Thread Number: 29927
Twin Tub Comparison Please. |
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Post# 454895   8/6/2010 at 01:27 (5,003 days old) by Volvoguy87 (Cincinnati, OH)   |   | |
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Post# 454925 , Reply# 2   8/6/2010 at 09:06 (5,003 days old) by foraloysius (Leeuwarden, Friesland, the Netherlands)   |   | |
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Post# 454927 , Reply# 3   8/6/2010 at 09:07 (5,003 days old) by foraloysius (Leeuwarden, Friesland, the Netherlands)   |   | |
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Post# 454939 , Reply# 4   8/6/2010 at 10:17 (5,003 days old) by amyswasher ()   |   | |
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I would love to have one of those H-axis washers. |
Post# 454943 , Reply# 5   8/6/2010 at 10:35 (5,003 days old) by macboy91si (Frankfort, KY)   |   | |
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Dave, I own all 4 of the washers that you mention. The Speed Queen being the rarest of them all. My SQ is in pieces so I can't comment on how it works, but I have several Hoovers, 2 A-50's and 2 Easy's.
As Jerry said, the Easy is a hoot, it's a spiral ramp agitator base giant twin-tub. It's portability is highly in question as neither of mine roll worth a damn even with good casters. To me, the Easy is more like a wringer washer, in terms of size and "feel". My Easy needs a replacement pump belt, but it's a neat machine. The spinner is not that fast in it, and both the Hoover and the Maytag can far out-extract it, but it IS a good rinser and I thank the "cone spray" for this. If you've never seen one, most Easy's have a slightly cone shaped center shaft in the spin can with a mesh screen on top and tiny perforation along the walls. There are 2 "faucets" if you will on the top of the machine, one for filling (small) and one for the drain (large). The fill tap swivels right over the spinning center cone and creates spray jets that seem to really get the job done. The wash side does a really good job as well with it's low water level and aggressive agitator. A good machine. The Maytag A-50 is the ultimate in portability (US market) IMO. Coming in at a mere 24" wide and 15" deep it's tiny. Like most Maytags from this era, it's a well-built machine and certainly the heaviest smaller machine. Easily a 2 to 1 on the Hoover in weight with it's 2 big heavy induction motors and the extensive, overly built chassis. Vibration is not bad in the A-50 nor is the operation noise. Unlike the Easy and the Hoover which can vibrate a lot, the A-50 for the most part seems to balance itself quite well. The dual impellers in the wash tub are something unique and they are very aggressive. They are placed much higher in the tub than Hoover's single pulsator which is strange, but they certainly whip the soap up. My experience with the A-50 has been good. My 1st A-50 was a 1st year 1970 model that I drove to Georgia to get. At the time I didn't even know that Maytag even made a twinnie as I had never seen or heard of one. The only drawback (and coincidentally a plus as well) is the size of the machine. The wash tub is small and there is no way around that. If you are washing lighter garments such as t-shirts or light button ups or such, it's great. But larger, bulky items like heavy pants and jeans are a different story. I can get around 6-8 shirts in the machine depending on the fabric, but only 2 pairs of khakis and 1 pair of jeans at a time. To ME this is acceptable because it is a portable washer. I think for those with serious size constraints, many were pleased to just have a washer that fits in the kitchen nicely. It's also just the right height to roll under a counter and they are lets face it, adorable little things. The spinner is pretty rugged being porcelain coated and the speed is ~2000 rpm. As others have mentioned, there is no spin-rinsing with the A50. To me, this is a non issue as I have the dryer to go with the machine. Since the dryer and washer are so close in times when you have to do a deep rinse, you really don't have any downtime. Hoover's dryer is painfully slow (or at least mine is...) and one can finish 3 laundry baskets in the Hoover before the dryer finishes 1. The Maytag DE-50 takes ~60 minutes with a small laundry basket full which is impressive for me. The mechanical weak points in this machine are the poly-belt for the impellers and the drain diverter valve. Maytag used a urethane belt for the impellers, which is great until it becomes hard. I'm under the impression that use keeps it flexible in its age. If they can be found, and they still seem to be available, then you're golden. The other issue is with the pot metal diverter valve. This piece can be susceptible to soap and other wash residue build up when the machine was not properly rinsed out after use. The pot metal actuator rod disintegrates and the plunger falls off causing water to bleed into the other tub causing obvious issues. My (best for) last entry is the Hoover. There are 2 Hoovers: Stainless steel models (pre-1970) and