Saturday fun: GE PORTABLE Disposall

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hoover1060

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I've been meaning to show this for a while, just now finally got the chance. I first saw one of these back in June during the VCCC convention in LA, and so when one popped on Ebay I had to have it.
Following are some pics of the portable Disposall in action, and as you'll see also the reason this was not more popular..
 
the guts

The lower half is where the garbage goes. The mechanism is virtually identical to that of GE's full sized induction motor disposers of the late 60's and 1970's...The lower part sits in the sink over the drain.
For safety's sake, I'm setting this over my regular disposal..
 
lock & load

I decided to take these pics today, because I knew this lettuce was in my fridge and needed to be tossed...Here we are all loaded and ready for the motor to be attached.
 
Switch

The switch is on the plug. Once the motor is twist locked on the lower part, you hit the switch.
 
GRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIINNNNNDDDDDDDD!

The motor is universal, not super loud. As the garbage is ground and the load lessens the speed increases.
Note the chopped carrot bits that have come out the bottom..
 
OK so you need a permanant disposal too??

to clean up after the portable one???
If I were braver I'd try it over the regular drain...
 
A very cool (and rare) machine, but I notice the drawbacks...the first being that the water's running a little too close to the motor! (LOL) And considering the narrow openings of the standard 5-hole sink drain, wouldn't some of the ground-up foodbits be a little too big?

It looks like fun to play with, but they could have probably come up with a better design.

--Austin
 
a really good idea, BUT...

Austin,
The motor is completely sealed, so there are no worries at all.
I finally figured out what it sounds like too: A rotary skill saw starting up, just quieter.

I think the reason this was not popular is because its missing one major feature that every permanant disposal has, that of being a pump. All permanant disposers FORCE the water out and thru the drain lines, preventing clogged pipes. The ground stuff and water just drop out the bottom and into the drain.
I suspect anyone who bought these just wound up with garbage soup in their sinks, as there was nothing to force the water down...

On a sadder note: The permanant disposal in my sink is back to being my 2002 ISE PRO77. The 1976 model 77 I installed back in June threw a bearing, so I removed it. To say I am bummed would be an understatement, as the 76 model was way better than the current ones are. At least it died empty and I was able to dry it out and save it for display.
 
Very cool disposall! I wonder how many, and for how long, these were sold? Did it seem to clean itself out well?

Too bad about your 1976 model ISE, do you think you can open it up and replace those motor bearings? I saw a NIB Maytag disposer on ebay a few weeks ago and got caught up in the vintage disposer talk here and found myself bidding on it. I didn't win it but will certainly watch for more. They had two cutting levels which did an excellent job at grinding waste into a fine, almost liquid state, but took a while to do it.
 
Hi Jeff,
Wow that looks like a fun machine; it even works in the same way as a conventional waste disposal.
I had no idea anything like that existed, thanks for sharing.

All the best.
Hugh
 
Greg,
The portable cleans itself very well, and for the most part is pretty low maintenance. I am not sure what its made out of, the lower part is a very thick plastic, the plug is grounded, and the motor is conpletely sealed.
Portable disposals were more common late in the 40's and through the 1950's. The James company had one that could even be converted to permanant! This GE is much newer, my guess based on the mechanism is sometime in the 1970's.

1976 ISE: When that thing squealed at me my heart broke! I've wondered at just calling ISE authorized service and seeing if they can rebuild it. Its the bearing under the disk, ISE uses a plastic shield on their better models to protect the drain chamber from corrosion. After 30 years of sitting idle, water got under the shield on this one and went right for the bearing. The motor still turns, but is very very tight!

I saw that Maytag made disposer on ebay, that was towards the end of their making them. As a kid I remember going to Polk Brothers(big furniture/appliance store chain in Chicago years ago) and they had a batch feed model on display that ran. Their demo was to toss in a few roofing nails and let the maytag chew them. I was always mesmerized when the salesman did that!
 
Interesting...this grinding wheel lacks an "impeller" on the other side? (And did in-sink disposers use the grinding wheel to force the waste through or have a separate pump impeller driven by the motor?) I can see how that would pose a problem...because you'd wind up a huge, thick clog right there in the sink! OY...

With a pump, a good seal from the machine to the drain opening is another must, so the ground-up waste is FORCED down the drain. Just like the "vortex" that occurs when the disposer's running and you rinse out/empty a large pot into the sink.

