What were your childhood interests in appliances, machinery, etc?

[superocd]

Lately I've been sentimental about my elementary school years, remembering random moments that happened 15 years ago. I was fascinated with anything that used or was related to electricity, from vacuum cleaners and fans to power lines and substation transformers, but I was really overly obsessed with restaurant equipment from preschool through second grade. Literally could name every major manufacturer of commercial food service equipment, and even more crazier, drew pictures of commercial refrigerators, ovens, dishwashers, ranges, etc. The teacher would literally say, "that looks like (whatever piece of equipment) in the school kitchen!", but they were technically incorrect and I'd correct them -- "no, that's actually the Montague Vectaire at the hospital kitchen" or "that's actually the Victory refrigerator at the Hy-Vee meat and seafood department".

I wasn't alone in having crazy obsessions -- I was friends with a boy who had a deep interest in water fountains. He was so obsessed with them that I remember one time, our first grade class took a walk to the park and did "outdoor school" the whole day. My friend went to where the bathrooms and water fountains were and and exclaimed, "That's a Haws!" Nobody except me knew what he was talking about. Unfortunately, his family moved to Iowa after the school year ended.

By third grade, I was heavily interested in furnaces, air conditioners and ventilation fans (ironically, 18 years later, I'm an HVAC guy). That was probably set off when my Grandma bought me a Emerson Quiet Kool window unit at an auction over the summer, which sat on my dresser for me to look at. In the middle of my third grade year, our class did a book project where we would write a short story in a blank hard-bound book. Literally every page had either a fan, window air conditioner, central air conditioner, space heater, HVAC vents or furnace, with a lot of detail -- so much I recall drawing a Square D disconnect box (square D logo and all) on a Carrier Weathermaker rooftop unit on a Pizza Hut (ironically, the local Pizza Hut in my hometown had a big aqua-colored Carrier Weathermaker on its rooftop). I was so obsessed with HVAC that I took construction paper and drew vents, thermostats, exhaust fans and through-the-wall ACs/PTACs, cut it out and taped them to my bedroom wall!

Fifth grade had me really interested in power lines and substations. Computers started to interest me too (I went to college for a Bachelor's in Information Systems and graduated with that degree and an HVAC certificate "just for the fun of it" -- ended up doing HVAC). My weird obsessions started to wane by sixth grade, when I started to draw blueprints of houses -- to scale, with a legend, the whole works -- still not a normal activity for the average sixth grader but not as "strange" as some of my activities were a few years back. I also drew very accurate and detailed sketches of various GE and Kenmore appliances -- I was actually making plans for building my dream home in sixth grade and wanted to have a "catalog" of sorts to reference from.

I could go on and on about my crazy childhood but I'd end up writing a book. It feels like it was yesterday. Even though I'm happily married, gainfully employed doing what I love, own my own home and so on, I would do anything to relive those days again. There's something about the silly innocence of being a child.
What were your crazy childhood obsessions?

 

[norgeway]

I started out with vacuum cleaners

Then gradually moved to other appliances , Mixers etc Ranges are one of my favorite things I too worked in HVAC in the 80s I despise all the new computer junk, Give me a Iron Fireman Vortex oil burner or a General Electric boiler ANY DAY!

 

[askolover]

The earliest I can remember was my grandmother's old GE FF washer that had the flume at 12:00 position.  I don't know what year it was from but my mother says it was Grandmother's FIRST automatic washer.  She replaced it in 1974 with a green FF with a straight vane agitator.  She was still using that washer when she had her stroke in 2007...33 years and it had NEVER required any repair other than a new drain hose.

 

[philcobendixduo]

I was interested in....

.....cars and washing machines from an early age (maybe 4 or 5).
I loved watching our Philco Bendix Duomatic washer.
Not only did I love watching it, I also pretended I WAS a washing machine using towels, etc. to toss about, and imitating the various sounds the machine made.
My parents should have taken me to a psychiatrist then!
I was also keenly interested in cars (just like my Dad was).
I would ask Kindergarten friends, "what kind of car does your Dad have" and get very upset with the answers I got back ("red", "blue" etc.) "NO", I would say. "I mean what KIND like Ford or Chevy". Of course, they had NO idea.
I no longer imitate washing machines but still am interested in them and in cars.
Some things never change!

 

[frigilux]

My interests as a tyke were washing machines, automatic record changers and dishwashers. My parents’ friends just got used to me checking out all three when we visited, LOL.

