question about vintage Suds Saver (50s-60s) machines

[passatdoc]

I was explaining to a younger colleague that in the old days, laundry rooms were outfitted with laundry sinks, and that the sink served as the drain for the washer. I told him I recall my parents' '58 GE (in the 60s, I don't remember the 50s) with a drain hose that clamped to the side of the sink, as there was no standpipe drain in the wall (house was built mid-30s, when washers were basically wringer models).

I also mentioned that I'd read about Suds Saver, that it was an option (like $20 extra) on many models and that it re-used hot/warm sudsy water. Then I thought about the logistics, that the hot sudsy water had to be stored somewhere for the second load while the machine rinsed and spun the first load (and the rinse water had to go somewhere), and it dawned on me that this would have required a double sink (one side to store hot sudsy water, other side to allow rinse water from first load to drain). Or at least a single sink with a separate standpipe drain. The drain hose then would have had to be bifurcated, with one part leading to the sink portion where the hot sudsy water was stored, the other part allowing the rinse water to drain.

Am I correct or am I missing something?

I don't recall ever seeing hot water being stored in the sink, though I have seen ads for GE '58 that stateed that Suds Saver was an extra-cost option. Given the fact that we had a large SINGLE sink, I'm wondering then if Suds Saver was not an option for my mom, assuming we didn't have a separate standpipe somewhere (unlikely in a 1935-build laundry room). FYI this was in San Diego on city water supply with a large water heater, so adequate hot water was not an issue (but I'm wondering if the single sink---installed in the pre-automatic era---basically obviated the possibility for Suds Saver). DId new-build homes in the 50s come with double laundry sinks?

FYI the home in which we lived for three years before the 1935 house was brand new, there was a laundry area in the garage, I remember (age four) a sink, but I don't remember the specifics of whether the sink was single or double. We moved into that house from a rental in 1958 and the GE's were bought new for that house.

Second question: never having seen a wringer in operation, were these manually filled by buckets from the sink? Or could they be filled via hoses from the wall taps? Did they drain by gravity to a bucket on the floor? Or did they have pumps capable of pushing the used water into a sink? I'm just trying to imagine how the original owners of the house did laundry in pre-automatic 1935. If I had to guess, I'd say that the original configuration of the room's plumbing was the sink with hot and cold taps, and that in the 40s or 50s, additional taps were added to connect automatic machines, with the sink serving as "the drain".

 

[kenmore71]

There were a number of ways that a suds saver could be connected. Growing up, ours was a single tub with a standpipe that was also the stopper for the tub. The non-suds water drained into this tube which went directly down the drain.

 

Almost all suds-savers had two separate drain hoses and a solenoid operated valve that directed the water to the storage tub hose or the drain hose. The exceptions to this so rare than I won't mention them.

 

Some wringers has pumps for pump-out, some did not. On Maytags the pump was an add-on option. The pump was only necessary if you didn't have a floor drain in the room where you did laundry. Even at that, my grandmother and mother drained the wringer out the back door for years. In the winter, it made a great ice slick down the hill to sled on my father tells me!

 

I can't imagine that anyone would have filled a wringer with buckets if they had running hot water. They definitely would have used a hose. Now, out in the country, I know for a fact that my great-grandmother used buckets to fill her gas-operated Maytag during the 1920s. The water would have come from the water reservoir on the wood cookstove in the fall, winter and spring, and most likely from kettles on the kerosene cookstove on the porch in the hottest parts of summer.

 

 

 

[ea56]

The home that my family moved to in 1963 had the washing machine in the kitchen. It was a 1963 Whirlpool toploader wtih a suds saver. Next to the washer was a deep laundry tub that was incased by a white metal cabinet. In the sink drain there was a stand pipe the extended a few inches higher than the top of the tub. There was a split drain hose that came from the washer. When the suds saver was used the hot, soapy wash water drianed into the tub, the rinse water drained into the standpipe. When we were ready for the next load the hot water being held in the laundry tub was pumped back into the washer and any needed extra water to reach the set load level would be added by the washer fill valve. We used this setup until 1969 when we got an new Maytag Wringer, the tol model with the insulated tub. By that time they came with that ridiculous foot switch for operation of the wringer. The dealer that we purchased the Maytag from took it off and plugged the hole with a large bolt so we could use the wringer without the stupid foot switch. We would fill the washer with a y hose connected to the washer fill faucets. The Maytag had a pump. We filled the laundry tub with warm water, wrung the laundry into the tub, swished it around and wrung it back out into a waiting laundry basket. We washed 4 to 5 loads in the same wash water, adding extra water and detergent as needed. You started with the whites, then towels, next light colors, then darks, and so on. A full weeks wash could be done in a little over an hour. When the wash was done the Maytag would pump the wash water into the laundry tub to drain. I loved this set up, and frankly, if I had the setup for this with a laundry tub I would gladly go back to using a wringer. The while process was almost theraputic.

 

[scoots]

"The whole process was almost theraputic"

That's very true. I do most of my wash in wringers, two Maytags setup side by side (an N to wash, an E to rinse*) and I breeze through a whole week's worth of laundry (house hold for three) in about 60-90 minutes this way. I work at a computer, so doing physcial labor is actually relaxing and welcome.

Because I am physically handeling the garments, it gives me a chance to actually look at them critically: Do they need mending? Spot treatment? Are they too old to be worn? Are they actually clean at the end of the process? You also read the care tags so often you already know what order it's going into the wash. The post-modern automatics just encourage lazyness - throw it in, press a button, play a game.

The inner Scot in me is also delighted that I can do my laundry for a fraction of the water/heating/detergent costs of other systems.

