The Most Dangerous Home Iron In The World

[launderess]

Well probably there are others but wanted to inform members as one has gotten questions about these before.

Vintage Knapp-Monarch "Flatwork" Ironers are not mechanical heated mangles per se, but rather an early electric iron.

Sold from the 1930's through about the 1940's these irons were designed to iron "flatwork" the long used term for linens such as table cloths, sheets, pillow slips etc by commercial/professional laundries.

Problem with these irons is they lack a thermostat. The iron will keep heating long as it is connected to electricity. This can lead to fires or burns as the thing becomes hotter and hotter.

Pardon Our Interruption...

 

[whirlcool]

It seems like there is a scale for different fabrics on the iron, but no heat adjustment knob. It's very strange that they would put that scale there if they were not going to supply a heat control.

 

[launderess]

Actually Own Three Of Them

Got them cheaply off fleaPay all in good nick and wanted to see what all the hub-bub was about. Then they went for good sums so when the chances came to nab them cheaply one pounced.

It wasn't until actual use that one learned of the dangers.

The scale is just a setting to indicate when the iron has reached the proper temperature for each fabric. There are however several problems with the system.

One the iron was designed to be laid on it's side (hence the metal ring), when not in use to keep the hot iron off surfaces. However often how it's laid can influence the speed the indicator moves,IMHO. There is also again nothing in theory to stop the temperature from rising. So if it reaches "Silk" it will keep going unless you turn off the power, which brings the second problem.

I've found the best way to use these irons is to treat them like electrically heated sad irons. That is once the proper temperature is reached unplug/turn off power and use until the thing cools. Return power and wait for it to reach proper temp, use, etc.... This is why one ended up with so many K-M Flatwork Ironers. You really need at least two as they did back in the days of stove heated irons.

The only temperature control is the cooling of the iron's surface as it comes into contact with damp/cool cloth. Mind you materials in the 1930's and 1040's were much thicker than today. Ironing modern linen on the "Linen" setting will almost surely result in scorching (trust me). Ditto for most cottons (again, trust me). So one had to resort to using these irons in a delicate balance 1/2 to 1 setting lower than the material being ironed. Personally cannot see how anyone did wool or silk without a press cloth as these irons most likely scorched the heck of anything made from those fibers.

 

[vintagekitchen]

Several early irons used this sort of system, no thermostat, plug/unplug to control heat. One must remember, at the time women were use to the sad irons which one heated on the stove. Those sad irons would also continue to get hottor and hotter unless you took them off the stove, and one had to guess/estimate the temperature of the iron, and hope you were correct, otherwise you would scorch the items being ironed. I'm sure to women at the time, an iron that heated itself electrically (no more standing over a hot stove every ironing day, even in August), and had that nifty thermometer to tell you when it was just hot enough (no more scorched laundry), seemed like a wondrous invention.

 

[whirlcool]

OK, I understand now. That was a heat monitoring device, not a heat adjustment. I wonder how many house fires those things started?

 

[abcomatic]

I have my grandmother's 1935 maybe? Sunbeam iron. So the indicator that your thumb moves, only indicates the fabric type and not keeps the iron at a the set temp.? If it was left plugged in, it would continue to heat regardless of the rotary type indicator? Thanks, Gary

 

[vintagekitchen]

1935 Sunbeam Iron

The rotary thumb control is a thermostat, you can "set it and forget it". Sunbeam at the time was not cheap by a long shot, your grandmother chose well. I have a 1940's era Sunbeam IronMaster, and it is still a wonderful iron. I don't use it very often simply because I find it far heavier than I prefer.

Irons with no rotary or slide thermostat for heat settings have a temperature gauge. Basically just a thermometer, in the base of the iron. When the red creeps across to the correct setting, one unplugs the cord from the iron, and begins ironing. When the red starts creeping back down, showing that the iron is getting too cool, one plugs the cord back into the iron. It requires constant attention, one can't watch the soap operas while one irons with one of these beasts, or the iron will either overheat and scorch, or get too cool and stop removing wrinkles. Still better than standing next to a hot stove in August sweating over a sad iron though.

 

[qualin]

I'm now suddenly reminded of when Photonic Induction took an iron, removed the thermostat and the thermal fuse, then rammed 270 volts across it.. Hilarity ensued...

 

[paulg]

Another type of danger

I too have purchased various irons over time and have used all at one time or another.
One big loser for me was the 1957 Kenmore iron. I purchased it NIB - like the day it was made.
That is one TIPPY iron.
During experimentation with it, only a little nudge to the ironing board sent the unit falling flat onto the board.
And so I do not use it. It sits in a box. Fun to look at but bad design.
I suppose that is why subsequent iron designs had the bigger heel rests and weight distributions so they are more stable.
I am a baby boomer and do remember as a kid when ironing boards being set on fire was a regular occurrence. It wouldn't surprise me a bit that iron of same or similar design, left unattended and falling onto the fabric by a nudge from the dog, child etc. was possibly behind some of them.

 

[launderess]

Tippy Irons

Have a stash of those silicone mats commercial laundries use to rest irons upon flat, and one does to the lessen the chance of knocking over and or the iron otherwise falling down.

Mind you do most of my ironing with dry irons. For steam have either a steam boiler/generator system, gravity water and other commercial irons which only product steam when called for (pressing a button), so they can remain flat. On the odd occasion one drags out one of the vintage steam irons (Presto, Bernette), yes those must remain upright. Well the Presto "Vapo-Steam" lies flat.