Polishing the wash tub of my Maytag E2LP wringer washer

[bradross]

Every couple of washes, I use a steel-wool soap pad (eg. SOS) to polish the inside of the aluminum washtub. I also tried a little "Barkeeper's Friend". The results are quite good.

Does anybody have any other methods/suggestions to restore that beautiful shine?

 

[christfr]

wow sure looks good to me i think your doin just fine

 

[bradross]

Thanks, Chris! It does look good. I've posted a couple more pics of it on my Flickr page...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44623676@N05/

 

[stainfighter]

Barkeepers...

found it is a great cleaner too...use it on the grates for the range

 

[mickeyd]

Hey Brad

Saw your flickr pix of the Tag in tandem with the HP. Classy! Tomorrow I'll buy some SOS and get rid of the striations in my E2LP. Yours shines like a mirror. Thanks.

See how bad mine is? Think it'll work? Don't know how they got there. Came that way. How's this for a money shot, a dirty one at that ;->

 

[bradross]

Hey Michael

Those "striations" do look fairly pronounced on your tub. I assume they're caused by a combination of hard water and certain detergents that may be more caustic than others.

When you use the SOS pad, you will probably have to use a lot of elbow grease. I could feel "resistance" under my hand as it scrubbed away the oxidation, and then noticed when it changed to a smoother feeling. Make sure you go in a straight, steady scrubbing motion so the buff marks are in a consistent direction. In the bottom corners, I used circular motion. Hope it works well for you too!

 

[gansky1]

Thanks for sharing the photos, you have so many cool toys!

And every one of them looks perfect, mint even!

Does the Maytag purr when you polish it now? It takes a lot of work to get those tubs to stay gleaming like yours, you did that with an SOS pad? Looks like the next step is to completely disassemble the entire machine to remove the aluminum tub and take it in to a metal shop for polishing. Just kidding, I think you're done ;-)

 

[circlew]

My only reservation about using SOS is that the pads may leave bits that will leave rust marks in the tub. I would recommend using either stainless steel wool (medium), or synthetic pads such as 3M Scotch-Brite. They are available in a number of different grades, from coarse to extra fine. Depending on how much corrosion is present, start more coarse working to finer to develop the proper sheen.

http://www.3m.com

 

[rayjay]

Shiny Sinks

Brad, Barkeepers Friend makes a liquid product called "Shiny Sinks". I use it all the time on my Franke Stainless Sink. You can find it in Bed Bath and Beyond, or on line.

Ray

 

[rayjay]

Shiny Sinks

PS: Just check to see if it can be used on aluminum first.

 

[mrb627]

Professional Strength GOOF-OFF

Have you tried the PROFESSIONAL strength GOOF-OFF? Says it is safe for all metals and I have found that it cleans up quite a bit of gunk.

Malcolm

 

[tomturbomatic]

Mickey:

I would remove the mineral deposits first with an acid product meant for mineral buildup like one of the CLR things. They are mild enough for tile and a mild acid won't hurt aluminum; in fact a mild acid will remove the darkening from aluminum. Then you can polish away the dullness.

If you rinse well after using the SOS or Brillo pad, there should not be particles left to cause rust, especially since you have to towel dry the aluminum tub, leave the agitator on its side after wiping some vaseline on the male and female splines then pull the Roller Water Remover in over the tub and put a towel over it so that the lid can rest on it without scratching the paint to allow the whole business to air dry until the next washday.

 

[mickeyd]

With all these wonderful suggestion, Gentleman,

somethin's gotta give. Many thanks. Spot-testing each suggestion couldn't hurt. Grateful for the help. My first line of attack, Clorox, of course, didn't work ;->

 

[tomturbomatic]

No, Clorox is alkaline and you need an acid to deal with the calcium-magnesium salts from hard water. Have fun!

 

[laundromat]

naval jelly works wonders on stainless steel an aluminum.

 

[mickeyd]

Great link, Brad, Thanks. Every Frickr picture is perfect!

So nice to find another conventional washer lover. What is it about those machine that so captivates us? Never tire of them.

LAUNDROMAT--wish I knew your name. About the naval jelly: this is first time I've ever heard of it. Where do you buy it? So resonanant for me: my father was a navy man, and jelly sounds so nice and friendly. Thanks.

 

[geoffdelp]

Remember Pinky ... or Chiffonda ... or what have you?

Hi all ... remember my pink 1963 E2LP? Remember what her tub looked like? Uggh ...

 

[geoffdelp]

I also felt that there was "hope". After doing a big initial wash, I was able to get this far ...

 

[geoffdelp]

I just s-l-o-w-l-y kept working on her tub by always making sure I didn't use any harsh chemicals (no bleach) and washing in SUPER warm or almost HOT water to make the aluminum more malleable and receptive to the "Oxy Clean" in:

 

[geoffdelp]

I have been able to achieve this:

 

[geoffdelp]

Did you know that the tubs in the later Model E's were considered polished, but not as polished as the crown? Here's my brand new Model E2LPS I got a number of years ago; note the tub:

 

[geoffdelp]

Here's another shot ... see ... it's not highly polished like the crown ...

 

[geoffdelp]

I've almost got the pink tub looking closer to new. It won't ever look like new again, but you can keep them stain free:

 

[geoffdelp]

Here's my 1982 Model E2LPS after having been using for 5-6 years now; still looks "almost" like new:

 

[geoffdelp]

The camera doesn't do the justice to these tubs. Also, the sun was setting last night when I took these shots.

This is what pinky looks like under her agitator. Note the rust ... that's from the strainer, not the tub. Aluminum does not rust, but stains terribly.

BUT ... I'm hoping with more work, I can at least lighten these rust stains.

It's also terribly scratched/marred underneath. Remember how I found safety pins and razor blades and washers underneath the agitator? With soft aluminum, it definitely leaves marks.

 

[geoffdelp]

I'm a strong believer in plain old "Tide" in the Model E; it reacts well with SOFT water (don't know the grains of hardness ... sorry ... but I use an old Culligan system) and really likes to be wiped well before draining.

 

[geoffdelp]

So, while you might not be able to keep your machine looking like this:

 

[geoffdelp]

You can still have good results:

 

[geoffdelp]

P. S. Don't forget to thoroughly rinse your tub with warm water and dry it well when you are done. You'll avoid water spots that way and you'll be surprised what wipes off on your towel!!

I use terrycloth; that seems to be quite absorbent.

 

[bradross]

Great photos, Geoff!

Thanks for posting, Geoff. Wow, what a transformation! "Pinky" looks great, almost as good as new. I'll have to try those Brillo pads with OxyClean.