polypropylene tub models (post-1970). I love them both, but MY heart is with the poly-tub models of later (avocado in particular). The early machine with the SS tubs were extremely robust, and also crude. They were reliable and had serious washing power for a portable. The SS models were aside from the 110v specifics identical to the British versions. The suction style pump used on the SS models can still be had overseas as that was the style that Hoover used there until production ended in the 90's. The wash motor on the SS models (0510/0512) was huge. It was solid mounted to the frame on rubber bushings only and used an elastic belt for tensioning. It is a VERY torquey setup and requires that the lid be placed on the machine at all times unless one wants a flood. It has what seems to be a slightly larger tub than the newer models and because of the extra power of the motor can handle more clothing. The spinner is a little crude, earlier models had an dull metal spin can with a coned bottom while 1968-1970 model had the newer flat-bottomed polished aluminum can which carried on into the newer machines. The spin motor is a bit more hushed on the older models, but vibration dampening and sound levels are much worse. The SS models are good performers, but as launderess mentions (she has a 0510 SS model), they are a ride. My favorite machine of all the twinnies however is the late 1970+ Hoovers. With all of the cool colors and the squared off goodness what's not to like :) The newer style models offered many differences from the old ones, the most notable being the plastic tubs. There is no real need in the US to have a stainless steel tub for these machines. We don't have water heaters in the machines, which was the main reason for the SS interiors of the older models. It was a shared design with the machines being made at Merthyr Tydfil at the time and polypropylene was also probably not advanced and cheap enough to be feasible for use in the late 50's anyway. The poly-tubs had different pumps, motors and introduced the automatic rinse system to the line. There were several models with the 0519 being queen of the roost. These machines used a lower rpm impeller and a slightly different shaped tub to keep the splashing to a minimum. There were 2 wash motor setups, the early one with the fixed motors and elastic belt and in 74 a smaller motor with a floating mount was introduced with a fixed belt. These machine wash really good. They hold considerably more than the A-50 and the clothes seem to move through the water more and faster. The auto-rinse feature on the 0519 is a nice feature utilizing a water sensor to automatically turn the spinner on and off. These are loud washers for the most part, but simple washers. They are lightly built, but for the most part seem to last. They're weak point is the pump bearing. These also use a different pump than the UK models and the earlier SS models, so sourcing one can be difficult. They used a pinch-valve style system. This also made the machine pump slower when draining the wash tub due the new designs ability to suck air from the spin tub while trying to drain the wash tub. This was my 1st washer and my all time favorite machine. Whew, I'm tired of typing -Tim Here is a pic of my lineup that I have in the kitchen: |
Post# 454975 , Reply# 6   8/6/2010 at 13:02 (5,003 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Can Friday get any better!
I use an Easy, an A 50, and a Hoover 0519 For me the Tag and the Hoove are more like toys, while the Easy is a heavy duty washing machine. The are 1560 spray holes in the jetcone which spins at 900 rpm. The rinsing is extreme and accomplished in about 5 minutes or less. Spun for 5 minutes or a few more, the load feels as light as a Unimatic's. Thirty years ago when I could not quickly get a replacement belt for the pump I was shocked and delighted to learn that the Hoover Vacuum belt from the standard blue model of the late 70's fit perfectly. You can probably get one easily, while the Easy pump belt is hard to find. Enjoy telling you all that if I could only take two machines to that proverbial island, one would be an Easy, hands down. They do everything well, they're ecomomical, and they are so darn entertaining. This post was last edited 08/06/2010 at 13:50 |
Post# 454980 , Reply# 7   8/6/2010 at 13:12 (5,003 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Post# 454989 , Reply# 8   8/6/2010 at 14:19 (5,003 days old) by macboy91si (Frankfort, KY)   |   | |
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I don't think we ever had them here in portable form like a twin-tub. Neat concept, but it seems to me at that point a shallow, compact automatic may do just as well? It just seems odd to me to have a spinner AND the H-axis setup, very different. The Europeans really know how to do it with full featured compact appliances, there are so many I'd love to have like a Supermatic twinnie or the Hotpoint toploader. Bosch and Bendix and Hoover made some appealing front loaders as well. Would be neat to see that AEG in action (hint hint).
