What do you know about it?

[ThisOldHouse]

I purchased a home built in the early 80's, kitchen is all original. I do not know much about the appliances but the dishwasher is a Waste King stainless steel ss911 in avocado green, the oven is a Chambers brand double in the wall oven (steel and black glass). Can anyone tell me more about these items? Should I keep, Sell or trash them?

 

[rustyspaatz]

Do you have more pictures of the kitchen?
Just going by the picture, it would appear it is older than early 80s. That looks more like mid 70s. Shaded Avocado, with matching counters, was a strong seller from late 60s to late 70s.

It is impressive that this gem has made it all these years.

Is that a big scratch on the front?

What does the inside of the dishwasher look like and does it still work?

 

[bigalsf]

WasteKing Dishwasher

Hi, your dishwasher is from approximately 1973-1975. WasteKing dishwashers were OK dishwashers in their day, but had many reliability problems which soured many consumers from purchasing them. While they did have stainless steel tanks, the stainless was of a low quality, which would eventually wear out. The seam at the back of the tank connecting the sidewalls with the lower portion often became stained with use (it is a silicone seal).

They are OK cleaners, but they have no filter. The machine eliminates food particles by utilizing several water changes; expect to see particles left on some dishes with very heavily soiled loads. A typical normal cycle uses about 15 gallons of water.

They are unique due to their washing system (the H-Axis wash tube design), and the pump does produce quite a bit of washing power. Unfortunately their pumps and detergent dispensers were not made very well, and often broke down.

I have this same model, and while I think it is a cool & unique machine I would never use it as a daily driver. The washing system limits the way the racks can be loaded, and their is no room for tall items like cookie sheets, large fry pans, etc. One of our members in the SF bay area had one of the later models with the steam feature and really did not like it (although it was nice looking machine). I believe he had the Thermador version, but it was essentially the same machine.

At the time this was made WasteKing & Thermador were basically siblings underneath their skin. When Bosch acquired the Thermador line of appliances they eliminated these designs and rebadged some of their appliances with the Thermador name; the WasteKing brand was eliminated (except for the Garbage Disposers, which was sold to Anaheim manufacturing).

You can try using it, but I wouldn't expect stellar results or a very user friendly experience when it comes to loading. I have service literature for these machines, and an operating guide for this model, if you want. Let me know & I can scan it to you.

Good luck & let us know what you decide to do.

 

[rp2813]

"One of our members in the SF Bay Area"

That would be me. 

 

I was going to provide my $0.02 about the subject avocado machine, but someone invariably chimes in and says that the older WK machines aren't the same as the later Thermadors.  I say, they're close enough, and they both have nearly identical shortcomings.

 

Except to WK fans, there's not much demand for these machines because they're notoriously poor performers.  I'd say if someone offered you $50 for it, take the money and run.

 

Here's a link to an entertaining report from Nate with his observations and conclusions after he took the Thundering Thermador off my hands.  It didn't last nearly as long under his roof as it did under mine.

Machines of Ill Repute, Volume III - The Norris Industries Thermador/Waste King

You remember this thing, don't you? :-) Ralph bequeathed it to me when his heart went ISE-yonder. I took it in, because it was PRETTY (how many of us have been guilty of that?), and I loved the way the door latched shut with a *click!* even before you nudged the sliding lock lever. ...

www.automaticwasher.org

 

[tomturbomatic]

The first two Waste King machines were very quiet. They only had a one level wash arm with small holes. It used the basic one wash, two rinse and dry cycle. The unique thing about the machine is that after the wash water drains, there is an extended spray rinse of maybe two minutes to kill the suds that are generated during the wash and sort of covered the bottom of the tank. With the wash arm and the upper rack with the hump in the center, they looked superficially like a Hobart design, but they were not. Like early Frigidaire and Hotpoint dishwashers, they did not have a door latch; you just shoved the door closed and springs held it in place. The strangest thing about them was that the filter and pump were aluminum, a metal not known for durability with highly alkaline detergent water solutions. The first model had a porcelain tank, but it was quickly replaced by a Plastisol finish on steel tank. One other feature was that the door did not have a steam vent for getting rid of moist air during the dry cycle. Instead, the steam condensed on the sides of the uninsulated tank and ran to the bottom. Once or twice during the dry cycle the pump would come on and pump out the condensate.

The Waste King company originally made garbage disposers, hence the name. Some felt that the later dishwasher production just made garbage, but they entered the home dishwasher market when it was just heating up and lasted longer than some.

 

[combo52]

Thermador-WasteKing DWs

Great review Alan,  Ralph and Nate, I couldn't add much to that.

 

We need a picture of the wall oven, but unfortunately most Chambers wall ovens were not that great by this time period, but we can't tell without knowing which one it is.