I can no longer remain silent about this heinous baloney.
Our classic 50's refrigerators are being slandered in a most despicable way.
First it was the compact fluorescent lamps, now its refrigerators. The misinformation campaigns by these silly energy consulting-marketers is more than I can take!!!!!

The Kelvinator was made by NASH in DETROIT and uses LESS than a new one does!

Here are my experiences measuring actual energy consumption of FOUR refrigerators using a kilowatt-hour meter at my premises.
Both classic fridges are in a garage and summer kitchen and opened regularly over 2 months of blistering heat last summer.

Westinghouse 1947 - inside freezer box - 0.6 kilowatthours/day
Kelvinator 1953? - top freezer - 1.3 kilowatthours/day

GE 18cf 1985-top freezer - 2.3 kilowatthours/day (basement- AC)
Whirlpool 18cf 1997-top freezer - 2.4 kilowatthours/day (kitchen- AC)

174502174503

174504174505

If they told you the older ones use less energy, they wouldn't sell too many new ones. My sony LCD uses 300 watts of power about the same as a roundie color set. Not much savings there. The Sony is always consuming energy while plugged in and the old sets do not. People will believe almost anything they're told.

AND THEY STILL LIVE...Imagine an appliance mfger building a fridge today to postwar standards...They'd be bankrupt in a year...

i agree totaly alot of the older appliances run better use less power last longer ,unlike there modern counter part .there is also another fact that they fail to mention the older stuff when it is turned off is off the newer computerized appliances never turn off totaly there is always a ghost load to keep memory , other stuff just looks off its still almost fully on .for the last 5 yrs i have been adpt. solar panels to my house my way not to share with my local power comp. that will not pay if the meter is turning backwards they say they will only give a credit.

How dare you use data do show what is actually green! :D

-J

I posted before, the local electric co-op ran a contest a year or so ago to find the oldest refrigerator still in use locally. The winner got a brand new unit to replace her 60 year old Philco. I wonder if her electric bill went up?

The real energy hogs, of course, are the old NO-FROST units. That's the part that gets ignored all the time.

I posted before, the local electric co-op ran a contest a year or so ago to find the oldest refrigerator still in use locally. The winner got a brand new unit to replace her 60 year old Philco. I wonder if her electric bill went up?

The real energy hogs, of course, are the old NO-FROST units. That's the part that gets ignored all the time.

The side-by-sides are the ones that use the most power. Every person that bought one said, "never again".:thumbsdn:

I think the WHOLE "Green" thing is about 90% crapola anyway. Now we got lite bubs that are gonna cost $10.95 a piece, showers that put out less pressure than an arthritic mouse on a flat rock, & commodes that you gotta flush at least 2X to get Yr Business Done-How is any of THAT "Saving" the planet ? Horse hockey...

the green thing, is green in the pockets of the state, local, & fed .just a new way to charge more for everything . we could be useing are own oil ,gas ,coal ,exct.

AND THEY STILL LIVE...Imagine an appliance mfger building a fridge today to postwar standards...They'd be bankrupt in a year...

Nobody could deliver them either, they're heavy bastards.

The older fridges from the thirties and forties, with their little inside freezer compartments, really used very little juice and were very quiet. But you had to defrost them manually, which is a real pain to do. The newer ones are bigger and no frost: to get the latter feature they have to have internal fans to circulate air over the cooling coils, and then heaters to defrost those coils daily. All that takes juice. I like the old fridges but for the size, large freezer section, convenience of no frost, I gladly pay an extra KWH or two at 8 cents each, per day.

Buddy of mine & his college roomate had a unique way of defrosting THEIR fridge....Taking a soldering iron, making holes in the ice, then stuffing a Bottle Rocket in the holes, & setting it off...BLAMMO ! But it worked...Both these guys were pretty smart & had WAY too much time on their hands...Which is always DANGEROUS...(grin)

Every 2 months, the old Westinghouse gets like an igloo so bad the "icebox" door won't close, just put a big tray under the coil to catch the melt and let it air out for a day. Its sure a pain if its your kitchen fridge.

If they told you the older ones use less energy, they wouldn't sell too many new ones. My sony LCD uses 300 watts of power ... Mine only uses 90-95 Watts. A 40" Sony 40V4100.

As far as refrigerators, my old Sears Coldspot I think it was, a late '70s model 17-18 cu ft avocado green color, separate freezer on top, pulled just over 4 Amps when it ran. The '97 Whirlpool 22 cu ft freezer on the bottom black monolith pulls less than an Amp, about 100 Watts actually, when it runs. So there was a significant difference between those two.

There's nothing more disappointing or even depressing than encountering a non-incandescent light.

Our local (Aussie/Canadian-investor-owned) power company is at or approaching maximum capacity using nasty coal-fired plants and other sources to sell electric power to its customer base. They push Chinese Compact Flourescent lamps literally into your hands, hoping you'll use them, keeping the gotta-upgrade boogeyman at bay a few more years.

If everyone used hard-switched outlet strips on as many modern electronic devices as possible, you'd save enough energy to power a warm, freindly, soothing incandescent bulb by your favorite chair or bedside table :yes:

Buddy of mine & his college roomate had a unique way of defrosting THEIR fridge....Taking a soldering iron, making holes in the ice, then stuffing a Bottle Rocket in the holes, & setting it off...BLAMMO ! But it worked...Both these guys were pretty smart & had WAY too much time on their hands...Which is always DANGEROUS...(grin)

:lmao: that is probably the funniest thing I've read in the last week!:lmao:

Were they also the 'remove stump with as much dynamite as you can pack in to it' types?

Yep...Winston, my buddy's roomate, inherited this farm that was FULL of stumps.. He & John got a case or so of Dyna-Might, & Set To...This was before I knew Winston, or I'd likely wheedled in on the deal...They blew up stumps for 2 or 3 days-And had a helluva good time doing it....Another buddy got some dynamite, just cause he wanted to, & we had a Dynamite Party one night...You can toss a 1/4, 1/2 stick on the ground, set it off, all it does is make a loud BANG ! & maybe blow out a couple handfulls of dirt. Big whoop. But now, if you put something on TOP of it, say a hay bale, or an old tire, IT will get blown sky-high, & is most impressive.

As far as refrigerators, my old Sears Coldspot I think it was, a late '70s model 17-18 cu ft avocado green color, separate freezer on top, pulled just over 4 Amps when it ran.

Those units made in the 60s-early70s were the biggest energy hogs and, just like the cars, got WORSE in the later 70s.

My parents had a side by side 24 cu ft GE that was "Harvest Gold" when they built the house in '69 it lasted until 1995 with NO maintenance. It pulled 7 amps IIRC I hate to think how much energy that beast consumed during its existence:sigh:

I strongly object to the notion that the oldest stuff is the most inefficient.:nono:

Just finished a Vizio 32 inch plasma. 277 watts draw on the watt meter. They have enough nerve to give it an energy star rating! I use a small dorm refrigerator in Mississippi that draws around 500 watts running. It runs on a 1200 watt generator if the power goes out. I defrost it once every two months.
And yes, I use a timer on a strip to turn off the electronics when I go to bed. Makes the capacitors in the power supplies last a lot longer!
I use a small incandescent for a downstairs light as I don't trust the CFL power supplies since one started flickering and when I broke it open the board was darkened from heat and the capacitors were bulged!

Just finished a Vizio 32 inch plasma. 277 wattsdraw on the watt meter... Therein is the #1 reason I do not have a plasma TV. TV is on here 15 hours a day or so, and a plasma would be expensive to feed.

I can make my 40" LCD use more power by turning up the backlight all the way to 5. Then it reaches 220W. Run backlight at 3 and power is about 90-100 Watts. Picture is plenty bright. In fact looks much better at a lower setting. However seems like most new LCD sets now use LEDs for the backlight, not sure about power usage with those.

Plasmas are terrible for power consumption... you don't even have to hook up a meter to one to tell that much, just stand about 3 feet away and you can feel the heat off 'em.

LCDs aren't that great either... and some of the fancy "eco" LED ones actually draw more power than comparable CCFL-backlit units. The 42" Hitachi LED unit we have here pulls about 130W on a pretty low brightness setting.

OTOH, I picked up a 2004-ish 52" CRT rear-projection HDTV off the side of the road a year or so ago, and fixed it up for a friend. Out of curiosity I hooked it up to the Kill-A-Watt and could hardly believe the reading I got... it was something like 65W. :yikes:

I can no longer remain silent about this heinous baloney.
I agree completely. Perhaps I'd better be careful, lest I really get worked up into a lather about this sort of thing.

