Time to reinvigorate...

[jons1077]

To say the least, this has been a rough year for me between working directly with this pandemic and navigating my divorce after fifteen years. Today is the day I decided to start making some progress in my little slice of laundry history. My goal is to have as many of this machines hooked up and operational as possible. The garage has been a mess for a long time so it feels good to finally see these machines again.

The Westinghouse dryer needs a new motor so that will be my current project. I don’t have a sink faucet compatible with a quick connect adapter for the portable Kitchenaid but I wanted to give her a run while I was at it. Still runs like a charm!

Enjoy the photos!

 

[repairguy]

Nice collection there!

 

[jons1077]

Westinghouse Dryer

These dryers are so very “GE-esque” in their design. This particular model is slightly more primitive in that it utilizes a temperature sensor rather than a moisture sensor, if I’m not mistaken. It’s a large capacity pretty close to that if the big-door GE Americana.

No matter the dryer, they are always a lint fiesta! Ick!

 

[jons1077]

Inside

The lint fiesta kicks into high gear as we get the drum out!

Notice this is a single-element design and the dryer will function at either 240v (high heat) or 120v (low heat) with timed-dry cycle being up to 138 minutes long!

 

[maytag85]

The Westinghouse and GE dryers of that era are very similar in design and the WCI dryers of the 80’s are very similar as well. My only complaint about these dryers is the heating element is fairly close to the drum and is a 5600 watt element as well. GE is still using this design in their current dryer design but they seem to be more cheaply made than the Whirlpool 29” dryers that are built today.

 

[warmsecondrinse]

Very nice collection! And congrats on your divorce. Been there, done that.

Best of luck to you as you get your machines in order.

 

[yogitunes]

Nice collection.....keep the pics coming of your progress

 

[qsd-dan]

Looks fantastic!

Th last 5 years of my life have been stranger than fiction. There's nothing like some cleaning, organizing, wrenching, and washing for the ultimate therapy.

 

[combo52]

70s Westinghouse Dryer

These dryers came out in 1964 and were little changed till the last ten years or so, in fact the top of the FD TL stack machines still has parts that interchange with this dryer.

 

Your dryer is only a little larger than a standard GE 27" dryer in capacity, the door opening makes it look bigger than it is, GEs standard dryers were about 4.8 CF and this WH is about 5.4 CF whereas the the big GEs were a full 8 CF.

 

I always sort of liked these WH dryers, they were not as long lived as GE dryers but they seem a little more solid. The biggest failure areas on these WH dryers like yours are bad motors, front and rear drum bearings and the idler pulley. Wiring in the heating circuit was also a problem at times.

 

I did like the fact that the low heat switched to 120 volts, I could never figure out why more dryer makers did not do this as it made for a really low lentil heat that even allowed drying plastic shower curtains, rubber backed rugs etc without damage or fire risk.

 

Hi John, if you need any parts for this dryer let me know, I probably even have a motor for it.

 

John L.

 

[jons1077]

Oh Johnny boy

You’re the sweetest. You’re also ahead of yourself. You already sent me an Emerson motor already attached to a mounting bracket. It fit like a glove. Thanks to the terminal wiring diagram I was able to easily reattach the five wires to the “new” motor. John swears that this motor is far superior to the Westinghouse motor that was original. Didn’t Whirlpool/Kenmore also use these same Emerson motors? It looks awfully familiar.

Anywho, while I was laughing about the notion that my ex thinks he shouldn’t have to pay for his car, I washed and reinstalled the fan and blower housing. Since it’s plastic, it was easy to just scrub it down with soapy water. I made sure to really clean around the exhaust heat sensor just downstream. It was quite mucked up and having a hangover from that lint fiesta that I had to clear out. Hopefully it’ll function a little more accurately now that it’s clean.

I also took the time to get into the door/front panel assembly and brush and vacuum out that mess as well. Never fails. These things have hot , moist, linty air meeting cooler surfaces on the way out the back and the lint just cakes on. They should have Teflon coated these things or something.

 

[jons1077]

Blue porcelain

Wiped down the drum to find a rather nice blue sheen in the front. I almost forgot it was an affordable model and brand when I saw that!

Tomorrow will be replacing the starter switch and some final touches. She’s almost ready to roll!

 

[vacerator]

Jon,

if you're a nurse, or other direct healthcare professional, thank you for that!
Sorry 'bout your divorce. 15 years is quite a stretch, but sometimes it's for the best. Was it your first relationship? Mine lasted 11 years, but I was only 33. It gets better, and maybe a new romance is in your future.
Married now for 26 years, 4 legally.
You're an attractive guy! Someone is out there!
Best wishes and peace,
Mike

 

[gansky1]

Really beautiful collection, Jon, glad you have some time and space to enjoy it again.  Will you have room to hook up all of the machines?  I'm sorry to hear of your divorce, not easy to go through for sure.  

 

The Westy dryer is interesting to see apart, haven't seen anything Westinghouse around here for years now. 

 

That Dispensall is gorgeous, GE used a pretty avocado green, especially with lights

 

[swestoyz]

Jon - it's great to see your collection in whole. This will be a good time to tinker, reflect, and prioritize. Enjoy your amazing collection. Did you find the Dispensal locally? What a find!

Ben

 

[turquoisedude]

Really nice collection, Jon!  Love the avocado GE's!!  

 

I had the harvest gold version of the Westinghouse dryer (with the washer) many many moons ago.  I regret getting rid of them because I thought there was no way I could ever repair them... sigh... 

 

[gyrafoam]

Jon-----

That's a nice collection you have!
It does feel good to have them up and running.

Sorry about the divorce. "Matters of the heart" are difficult.

 

[jons1077]

Thank you all!

This collection began to materialize in 2008 when I found this club. My first vintage machine was my early 80’s Kenmore portable belt-drive which I sold several years ago to another member. That was a great little machine. This Westinghouse set was a lucky find in that it was already sitting in the basement of my old house in Portland. They’d had very light use over the years so they remain in very good shape. The washer was so sluggish and loud at first but I found that it had sat unused for so long that the belt split. That explained the sluggishness as well as all the noise. A new belt changed that 110%. I think this new motor and a good cleaning will do the same for the dryer. They are a handsome pair.

I didn’t mean for this to be a thread about divorce so much. It’s just what was on my mind yesterday after some unwelcomed texts. I am absolutely happy now. I can focus on my hobbies and career as well as myself. Much like you all, tearing into a dryer is great therapy for me.

My goal is to install a laundry sink for the Kitchenaid and Kenmore suds-saver. I’ll extend plumbing along the wall and add another dryer exhaust vent. I’ll eventually add some additional electrical outlets but for now I’ll make do. Hopefully, I can host or at least be a part of a Northwest region wash-in so you all get your chance to see these machines and play with them. They are all quite unique and enjoyable.

 

[jons1077]

Finishing touches

Briefly popped open the panel to clean a bit and replace a start switch. She’s all back together and pretty again. Will give it a test run tomorrow and probably get it hooked up for use.

Thanks for following my thread! I included a picture of the model and serial number decal located inside the door.

 

[pierreandreply4]

jon1077

jon1077,

any plans to post a vid of your recently restroed kenmore washer going true a full wash cycle from main wash to final spin, also the agitator in your washer my grandmother had a 3 cycle inglis liberator push to start 5 wash rinse temp knob that had the agitator thats in your kenmore washer and do you still use your westinghouse washer sometime? just wondering