____________
* because the N has a porcelain tub, I can use bleach without discoloring the E's aluminum tub. The extra volume in the E tub also ensures that the machine is running at less than maximum capacity, and the rinsing can be done in a few minutes.

 

[ea56]

We used to use bleach in our aluminum tub Maytag and I don't recall that the tub was discolored by using it. One thing I forget to mention is that we started out the first load with the hottest water possible, so getting the first load through the wringer could sometimes require using a large wooden spoon to fish the articles out of the tub. Leaving the agitator on while wringing the wash was also helpful, as the articles would be pushed to the top so you didn't have to reach down to the bottom in that really hot water. We would also use Mrs. Stewart's Bluing in the rinse water. A funny story, one time my Mom was washing a double down comforter and I helped her put it through the wringer. When the last part of the comforter was going through the wringer water shot clear across the kitchen! What a mess![this post was last edited: 6/4/2015-13:48]

 

[retro-man]

I remember as a child at my grandparents house on my mothers side, that their wringer was in the bathroom. All I can remember was that it was green and stood on 4 legs. It was a no pump model, but the height of it was perfect for the drain hole to go directly over the toilet for draining. The water came from a hose connected to the faucet in the tub for filling the washer. The tub was filled with warm water and that was where the rinsing was done. A quick process for sure. I remember my mother and 1 of her sisters doing multiple loads and hung out on the line very quickly. Usually 3 or 4 loads were done before changing the wash water.

Jon

 

[arbilab]

[John Belushi voice] But TODAAAYY, a twintub that reuses suds WITHOUT a laundry sink or dual drainhoses is considered WAAAYYY too much work. Right, gotta get back to texting and reruns of Andy Griffith on cable. [eyeroll]

In fairness, there are no family-sized twintubs any more. One has to be relatively single and able to pry one's self away from the electrodistractions to which everyone else is addicted. Which would make one thoroughly abnormal unless one (like me) doesn't give a flark what 'normality' is reputed to be.

But glad you asked. I DID rather wonder how the machine 'automatically' sorted water into 'reusable' and 'discard'.

 

[ronhic]

My mothers sud-saver laundry sink looks the same as that in the link below.

 

Basically, the wash water discharged via a dedicated hose into the tub (with plug in) whilst the stand pipe was connected to the bypass option closest to the washer so the rinse water could still empty. This was slightly recessed to ensure that if there was back-flow it still ended up going down the drain via the tub.

 

Most free standing laundry tubs in Oz are still sold like this, though the vast majority of people no longer have sud-save machines. Instead, they place the single outlet hose in the bypass which allows the tub to be used for soaking, hand washing etc.

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www.clark.com.au

 

[passatdoc]

Today's Picture Of The Day (Whirlpool Suds=Miser) appears to show a similar tub device. So they must have been sold in the USA at one time as well.

I recall a laundry sink--but not a tub--in both of the laundry areas in the two homes in which I grew up. The drain hose of the washer attached to the side of the sink with a clamp. My guess is that we did not have suds saver, though it was an option on the '58 GE.

 

[tomturbomatic]

You can still buy those tubs made by Mustee. I have one. There is a cover to keep the suds water hot and a plastic pipe which fits in the tub's drain hole to accommodate the rinse water hose.

Houses that were built in the era of wringer washers usually had two concrete laundry tubs in the laundry area. Our house in Illinois had the two tubs. The one closer to the '52 Kenmore had the gray suds hose going into it while the one farther to the left had the rinse water hose draining into it. The Kenmore always drained the wash water through the suds hose. By the late 50s, some manufacturers had a switch that enabled the user to choose between saving and draining suds.

 

[maytagbear]

On our 1964 Whirlpool Imperial,

if you wanted to reuse the wash water, you just put a drain plug in the tub closest
to the machine, and the rinse water was pumped through a second hose into the second tub. To get the water back, there was a small space on the timer dial that said "suds," and the pump would reverse, and suck the water back into the machine. It would add a little water, you'd add a little more detergent and La France bluing or whatever else was in your laundry cocktail, and walk away.

I don't have room for a laundry tub here, but I would if I could, and I'd gladly use a suds saver machine now......

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[jimmler]

I wonder if the drought here in California will spawn a set of new machines that will offer a suds saver again. It would certainly make sense although houses built today don't usually make provisions for a laundry sink. Maybe they could redesign the pedestals of the current HE machines to be a holding tank instead of a storage area. A couple valves, some plumbing changes, a few extra wires, and some updated firmware....piece of cake!

When were the last of the suds saver models produced? I don't think my circa 1985 Dependable Care washer series even had it as an option. It would certainly be cool now to have that ability, tho.

 

[launderess]

While There Is A Small Segment Of The Population

Into using wringers (manual or machine) and other forms of semi-automatic washing machines (the forerunners of suds savers); highly doubt the market is large enough to interest major manufacturers today.

Many both within the business and housewives viewed reusing wash water as icky to unhygienic. That along with being totally un-necessary with modern automatic washing machines and better indoor plumbing/hot water sources.

As also noted more and more modern homes are not built with laundry sinks anymore. Rather you have standpipe connections for draining. Suppose a large bucket would suffice but that would hardly be a marketing plus.

There just *might* be a market large enough worldwide for twin tub units of old (think Hoover, Servis, Hotpoint, etc...) to make it worth someone's go. Yes, they could be marketed towards energy savings; that is instead of chucking out all that hot water after each load, reuse and save. It just *might* be a way for some to get around the daft idea of "100F" being considered as the new "hot" water setting.