-Tim |
Post# 455007 , Reply# 9   8/6/2010 at 15:30 (5,003 days old) by foraloysius (Leeuwarden, Friesland, the Netherlands)   |   | |
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AEG, Zanker, Marynen, Philips etc. all had such twintubs. Miele built them too, here is a video of one. In the beginning there is the sound of the spin of another washer.
These machines work basically automatic. They do a wash and all the rinses. You tranfer the laundry to the spinner to get it dry. Disadvantage: It uses a lot of water to rinse. Advantages: Almost indistructable, hardly any parts because these machines don't need a suspension system and there is no wear on the system because the washer doesn't spin. |
Post# 455018 , Reply# 10   8/6/2010 at 16:30 (5,003 days old) by keymatic (London / UK)   |   | |
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Hi Guys
Well from the vast array of twin tubs that flooded the UK market from the late 50's to their demise in the early 90's I have to say, and i have tried quite a few over the years the best for me was the Hotpoint Supermatic. The basic design changed slightly over the 30years that it ran for, but it offered a nearly perfect result every time. The main features that worked for me were the "Filter Clean" High speed spin 3100rpm, and later the 7lb wash load. The only thing that wasn't so great was the auto rinse, and i much preferred the Hoovermatic option with the swing in arm which delivered a bigger jet of water into the spin can. We had another twin tub in the UK made by Philips which was produced for about 10 years, this is a close runner up for me..it offered a medium wash load, good spin speed, constant pump running on the spinner, which let the user rinse until clear, then spin, and a nice bulit-in discharge arm for emptying. I have attached pics of both machines !! (1st Hotpoint Supermatic 60's model, 2nd pic Philips Top Twin) Keith |
Post# 455020 , Reply# 11   8/6/2010 at 16:33 (5,003 days old) by keymatic (London / UK)   |   | |
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Post# 455121 , Reply# 12   8/7/2010 at 04:24 (5,002 days old) by foraloysius (Leeuwarden, Friesland, the Netherlands)   |   | |
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Interesting that Philips sold a twintub in the UK. They never sold such a machine in the Netherlands. Only later they came out with an H-axis twintub, but they never had an agitator model overhere. I guess they thought that type of twintub wouldn't sell in the Netherlands.
Also Stokvis twintubs were sold in the UK. R.S. Stokvis (later Erres) was bought up by Philips. Erres sold wringer washers, twintubs and spindriers in the Netherlands apart from a lot of other products. |
Post# 455140 , Reply# 13   8/7/2010 at 08:38 (5,002 days old) by wilkinsservis (Melbourne Australia)   |   | |
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Post# 455204 , Reply# 15   8/7/2010 at 12:53 (5,002 days old) by bradross (New Westminster, BC., Canada)   |   | |
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Post# 455372 , Reply# 16   8/8/2010 at 10:53 (5,001 days old) by countryguy (Astorville, ON, Canada)   |   | |
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A couple of weeks ago while on vacation I was at my grandmother's house. She is now in long term care (102 yrs old) so the house is being cleaned out. She has a Viking twin tub which I think is similiar to Speed Queen ie. it has the agitator. I had no way to get it home otherwise I would have taken it.
Gary |
Post# 455384 , Reply# 17   8/8/2010 at 13:03 (5,001 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Gotta love those TT's with agitators. Would love to have one.
TIM and other Hoover rinse pros: Please share your rinse method. One of the issues with the Hoover auto rinse was finding warm clothing in the middle of the spinner after several (3-4) cold auto-rinses. How many auto rinses do you use? Do you deep rinse, too? I'm sure I'm missing something. Does the rubber mat aid in rinsing, because I usually omit it, and, loading carefully, have had no trouble with items flyin up or out of the spinner. Thanks, always eager to learn. |
Post# 455393 , Reply# 18   8/8/2010 at 14:10 (5,001 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Unless the load is mainly small items like socks and such, the mat can be omitted long as the laundry is pushed down well within the tub. Bock extractors, and indeed many commercial spinners do not have mats, instead one was supposed to push down laundry well, and or also drap a heavy item such as a towel over the lot.