One of the electrical utilities around here is running a "turn in your energy hog" campaign. Their plan is collect old refrigerators that are still working and give the owner a little bit of cash for them (about $30 or so).

I'm not sure what they expect someone to do with the $30, as it won't put even a minor dent into the purchase of a new refrigerator to replace the old one. That's the first problem...even the most basic new refrigerators sold at various home improvement stores around here are eye-poppingly expensive. :yikes:

Second problem...reliability. I hear lots of people who traded in an old but perfectly functional refrigerator say that they wish they hadn't as the new replacement is not as reliable.

Third...is the efficiency really better? Though I don't have any truly hard evidence of this, I'd swear the older refrigerants remove heat better than the newer, greener ones. I know my 1974 GE refrigerator (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Em_HO4UJxU) with R12 (IIRC) cools down a whole lot faster than a very similar 2001 model charged with R134A. Both share the same basic physical design, only the styling has evolved to stay with the times.

I also hear from lots of people who buy new dehumidifiers, only to have them last only about a year before the fan motor breaks or the cooling system leaks. These things aren't cheap either! My 40-year-old (sold new in late 1973) Sears Coldspot "Blotter" dehumidifier is still running perfectly (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTCuGop96Ts), with one replacement fan motor and a new electrical plug in all of its years. Power draw numbers between it and a newer (1995) Magic Chef unit are within a few percent of each other.

Compressor motors, thermostats, and evap/condenser coils sure don't seem to have changed much. I supppose that maybe their internals have been redesigned a little over time, but that's probably about it. Materials used to insulate the refrigerator also seem to have changed little.

As long as the door seals on an older fridge are good and the cooling system is healthy, I just can't see there being a whole lot of difference.

LCDs aren't that great either... and some of the fancy "eco" LED ones actually draw more power than comparable CCFL-backlit units. The 42" Hitachi LED unit we have here pulls about 130W on a pretty low brightness setting.

My Insignia 19e720a12 19" LED-LCD flat panel draws 25 watts when operating, under one watt in standby, and is Energy Star certified, according to its specifications in the instruction manual.

The new flat screens with LED backlights should draw much less current than the earlier ones with CCFL backlighting. Of course, the larger screen sets will draw more current, even using LEDs as backlights. I have read here of some very large flat screens that draw upwards of 500 watts; someone mentioned in a post recently here at VK a flat screen that drew 580 watts (!) in normal operation. Much of that may well be due to the power source for the backlight (CCFL[s]) -- again, the larger the lamp (or the number of lamps), the more current will be required to operate them. My best guess is that 80 percent of the power draw of a modern large-screen flat panel TV is the power supply for the backlights, since there are no power-hogging tubes in the TV chassis or electron beams in the panel itself. Home theater setups with 1kW, 5.1(or more)-channel surround sound and a large TV, however, are a different story. These can and often do draw well upwards of 500 watts, and will drive the owner's energy bill sky high if he or she (or his or her family) watches a lot of TV and/or listens to the sound system for hours at a time. I can also envision a set like miniman82's DLP drawing 500+ watts, due to the arc lamp and its hefty power supply.

I did a power check of some various flat-screens:

Philips 50" LCD 2006- 448 watts steady
Panasonic 42" Plasma 2004 - 220 watts varies
Panasonic 37" LCD 2009- 64 watts steady
Samsung 50" LED 2010- in progress

Based on what LED does for exterior lighting energy use versus metal halide and high-pressure sodium, I expect it to be low.

Got my '57 G.E. defrosting as I type this. It's in the kitchen instead of being the storage frige now that it's outlasted 3 new ones.

Brings back memories... I remember growing up with a 1951 or so Frigidaire and my mother taking everything out of it every few weeks to defrost it. And the thick frost buildup. Break a chunk off and eat it like a snow cone... !

Philips 50" LCD 2006- 448 watts steady
That seems high. Does it have a backlight level setting?

My 2008 Sony 40" LCD has 1-5 backlight setting in the menu. 1 is lowest about 80 Watts, 5 highest, about 220 Watts. I set it to 3 90-95 Watts as measured with a Kill A Watt meter.

Buddy of mine & his college roomate had a unique way of defrosting THEIR fridge....Taking a soldering iron, making holes in the ice, then stuffing a Bottle Rocket in the holes, & setting it off...BLAMMO ! But it worked...Both these guys were pretty smart & had WAY too much time on their hands...Which is always DANGEROUS...(grin)

I'm amazed the entire refrigerator didn't explode into the proverbial "million pieces" :yikes: when the bottle rocket(s) went off.

You are so right about your friend and his college roommate having too much time on their hands. Did they get away with their very risky stunt?

Using any kind of explosive device if you don't know (or are not sure of) what you are doing can be lethal, as well as risky and/or downright dangerous. Were they living in an off-campus apartment or in a dormitory? In either situation, I'd think they would have been sternly warned or even punished if word of their stunt ever got out. If they were in a dormitory, they would likely hear from the campus police; if they were in an off-campus apartment, they would get the boom lowered on them (and possibly evicted) by the landlord.

Was visiting my mother a few weeks ago and she was excited, they had just gotten rid of the 80s era refrigerator in the basement. The power company took it in on their new program where they pay $50 for any old working unit. 2 men came by and loaded it in a truck.

Just finished a Vizio 32 inch plasma. 277 watts draw on the watt meter. They have enough nerve to give it an energy star rating! I use a small dorm refrigerator in Mississippi that draws around 500 watts running. It runs on a 1200 watt generator if the power goes out. I defrost it once every two months.
And yes, I use a timer on a strip to turn off the electronics when I go to bed. Makes the capacitors in the power supplies last a lot longer!
I use a small incandescent for a downstairs light as I don't trust the CFL power supplies since one started flickering and when I broke it open the board was darkened from heat and the capacitors were bulged!

I have a 10 YO. ,1.2 cu ft Sanyo dorm refridgerator, that only takes 71 watts running. I plugged into my Watt-Watcher. It does a great job keeping the adult beverages cold. It also has the condensor coils on the back, which is more efficient.

Using any kind of explosive device if you don't know (or are not sure of) what you are doing can be lethal, as well as risky and/or downright dangerous.

Here is a "classic" example of the use of explosives by people that thought they knew what they were doing, back in 1970:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79tl2H3QzT0

:)
jr

Ah yes...the PPL oldest fridge contest. They had an ad for this in the paper the other night, I think it was a half page. I just remember that it spelled energy as "enegry". The mistake wasn't buried in the ad copy, but rather boldly printed on one of the headlines in the ad.

Here is a "classic" example of the use of explosives by people that thought they knew what they were doing, back in 1970:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79tl2H3QzT0

:)
jr

:lmao: :lmao: :lmao:

no government program is going to come between me and my Crosley Shelvador

Nice Crosley! Every time I see an old refrigerator on ebay, asking at least $500

Thanks Dave, got it last year off craigslist for $50 bucks. it was in the basement of Japanese immigrants who couldnt lift it so it stayed down there for the 38 years that they owned the house, got it home ,put a new cord on it, and, ice cold. Amazing whats still out there...

I have a freind who has had one for ages. You need to get a matching Crosley white-pained radio to go on top like he has!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Old-Crosley-Radio-/251140244072?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a79200268

As a former owner of a side-by-side, I can personally attest to the energy-sucking habits of those Mullion heaters. How do we know when a Mullion gets too cold, anyway? Do they complain or something?

My '53 Norge is still keeping the milk cold :) . I rescued it through a metal scrapper friend of mine. I used to give him all my worn out snowblower carcasses, and he asked me if there's anything I'd like. I said, as a matter of fact, if you ever come across and old fridge.....and 3 days later he called me about this one. It's in perfect shape, and hadn't been in use since the early 1960s. The old couple had passed, and the kids just wanted it gone as they were preparing their house for sale....

Pictures after a very good cleanup, and having it plugged in in the garage to make sure everything was up to snuff. Had it running for 2 weeks, then sold my 6 year old Kenmore fridge and moved it in the house....

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/hondacuraworld/norge1.jpg

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/hondacuraworld/norge2.jpg

Here she is, two years later, still working flawlessly in my kitchen :)

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/hondacuraworld/100_4800.jpg

i am seriously amused at whatever it is we do here, your kitchen shots are great, and im laughing because it is so similiar to mine and,i bet, alot of other peoples, that are here. Got to love the old Norge...