 

[ea56]

Vacuum Cleaners

were the first appliances to catch my attention, mainly because I was more apt to get a chance to actually play around with them.  Whenever we went to a relative or friends home I made a beeline to their vacuum, and if they were using it, I begged to be able to do the vacuuming.  When my maternal grandma got a new vacuum in 1955 she gave me her old Royal Premier upright, I was in seventh heaven.  I kept that vac right next to my bed, and I still have a scar in eye socket from falling out of bed and landing on the foot pedal that adjusted the height.

 

Next it was mixers, irons, toasters and eventually washing machines, all in quick succession as I grew to know how they all worked.  And I always loved cars!  I got this from both my Dad and my maternal grandpa, who were both car freaks.  By the time I was 4 years old I could name the year, make and model just about every car I saw.  I was especially interested in the transmission gearshifts, and every car I walked by I always made a point to check out whether is was a stick or auto trans., and to this day I still do this.

 

Eddie

 

[paulg]

First love / televisions

The real start for me was televisions. Our first TV (1958 Admiral) was such trouble we were in and out of the shop constantly. I found TV shops absolutely fascinating.
Jumping on my interest, my father - an engineer at Hotpoint, would bring sample electrical parts home to play with. Lotsa fun.
The final straw was walking home from grade school. I would walk through the alleys of Chicago rather than the sidewalks. I would come home with all sorts of appliances, vacs, TVs etc. One neighbor was so kind as to drop the stuff in our yard rather than the alley. I can still remember my mom saying, “Paul, there’s another tv in the yard again.”
My fate was sealed. I became an engineer and spent decades working in the television industry.
True fact: When I run into people who were patient with me or supported my interests as a kid - I DO thank them. My job now - do the same for some other kid.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

My grandpas’s grinder for tool sharpening, I was intrigued with the sparks coming off of it when he used it, though feared them just as much in actual usage, so I never did get to use it...

— Dave

 

[statomatic]

Started with washing machines, then got interest in plumbing, electricity, cars, power lines, other household appliances, hi-fi, electronics...
Back then I've did a lot of tinkering and disassembled several appliances then barely reassembled them or made some kind of mad scientist experiments, always wanted to know how does it works and why.
Now I restore vintage washing machines and vintage hi-fi (stereo cassette decks for the most), also do some basic car mechanics.
Still doing funny experiments but at another level such as running a washing machine with an industrial PLC.
I'm also HVAC&R tech specialized in heat pumps & VRF systems, what I like is the diversity of things, you should know about thermodynamics, refrigerant, plumbing, electricity, duct work, electronics... learning & discovering something new every day.

 

[yogitunes]

washing machines at age 3.........

and knew I had more knowledge of a washing machine back then, without the internet or youtube, than kids of today....plus limited availability of books from, now get this, a Library!

never had Smart phone to make me look stupid....

plus I was old school Hyperactive....lower our sugar intake, and we were fine...

 

[kokomo1114]

Childhood Appliance Interests

My mother had a Speed Queen SS tub conventional washer that I loved, then an early 60's Maytag and early 70's dryer. My aunt and grandmother both had Maytag automatics. And on the other sides Maytag conventionals and a late 50's Frigidaire Unimatic.My neighbor on the farm had a Frigdaire Unimatic that sat almost in the middle of the kitchen.

Was interested in math, science and music but not in fixing anything. Now that I'm retired from medicine, I work on vintage sewing machines, but once I found automatics.org and a friends 1950 wringer Maytag to work on, I am anxious to work on appliances.

 

[abcomatic]

washing machines

I was into washing machines at a very early age. We would go and visit people and when the time was right, I would slip into the basement and check out the washer. Early on they were mostly wringer machines. Philco, Dexter, Speed Queen, Thor, Montgomery Ward (Norge), Sears (Whirlpool), Easy spindrier, Conlon, GE, Maytag, Coronado, ABC. Later on in the last part of the '50's, automatics began to appear: Kenmore, Speed Queen, Norge, Hamilton, Frigidaire,Maytag, GE, Bendix, Coronado(We had a set of these and junk comes to mind). Easy, ABC. All of the above were available at several local dealers, especially the automatics.
I loved going into the dealers by myself and look at all of the washers. Open the lids, check out how they smelled etc. The dealers followed me around to see what I was doing. lol

 

[vacerator]

initially

it was vacuums, then laundry, then ovens & ranges, then dishwashers. Today, I'd still rather have the $4,000.00 Miele built in coffee center vs. the latest communication gadget.

 

[foraloysius]

It started with washing machines and cars (especially with automatic transmissions), soon other things followed like record players, dishwashers, mixers, blenders etc. etc. etc.