Personally have not had much use for "spin rinses" in a Hoover, even though have to do it manually in my older model. The process can work well if the spin tub is 3/4 or less full and contains mainly small or medium items that can be sloshed about so fresh water can get at them, otherwise it is as you say, items in the middle or sides tend not to be rinsed well and can feel "warm". For items aside from sheets and tablecloths, one gives one or two (depending upon how much of the noise I can take), soaking rinses in the spinner can, then everything is either bunged into a deep rinse (Hoover wash tub), or if cheating, the Miele set to final rinse and spin. Will say this, if one is looking for the "clean" rinsing compared to say a Miele or any other good front loading washing machine from a Hoover, be prepared to do quite allot of work, and have headache powder handy. Twin tubs like the wringer washing system means one probably did not always rinse well, at least not acoording to standards above. It is just too much work, and cannot see it happening with several large loads of laundry to get through. |
Post# 455713 , Reply# 20   8/9/2010 at 17:04 (5,000 days old) by Vacbear58 (Sutton In Ashfield, East Midlands, UK)   |   | |
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Cheers for that nugget of info. Simon, I wondered about the Philips twinnie, and where it came from. As far as I recall there was only one model although it must have been around for 7 or 8 years. I wonder also if it was designed by Ada but did not make it to market under their name - the drain mechanism seems to have been "borrowed" from Hotpoint. A well featured machine its a shame it never had the popularity of Hoover/Hotpoint/Servis.
Al |
Post# 455748 , Reply# 21   8/9/2010 at 19:02 (5,000 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Were simply a variation upon the "washer & extractor" system of early washing machines, and indeed used and continue to be in use for commercial laundries.
While washing machines appeared early, electric power, much less powerful enough motors and other parts required to make them automatic, and or extract did not come until later. So one washed and rinsed in one machine, water drained (or not), then the wet laundry was transferred to an extractor to be spun out. Until extractors came about, or if one did not have such a machine, the laundry would be put through a wringer (mangle). |
Post# 455751 , Reply# 22   8/9/2010 at 19:14 (5,000 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Indeed, the loads would spin unevenly and I "intuited" that a powerful fill would yield best results. So much for that. ;-> Next time, I'll follow your lead in loading, but most of all in water pressure adjustments. I knew I was doing something wrong and guessed that the UK, Headland of TT's, would have a brother who knew. Thank you.
The Easy washes 9 pounds and holds 18 gallons of water. Unlike most other machines, the wash tub's upper levels are not used. The agitator sits rather low in the tub and the load line, while high on the agitator, is only about 2/3's of the way up the tub. Again the rinsing is superb, full and multiple saturation of each item with 1560 needle sprays squirting out at 900rpm's. We didn't really have TT's in the US till the Hoover was produced. Unless you count the Dexter Twin Tub, which was effectively a real TT with identical washtubs and a wringer, but ironically, not at all a TT as we have come to know them with a small spinning chamber attached to a larger wash tub. The Easy is only called a TT retroactively. A true one of a kind, it was known simply as an Easy Spin as far as I know. Simon, what brands did Which magazine rate as fairly good? |
Post# 455769 , Reply# 23   8/9/2010 at 20:28 (5,000 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Post# 455770 , Reply# 24   8/9/2010 at 20:29 (5,000 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Post# 455787 , Reply# 25   8/9/2010 at 21:33 (5,000 days old) by akronman (Akron/Cleveland Ohio)   |   | |
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Post# 455795 , Reply# 26   8/9/2010 at 21:51 (5,000 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Post# 455796 , Reply# 27   8/9/2010 at 21:52 (5,000 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Post# 455797 , Reply# 28   8/9/2010 at 22:03 (5,000 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Post# 455870 , Reply# 29   8/10/2010 at 07:55 (4,999 days old) by keymatic (London / UK)   |   | |
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Philips...