When I was growing up, we had a Gibson freezer in the basement. That thing lasted, IIRC, some 40-50 years, then finally quit some time in the early 1990s. As far as refrigerators go, we had several that I can remember -- my earliest memories of fridges in our house are of a small one in our kitchen, made by a company called "Leonard". I don't know a thing about that company, whether it was a house brand of a department store chain in the '50s or what, but that refrigerator lasted for us through the '50s into the '60s, IIRC. That refrigerator was replaced by a Sears Coldspot that lasted until 1972, then replaced by yet another Sears CS. The latter kept going for many years, but was removed (I'm not sure if it was trashed) when the house was sold (long story/OT) in the late 1990s.

If it was trashed, I would have been surprised (I don't know if it was or not, since I wasn't there when the house was being readied for sale -- I was temporarily "living" in a motel in the next town at the time, then moved to my apartment 2 weeks later), as that fridge was like the old Eveready Energizer batteries -- it kept going and going and going . . .

Just goes to show how much better everything was built decades ago. The fridge currently in my apartment is a Frigidaire, which replaced an old beat-up one that was in the apartment when I moved in. The old one quit within a couple of years, so the landlord replaced it with the current Frigidaire -- but who knows how long the latter will last? It's been here some time, probably at least eight or nine years, and still runs, but for how long is anyone's guess.

Great Kitchen stove also! That sunbeam mixer is another survivor I see.

Mine is from 1959 and needed a GROUNDED cord, switch cleaned and works great. I got it from my mom, who then got my grandmothers 1956 Hobart that was in a kitchen cabinet on a built-in swing out table, I converted it to counter top.

I also have a silver one with a bad switch for parts.

Here is an International Harvester refrigerator that the local appliance store keeps on display in its window:
http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x293/bgadow/March-2.jpg
The guys over on the IH truck forums (binderplanet) like to collect these but this guy won't sell.

... my earliest memories of fridges in our house are of a small one in our kitchen, made by a company called "Leonard". I don't know a thing about that company, whether it was a house brand of a department store chain in the '50s or what, but that refrigerator lasted for us through the '50s into the '60s...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_%28appliances%29

http://southernclassic.tripod.com/id2.html

Someone who had an estate sale near me had an international Harvester floor chest style freezer or fridge from the 50's that was the size of a large upright model. It was so weird that if I had money, room, and knowledge enough to fix it I might have bought it just to have the oddest old chest I've seen. I hope it was not trashed.

In 1955 my dad brought home our first window air conditioner, an International Harvester! It protruded into the house as much as it did outside the window, big ol' thing, but it cooled down the whole house. Think I still have the owners manual for it somewhere.

Cool that you guys are keeping these old beasts going, and I'm pleasantly shocked at the energy consumption test.

What I wanna know is where you get R12 when the beast springs a leak. :D

Cool that you guys are keeping these old beasts going, and I'm pleasantly shocked at the energy consumption test.

What I wanna know is where you get R12 when the beast springs a leak. :D

Well, if that happens, you ARE screwed. I never have seen one that happened to when I delivered new fridges. The oldies worked but were no longer big enough or pretty enough. The newer ones we picked up always had a leak or bad compressor.

I have two for that reason and would keep more around.

A few weeks ago I had to get a new house AC condenser-compressor unit. Fortunately for me I had about half of a 30 lb cylinder of R22 I bought in '92-93, so using my own freon saved me a couple hundred $ at today's price. I mentioned to the AC guy that I had some R12 stashed away too. He said so did he. Stuff's so seldom used any more R12 is not worth much and there's very little demand. He said R134A works good enough in older R12 equipment there's just no demand for R12.

We can still get R12 - I think store cost is $40 a can from the wholesaler.

I can relate to this post. I got rid of all my "modern" appliances and have a 1956 Frigidaire, and I get sick of those NOT in the know giving me crap or making comments on how much "juice" it must use. I inform them not as much as the POS GE Profile it replaced. As for washers.. I'm getting ready to switch back to an OLD top-loader. I have a 6 year old front-loader that is now throwing out an error code and makes ping-pong bing-bong noises (from the chimes)... Also I never thought it truly got stuff clean as I think it's supposed to use like 2 teaspoons of water... lol! Also got foul when I had to go to Ace last night to get replacement floodlights for my garage. THAT was an ordeal.... (and 26.00 later, for 2) for a product that will probably burn out in 2 seconds. I also remember when my parents got a stupid low-flow toilet that you had to flush about 200 times. They said EFF IT and found a "normal" one. I did hear the new generation ones are better tho. Back to this topic.. I see our power company is offering 35.00 to pick up your old fridge. What a joke......

I just fixed up an old late 1950's or early 1960's Imperial(Western Auto) Freezer for a friend. It was at another friends appliance repair shop waiting to go to scrap. I wanted to see if i could fix it. It is in really good shape and super clean inside. All that was wrong with it is some of the wiring to the relays went bad. All replaced and it works great. It pulls less than 4 amps. The newer freezers pull around 4 amps so why would I want that newer stuff that fails at an early age when I can have something still working 50 years later(and looks cool)?
As for front load washers, I work on those all the time, bad pumps, bad bearings, torn boots, burnt computers. gets expensive to have to replace those parts when it is 5 years old(some are overloaded and abused). A lot of customers go back to top load Whirlpool made bullet proof easy to repair washers. Parts are cheap and plentiful. DON'T EVER buy a GE front load washer!! They are Chinese junk!!!! Those GE fridges have those computer boards go bad all the time. Keeps the repair guys in business.

Hey mstaton, It's funny you mention that as I AM planning to go to a Whirlpool top loader, but... before I do, the washer I have now is an LG. ( and no.. I didn't buy it new) it's giving an LE code which is for "overload motor" I "googled" the problem and it seems that's a common one for my model. It's some sensor, but supposedly it's part of the motor, and you have to replace the entire motor. In your opinion.... fix it, or send it to the curb?

On some you can just replace the sensor. They want you to buy the whole motor. Is it a standard belt drive or stator?

It's Model Number WM0532HW

Not sure, but when I googled it, they were talking about "stator" and giving links to buy the whole motor.

Hey I use to have a 1950s philco shelvadoor refridge but I donated it to a needy family I knew 15 years ago I wish I would have gave them my newer refridge rather than that one oh well my loss I am looking for another one hopefully I will find one wish me luck.. Timothy

[QUOTE=DavGoodlin;3036241]Those units made in the 60s-early70s were the biggest energy hogs and, just like the cars, got WORSE in the later 70s.

My parents had a side by side 24 cu ft GE that was "Harvest Gold" when they built the house in '69 it lasted until 1995 with NO maintenance. It pulled 7 amps IIRC I hate to think how much energy that beast consumed during its existence:

I strongly object to the notion that the oldest stuff is the most inefficient.[/QUOTE

SORRY thought you said you were agreing to it
you said i OBJECT
http://pimpmysmiley.com/get-smiley.php?s=7_85 (http://pimpmysmiley.com) p.s. DONT MAKE IT MAD!

Hey Johnny you are still wet behind the ears you are just learnning about this old stuff you will catch up soon you are only 12 years old so do not rush your life you are a good kid keep on learnning.. Timothy

Hey Johnny you are still wet behind the ears you are just learnning about this old stuff you will catch up soon you are only 12 years old so do not rush your life you are a good kid keep on learnning.. Timothy

Tim I may not know the most in the world, but I know enough not to have chinese junk! :D

It's Model Number WM0532HW

Not sure, but when I googled it, they were talking about "stator" and giving links to buy the whole motor.

On some you can replace just the sensor. Usually white or black and not interchangeable. You will need to pull the magnet assy from the tub shaft to see it. There is a part number on it. Google it and you may come up with something. I may be able to get you one. There will more than likely be wear marks on it. Maybe get a pic of it and post it.

I just fixed up an old late 1950's or early 1960's Imperial(Western Auto) Freezer for a friend. It was at another friends appliance repair shop waiting to go to scrap. I wanted to see if i could fix it. It is in really good shape and super clean inside. All that was wrong with it is some of the wiring to the relays went bad. All replaced and it works great. It pulls less than 4 amps. The newer freezers pull around 4 amps so why would I want that newer stuff that fails at an early age when I can have something still working 50 years later(and looks cool)?
As for front load washers, I work on those all the time, bad pumps, bad bearings, torn boots, burnt computers. gets expensive to have to replace those parts when it is 5 years old(some are overloaded and abused). A lot of customers go back to top load Whirlpool made bullet proof easy to repair washers. Parts are cheap and plentiful. DON'T EVER buy a GE front load washer!! They are Chinese junk!!!! Those GE fridges have those computer boards go bad all the time. Keeps the repair guys in business.