Sorry to hear about your '76 ISE...that was a cool machine. Considering the condition and the fact that it's not completely seized up, I don't think they would have a problem rebuilding it, IMHO.
 
Pump action

Austin,
On most disposals, the pumping action comes from the disk itself, some older ISEs and Waste Kings even had pump vanes on the underside of the disk.
To see your own disposal pump, plug the sink, fill with 2-3 inches of water, remove the plug and hit the switch...

The ground garbage just drops out the bottom of the GE, to go right down the drain...there's no pressure from the disk to help things along

76 ISE: I believe it is repairable, the question is finding someone competent to do it. I even have the part thats needed I think!!!
 
On display downstairs

1976 ISE 77
Neptune 300 (made by Elkay)
Sinkmaster 400 (made by Anaheim)
GE Portable
 
Protable disposall

We had one of these when I was little. My Dad worked for GE and used to bring things home for my Mom to try. She didn't like it at all. Thought it was too much of a hassle. Of course, she had a built in at the same time so I suspect that had something to do with it.

I was born in '54 and we had that when we were still living in New York which was sometime before about '62 when we moved away.
 
I can see where it would be a hassle...

first you'd have to store it...
and after each use you'd need to make sure it was clean and dry...
and of course there's the garbage soup it makes...

1962? Wow I didn't realize it would go that far back...wonder what they sold for new?
 
Your GE countertop disposal is very fun Jeff. John Lefever in Washington has one too but its probably about 10 years older and just has a pipe that dispenses the gunk into the sink if I'm remembering that correctly.

I have a picture of the very first GE disposall where the on/off switch is a rod that connects from the machine, through the front of the cabinet. I will post it next week.
 
Disposal history

Would love to see that pic of the first GE model. According to history, John Hammes invented the disposer in 1927. Hammes would later found InSinkErator in 1938. GE had their disposal in the market in 1936.
Would be very interesting to know the details on this!
 
We have a thrift store James portable with a locking lift-up lid. The ideal accessory that should have come with these was a sturdy rack that would support it over the toilet; maybe something like a toidy seat that little tiny kids use. Then you would not have to worry about the pumping action, the soup or clogging the sink drain. You would just have to hope that the thing did not sling the stuff sideways on the way out. I guess if you lived in an apartment, your downstairs neighbors might wonder just what in the hell was going on upstairs in your throne room when the cessation of all of that noise was followed by a flush. Maybe you could try telling them that your roommate was the Six Million Dollar Man and that's just the way it is with the bionic process.
 
To get the running water, you attach a hose to the bathroom sink. You can either change the aerator so that it accommodates a snap coupler like on a DW or get a cheapie push on rubber fitting like on the end of those shampoo & baby bathing sprayers. The hose would not be under any back pressure so the fitting does not have to be super tight.
 
On our GE dispossal, it's built into the sink. To turn it on you put the drain cap in and turn it, it's cool, but my dad wants to get a new one because the sharpener blade broke off.
 
my mom had one of those

Comp: My mom had a GE twist-top disposal, from 1978 to 2001. It was a good grinder, and with the top that locked in place during operation, you never got garbage back in your face!

I'm still getting used to the portable model in the bathroom...seems like a lot of bother for a disposal...
 
Very interesting machine-a good alternative for folks who can't put in a permenant one-Ie a rental home.Love the cast hammers on the shred wheel.Combine those with the universal motor-would think it would shred anything you put in it.Does it have the Carboloy cutters? couldn't see them in the picture.The carbide blocks really contribute to the shredding action-nothing like a couple carbide lathe cutters for more shredding fun.Thats what the "Carboloy" cutters were originally used for.Usually I was used to seeing the "flail" like hammers in the GE univsersal motor machines.The idea of using it over a toilet is a good one-no worries about clogging.
Yes there would be "pumping" action from the rotating shredder-but not real efficient-I have had clogged lines even from regular disposers.When you fill the sick and run the disposal to "drain" it-you can hear the disposer motor lugging.A centrifical pump impellor is designed to pump water-but not shred food waste.
 
I checked..

No carboloy cutter, just the standard shredder ring. Kinda interesting that there are no drain holes on the disk...
I've haven't fed it anything beyond potato peelings and lettuce, easy stuff for any disposal. I'll have to give it something more substansial!
 

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