Hi Al, Not over sure, but i would say that Philips Twin Tubs ran for about 8 (1965 - 1973) as you say. There was only a standard & de-lux models, main difference was that the de-lux model had the controls raised at the back of the machine, and the std model just had the controls down the front. The De-lux also had the discharge arm as apposed to the std model whereby you had a hose out the back for the spinner and you plugged in a hose to empty the wash tub. "borrowed from Hotpoint"...? These were great machines and were built so robust, the one i have has 3 motors, wash, spin and pump. If anyone wants any more information on the Philips twin tubs, i have quite a bit of literature. Cheers Keith |
Post# 456029 , Reply# 31   8/10/2010 at 18:32 (4,999 days old) by Volvoguy87 (Cincinnati, OH)   |   | |
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Post# 456118 , Reply# 32   8/11/2010 at 02:50 (4,998 days old) by keymatic (London / UK)   |   | |
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Morning Mathew,
I think the Philips twin tub you refer to could either be an early/mid 60's one or an early 70's, the latter i think..I have read somewhere that the standard machine (without the discharge arm) use the principal of ball & spring to stop the wash tub emptying. I think the idea had previously been introduced by Frigidaire, i can vaugley remember seeing an promotional advertising video for the mastertwin(late 60's, not the killer heal's one of the 70's) showing this feature. I see you mention about the Mk2 AEG Lavalux, i did have one of those machines about 5 years ago, I the rinising is really good, and part of me thought they had taken the principal from "Easy" twin tubs in the US, albeit minus the spray cone in the middle of the can. The big chrome arm was also a good idea, as it enabled filling of the wash tub as well, sadly had to get rid of it as it was a bit beyond restoring. Cheers Keith |
Post# 456119 , Reply# 33   8/11/2010 at 03:49 (4,998 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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There is one maker of twin (and triple) tub washer/extractor in the United States.
Pipe: CLICK HERE TO GO TO Launderess's LINK |
Post# 456292 , Reply# 35   8/11/2010 at 18:17 (4,998 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Quite a few households one knew in the late 1970's had twin tub units, and they were still being sold in the United States until the late 1970's or mid 1980's IIRC.
Automatic washing machines did help kill off semi-automatic machines, sure; but wringers were being made and sold here well until about the 1980's even with the availablity of other machines. Portable automatic and semi-automatic washing machines were always a niche market in the United States. Aimed at "young marrieds", those living in apartments, and so forth. Given the relative large size of familes in post war USA, and push to move into the suburbs, small washing machines were shot of as a family could afford. The post war years also brought about something else, easy credit terms which made purchasing "major appliances" something most anyone with a job could do. Full sized washing machines developed all sorts of designs to allow a housewive to do "small" loads as easily as large ones, thus again why have a small washer when you can have the flexibility of a large one? |
Post# 456662 , Reply# 36   8/13/2010 at 04:45 (4,996 days old) by aquarius1984 (Planet earth)   |   | |
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Out of the 3 UK manufacturers mentioned I feel the Hotpoint Supermatic is the best.
Looking at reasons given why it shouldnt be I feel most of those come down to us guys being over critical on our own part. The height of the machine would be a problem for todays men but giving that the current average height of a UK female is 5'2 according to some quick Googling I just did, I suspect the average height of the 1968 counterpart may have been a few inches smaller. The wash time of 12 minutes is perfect to prperly rinse the clothes in the spinner while the next load is washing without the housewife having to rush in a flap competing against 2-3 rinses in a hoovermatic to beat the 4 minute wash timer only to have to final spin cottons for 4 minutes anyway. The HP auto rinse is the most even in saturation plus allowing for the pooloing of water on top of the load helps even more. The wash times itself is more reasonable as 4 minutes in the Hoovermatic certainly wouldnt not remove stains, I think Hoover didnt really give the adverts promoting quickness any favours as one needed to fill the machine with hot (tap hot @ 60*c?) or cold water add the soap then the clothes and heat the whole solution up to 85 degrees for any detergent to benefit whites. This process can take up to 40 minutes using hot water and certainly more using colder. Subsequent white loads would not come out as clean or stainless washed in 4 minutes unlike the extra detergent solution contact in the Hotpoints 12 minutes. I am also a fan of the filterflow especially where pet hairs snd fibre shedding items are concerned. This feature puts it ahead of Servis in my books although the Servis has the wash times of the HP. Not a problem in FL's but having washed the garment in a Hoovermatic the moment the action stops you get a crust of floaty crud atop the wash water which one must then drag out clothes through and re litter. Not to mention the 3100rpm spin in the HP machines. A real boon to housewives even today. |
Post# 456872 , Reply# 38   8/14/2010 at 02:03 (4,995 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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My vintage BD Whirlpool portable with the Hoover's spin basket, failing that another separate extractor.
