Grey Water in Washing Machine....what could it be? - Page 3 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

sun tortise · #31 08-16-2018, 01:46 AM

1956 Maytag wringer. Got it from a friend who moved to Australia. It had been sitting out in the weather for a year. Tightened the belt once, and i have been using it for 25 years with no further maintenance.

Mxfrank · #32 08-16-2018, 07:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jay_bob

After 10 yrs, several moves, and 2 babies, which had all taken their toll, it was time for something new. Maytag had just come out with the Neptune which was supposed to be the best thing ever. Well not so much. It was fine the first couple years but it turned into a pile of junk. Latch motor failure which burnt out the main board, scummy seals, bad water solenoid, drive belt jump off the pulley, etc. etc. etc.

Got rid of the Neptunes in 2009 after it failed one too many times and I got sick of fixing them..

We still have our 22 year old Neptune, but it's seen a lot of repairs. The circuit boards were very poorly designed. After going through two of them, I repopulated the board with higher rated components. It was a bit of work, but the board has held up for years. The drum bearing fails every now and then and is a memorable ordeal to replace, worse than the rear axle bearings on my 190D (required Mercedes content). This week's challenge is the motor bearings. I guess they didn't make them like they used to.

barry12345 · #33 08-16-2018, 09:42 AM

Modern appliance to me are just like modern cars. Far more to potentially go wrong. Although the overall lifespan of few brands really outclass many of the others. Cost per mile or cost per washing load is directly rated to your income stream for tolerance. Also when a household appliance goes down. It pretty much demands quick attention.

These values are identified pretty well with cars. Not so much with appliances now. I depend more on my appliance guy to guide us. Trying to stay away from the real junk at least. He sells new and used as well as personally services them. I think he has developed a following where it is known he rebuilds certain brands of older units. For people that want reliability back.

I assume by now most makers of appliances are importing as much offshore content. As cheaply as possible from primarily China. My guess is they are reluctant to pay for higher quality build components from them as it Impacts their bottom line.

We live in a much different economy than years ago.

The consumer is hard to pin down today. What motivates them to buy what they do in all too many cases is a pretty open question. I have resigned myself to buying a new dishwasher about every five years now. If it goes longer without a major issue fine. Simply because that has been about our average for quite some time now.

Occasionaly when following some new car owners of specific brands. I have to wonder what they were thinking as there is so much negative information out there on what they have purchased.

Perhaps they only lease them and disgard them. People that are on moderate income streams do not have to think more but they should. Their resources are limited.

As an older couple our resources fortunately are not limited. At the same time part of this happened because we were always both conservative and watched what we buy.

It is almost ludicrous that the newest stove for the cottage is an older stove. Simply because our appliance guy told me the new ones have serious issues in salt air enviroments about every two years. Think expensive new digital control boards. I pick up the replacement tomorrow afternoon. It looks like new but is far from it. The oven calibration has been checked out. Important as the wife is really fussy about oven performance. Under the burner pots is not just plain or painted steel and like new. Partially digital but the oven control is manual. It may have been an expensive stove in the day.

The oven door spring or springs let go in the otherwise good stove. I had a quick look but there is some serious damage. I found parts of the broken linkage that holds The spring in the bottom drawer. A good used door would have solved the issue. If you could find one.

vwnate1 · #34 08-16-2018, 09:50 AM

I well remember those, sturdy and trouble free - I hope you remember to occasionally grease the zerk for the drum .

I remember when the last manufacturer of those quit making them long ago, 1970'saybe ? they said they were exporting 99 % of the production of wringer typ washers to Centro America and couldn't be bothered anymore. sad .

I remember these in the early 1960's when they were in the spin cycle you either tethered it to the sink or it'd slowly walk across the kitchen floor.......

barry12345 · #35 08-16-2018, 10:19 AM

I think it was GE who had actual concrete in their automatic washing machines for some time. To reduce any walking effect while spinning out. Physically heavy machines.

I do not know what eventually happened to it but we had a Frigidaire washing machine at one time where the agitator moved both vertically and horizontally. I am not into washing machines but remember that one performed well. Maybe it landed up with a tenant as I do not remember it ever breaking down.

Best in recent years. Yard sale. Kenmore washing machine. Lady said her brother lived alone and was usually away at jobs in other countries. So hardly used at all over the years. He sold his house and we are selling some of his things. Fifty dollars.

In use at the cottage for a few years so far. Seemed to be as described. Middle size tub. No electronics.

vwnate1 · #36 08-16-2018, 10:26 AM

I remember the TV adverts for those washers with the bobbing agitator, they looked weird, i wonder how long the transmissions lasted with all that going on .

