Speed Queen - The Way of Water

I like the description of the things it cleans out of your clothes.

However, If you have all of that stuff in your clothes, then maybe laundry isn't your biggest problem.

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From a medical perspective - blood & poop is never a good sign. Consult gastroenterology immediately 😳
 
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It’s definitely not cheap but I also did a one time purchase of their smallest quantity to do my testing as I was not assured that it would work. If I were to use it as a long term solution, they sell both a liquid form and single size powder packets in larger quantities. In those products, the price per load drops to a more reasonable value.

Since I have two washers in the house, my likely approach will be to use the specialized powder out in the casita where the water supply is hard (no softener) and the machine is used for heavier but infrequent cleaning (towels, floor mats, etc). For the machine in the main house I will likely just keep it on extra rinse to avoid the foam.
 
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I noticed on the ginormous ALL detergent jugs I’ve been getting at Costco lately that they changed the plastic measure cup from what was a really small diameter cup (maybe held 1/3 cup of liquid in total) to those super wide mouthed measuring cups that can easily hold a cup of liquid. Of course they put these unreadable markings on them to signify different amounts of liquid (based on what? The bottle never really says…) but you can easily add more than 1/2 cup at a time. Way more detergent than is necessary. I swear the manufacturers just want you using more and more of their product and they’ll do anything they can to get you to over pour.
 
I swear the manufacturers just want you using more and more of their product and they’ll do anything they can to get you to over pour.
Winner winner chicken dinner. I hadn't used the cap in 15 years, just pour until the reservoir looked right. Although they're more money upfront, we switched to pods to control the dosing. Now I actually get 135 loads from the jug, making it cheaper.
 
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Dang it now you got me going.

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My fabric softener says 165 ounces for 244 loads. So each load should use .67 ounces. (point six seven). Yet the cap is 4 ounces to the top line or 5 ounces full to the brim.

At 4 ounces per, it's 41 loads.
 
Yeah, the dosing caps are ridiculous.

And if you noticed, a lot of the machines with dispenser bays have it so that the detergent just drops into the drum. So you can’t even eye ball the laundry soap. The fabric softener tray on my old machine definitely held several ounces of liquid. The only honest one was the bleach dispenser that held 3/4 cup … but I suspect it was that way since you have to be careful with bleach.

It’s all designed for overuse of chemicals.
 
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I have not fully taken it apart but the dials are electromechanical selectors and the cycle dial is an electromechanical timer. Buttons are mechanical with one of them being capacitive-touch. So they are “modern” in some sense but the main point is that they A LOT CHEAPER to replace when they break than a membrane pad or touchscreen. When membrane buttons start to fail, you typically have to replace the entire interface board, good and bad buttons alike, which usually costs around $100-$150. The cycle selector knob on the Speed Queen washer is less than half that cost.

Gotta agree, the less electronics the better.

We kept a Kenmore going from about 1981 to the mid 90's with a couple repairs - got it used along with a dryer, refrigerator, couch, loveseat, and chair for $400 from someone moving. Once it flooded the kitchen when the c-ring on the hose rusted through, and I probably replaced the pump in it at least once. Very reliable, but the tub grew too small as the family grew larger, so when it broke again we bought new. Big mistake, was the Maytag Neptune front loader. It only lasted a couple years, had seals issues, smells, electronics failed twice (I fixed it once).

Around the time it failed my neighbor across the street had his second problem with his washer. I had fixed his first issue but he said he didn't want me to fix it again and it was going in the garbage if I didn't want it. Bad spin-options switch, and we used it until recently when we had water all over the garage floor. Wife told me I wasn't allowed to fix it or even troubleshoot it, and we now have a new LG top loader without agitator. Wife says it doesn't get the clothes as clean if she loads it too heavy and next purchase WILL have an agitator.

By the way, the one we weren't allowed to troubleshoot wasn't actually having an issue, turned out the water table went high and it came out the drain, which also is now clogged so I routed water to a flower bed. Actually, the first one was probably repairable and I wish I'd just kept it. It dripped oil from the transmission and ate the little plastic block on top of the shaft a few times where it was splined, but it was easy to repair.

The LG is electronic. Yuck. At least it has a 10 year inclusive warranty.

Looks like the Drag Queens (or was it Dairy Queen's, I'm so confused :) ) you got are built to last, but if I bought again I'd be looking for a 1960's unit, or choosing something I didn't mind repairing myself ... the less electronics the better, and with the ones you have, I'd definitely want to install a whole-house surge protector at the breaker panel and unplug it before every big stormfront.

I've had much better luck with the matching Neptune dryer - a motor replacement a couple years ago, and the door switch last weekend is it over about maybe 20 years. Of course, I did due diligence during the motor change. Vacuumed out dust, replaced belt, took apart and re-greased the rollers/idler with white lithium, and new "gliders". I'd rather waste a few hours working on them here and there than own newer stuff these days.
 
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