Question-UK front loader comparision!

[lavamat_jon]

Hoover 1100rpm spin

Mike,

My nana's Hoover Electronic 1100 had an 1100rpm spin and that dated from when she moved into her house, which was 1972, so Hoover must have had an 1100rpm spin even as far back as then.

When did Hotpoint introduce frontloaders to the UK market? My great grandad has a 1960s-era English Electric washer and dryer in the corner of his utility room (although they both sit unused, with a Hoover Soft Wave washer and a 90s Hotpoint dryer being his laundry machines) - apparently these were the first automatic washers in his village and people would go round his house just to do laundry! Anyway - were English Electric their own company back then, or were they Hotpoint machines underneath? My great grandad's machine has a long tube type display, which was a progamme guide. It had a little wheel on the side to move the wheel up and down and told you all the different programme selections!

Take care,

Jon

 

[spiraclean]

Chevron Multi Hole Drums

Hi Mike,
Yes I have seen the chevron drum in a Slimline Electronic Plus 1000 it’s the timer controlled variant of your Quartz Plus. I am not at all surprised by Hitachi choosing that design for their entry to the UK washer market, the machine I mention above used the same mechanics as the Hitachi models and that particular Servis machine was used in a nursing home; it coped with all the washing and bed linens of 30 elderly residents for seven years. I was called to the machine occasionally to replace a few sets of motor brushes and I had to change the door seal once, it was still in perfect working order when they finally replaced it with a pair Whirlpool Top Loaders so it was a very reliable machine indeed.
I am surprised that your later full door Quartz Plus is not fitted with the chevron drum most of that series both Quartz Plus and Slimline Electronic Plus models were fitted with the chevron drums.
The Rigid steel chassis of the Servis machines was extremely strong and all tub suspension components were mounted directly on the chassis, the only upper mount was the nylon fabric check strap on the top of the tub unit and all it done was prevent the tub from being pushed back when loading the drum.
I would love to have my Quartz tested for wash performance I am sure it would easily achieve an A grade wash. They were great machines and I am proud to have this true British classic in my collection.

All the best.
Hugh

 

[gizmo]

Mike

The Hoover Keymatic (slope front) also has a steel frame, you can remove the back and top/side panels and it can wash naked.
My 12 volt converted one worked that way for about a year. I converted the mechanical side of it but not the timer, instead it had two clockwork timers on top, one for wash and one for spin, plus a switch to select fill temperature. They were on top of the frame so it was impossible to refit the panels. Yes I am completely barmy but it worked and was very entertaining to watch, especially watching the drum dance about on spin.

Also my GEC (Hotpoint) purple door FL from the UK - you can remove the back panel and the one piece top/side panel, the drum supports on the two struts, though the front panel is a bit floppy and the inlet valves will be dangling by the hoses...

Chris.

 

[chestermikeuk]

First Hotpoint Front Loader

Hi Jon

Hotpoints first entry into the UK front loader market was 1970, (not 71 as previous said)this had the 1100rpm spin, which was unusually fast for the time.

Do you think you nans machine could have been this one because Hoover where all still 740 rpm until Feb 77 with the introduction of the "Electronic 800" the A3058, and then the A3060 1100rpm in 1978.This Hotpoint does look like the later Hoover models as well with the square raised door etc..

 

[westytoploader]

Wow, is this the Which test? Thanks for posting Mike; that English Electric machine caught my eye...bears a striking resemblance to the late-60's Westinghouse FL with the side-swing door!! What's the year here?

Darren, congratulations! Those Servis machines sure look cool with the near-solid drum! I think you still need to keep the square-door Hoover though...or give it to Jon!

 

[lavamat_jon]

My Nana's Hoover

Hi Mike,

My nana's Hoover was one of those that had the slider next to the door to release it, and had a a timer with one cycle and the 3 buttons to select the cycle. It was 1100rpm - so my nana could be wrong after all in terms of the date. She said she got the Hoover when she moved into her house in 1972, but who knows... Anyway, here's a pic off Ebay of the same washer she had. I guess you can identify the year from that?