I actually have a GE front load washer, that I got for free from a friend. I believe it's a 2008 model, and has barely been used. As it turns out, it was under recall by GE, so I had a repairman come over and look it over before I hooked it up to replace my absolutely perfect 1991 Maytag top loader.

He told me that the lifespan of the GE unit is about 8 years, before the door seals go bad and you have a flood on your hands. Mine, fortunately, was about one of the best he'd seen, as it was used very little. I guess the worst are the LG, as they only last 5-7 years MAX.

I decided to put new belts in my Maytag, and keep it. The GE, I'm going to hook up for heavy work, such as comforters and blankets, to thereby extend its life until the GE inevitably fails.....

Top loaders are a proven product and pretty much trouble free and easy to fix. Water doesn't mind staying in a tub with an open top, but it likes to get out of a tub turned on its side. Front loaders like to grow mold and smell, too. Plus top loaders are more versatile: you can stop cycles and turn the dial to some other point, put in a heavy soaked rug and just run the spin cycle, etc. You're not faced with a locked door. Give me a top loader with a mechanical timer and as little electronics as possible.

I have a few random thoughts on this topic:

Dehumidifiers:
I bought an 80s model (I forget the brand) for a rental house I had. I sold the rental, and moved the dehumidifier over to the basement at my house. An opportunity came to upgrade to a new "energy star" model, so I bought it. That thing did half as good, and my electric bill went up $40! Good thing I kept the ol' 80s model...

Fridges:
At my day job, at the recycler, I see a few fridges. Most of the new ones have the coils in the side walls! If you get a slight dent in the side wall, it kinks the line, and it's dead. They are sealed with spray foam, so there's no way to fix them.

Older Plasma TVs:
My 50" 1998 Pioneer Plasma is rated at 640w I believe, heh. I never put a meter on it though. Oh well, that's one luxury I will continue to pay to run. What's cheaper, a TV that lasts, or a cheap TV that I have to buy 5 times? Plus, it keeps my TV room toasty in the winter. It sees daily action, but not crazy amounts of hours.

AC Units:
I have an ancient GoldStar unit in my garage. It has no front on it, so I don't know anything about it. I keep the fins clean, and it keeps the shop cool. No fancy thermostats, just a two big knobs, "off, cool, fan" and "low,med,high" lol. At the recycler I see many of the rolling portable AC units junked for leaks and bad exhaust motors. Those things are crazy expensive and total crap.

Light bulbs:
I do use the CFL bulbs. Only the yellow-ish ones, I hate the blue-ish ones. I don't really have common the longevity problems. I think I have had one in the house burn out in 5 years. Now, the one in the porch light burns out all the time, but I bet the cold weather kills it. I do also like the LED floodlights. I use them for my ebay picture booth, and in a billiard-style light that hangs over my workbench. Nice white light with no heat.

Top loaders are a proven product and pretty much trouble free and easy to fix. Water doesn't mind staying in a tub with an open top, but it likes to get out of a tub turned on its side. Front loaders like to grow mold and smell, too. Plus top loaders are more versatile: you can stop cycles and turn the dial to some other point, put in a heavy soaked rug and just run the spin cycle, etc. You're not faced with a locked door. Give me a top loader with a mechanical timer and as little electronics as possible.

You know, years ago we lived in a townhouse and had a stacked White-Westinghouse washer & dryer. The washer was a front loader with a little round window in the rectangular door. It was a 1980 or 81 model and we never had a problem with gaskets, mold, etc. It was about 13 years old when we moved from there. So I wonder why the newer machines have these issues when the front-loader is far from a new concept.

Because new stuff is junk that is why there are so many issues with things not enough pride in the factories and employees it is all about the money...Timothy

My uncle had an old Westinghouse front load washer that was probably no newer than the early '60's. It finally took a dump in the early '90's and was replaced by a Roper top load model. His dryer was a GE gas model that was probably as old as the washer. The dryer was still working when he died in '94.

Those old Westinghouse front loaders were not that great, but they were eons better than the front loaders out there, today. I worked on a bunch of the front loaders built in the 1970's... I just installed a new spin belt for a friend, and had to special order it.... and it continues to wash perfectly. I always tell my friend that owns this that at anytime, something can go wrong that can't be replaced, and this will be the end of it.

I, myself, had a pair of early 1980's Maytag machines... the last of the really good ones, that ran perfectly, until I traded them for a pair of 1969 Whirlpools.. Nice avocado paint job... actually matches the laundry room now. I replaced the top tub seal, the pump, the drive belt, and the water inlet valve when I got these machines in 2006. Working perfectly every day. They came from the condo of a little old lady that rarely even used them. I am a firm believer of recycling, and not adding to the destruction of old appliances. I've got a 1958 Fridgidare in my garage... unplugged, with the door propped open, that I know will work just fine when I move it into the new house. I run it about once a month for an hour or two, just to lubricate the refrigeration system. It runs just fine. I recently found a NOS thermostat on eGroan that will cure all the problems it had when I got it.

[QUOTE=Kamakiri;3050572]I actually have a GE front load washer, that I got for free from a friend. I believe it's a 2008 model, and has barely been used. As it turns out, it was under recall by GE, so I had a repairman come over and look it over before I hooked it up to replace my absolutely perfect 1991 Maytag top loader.

I'm talking about the one in the picture. Is that the one you have? These are NOT under recall. Total crap(IMHO).

I can no longer remain silent about this heinous baloney.
Our classic 50's refrigerators are being slandered in a most despicable way.
First it was the compact fluorescent lamps, now its refrigerators.Yes i know my friend.... EVERYTHING IS BEING REPLACED WITH CHEAP GARBAGE AND ITS SAD!!!!!

People are to blame for this,NOT ENOUGH TO STAND UP AND DEMAND BETTER QUALITY (Like what we used to have)

Yes i know my friend.... EVERYTHING IS BEING REPLACED WITH CHEAP GARBAGE AND ITS SAD!!!!!

People are to blame for this,NOT ENOUGH TO STAND UP AND DEMAND BETTER QUALITY (Like what we used to have)

Problem is, people still want to pay the same now that they paid then for appliances. That old Frigidaire we had in the '50s when I was a kid would cost thousands today, and you'd still have to manually defrost it.

And that's exactly it. This is why some people complain that McDonalds food is crap. Well, if you want a char broiled burger served on artisan bread with a nice slice of fresh tomato, then go pay more than 99 cents. Everything is made to a price point.

The American factory worker won't go for slave labor wages, and Ed, you've nailed it.....we can't make and sell products like they once made and expect people to have the money to buy them, or even want to pay that much.

The cheapest RCA color TV you could get in 1960 was $495.00, which translates to $3707.12 in 2011 dollars. By the same token, a flat panel TV that costs say $500 now, would have cost just $66.76 in 1960 dollars! How bout them apples!

It's no wonder these things are around long past their usable lifespans. It was a capital investment.

Yeah, people say "they don't make them like they used to" (applied to any item). But we also don't pay like they used to. I remember my dad buying his first Mitsubishi Stereo 20" TV. It was almost $900 if I remember right, in the early 80s. $900 now will fill your wall with TV. Yeah, it will blow up (and that mitsubishi is still running today, at my mother-in-law's house, hehe).

But that's the deal. The people have spoken. Instant gratification, screw what tomorrow brings. They want it big, loud, and NOW! Oh yeah, and cheap. People don't care. I work at a recycler, I see it all day long. People dumping TVs, and saying "This one gave me 3 years, that's not too bad!"... I guess if you spent $3000 on a TV that lasts 30 years, or 10 $300 TVs that last 3 years, it all washes out, save for the hassle factor.

Yes, this is precisely the problem. The price of bottom-of-the-line major appliances hasn't really budged in decades, along with many other goods. At the grocery store they hold the price down by making the container smaller but you can't get by with a smaller washing machine...

One of the problems I'm facing in my small business is that cash customers expect things to cost what they did 10, 20, even 30 years ago. I'd love to accomodate them but the cost of labor/overhead makes it impossible. Brutal competition (all of us in my line of work are well below capacity, and hungry) means that pricing is cutthroat, so none of us are making a decent profit. One shop has apparently decided to just maximize profits on the work they do, never mind if they lose a good percentage of the work. In the last week I've pulled in three jobs that they bid w-a-a-a-y high, and I was still able to make a decent profit in each case. One example, car needed a blower motor resistor. $25 part, my markup is about $10, takes 2 minutes to install, I didn't even charge her labor since she is a good customer. She had just come from that other shop that wanted to charge her over $300 for the same exact job, including a $100 "diagnostic charge".

Sorry, getting off topic here...