While the Hoover *may* hold more than the Whirlpool, this is only due to no center agitator. However the Whirlpool's wash action is far more through (IMHO), and less hard on fabrics. Best of all no tangles. Hoover says leaving items in the wash longer than the maximum four minutes on the timer is what causes tangles. However some stains or soils won't shift in a short amount of time. The Hoover can clean well, but you need a good strong and low sudsing detergent. Forget about enzymes because your wash won't be in the tub long enough to benefit. Instead stains should be pre-treated before than to get things started. Rinsing in the Hoover. There are as many schools of thought on this as there are grains of sand on a beach! *LOL* Am almost certain the directions in the owner's manual for my TT states to saturate laundry totally, and until one can see water just over the wash. Doing this however have been "set straight" by some who say this will strain and eventually kill the motor as it has to cope with pushing out all that water. Also the spray of water from this method can lead to rusting out of inner parts of the machine if water goes down that way. OTHO having to move loads between wash tub, spin basket, back to wash tub (after filling with fresh water), is time consuming and back breaking work if one has several loads to get through. Not to mention if one is rather obsessive about rinsing, having to drain that wash tub and add fresh water for each load adds yet more time. All this while the Hoover is making enough noise to wake the dead. |
Post# 456907 , Reply# 39   8/14/2010 at 10:17 (4,995 days old) by paulc (Edinburgh, Scotland)   |   | |
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I have used s few twin tubs and have to agree that the supermatic was the best. On the subject of rinsing my Mum taught me to do it this way. Place cotton or sturdy items in the spinner after they have been washed, synthetic items went straight into a basin of cold water and did not get spun straight after the wash. The load was spun, returning suds into the wash tub. When sufficiently spun the laundry was removed and placed on the lid of the washtub then each item was "hosed down" over the spinner and dropped in. Synthetic items were then added. The load was spun and the process repeated, the last rinse was a bucket with softener in it poured over the load.
I always thought this process was time consuming but it did provide better rinsing than just filling the spinner up with water and spinning it out again. It is only in the past few years I have come to love twinnies again, growing up and washing for our family I hated our supermatic and longed for an automatic. I usually had 11 or 12 loads to do in the twinne on a saturday morning. Our last supermatic died a terrible death when the spinner broke from it's axel at full pelt (3100rpm) and destroyed the machine and nearly finished me off with fright! It was replaced with a second hand Servis Super Twin until I left home and bought my mum an Automatic. |
Post# 456958 , Reply# 40   8/14/2010 at 16:18 (4,995 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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Post# 456975 , Reply# 41   8/14/2010 at 17:36 (4,995 days old) by Vacbear58 (Sutton In Ashfield, East Midlands, UK)   |   | |
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Laundress,
That where we score - if the twinnies had heaters which most had - heavily soiled items could be left to soak (I suspect the term for PaulC would be "steeped") in cold or cool water while the water came up to temperature, and with HMDL and Supermatics even better with an interlock between thermostat and motor so that when the temperature was right the wash action would start. That is what my mum would do that while washing breakfast dishes (no DW in those days). After that the next load left in the sink soaking while she went to make the beds and tidy the bedrooms. After that, with the water heated it was time to get the washing properly started. I must say that I agree with a great deal that has been said about the Supermatic as it did kind of have everything (in de Luxe version anyway) and I appreciate that the lowness of the machine would not have been an issue for most women. But even with that my favourite is the Supertwin (Speed Queen/Simplicity) - I suspect that twin tubs (and actually all laundry appliances) are a bit like cars we like what we like, and quite passionatly at that, in spite of the pros and cons Al |
Post# 457225 , Reply# 43   8/16/2010 at 05:00 (4,993 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)   |   | |
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Dave, yes interesting question, There isnt one definitive "Best" IMHO..they all have their own unique traits & features, a lot of the time its what you have been used too, which one was a family machine etc...we regularly use a selection of twinnys at our mini meets here...and at usually it gets very very competitive about "Whats Best"
