We had our WH FL when these came out. We even received two tablets in a little box in the mail! The coupons at that time made them almost free. A full load in the Westinghouse took only one tablet and a small load took a half a tablet in our soft water. Out water heater was set to 160F, which you could do then and the washer was close to it so out whites were brilliant. We had boxes on the shelf, all bought on sale with coupons. They broke in half easily and did not crumble to dust. Rinsing was good, also. It seems we used these for quite a while. I don't know why they were discontinued. Maybe with all the promotions, P&G never made money on them. We used a lot of VIM also. We went back to Dash after SALVO.
POD 8/22/12 SALVO tablets
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polkanut
Well-known member
Mom tried Salvo in the filter pan of her 1967 GE Filter-Flo and wasn't impressed with the way they dissolved. Our washer was also close to the wh so water temp wasn't an issue. We do have medium hard water here so maybe that was a factor.
Does anyone know if Salvo contained phosphates?
Does anyone know if Salvo contained phosphates?
golittlesport
Well-known member
Salvo!
My mom used Salvo in her Westy front loader also...she loved that stuff. Wouldn't use any other brand of detergent once Salvo was introduced.
I remember seeing a movie once where a boy was in the basement helping with the laundry and was practicing his baseball pitch throwing a Salvo tablet across the room into their Westy. Can't recall the name of that movie.
My mom used Salvo in her Westy front loader also...she loved that stuff. Wouldn't use any other brand of detergent once Salvo was introduced.
I remember seeing a movie once where a boy was in the basement helping with the laundry and was practicing his baseball pitch throwing a Salvo tablet across the room into their Westy. Can't recall the name of that movie.
Oh, yes. SALVO was phosphated. Even liquid Wisk had phosphates back then.
towels
Was Salvo tablets the one with a cheap free washcloth in each box? Mom always bought that freebie, I think it was Salvo. I'm talking 1965ish.
Was Salvo tablets the one with a cheap free washcloth in each box? Mom always bought that freebie, I think it was Salvo. I'm talking 1965ish.
My mom used Salvo for several years. This was between the time she used Instant Fels and Wisk
vintagekitchen
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Speaking of salvo..
I actually have 2 boxes of 12 tablets each on ebay right now. New old stock from a local store.
I actually have 2 boxes of 12 tablets each on ebay right now. New old stock from a local store.
As an eBay Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
vintagekitchen
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Instant fels
Got that too, lol. Selling it with a vintage box of Bounce..
Got that too, lol. Selling it with a vintage box of Bounce..
As an eBay Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
danemodsandy
Well-known member
The Name....
....Was the problem with Salvo, in my opinion.
A "salvo" is, according to Merriam-Webster, "A simultaneous discharge of artillery or other guns in a battle." What the manufacturer was trying to convey was that you would be turning some serious "firepower" on dirt and stains.
Unfortunately - and in spite of some commercials that tried to 'splain it - this metaphor was lost on consumers, because many of them did not have the word "salvo" in their vocabularies.
The word they DID know was "salve," which had icky, greasy, smelly connotations from injuries and childhood illnesses.
Had the product been called something like "WashTabs," I honestly believe a much more satisfactory sales result would have ensued.
....Was the problem with Salvo, in my opinion.
A "salvo" is, according to Merriam-Webster, "A simultaneous discharge of artillery or other guns in a battle." What the manufacturer was trying to convey was that you would be turning some serious "firepower" on dirt and stains.
Unfortunately - and in spite of some commercials that tried to 'splain it - this metaphor was lost on consumers, because many of them did not have the word "salvo" in their vocabularies.
The word they DID know was "salve," which had icky, greasy, smelly connotations from injuries and childhood illnesses.
Had the product been called something like "WashTabs," I honestly believe a much more satisfactory sales result would have ensued.
dirtybuck
Well-known member
Akronman:
Your mom bought either Breeze (Lever Brothers) or Bonus (Procter & Gamble). Those were the only two detergents in the 1960's that offered wash cloths (regular size), hand towels (giant size) and bath towels (king size) inside the box.
I remember Salvo made it's marketing debut in El Paso around July of 1962. Our across the street neighbor, Mrs. Peak, swore by Salvo tablets and used them religiously every wash day. If I remember correctly, she used them in her RCA Whilpool top loader (1960's model).
Your mom bought either Breeze (Lever Brothers) or Bonus (Procter & Gamble). Those were the only two detergents in the 1960's that offered wash cloths (regular size), hand towels (giant size) and bath towels (king size) inside the box.
I remember Salvo made it's marketing debut in El Paso around July of 1962. Our across the street neighbor, Mrs. Peak, swore by Salvo tablets and used them religiously every wash day. If I remember correctly, she used them in her RCA Whilpool top loader (1960's model).
As for the name, Vim went out of production, too, and its name did not have battlefield connotations. I imagine that the tablets were expensive to make and package what with the box and the little plastic bags around the tablets. I don't remember when they stopped being sold, although a Wikipedia article says they were sold from the early 60s until the mid 70s, but the economy began to heat up with inflation from the first energy crisis so that might have had something to do with it or maybe it was the advent of enzymes in the early 70s so the manufacturers jumped on that bandwagon. Also Cold Power had come on the scene and maybe the Salvo tablets did not dissolve in super cold water if anyone tried to use them in cold water and with the way energy prices soared, cold water washing probably was being tried by more than a few people.
vintagekitchen
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I say cost killed them...