Kamakiri wrote: The cheapest RCA color TV you could get in 1960 was $495.00, which translates to $3707.12 in 2011 dollars.

No wonder it took me forever to save up the $34.19 for my first Heathkit!

I just saw an ad on TV, from one of the local TV/appliance dealers, advertising a 32" TV for $229. I'm sure these idiots around here will flock down there to buy one of those stellar TV's. They don't think about the fact that it will likely be in the dump in two years (or less). All they are thinking about is that they can buy a new, decent sized, TV for a low price. Heck, I remember when 19" color TV's with rotary tuners cost more than that; and, many of those sets are still going (30+ years later).

I talked to a friend last night on the phone... He just bought a new flatscreen from the big Wal*Murt.

It's a whopping 42" plasma screen, and he bought it because it was cheap enough to suit him.

I've seen 42" sets around here. I like my 32" CRT set better.

I wonder if any of the manufacturers make a set with high-quality electronics that are backed with a real warranty?

I talked to a friend last night on the phone... He just bought a new flatscreen from the big Wal*Murt.

It's a whopping 42" plasma screen, and he bought it because it was cheap enough to suit him.

I've seen 42" sets around here. I like my 32" CRT set better.

I wonder if any of the manufacturers make a set with high-quality electronics that are backed with a real warranty?

I think the only way to get a decent warranty is to pay for it. Otherwise, you're stuck with the standard 90-days for parts and labor and parts-only starting at 91 days and ending at the one year mark. Before flat screens took off, someone I know bought a 27" Apex CRT TV from china-mart. It crapped out under warranty; but, the local china-mart told him that he'd have to ship the TV to an authorized service center, at his expense, to have it repaired. Shipping alone would have cost more than what he paid for the set and he ended up paying me to fix the set; which, had a shorted diode on the secondary side of the switching power supply. Once upon a time, stores stood behind what they sold and all one had to do was contact the store in which the TV was purchased and the problem would be corrected. Now, most stores, and companies, couldn't care less. They got your money and that's all they care about. If there was a legal way around it, they probably wouldn't even offer a warranty.

Now, it seems like everyone wants the biggest screen out there. For most of my growing up years, we had nothing bigger than 19" color TV's and we made out just fine. Back then, a 23" or 25" console was considered a big TV. Then, 27" TV's came out, followed by 32's", and they just kept getting larger. We didn't get a bigger TV until we got my Uncle's 25" Zenith console when he died in '94. Now, people ask how I can watch a TV that small when I tell them that the biggest TV in the house is a 27".

I wonder if any of the manufacturers make a set with high-quality electronics that are backed with a real warranty?

Unfortunately, there just isn't a demand for that sort of thing anymore.

Pioneer used to make very expensive high-quality plasma displays. I am not sure about their warranty, but most of them never needed it. There was so little demand for a high-end TV that they couldn't make any money doing it. Here's an article about it- http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/feb2009/gb20090212_424440.htm

Yeah Pioneer had a few dud models, but for the most part, every old Pioneer plasma I come across is still running. I have two, a 1998, and a 2006, both still running with no problems. I bought them both used, I could have never paid what they cost new. People are so scared of plasma TVs, you can pick up the old Pioneers pretty cheap now and have yourself a nice TV.

Now the question becomes, if you could buy a TV, brand new, that was built like a 1960 RCA....genuine wood, direct wired, made in America, would you spend $3,700 for it?

Personally, TV programming is going to have to move away from zillions of commercials every 4-5 minutes to make me even think about buying another TV, ever.

I'm on the satellite, and have 3 channels that I watch with some regularity.

It's so hard watching I Love Lucy sped up, edited, and added commercial breaks every 3-4 minutes. No wonder alot of younger people I work with dont like Lucy.
Uncut, the shows flow and seem longer than a half-hour... actually 25-26 minutes... I timed a Lucy show on Hallmark one day, and it ran just over 17 minutes. Awful.

Back to topic: I've seen 2 Pioneer plasma sets recently that are old, and heavy, but still have a very nice picture.

My main home sets are both CRT... 27" and 32". One is 15 years old, and the other is 21 years. The 21 year old has only had some soldering done as repairs in its entire time with me, and that was almost 16 years ago. The 32" came to me with bad soldering, and it looks lovely today.

As for the satellite, if they drop 2 of the 3 channels I watch, I'll drop the satellite.

appliance genocide :-(

I almost feel guilty ... I am about to commit such a crime

when I moved into this residence there was and still remains a '75 GE freestanding electric range in avocado green ... works as it should, even the clock timer is still functioning, looks almost new it does with the only visible flaw being corrosion on the spacer between the oven door glass
... but after all these years the oven insulation has absorbed enough odors from baking that it really smells when the oven is operating ... time for an "upgrade"...

but what / which brand to purchase ... looked at all the usual places I have and it appears all electric ranges available today are essentialy the same ... only the names silk screened on the front are different ...

does anyone have thoughts on Premier brand ranges ??? ... expensive they are ... made here in the USA ... must be American labor driving up the price ... but I do like the 40" wide models

I've seen 42" sets around here. I like my 32" CRT set better.I dont blame you at all!!!!!! -- MUCH NICER :)

I just saw an ad on TV, from one of the local TV/appliance dealers, advertising a 32" TV for $229. I'm sure these idiots around here will flock down there to buy one of those stellar TV's. They don't think about the fact that it will likely be in the dump in two years (or less).

Is that a hard and fast rule, or just something that was said once and repeated so often that it is now darn nearly universally believed as fact? I've seen the prices on 50-inch-plus flat screens, and it does not seem right to me in the least that these sets will fail in two years or so -- after the owner has paid such a high price; same for smaller TVs. Plus, I'm not crazy about the fact that my own Insignia 19" flat screen, bought new in August 2011, may and likely will fail the day after the warranty expires. Are these sets intentionally made to fail after only two years? Do the manufacturers put some kind of timer in the set that causes the unit to become unusable after 730 days or after the warranty runs out? (I don't believe so, since Best Buy does offer an optional four-year warranty extension which goes into effect the moment the original warranty expires; I didn't buy the extended warranty for my flat screen, but I did get it for my Blu-ray player and my flat-screen computer monitor. Go figure. :scratch2:)

What is so darned special about this two-year failure estimate for flat screens, and who came up with that figure in the first place? As I said in a post to Insignia's flat-screen TV forum some time ago, if the makers of flat screens don't start turning out sets that last longer, a lot longer, than the warranty or two years (!), whichever comes first, a lot of these offshore manufacturers and the retailers that sell their TVs are going to find themselves out of business before too long. Insignia is a house brand for televisions and audio/video gear sold by Best Buy, and as such the longevity of these products reflects directly on BB's reputation. Again, if many more of these Insignia TVs are returned to the stores with chassis problems or broken panels, etc., Best Buy may well find itself out of business entirely before too much longer. I am not actually expecting my set to go up in smoke the next time I watch it (or any time soon, for that matter), of course, but this business of almost any flat screen developing problems within a short (sometimes very short) period of time makes me wonder just how long my TV will last before it develops a serious repair problem and will have to be replaced. I will use my 12-year-old RCA CTC185 19" table set with a cable box if this happens, so I won't be without TV, but still I am very disappointed that flat screens -- especially the big 60-70" sets that carry $1k+ price tags -- are made to be discarded after they fail within two years (!), if the failure occurs after the warranty. Don't these stores or the offshore manufacturers of the TVs realize or care that most people cannot afford to buy a new television every two years or less? I have read on other FP TV makers' message boards that some people are now without television since their flat screens went bad, and these people discarded or otherwise got rid of the old CRT set when the FP set arrived. This cannot be good (in fact, it could be disastrous) for TV networks and their affiliates, either, since every lost viewer works out to so many lost ratings points; if a station or network loses enough of its viewers, the programs' ratings will suffer, and in the case of local TV stations, particularly those in smaller cities, the stations' very existence could be in jeopardy as well.

I don't know about that. They'd probably just go to another brand, or have a spare CRT set around. Why? Sports. Take a football-filled Sunday away from most of the male population in the US, and they react like a crack addict jonesing for a fix :D

I dont think that business cares anymore about their product lasting beyond the warranty. Have a problem? Buy another one.

They are building this garbage as cheap as possible, with cheap labor, and selling it to unsuspecting buyers under the tradenames that we grew up with, back when these brands ment quality.

Personally, TV programming is going to have to move away from zillions of commercials every 4-5 minutes to make me even think about buying another TV, ever.

I'm on the satellite, and have 3 channels that I watch with some regularity.

