized fill tube?

Question: Anyone have experience with an early Hotpoint? How did the rubber tips on the agitator's fins hold up?

 

[gansky1]

Yes, you are probably right about the dispenser fill drawer.  I can just imagine a gallon jug of pink goo being glugged all over that panel!

 

I've not had a rubber-tipped agitator myself but have seen them worn down to almost nothing so I don't imagine they lasted all that long.  IIRC, the tips could be replaced.

 

[rpms]

What does the clothes conditioner button do?

 

[tomturbomatic]

The dispenser puts fabric softener into the rinse water. The button selects whether the softener is added or not. I would think that if the dispenser were used much, the user would use a measuring cup to add the softener to the little trough.

 

[mickeyd]

I THINK Robert has the rubber tips on his, but I'm not sure. I know we've seen actual photos of them here, and they always look unusual like the rubber bat-like wings on the earliest Kelvinator "Shampooers"

 

[washdaddy]

The P.O.D. mentions that you fill the WONDERINSE dispenser once and you could wash without having to refill it for two weeks. Was it a metered dispenser that you would load up, and if so, how much did it hold, or did it dispense everything you put into it?

Kind of a jet-dri dispenser for washing machines I guess.

 

[mattl]

I thought it was interesting that one division knocked another.  At the bottom of the ad it states "Full time lint filter is built in, has no bulky pans."

 

[alr2903]

Another solid tub with "continuous lint filtering"

Not to go off thread with the dispenser topic. Todays POD Hotpoint and the ad for the SQ in thread #48735 both solid tub machines have a recirc. lint filter. I did not realize "solid tub machines" other than GE marketed this filtering system. Anyone else notice this? I have always longed for a SQ solid tub overflow rinser. alr2903

 

[tomturbomatic]

We have no idea how many loads are done in a two week period, but it was meant to be used with a product like Staley's Sta-Puf which was a very dilute pink softener that required 1/3 to 1/2 cup per load. Given that usage, the reservoir must have held at least a quart.

 

[frigilux]

I'd hate to see the gummed up works if someone filled the Hotpoint reservoir with today's super-thick, concentrated fabric softeners.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Most Hotpoints did not last long enough for that to be a problem.

 

[peteski50]

Hotpoint!

You are right Tom - the average life span on a moderate to heavy used hotpoint was only about 5 or 6 years. They did wash very well and had interesting designs. We had BOL models that my father used to get through business.

 

[mixguy]

Hotpoint

My neighbor had the BOL Hotpoint of the same year as Robert's Hotpoint. The control panel had a choice hot or warm wash buttons and a Select button to stop the fill and start agitation if a less than full tub of water was desired. The back panel had a blue-grey color (Robert's is red) and the same style of graphics. It had a lint filter "colar" that slid down the agitator post(thriftivator). It had no rubber tipped fins. It also had a detergent dispenser pan that fit over the agitator, once agitation began a water stream dissolved the detergent and over flowed into the washer tub. That washer lasted over 17 years before being replaced with a Maytag. They had a 48" Norge gas stove from the 1950s with a single 24" oven replaced with another 48" Norge in the late 1970s with a 30" oven.

 

[peteski50]

Hotpoint!

Our 61 had that lint filter "colar" that slid down the agitator post which did pick up lint ok but the dispenser pan was kind of stupid because if their was not enough water pressure the pan would still have soap in it after the fill. That machine was a lot of problems. The transmission went after 3 years and their was other stupid things that went on it. Actually in 66 the POS finally died but my mother just started to bring the laundry to the cleaning genie around the corner that had coin op Frigidaire 18 minute washers (that my mom liked better) the HP did wash well when it worked. So for 2 years it just sat busted and Mom wanted Dad to buy a rapid dry but in 68 my father bought her a near BOL filter flow instead.
Our 1st HP from 55 lasted for 6 years with almost no problem except once when the water didn't go out and a sock got caught in the pump. That was a quick repair. When it finally went in 61 it was some type of a pump issue and the repair guy told mom it was typical of these machines and it was better to just replace it. At least the 55 was a better work horse than the 61.
Mixguy if your neighbor had that HP for 17 years I am sure it didn't have heavy use. Another thing that always sticks in my mind about the 55 was that it always went right into spin without pausing liking the 61. These machines were always special to me because they were my 1st experience with washing machines!
Peter

 

[mixguy]

Heavily Used Hotpoint

Yes this Hotpoint washer was used. Kept the wash clean for a family of 4 during most of the time I described. Averaging 12 to 15 loads a week. He elderly mother lived with them and frequently reguired bed changes. She had no dryer, having a clothes line that held clothes drying at least every other day. She was a stay at home mom that was a great cook and baker. She and my mother both had Hamilton Beach model H mixers within a few months of one another.

 

[peteski50]

Hotpoint!

Hi Mixguy their are exceptions to most rules. Do you know which year about it was from? Most of them didn't last with heavy use.
Peter

 

[mixguy]

Hotpoint Washer

Hotpoint Fabric Command 200 I think, some time around 1962. My mother is still cooking on a gas Tappan range bought by her parents in 1949. Her Hotpoint refrigerator is mid-50s model

 

[peteski50]

Hotpoint!

That's a awesome frig - goes to show how much better things were made in those days!

 

[mixguy]

JetCone Agitator

My mother also had a Model WIAS Frigidaire washer that was purchased in 1971 we kept it until 1987. Mom got tired of having to replace the gas dryer igniter and paying $100.00 for service calls. The dryer was hauled away and the washer was given away and was still working until Hurricane Rita came and flooded the house it was in with 4 feet of water. Mom replace the washer with a single speed Maytag that has a delicate cycle using a minute of agitation and 2 min soak periods. NO repairs just changed the water hoses in the last 26 years.