I think as well you adapt your own laundry requirements to produce good results, even with the most undesirable machine, (is there one) I`m sure all of us here could get good results just by observing what works best with each machine!! The hoover twinnys are rather fun to use, plenty of "SplashDrama" and loads of noise, you could always tell when the neighbours where washing, you`d here the sounds across the lanes, estates & parks of the UK.. The older machines with metal tubs had a vigerous wash turnover, due to a large motor and fixed tensioned belt, the spinners where designed to whizz out your suds at 2,100, and then (whichever rinsing method, hose - hosing the water around the clothes, bucket - sloshing water over the clothes - either leaving them or sloshing them through the water with your hand or hauling it into the sink for a few quick swills!!! Heres the first Hoover twintub the 3174, 1957 model in action: |
Post# 457278 , Reply# 44   8/16/2010 at 13:15 (4,993 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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and then I flashed,O MY GOD ! the 62 Multi is running with the suds-valve closed waiting for me. Flew to the garage and she was a minute or two into the overflow rinse. All of the wash water, (first overflow, plus the wash water throw, and now rinse water all in the outer tub) and she was still chugging away happily. I popped the valve and the water gushed out for so long. HOW MUCH can that outer tub hold. I know it's not as big as the Unimatic cabinet, but my God, it was a ton of water. I had a true a Paul Turquoisedude moment, I'm telling you.
Now back to the twinnies: They're just fabulous. I'll keep viewing, later on till I find one spin-rinsing at high speed; the HP was slow, wondering if you had to bypass a safety switch or if HP had the kindness to let it all be. This is a delighful treat, Mike, thanks. Your steel tub with the strong motor sounds so deep, strong, and powerful: "Look out!!!! we're gonna wash, then we're gonna boil. You don't stand a chance." |
Post# 457300 , Reply# 45   8/16/2010 at 14:47 (4,993 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)   |   | |
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Mikey, heres a faster one, 2,300, later version, lovely colourway...listen to when the spinner stops and you hear the gentleness of the Hoover wash motor with the motor just hung on to the flexible belt, it surges the clothes rather than a fixed pacy speed!! then judge how that spinner pump thrashes that water out, now that laundry sink is deep, try doing that in a designer sink, you`l have water up your walls!!!
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Post# 457314 , Reply# 46   8/16/2010 at 16:12 (4,993 days old) by mickeyd (Hamburg NY)   |   | |
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Post# 457680 , Reply# 47   8/18/2010 at 03:33 (4,991 days old) by keymatic (London / UK)   |   | |
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Semi - Automatic's……
Where do I start, well I over the years I have had quite a lot of exposure to these machines. I guess it all started when I was about 5, we use to stay at a self catering cottage in Looe Cornwall, the lady who ran it lived next door, on the Monday following the change over day she would set to and start the washing of all the linen, I would get up early and whizz round to watch her, she would lift me up and watch what she called the "Thumper" aka a mk3 Thor Automagic, I would watch the to & fro action agitator through the glass porthole, then watch her stocking stuffed sandals press the pedals to switch between Wash-Stop-and Spin..excited to see the hot steamy wash water come flowing out of the big grey hose which was hooked around the sink tap, but disappointed when nothing came out, only to realise that the Suds Saver cap was in place…. Well, fast forward 10yrs..and at the age of 15 or so, I set to try and get hold of one of these machines, well finally managed to get hold of two, but were not in the best of condition and had both died due to the clutch, which was the main reason most failed. In 1997 I was offered a Thor Automagic Mk 2, not quite the same as the "Pedal model" but the principal was the same, and restored to perfect working condition, this was followed a few years later by one of two Parnall Spinwasher's, which was the updated and modern version of the Automagic.. I am currently waiting for a friend to convert a video I have of my spinwasher showing a full cycle to dvd which I will then be able to upload to here. Any questions regarding semi-auto's please ask, they are great machines !! Keith |