It's so hard watching I Love Lucy sped up, edited, and added commercial breaks every 3-4 minutes. No wonder alot of younger people I work with dont like Lucy.
Uncut, the shows flow and seem longer than a half-hour... actually 25-26 minutes... I timed a Lucy show on Hallmark one day, and it ran just over 17 minutes. Awful.





As for the satellite, if they drop 2 of the 3 channels I watch, I'll drop the satellite.
Is all that compressing causing the distortion in all the old repeats that are shown on the various channels, such as METV, etc? :sigh:

Is this what economists mean by the term "durable goods"?

There is a "trophy-class" Appliance store down the road that sells LG, Fisher-Paykel, Bosch, Amana, ASKO, Thermador, SubZero....... Ec

When I bought a Maytag dryer there, I got the "attitude" because I resisted the fashion upsell. They dont sell Maytag anymore. I often scope out their junkyard and surprised at how new some of the take-aways look.

I have a 2001 Maytag Dryer and 2004 Maytag Washer, both made in Newton Iowa.
These two replaced a posessed Kenmore propane dryer and ornery Kenmore Washer from 1993, bought then left by the previous homeowner.
These Maytags might be the last units i ever buy after reading some previous posts.

Is all that compressing causing the distortion in all the old repeats that are shown on the various channels, such as METV, etc? :sigh:


I know what Holmesuser1 means when he speaks of shortened programs. One of my favorites, on MeTV weeknights, is "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", which was on CBS-TV in the 1970s. This program has been shortened as well, and I think much of that shortening was at the end of the show. I remember how most of those programs ended, and that part of the show was cut out. (I bet those MTM shows, once close to 30 minutes in length less commercials, are now no more than perhaps half that or less.) Takes almost all the fun out of watching these old shows, which were real comedy -- not like a lot of what passes for comedy and humor on TV nowadays. At least they didn't fiddle much with the DVD releases of these programs. The DVD versions may not be totally uncut, but at least there are no commercials, which is why I now have a collection of many of my favorite 1970s TV series on DVD and VHS.

I believe those shows are shortened for one and only one reason: so the network can squeeze in more commercials. I remember when there actually was a limit on commercial time in any given hour; I don't remember exactly what the limit was, but it certainly was less than two minutes an hour. (Well, at least cigarette commercials were banned in the early 1970s.) Now, TV stations and networks cram as many commercials as they think they can get away with (!) into an hour of programming -- and radio is even worse. I've all but given up on terrestrial OTA radio for that reason.

Welp, gonna rescue another one :sigh: :D

Picking up this GE on Saturday, I believe it's a 1941 or so. Looks VERY similar to my 1938 GE. It's been sitting under a covered carport for years, and still works fine. Best of all, it's free :)

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/hondacuraworld/fridge.jpg

Hello very cool looking fridge good luck on your deal.. keep us posted...Timothy

Welp, gonna rescue another one :sigh: :D

Picking up this GE on Saturday, I believe it's a 1941 or so. Looks VERY similar to my 1938 GE. It's been sitting under a covered carport for years, and still works fine. Best of all, it's free :)

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/hondacuraworld/fridge.jpg

My aunt and uncle had the same one. They bought it when they got married in 1939. It was in use untill 1986. It was a shame that it went to the scrap yard, when my uncle went to the nursing home.
That quiet, beefy compressor only ran 1800 RPM and they didn't beat themselves to death, like the newer 3600 RPM ones.

At the beginning of this thread I posted a utility's PR firm promo for a mean spirited contest. This is the result. 176723
I have emailed the newspaper editor explaining how the point was totally missed here. we really need a contest for the biggest energy hog which could be a 1960s-vintage window AC or a 1970 GE side-byside 24cf Refrigerator like my parents had for 25 years before it was a victim of a kitchen remodel, still working. I would be INSULTED by a mere $250 check for a 1938 General Electric:tears: a working piece of history. I wonder how many WORKING pre-1955 units were sacrificed for the $35 the rest got.
For shame!:thumbsdn:

My aunt and uncle had the same one. They bought it when they got married in 1939. It was in use untill 1986. It was a shame that it went to the scrap yard, when my uncle went to the nursing home.
That quiet, beefy compressor only ran 1800 RPM and they didn't beat themselves to death, like the newer 3600 RPM ones.

Thanks for the (non-cfl) lightbulb moment Dieselljeep! I always thought these old timers sounded very different running. Lower speed, less heat, longer life.:yes:

And working when the "recyclers" came to pick it up. Kind of like someone from the morgue pulling up to your house and asking you to get in a body bag :(

Turns out the GE I got is a 1941. It was sitting in the dirt on a covered carport-type thing for many years, and surprisingly, has no rust on it, even underneath. Good ole lead paint :D

I don't know why, but these things seem to come in sets ;) . I'm picking up this old Kelvinator stove for $25 to save it from the scrap heap this week. It's going to go in place of the Chinese GE washing machine in my basement, that I'm giving to a friend :)

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/hondacuraworld/stove1.jpg

At the beginning of this thread I posted a utility's PR firm promo for a mean spirited contest. This is the result. 176723
I have emailed the newspaper editor explaining how the point was totally missed here. we really need a contest for the biggest energy hog which could be a 1960s-vintage window AC or a 1970 GE side-byside 24cf Refrigerator like my parents had for 25 years before it was a victim of a kitchen remodel, still working. I would be INSULTED by a mere $250 check for a 1938 General Electric:tears: a working piece of history. I wonder how many WORKING pre-1955 units were sacrificed for the $35 the rest got.
For shame!:thumbsdn:



Thanks for the (non-cfl) lightbulb moment Dieselljeep! I always thought these old timers sounded very different running. Lower speed, less heat, longer life.:yes:
If you look at the nameplate on a GE, it's not a refrigerator but A " Refrigerating Machine ".
Of all the pre-60's refers, GE made the best. :yes:

There are many of the GE 'football' compressors still running just fine today after 40 or so years. I have 2 of them. One in a side by fridge, and the other in an upright freezer. I've replaced the fans in both of these at least twice, and an occasional cleaning of the coils under there.

I had a 2001 GE fridge with a Panasonic compressor that died weeks after the warranty ran out at 5 years. Never a GE will cross paths with me again!

Hello my first apartment had a stove like that one that is pictured and a ge fridge that was made in 1949 I wish I would have taken those with me when I bought My house but that was years ago.. good luck on your stove please keep us posted.... Timothy

There are many of the GE 'football' compressors still running just fine today after 40 or so years. I have 2 of them. One in a side by fridge, and the other in an upright freezer. I've replaced the fans in both of these at least twice, and an occasional cleaning of the coils under there.

I had a 2001 GE fridge with a Panasonic compressor that died weeks after the warranty ran out at 5 years. Never a GE will cross paths with me again!

I picked a 1951 Hotpoint apartment sized fridge, as a freebee a few years ago.
It has a crazy looking compressor, that you can't hear run. It also has 11 oz of R12.
The reason it was tossed is because the gasket is deteriorated. I'm trying to make one up. They used to be available as a universal kit. :sigh:

In the mobile home I bought awhile back (1952 Detroiter) there's a 1941 Kelvinator apartment sized fridge in the kitchen. It still works fine. I'm still looking for a early to mid-50's apartment sized stove to install in it.

I picked a 1951 Hotpoint apartment sized fridge, as a freebee a few years ago.
It has a crazy looking compressor, that you can't hear run. It also has 11 oz of R12.
The reason it was tossed is because the gasket is deteriorated. I'm trying to make one up. They used to be available as a universal kit. :sigh:

I re-gasketed my 1953 Kelvinator with a universal kit about 17 years ago, which still keeps the frost out. The curves required a bit of heat to re-form. For hard angles,cut it and miter the corners together, which I joined with a soldering iron.

I 'm sure these guys have a parts source. AntiqueAppliances.com

I have emailed the newspaper editor explaining how the point was totally missed here. we really need a contest for the biggest energy hog which could be a 1960s-vintage window AC or a 1970 GE side-byside 24cf Refrigerator like my parents had for 25 years before it was a victim of a kitchen remodel, still working.In my opinion it doesnt matter how much of an ENERGY HOG it is... IT IS MUCH BETTER!!!!!

Its built better,it performs better than ANYTHING MADE NOW!!!!!!!! (Hands down)

Picking up this GE on Saturday, I believe it's a 1941 or so. Looks VERY similar to my 1938 GE. It's been sitting under a covered carport for years, and still works fine. Best of all, it's free :)Wow she is beautiful my friend,I HOPE YOU CAN KEEP HER RUNNING FOR MANY YEARS!!