 

[lorainfurniture]

Food manufacturing equipment.

When I was 6 or so my dad owned a food processing facility. He made those little jelly cups you find at restaurants. (Among other things).

At my house my dad had 50+ arcade games in various stages of disrepair. We fixed a few and learned the hard way about electricity lol.

My brothers and I built a go cart out of a scooter and a Scott’s reel mower.

 

[gusherb]

My first interests were vacuums, appliances, and HVAC. There's also a picture of me carrying around a hair dryer at about 4 years old. I really was into everything...kinda like I am now.

 

My first books were various how-to books on home repair, the Lost Art Of Steam Heat, and various literature on lawn irrigation systems. Around age 7 I replaced our defective thermostat and was doing my own laundry. Around 8 my dad and I installed some sprinklers in the front parkway, later on at 14 I did a whole irrigation system for the front yard after it was re-landscaped to grass from rock, and also did a majority of the re-wiring at my grandma's house after the flood.

 

Around age 4-6 in addition to the books I also watched alot of DIY video's, particularly on lawn irrigation, rough electrical and plumbing (There were how-to video's from Dean Johnson and his at the time co-host of Hometime that I would get from the library). Also watched This Old House (and still do). 

 

Somewhere around the age of 9 I became interested in vintage phones and started my collection with a couple of Western Electric Trimlines after talking my grandma into letting me replace them with a couple of modern style Trimlines, that evolved into an interest in the PSTN and around age 17 evolved into an interest in Cellular technology.

 

Around 12 I developed an interest in cars.  

 

 

Nowadays I'm more focused on my personal health, traveling, plus all my previous interests. Last night I dreamt about a 1970s era bathroom in my grandma's house with blue Kohler fixtures and a stacked WP washer/dryer next to the toilet with a build date from 1975, and everything was in disrepair complete with original washer hoses that were blistering and leaking. (ok maybe it was more of a nightmare lol) 

 

[fan-of-fans]

For me mostly vacuum cleaners since before I was in school one day a week I'd help mom with the vacuuming. I also liked lawn mowers and weed wackers. Sometimes I'd ride in my dad's lap on the riding mower and I also had a toy weedwacker that I'd pretend to do the edging with while he used the real one.

Appliances too, but mainly stoves more than anything else for some reason.

And of course fans. I'd always ask to go to the fan department in Walmart and watch the fans above the checkouts at Walmart and at the local supermarket.

Electrical stuff fascinated me too. I used to draw pictures of houses, the exterior on one side and the interior on the other. And I'd draw in all of the fans and light fixtures, etc. Later I started making cardboard houses and other buildings complete with kitchens, bathrooms, etc.

Fan collecting was what I started on when I was younger. That waned a bit and I got back into it but more interested in the older fans this time.
Now, I'm interested in most all of it, and have started to learn about vintage large and small appliances, lighting, etc. Just when I think I've learned about most all of it, I find something else to collect and get interested in learning about.

 

[fan-of-fans]

Oh yes, powerlines fascinated me too. I still have an interest in streetlights and other signs and memorabilia.

HVAC stuff I liked too, especially the round diffusers in stores and homes. I can recall once drawing diffusers on round pieces of paper and sticking them to our doorknobs. What a silly thing to recall doing.

Telephones were interesting a bit too. I think I've gotten more into them in recent years though, along with other electronics.

 

[gredmondson]

I remember my mother's first automatic washer, a GE, that had a recessed dial on the front of the machine with red letters/numbers. That dial had teeth so it could be advanced easily. I, about four at the time, was fascinated by that dial. Also, I remember the wringer washer that it replaced was wheeled out to our front yard with a for sale sign on it.
A little later she bought a round GE dishwasher that hooked up to the sink. The top was not porcelain, and it got very hot, which made the paint soft, and it developed a lot of scratches. There was a button to push for washing and draining.
I loved irons, and I would watch my mother iron clothes. I so wanted to use that iron, and when she left it to go do something in the kitchen, I did go and move that iron over the ironing board. She never knew. The funny thing is that I still like to iron! Later she bought a used Ironrite, and I became better at it than anyone else in the house. (Really, no one else was much interested).
When I was 12, I bought a used Westinghouse vacuum coffee maker at a school rummage sale and took it apart and figured how the thermostat worked.

 

[agiflow]

My mom's 1963 Kenmore 600 washer was where it started plus an interest in fans and other appliances like dishwashers and stoves. Stereo equipment also