POD 2/3/17 TOL Whirlpool Suds-Miser: ATT'N Polkanut, Arkonman, & Suds Lovers

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

mickeyd

mickeyd

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 23, 2009
Messages
5,438
Location
Hamburg NY
Noted with glee that Mc Calls testing lab singled out the Suds-Miser as a best feature on this big beast. Nice to see the Magic-Mix lint filter as well. I don't know what year this machine hails from,
but my Mark XII, a later model, alas, lacks both the Magic-Mix and the Suds-Miser, long-time favorites, but it is a wonderful machine, nevertheless.

Do not remember seeing this model in our club. Mark has a real beauty, another later model, not this one. Wondered who else has Mark XII's and if we could have a show 'n tell or the next best thing.
 
There's a half-century old article somewhere about how Whirlpool actually had the first automatic washer ready for production but held back till they tweaked the Suds-Miser to perfection. Their rationale was that people were about to make a significant transition in legendary washday routines, and that pumping out hot, sudsy, still clean water after one use, the infamous "clean whites" load, would not be acceptable. Whirlpool's theory proved correct in that wash water return systems were copied by almost every other manufactuter, and the early WP/KM's suds model were everywhere, almost the standard model for almost two decades.

Growing up a Frigidarian--beloved Geraldine did not at alI appreciate suds-saving, even as she washed white loads TWICE--I had to make do covertly, but even on Frigidaires, it's a real blast executing the the manual protocol. Suds return systems are gone for now, at least; instead we're forced to wash in quarts of water.
 
Basically the same machine, the buttons have moved down a little bit; later the row was split in two and aligned in columns along the dial. All the cycle variety discussed in the Mc Call report is exhaustive and probably as good as it ever got, the wash and wear cycles among the biggest gas guzzlers of all times, rinsing and draining three times. Oh the water police are mad cows gone rogue ;'D.

mickeyd++2-3-2017-12-53-9.jpg
 
Added a tub light

The color is Doeskin a favorite of John's and Greg's, even though in this light it tints toward avacado.`Some day I'll paint that little pool in the upper right.

mickeyd++2-3-2017-12-55-27.jpg
 
Surging with Surgilation

The article mentions effective rinsing. Do you think Whirlpools and Kenmores rinse as well as Frigidaires and other overflow models. I ask for this reason: Not a big rinse person, myself, I have noticed more fragrance when I use the WP/KM's than when using the F's. The subtle scent of detergent appeals to me. Has anyone done any tests or have any research on rinsability?

mickeyd++2-3-2017-13-06-1.jpg
 
Nice and a Suds, too! Thanks.

What I was wondering: The Lady K's and the Mark XII's shared the smaller button design for a few years; then Lady K went to the large "piano"keys under the "garage door." I don't remember what later Mark XII's looked like during Kenmore's piano key years. I can't picture them, drawing a big blank. Did Whirlpool simply cease production of the Mark around that time?
 
Do you think Whirlpools and Kenmores rinse as well as Frigidaires and other overflow models. I ask for this reason: Not a big rinse person, myself, I have noticed more fragrance when I use the WP/KM's than when using the F's. The subtle scent of detergent appeals to me. Has anyone done any tests or have any research on rinsability?

I have noticed the exact same thing scent-wise. After having these machines side by side and using them for nearly two decades I maintain that Frigidaire Unimatic washers rinse better not only because of the over-flow rinse but because of the high-speed spin between the wash and the rinse which removes more of the detergent laden water from the fabrics. Then the rinse water soaks into the drier clothes more effectively.
 
While I can appreciate the better rinsing capabilities of Frigidaires, like Mickey I also like the subtle detergent fragrance that is left behind in laundry washed in Whirlpools, Maytags etc. 
 
I notice this

also at times.
My mom used to complain about her '63 Kennmore "70" not always rinsing well.
These machines as you know spray rinse before and following the deep rinse.
How much better can you rinse?
It had no overflow because it had the self clean filter.
Contemporary manufacturers seem to think water temp. has an effect, as do detergent makers. They say the hotter the water today, the less effective the detergent is. It may just be bunk.
HE top loaders for example do a short spray rinse after the wash water drain to flush out detergent from the tub bottom, then they spin slow, then either slow spin spray rinse, or deep rinse, depending on the cycle.
At any rate, dilution is the solution to how much detergent we use, as to any deconcentration of whatever is in water.
I do notice with towels, an extra rinse seems to make them softer. That is one deep rinse, followed by a short spray rinse.
 
I think how well a whirlpool/kenmore rinses all depends on what and how much is in them. I have seen big loads scarcely get any turn over at all when rinsing and smaller loads get a decent turn over. The rinse is very short as far as agitation time. Sometimes just not enough agitation to actually stir the clothes enough to rinse them well.
 
I am thinking that the machine pictured is just a prototype that was never mass produced. BTW, the '61 model pictured has a really cool dryer that matched it. It was similar to what Maytag made with one push button that automatically dryed the clothes. No time dry or timer that could be set at all. I am almost certain it was a '61 model, but could have possibly been '60 or somewhere within those years they made that TOL dryer. I once had the matching set, is why I remembered it so well. The washer timer had no markings to telll what cycle it was on, so you had to rely totally on the push buttons to land you at the right cycle. Must have been the 70's by then and I could not get the parts needed to fix the automatic dryness sensor control to make it work properly.
 
Most of the detergents back in the day were very high sudsing compared to today's formulations.
Many machines were prone to suds-lock, some worse than others.
Kenmore/ Whirly's were some of the worst. A full load of heavy fabrics such as towels or jeans would be a guarentee of suds-lock. The machine could not get up to full speed since it was choked on suds, so there was plenty of chemicals and fragrance left in the clothes. When the machine stopped to fill for a deep-rinse there was a huge suds-cake left in the bottom. Sometimes the suds-lock would reoccur in the final spin. If the spray rinses didn't get rid of it, chances are the machine would end the cycle with bits of the suds-cake still on the clothes.
Lots of people got used to putting it all back through another rinse cycle.

My best friends mother tried for 30 years to choke her Maytag to death with FAB. She never succeeded but not because she didn't try.
Perf. Tub Blackstones, any Westinghouse, Frigidaire 1-18's, Filter-flows, any front-loader since the American housewife insisted on using at least a full cup of detergent in anything, many machines of the era come to mind.

Cheer,Tide,Fab,Rinso Blue, Duz, Super-Suds, Wisk, and soaps such as Ivory Snow and Fels.
Some of the worst offenders if overdosed.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top