Got it home, took the door and front off and brought them inside. Right now, it's in my garage, but for the heck of it, I plugged it in and it chugged to life......

You think TV collecting takes up room? Try working on vintage appliances. Holy hell am I getting packed in once again.....geez.

Hey lets see some pix of that vintage mobile home, does it still have the original tv and radio in side? let us see...Timothy

You think TV collecting takes up room? Try working on vintage appliances. Holy hell am I getting packed in once again.....geez.Yes i reckon you are my friend BUT ITS REWARDING,makes one feel good inside when they are surronded by the garbage of today TO HAVE SOME GOOD STUFF ABOUT :)

Peace and love to you my friend!

Well yes, but come get some of mine. And bring a truck and friends :D

My friend just had his appliances tested for power usage and his 1956 freezer was more efficient than his 2 year old frig........go figure!

My friend just had his appliances tested for power usage and his 1956 freezer was more efficient than his 2 year old frig........go figure!
That's what I use my Watt-Watcher for. Some of that old equipment can really surprise you. Chest freezers are the best for operating economy.
As long as the door seal is good, those things should last forever. :yes:

Well, another one dropped into my lap. I got a Servel from around 1940 or so for free from my boss. We're cleaning up around his shop and it's in his way, so I'm gonna take it.

OMG :eek: . I have been looking for a Servel for YEARS!!!!!

Pictures, please!

Does that Servel run on natural gas? :D

That name to me synonymous with nat gas fired AC units.

It does run on natural gas. Servels aren't hard to find around here, as some homes in rural areas near me didn't have electricity till the early 50's. The one I got is an apartment sized model, but I know where there at least 3 of the larger ones that I could probably get pretty cheap. It's funny, I started out collecting AA5 radios and records, and the things I got into have gotten bigger over the years. I'm even looking at a second 1950's mobile home now!

Well, another one dropped into my lap. I got a Servel from around 1940 or so for free from my boss.Wow what a treat!!!

Please if you get a chance,post some pics of it :)

Those things command a premium on ebay, IF you can find them.

I'll try to get a couple of pics when I get it home. I'll be taking them with a cell phone so I don't know how they'll turn out.

I did the exact opposite at work, sold off a new refrigerator which liked to kill off the icemaker with it's PC board every power surge. Replaced that one with a 1950 Frigidaire. Which with care, keeps on cooling.

Lookee what I saved from the "to scrap" pile at the Harrisburg Salvation Army.
177104177105
This is a roasting-braising pan. These were fixtures in church basement kitchens, now its in mine, next to its 1947 cousin, the extremely efficient refrigerator.
I have seen these in Ant-eek stores for some$$$, so I gave SA $10. Its missing only one knob on the timer-clock and a its cord.

Lookee what I saved from the "to scrap" pile at the Harrisburg Salvation Army.
177104177105
This is a roasting-braising pan. These were fixtures in church basement kitchens, now its in mine, next to its 1947 cousin, the extremely efficient refrigerator.
I have seen these in Ant-eek stores for some$$$, so I gave SA $10. Its missing only one knob on the timer-clock and a its cord.
I remember as a little kid back in the late '50s some family friends we used to go visit, had one of those. Used to mystify me what it was for as I never saw it in action.

Lookee what I saved from the "to scrap" pile at the Harrisburg Salvation Army.
177104177105
This is a roasting-braising pan. These were fixtures in church basement kitchens, now its in mine, next to its 1947 cousin, the extremely efficient refrigerator.
I have seen these in Ant-eek stores for some$$$, so I gave SA $10. Its missing only one knob on the timer-clock and a its cord.

I would think cords for these old appliances should be easy to find, if you do some searching. The roaster you refer to uses the same type of cord as was (and probably still is) used on electric irons; however, the cord you're looking for should have a large female AC plug at the end opposite the line plug. This is the end that plugs into the mating male socket on the roaster. These cords are well covered by asbestos and other fire-resistant materials, due to the high current requirements of appliances using heating elements and/or large motors; they must be replaced, if necessary, with the same type of cord as originally supplied with the appliance, as a standard cord (such as a plastic-insulated extension cord) will overheat, melt and short, tripping the circuit breaker, soon after the appliance is switched on.

I would be extremely leery of using a 50+-year-old roaster, unless the appliance was overhauled first. The roaster probably has crumbling wiring to the heating element, thermostat, etc. and may be anything but safe to use. This is the same advice as is always given here on VK's forums before using an old radio or TV, except that with antique appliances there are usually no capacitors to replace; however, the wiring and thermostat may well need to be replaced before the roaster can be safely used. The usual warning regarding leaving an antique appliance (especially one with a heating element) unattended when in operation -- after the appliance is properly restored, of course -- applies here as well.

Hello congrats on the new digs wish I was that lucky my grandmother had one of those roasters before she died my crazy uncle threw it away after I asked to take it...Timothy

Hello congrats on the new digs wish I was that lucky my grandmother had one of those roasters before she died my crazy uncle threw it away after I asked to take it...Timothy

Sounds like some of the uncles I had.
One died owing me money, instead of me getting some of his. :sigh:

I would think cords for these old appliances should be easy to find, if you do some searching. The roaster you refer to uses the same type of cord as was (and probably still is) used on electric irons; however, the cord you're looking for should have a large female AC plug at the end opposite the line plug. This is the end that plugs into the mating male socket on the roaster. These cords are well covered by asbestos and other fire-resistant materials, due to the high current requirements of appliances using heating elements and/or large motors; they must be replaced, if necessary, with the same type of cord as originally supplied with the appliance, as a standard cord (such as a plastic-insulated extension cord) will overheat, melt and short, tripping the circuit breaker, soon after the appliance is switched on.

I would be extremely leery of using a 50+-year-old roaster, unless the appliance was overhauled first. The roaster probably has crumbling wiring to the heating element, thermostat, etc. and may be anything but safe to use. This is the same advice as is always given here on VK's forums before using an old radio or TV, except that with antique appliances there are usually no capacitors to replace; however, the wiring and thermostat may well need to be replaced before the roaster can be safely used. The usual warning regarding leaving an antique appliance (especially one with a heating element) unattended when in operation -- after the appliance is properly restored, of course -- applies here as well.
You're only partially right on some of your observations.
50 years is not old for an appliance. Furthermore, they didn't use rubber insulated wire on the inside of the roaster. They used asbestos insulated wire. All you have to do is remove the bottom cover and inspect it. You'll find a layer of fiberglass insulation. The t'stat is probably OK.
The power cord should be available in the older type hardware store, such as long established Ace stores. The plug used is known as a JUMBO plug.
I bought a few of them at thrift shops. The newer ones are neoprene rubber and 16 AWG, as these units are 1000 watts and better. :scratch2:

Asbestos infestos for sure. 177241:sigh:

I will avoid messing with this if it works and just plug into a GFI outlet.
Got to find a cord - I had this one (also asbestos)and thought it was a slam-dunk, wrong!

Well ACE may be the place and yes Dieseljeep, its says 1320 watts 11 amps, as
stamped on bottom cover, also confirms Westinghouse made their appliances in Mansfield Ohio

I have heard Asbestos is only harmful IF IT GETS IN THE AIR (You breathe it in) otherwise its a very good insulator!

I've been reading Popular Mechanics, Popular Sciece, ETC, for like 60 years now. There were several adds showing correspondence courses for small appliance Repair. They would quote, "There's big money repairing these things."
Way back when, TV and radio repair shops would take in toasters, irons, mixers and other small appliances.

I've been reading Popular Mechanics, Popular Sciece, ETC, for like 60 years now. There were several adds showing correspondence courses for small appliance Repair. They would quote, "There's big money repairing these things."
Way back when, TV and radio repair shops would take in toasters, irons, mixers and other small appliances.

Was that Howard on the Andy Griffith Show that had the appliance bench with the plug-mold on it?:scratch2:
I wanted to BE that guy:yes:

Emmett! Never seemed to actually fix anything, though. I have daydreamed myself about having my own fix-it-shop. Tough row to hoe, these days.

Emmett! Never seemed to actually fix anything, though. I have daydreamed myself about having my own fix-it-shop. Tough row to hoe, these days.

Is that the shop that had the Magnavox chassis, that they used to sit around and watch? A black and white set. :boring:

I hate to defreez the fridge!