I just did some math using the inflation calculator. The 2 boxes of salvo tablets I have on ebay have their original price of 48 cents each still written on them.
So, I picked 1965 as a good mid production year, and punched it in. that works out to $3.28 in todays money.
Each box had only 12 tablets, and said to use one tablet for a front loader, or 2 for a top loader, and an extra tablet if you have hard water.
That means for front load users, (in todays money), if your water was reasonably soft, it would work out to about 27 cents per load, which is reasonable, but if you had harder water and needed the extra tablet, the price would go up to about 54 cents per load.
It was even worse for owners of top loaders, since for them it meant if they had reasonably soft water it works out to 54 cents a load, and if they had harder water and needed the extra tablet, the price jumps all the way up to 81 cents a load.
I dont know about you guys, but as much laundry as I do that would get fairly expensive. Since the majority of washers in the US in those days were top loaders, one can understand why the product failed in the 70s when people were in a recession and trying to pinch pennies where they could. If times are hard, and especially if one is doing laundry for a large family, 55 or 81 cents per load of laundry is too dear a price for detergent.
I just did some math using the inflation calculator. The 2 boxes of salvo tablets I have on ebay have their original price of 48 cents each still written on them.
So, I picked 1965 as a good mid production year, and punched it in. that works out to $3.28 in todays money.
Each box had only 12 tablets, and said to use one tablet for a front loader, or 2 for a top loader, and an extra tablet if you have hard water.
That means for front load users, (in todays money), if your water was reasonably soft, it would work out to about 27 cents per load, which is reasonable, but if you had harder water and needed the extra tablet, the price would go up to about 54 cents per load.
It was even worse for owners of top loaders, since for them it meant if they had reasonably soft water it works out to 54 cents a load, and if they had harder water and needed the extra tablet, the price jumps all the way up to 81 cents a load.
I dont know about you guys, but as much laundry as I do that would get fairly expensive. Since the majority of washers in the US in those days were top loaders, one can understand why the product failed in the 70s when people were in a recession and trying to pinch pennies where they could. If times are hard, and especially if one is doing laundry for a large family, 55 or 81 cents per load of laundry is too dear a price for detergent.
Since the tablets went out of production in the mid 70s, what would the cost have been then?
vintagekitchen
Well-known member
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Well..
Assuming the price was still only 48 cents in 1975, it would have been 1.92 in todays money.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure of the exact age of my boxes, nor of the pricing for any specific year. If anyone has an ad or something so we can pinpoint a price and the year of that price, I would be happy to do the math again.
Assuming the price was still only 48 cents in 1975, it would have been 1.92 in todays money.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure of the exact age of my boxes, nor of the pricing for any specific year. If anyone has an ad or something so we can pinpoint a price and the year of that price, I would be happy to do the math again.
lotsosudz
Well-known member
Trend
Wally Cox was the spokesperson for Salvo! Trend was the other detergent that gave away towels inside. Salvo worked great, but was not cost effective, at the time. Too bad as it was very effective, and smelled good too.
hugs,
David
Wally Cox was the spokesperson for Salvo! Trend was the other detergent that gave away towels inside. Salvo worked great, but was not cost effective, at the time. Too bad as it was very effective, and smelled good too.
hugs,
David
danemodsandy
Well-known member
Price:
"Assuming the price was still only 48 cents in 1975, it would have been 1.92 in todays money."
It wouldn't have still been 48 cents in '75.
Beginning in about '73, inflation was a huge factor through most of the '70s. Whatever you bought this month was almost certain to cost more next month. The Federal Government took some measures to counteract it, but they didn't do as much good as hoped.
If you will look at the opening credits of later seasons of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," you will see Mary shopping for meat. She looks at the price, makes a disgusted face, and throws it into her cart with a look of resignation on her face. That is a reference to the inflation of the time; everyone back then understood i5.
"Assuming the price was still only 48 cents in 1975, it would have been 1.92 in todays money."
It wouldn't have still been 48 cents in '75.
Beginning in about '73, inflation was a huge factor through most of the '70s. Whatever you bought this month was almost certain to cost more next month. The Federal Government took some measures to counteract it, but they didn't do as much good as hoped.
If you will look at the opening credits of later seasons of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," you will see Mary shopping for meat. She looks at the price, makes a disgusted face, and throws it into her cart with a look of resignation on her face. That is a reference to the inflation of the time; everyone back then understood i5.
dirtybuck
Well-known member
danemodsandy
It was a bakery item she tossed into the cart
It was a bakery item she tossed into the cart
danemodsandy
Well-known member
Bill:
Here's a quote from Wikipedia:
"In later seasons, Mary is shown looking at a package of meat at a supermarket, then rolling her eyes as she throws it into her shopping cart. This is a reference to the high consumer inflation during the mid-70s.[4] In 2009, CBS' Nancy Giles, commenting on the high cost of small packages of food, showed this clip and said that it seems only she and Mary Richards buy them."
And there's this:
Here's a quote from Wikipedia:
"In later seasons, Mary is shown looking at a package of meat at a supermarket, then rolling her eyes as she throws it into her shopping cart. This is a reference to the high consumer inflation during the mid-70s.[4] In 2009, CBS' Nancy Giles, commenting on the high cost of small packages of food, showed this clip and said that it seems only she and Mary Richards buy them."
And there's this:
My favorite laundry detergent of all time. I still miss salvo.
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