Grex Laundry Conference

Item 21: Adventures with a wringer washer.

Entered by omni on Thu Jul 14 19:58:57 2011:

      It has lived in the basement for years. I never thought that I 
would actually be using it, and more than that, liking it. But I do.

      The thing is a Speed Queen wringer type washer, circa 1950. I used 
to hate it, but now that were on the same page, we get along. 

     The automatic washer that was in the basement stopped working. She 
had the wringer machine and I asked her if it worked. It did. I got out 
the oil and oiled the wringer, plugged it in, and let the oil do it's 
job. There are no hoses to fill it. You have to stretch a hose from the 
sink to the machine. So I filled it, added some Tide, and the clothes 
and everything was peachy. That is, until it came time to drain it. No 
drain switch. No nothing. A hose on the side of the machine, nothing 
else. I foolishly put the hose over the sink then I searched for that 
magic switch that would let it drain. There was none.

      It seems that the hose lays down on the floor, and preferably into 
a drain. Why didn't I think of that? Perhaps I was expecting too much. I 
then set to wringing the clothes through the now non squeaking wringer. 
I almost caught a finger in it, but I managed to get that first load 
done.

      I have a routine now. Wash, wring all the clothes, return clothes 
to tub, rinse for 5 mins, wring twice, hang on the line. It works well, 
and the clothes come out clean.

      I have also discovered a few things. Wringer washers let you 
decide how long you want to wash. It can be 5 minutes or 30 minutes 
depending on your mood and the dirtyness of your laundry. Double 
wringing is as good as any spin cycle and it's kind of fun too. I like 
the old girl, and I hope that it lasts for a few more years. It is true, 
that old does not have to mean useless. 

Comments?
10 responses total.
#1 of 10 by keesan on Thu Jul 14 20:48:51 2011:

We used one of these for years, same method, except I do two rinses with one
wring per rinse.  A spin cycle gets out more water than a single wring - I
never tried a double wring.  I am glad to hear that you do not feel useless
;=)

#2 of 10 by rcurl on Fri Jul 15 04:06:07 2011:

I would support a double rinse for getting traces of the detergent low enough
to not be irritating.

#3 of 10 by keesan on Fri Jul 15 14:52:30 2011:

I put in about 1/20 the recommended amount of detergent (if liquid, one
tablespoon is more than adequate, not a half cup).  If you run a longer wash
cycle and/or let it soak before rinsing, the smaller amount of detergent works
just as well as a short wash cycle without soak, and lots of detergent.  THe
detergent companies want to recommend enough to cover the worst scenario, or
maybe they just want to sell lots of detergent.

#4 of 10 by slynne on Fri Jul 15 15:51:26 2011:

resp:0 That sounds like a cool washing machine although I think I'll
stick to more modern appliances. :) 

resp:3 I think the soap companies, in an effort to sell more soap,
recommend the maximum amount that one can use without it becoming a
problem. I use about 1/3 -1/2 the recommended amount and that works well
for me.

#5 of 10 by mary on Fri Jul 15 16:04:51 2011:

My eyeballs itch.  Not sure why. ;-)

#6 of 10 by keesan on Fri Jul 15 17:30:07 2011:

Try using less than 1/3.  I still see lots of suds in the second rinse water
when I use a teaspoon of concentrated liquid.

#7 of 10 by slynne on Fri Jul 15 21:58:40 2011:

resp:5 too much soap in your laundry? haha.

#8 of 10 by mary on Sat Jul 16 00:35:42 2011:

I can't look at the screen for longer than 3 seconds or my eyes start 
bleeding.  This can't be good.

#9 of 10 by slynne on Sat Jul 16 01:48:08 2011:

It is probably the radiation from your monitor.

#10 of 10 by mary on Sat Jul 16 02:10:23 2011:

My left eye just exploded.  What a mess.

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