SWMBO only wants new whenever one breaks, we have to buy a matching pair ~ we have Foster kids so our washing machines get heavy duty use .

jay_bob · #37 08-16-2018, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barry12345

I think it was GE who had actual concrete in their automatic washing machines for some time. To reduce any walking effect while spinning out. Physically heavy machines.

The Maytag Neptune and the Samsung front loader that I currently have are equipped with concrete blocks attached to the outer drum. This is for stability.

When I went to change out the drum shocks on the Samsung washer I was struggling mightily until I noticed the concrete blocks. Unbolted those and the drum seemed to weigh about 15 pounds after that.

Diseasel300 · #38 08-16-2018, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barry12345

I think it was GE who had actual concrete in their automatic washing machines for some time. To reduce any walking effect while spinning out. Physically heavy machines.

Yep. My GE is one of those, basically just a cinder block bolted to the transmission frame. Doesn't help much with vibration....those things will walk right out the front door if the load is too unbalanced.

barry12345 · #39 08-16-2018, 04:34 PM

In the back of our minds we probably comprehend how bad it would be Without a washing machine in operation. Time and money spent in laundry mats or washing by hand. Is not a pleasant alternative. So I think the real value of a reliable washing machine far exceeds the cost.

The difference today is the amount of items we own in comparison to times past. We cannot have things breaking all the time. Or even infrequently. Statistically we have to repair or replace everything.

It is not because we are just an old couple now. We have turned against too many functions in domestic machines. I can think of no reason for any electronics involvement. Especially when that becomes the issue far too often with them.

I remember when we first started out as a couple on a shoestring. The wife washed clothes by hand until we could pay for exactly what she wanted. For some reason credit had no appeal other than for business. That never changed in our lives.

Mxfrank · #40 08-16-2018, 06:55 PM

The bolts holding the cement blocks on my Neptune loosened up and the blocks went for a walk on their own. A bit of locktite fixed that 4ever.

When I was a kid, my mother had a Bendix, which was a washer/dryer in one unit. Not stacked units, just one front loading machine that switched from wash to dry at the end of the rinse cycle. Lasted 21 years. That was a great machine.

Diseasel300 · #41 08-19-2018, 12:33 PM

This thread must be like Beetlejuice, said the GE's name too many times and jinxed it. Motor relay took a dump this morning (GE's don't use a centrifugal starting switch) and seems to have welded the timer contacts and cooked the motor. The downside of using 30+ year old appliances....they can go any day and at any time...

Squiggle Dog · #42 08-21-2018, 02:39 PM

If I owned my own home, I would have nothing but 1950s and older appliances in it.

Mxfrank · #43 08-21-2018, 08:38 PM

If you had a 50's home, you'd have to have one of these.

The best part is, there was no dryer vent. Instead, there was a cold plate which was cooled by a constant flow of cold water. The hot exhaust would flow across the cold plate, which would cause the water vapor to condense. The water would be pumped away, and the exhaust continuously recirculated. Lint was caught in an efficient trap. You'd waste a lot of water, but there would be no exhaust. Perfect for an apartment, condo or small house.

barry12345 · #44 08-22-2018, 09:35 AM

I think the son in law mentioned. Something similar of a water system was available as an add on. For dryers not too long ago. I did not ask for any details .

Of note though a lot of home fires are caused by accumulated lint in the clothes dryers and vent stacks. It probably is a bad ideal to leave home with a load drying in the machine.

Took the house out cross the street from us as an example. Vastly improving the view. They took the insurance money and decided not to rebuild.

I am as negligent as a lot of others probably in not cleaning the vent system out at least once a year. I do not know if it is against code or not but I never use the plastic flex type hose in a clothes dryer venting system. I still see them sold in hardware stores. The supporting wires and irregular surface conformity probably aid in lint accumulation. Plus the plastic can catch fire as well.

Another member mentioned wringer machines. There always was a small chance of feeding your hand and arm into them in the day. Not the best experience in life but probably not that uncommon. Actually probably still a good choice to wash out greasy and dirty rags in a busy mechanical shop. If an abundant supply is not cheaply available. I am still highly cautious of the spontainious combustion possibility when dealing with greasy rags of course.

I even wonder how many lighter lint fires in the aluminium pipe go undetected. If the dryer is running it is exhausting so it may be undetectable.

Squiggle Dog · #45 08-22-2018, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mxfrank

If you had a 50's home, you'd have to have one of these.

The best part is, there was no dryer vent. Instead, there was a cold plate which was cooled by a constant flow of cold water. The hot exhaust would flow across the cold plate, which would cause the water vapor to condense. The water would be pumped away, and the exhaust continuously recirculated. Lint was caught in an efficient trap. You'd waste a lot of water, but there would be no exhaust. Perfect for an apartment, condo or small house.

That's pretty neat. That's good that it's atomic-proof. I dream of restoring a home that was built in the 1930s and furnishing it with 1930s-1950s items.