Take care!

Jon

 

[chestermikeuk]

Which!!

Austin

This report is the Which Consumer Report of 1970, this machine was the same as the Westinghouse models and am still trying to find a link etc..I think certain manufacturers had ties with each other so not having to re-invent the wheel, as in the GE/ UK Hotpoint FilterFlow machines etc.

Jon

The Hoover is the A3060, the new 1100rpm machine, so it was from 1978, I think its quite a classic with its greeny/black bezel, and was probably the most sought after machine of its time, the last Keymatic with 1100rpm was based on this machine, which was the A3062.

 

[newwave1]

Time for an update!


weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeell. my brother agreed being the great brother that he is, that he would pick the servis up with me & take it home. So i went to the place..."great its still there" i hadnt seen it close up...it looked pretty good! Then i look at the badge,which had been rebadged "electra", "thats fine i still know its a servis",,but "wheres the price?" So i ask some random hillybilly guy that works in the place how much..

& the fool tells me "its knackered!" also termanology for "broken;no longer working due to fault!" aha! & this half wit didnt tel me what was wrong with it..i didnt take it. i could've fixed it maybe...but i was hoping for a working model to start me off.

well now i can afford to be piccy, im hoping to get a model that has the whole panel for the door like in the pic mike kindly posted. i will be puttin ads on ebay & in the local Ad-mag. hopefully i'll get what im looking for!

spiraclean-thank you for that info! im particularly interested in the fact the distributions a bit quicker than average! im pleased to hear the waterlevels r high too.im afraid i'll b fairly uneconomical with water as i am now as i like thorough rinsing! dont let the waterboard hear me say that!!!! I should remember these machines as my mums best friend had them & i used to watch them endlessly but unfortunately now my 19th birthday has come & past the memory fails me slightly as i've seen so many machines in my existance! i also like the sound of that soak program! similar to the soak on my AEG! v good!

does anyone know what getting parts are like for these now?

*D*

 

[newwave1]

does anyone have any more servis pics they could share?

*D*

 

[chestermikeuk]

Servis Pics

Classic washers before you where born!!!

In the seventies you didnt have a kitchen until you had a matching washer & dryer (Servis of course) and a Russell Hobbs K3p auto switch off kettle, swirly worktops, swirly floor & swirly walls!!!...

Believe it or not for the time, this was kitch not uncool....LOL

All that without taking LSD...LOL

Try this link for pics etc..

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ServisHi-Zone/

 

[newwave1]

Yay! i didnt no that servis group existed mike! i've just joined

mike- indeed that happens to me..there are so many machines before my time that i would like to encounter...these servis machine come into that catagory!

so many machines so little time!!

Darren

 

[Designgeek]

Swirly, eh? That and Really Bright Colors!

Re. the "eternity soak" feature (one revolution every 30 minutes until you press the Start button): that sounds really cool. Could be highly useful for getting dried-on dirt out, for example on work clothes used in construction or agriculture. Does any manufacturer have anything like that at present?

Re. computer-controlled: did they actually mean microprocessor & stored-program control, or did they mean integrated circuits used instead of mechanical timers? In the 70s, the former would have been fiendishly expensive, the latter would have been more likely and offer most of the same benefits.

The point where an actual microprocessor & software become most useful is where you have decision-points in a process flow, or have to integrate feedback into a system.

 

[Kenmorepeter5]

ZUG

I can't find this click English from ZUG ???

Peter

 

[foraloysius]

Peter, there is not English website for Zug appliances. Only in German, Italian and French. Zug appliances are only sold in Switzerland (much to disappointment by some members here), not in the United States.

 

[newwave1]

Well the search is on, i've placed an AD in the wanted section of a classifieds paper around my area..i wonder if anyone here could help me with locating a Servis?! just a though

D