My maternal grandfather bought in the '50's or early '60's and <<Pinguin>> fridge! This where the refrigerators ever to be made in Romania - they where made by "Klement Gottwald"/I.M.E.B./U.M.E.B. * factory from Bucharest, begening with 1957? and up to around 1962-1963. Many people don't even know about them or that in Bucharest there wehere ever made refrigerators!
Thet think that <<Fram>> (manufactured by I.M. Sadu ** from Sibiu County, under "Frigero" licence) or even "Frige.ro. ***/Artic" (this where with compressor and made under "Thomson-Huston" licence) where the 1st refrigerators to be made in Romania. Well, he took it in the countryside, where my relatives kept it as a cupborad. I tryed to save it, but with no succes. To musem gave a beeep about it. And this year my relatives salled it to scrap iron so they will buy themselvs a gas tank for the stove. And they dind't talled me. I would better salled some railwaycars from my toy-train and save that very rare refrigeator - I don't think that they ever been made more then 30.000-50.000 of it and I never seen one besides the one that belonged to my grandfather.

* I.M.E.B. = Întreprinderea de Maşini Electrice Bucureşti = The Bucharest Electric Machines Enterprise... U = Uzina (The Plant).
** I.M. = Întreprinderea Metalurgică = (the) Metalurgicall Plant
*** "Frige.ro." was the acronim for "Frigider Românesc (Romanian Refrigerator)"

I've seen a lot of European refridgerators with compressors built under license of "Tecumseh" USA. They made the best ones in the US.
I was surprised to see that some of the foreign countries are as wastefull as we are.

"Frige.ro" (today "Artic") was the 1st Romanian refrigerator with compressor. Before that we made only refrigerators with absortion. <<Pinguin>> din't even have a thermostat!
Before "Frige.ro/Artic" we imported refrigerators with compressors from other countryes (I communist era only Z.I.L. from U.S.S.R. - I have an 1981 Z.I.L.).
Yes, people are wastefoul in Europe. With the so called "raising of the living standard" and "consumerist society" we started dumped a lot of thing. In the period 1990-2004 Romanian was a kind of "trash bin" for Western Europe (I do like second-hand things), but with the start of "credit only with your I.D. (papers)" (period 2006-2008) we became very westfoul. No many people can't afford to pay their loans, but they will not teach a lesson from it.
Can some one tell me, why people spent money on L.C.D. tv when they dind't had a big living room, dind't had problems with theyr eye sight and you have allmost nothing to see on tv?

"Frige.ro" (today "Artic") was the 1st Romanian refrigerator with compressor. Before that we made only refrigerators with absortion. <<Pinguin>> din't even have a thermostat!
Before "Frige.ro/Artic" we imported refrigerators with compressors from other countryes (I communist era only Z.I.L. from U.S.S.R. - I have an 1981 Z.I.L.).
Yes, people are wastefoul in Europe. With the so called "raising of the living standard" and "consumerist society" we started dumped a lot of thing. In the period 1990-2004 Romanian was a kind of "trash bin" for Western Europe (I do like second-hand things), but with the start of "credit only with your I.D. (papers)" (period 2006-2008) we became very westfoul. No many people can't afford to pay their loans, but they will not teach a lesson from it.
Can some one tell me, why people spent money on L.C.D. tv when they dind't had a big living room, dind't had problems with theyr eye sight and you have allmost nothing to see on tv?

You have a Z.I.L. Isn't that the finest? The build the finest luxury cars in Russia.
Your entries are welcome here! You speak the truth! :thmbsp:

Telecolor 3007, I can tell you that the USA is in the same unsustainable rut.
Easy credit on goods that prices never seem to rise much over the years, due to reduced quality and built-in obselesence in the form of over-dependence on electronics.
Extended warranties (from unknown entities)that carefully exclude anything likely to fail.
All this devised by actuaries who predict the odds of payouts.

We (consumers in general) want shiny new things to feed our egos with features we will never have the attention span to use. We also love to go shopping with short memory of how recent we bought the one we're tossing out.
Must haves include:
1. Stainless-steel fridges, ranges and dishwashers with increasing electronics
2. Front-load washers
3. Flat tv's
4. Web-based items tying us into recurring charges from "Service Providers"

@dieseljeep: yes, they made cars too. In fact 1st time they where an auto plant. Only in 1951 they've started manufcaturing refrigerators. Between 1950 and 1959 they made bicycles too. I heared that they made some electronics.
Just curios, from what country are u?

Stailness steel refrigerators look awfoul ugly :puke:
I do like front load washing machine. I like too look inside when they wash and see how much water they are getting inside. I know that top loaders are more relaible!
Will people got someday theyr brains back?

[QUOTE=Telecolor 3007;3058085]@dieseljeep: yes, they made cars too. In fact 1st time they where an auto plant. Only in 1951 they've started manufcaturing refrigerators. Between 1950 and 1959 they made bicycles too. I heared that they made some electronics.
Just curios, from what country are u?
My name is David and I live in Wisconsin, USA. Retired electrician, 68 years old.
BTW, Happy New Year. :thmbsp:

Telecolor 3007, I can tell you that the USA is in the same unsustainable rut.
Easy credit on goods that prices never seem to rise much over the years, due to reduced quality and built-in obselesence in the form of over-dependence on electronics.
Extended warranties (from unknown entities)that carefully exclude anything likely to fail.
All this devised by actuaries who predict the odds of payouts.

We (consumers in general) want shiny new things to feed our egos with features we will never have the attention span to use. We also love to go shopping with short memory of how recent we bought the one we're tossing out.
Must haves include:
1. Stainless-steel fridges, ranges and dishwashers with increasing electronics
2. Front-load washers
3. Flat tv's
4. Web-based items tying us into recurring charges from "Service Providers"

1. I'd rather have traditional looking appliances with mechanical controls. Those "high end" appliances have too much Chinesezzy electronics in them to fail and make the appliance not worth repairing.
2. I'm happy with my traditional top load model, thank you.
3. I can see the same content on my CRT TV, that is highly repairable.
4. There's enough people with their hand out getting my money every month. I don't need any more to add to the list.

We (consumers in general) want shiny new things to feed our egos with features we will never have the attention span to use.Not all of us.... SOME OF US PREFER GOOD QUALITY :)

All my stuff is either old or used high-quality stuff. I don't care about the Joneses, and always would have loved to be the guy when I'm 60+ that walking into his house was like a time warp into another era....ah yes....

Laying on an 80's Broyhill couch in front of my 80's Mitsubishi TV after mowing the REAL grass lawn with my 80's MTD mower playing 80's Video Games on an 80's Atari or Nintendo or watching laserdiscs on our 80's Pioneer CLD900, while sipping a Pepsi and sometimes listening to 80's rock on my 80's Panasonic stereo, and playing my 60's Fender Mustang guitar through a 60's Fender Champ amp!

I picked up this beauty for free on my way home, along with some extra bags. This was after two or three attempts to get free uprights that were probably of lesser quality. I was actually the first respondent this time, *and* the person giving it away actually had some integrity, so I got it. Free vacuums tend to go fast around here, regardless of their age.

The pic makes the power nozzle look gray, but it's actually light green.

I see light green! (Not gray)

She looks nice :)

I use a similar yet older Hoover upright. As much as I love Kirbys, the old Hoovers are just a better cleaner as far as picking up cat hair on a short pile carpet :yuck:

That's very good because, well, we had a cat for a long time, and never had a decent vacuum here. Only one room here (not mine, the main room) is carpeted and it's a frightful mess. Then the hamster came along, and now the wood shavings from its cage are everywhere. :yuck: This won't fix the situation thanks to the cat, but it'll certainly improve things.

OH BOY!!!.... this thread hits a nerve!!!! We wash clothes in the washer my Mother bought in 1965.... a USED Whirlpool.... I recall she was not so keen on it since it didn't have a "suds saver".... At any rate, my Mother moved to a new house and I scarfed it up around 1987 and it's STILL washing clothes in 2013... never had one seconds worth of trouble while my neighbors "golly-gee-whiz-bang-zoot" front loader is on it's second motor and third computer...... and all the time I'm using one that did all the wash for three kids and is still doing three loads a week.... for 50 some odd years.... YEP, time for new one.... NOT!!!!!!

That is really great news about your washer wish I had one that oldmine is from the 80s and still works great....Timothy

At any rate, my Mother moved to a new house and I scarfed it up around 1987 and it's STILL washing clothes in 2013... never had one seconds worth of trouble while my neighbors "golly-gee-whiz-bang-zoot" front loader is on it's second motor and third computer...... and all the time I'm using one that did all the wash for three kids and is still doing three loads a week.... for 50 some odd years.... YEP, time for new one.... NOT!!!!!!*** Knock on wood *** Lets hope she stays in a good mood for ya :)

I use a similar yet older Hoover upright. As much as I love Kirbys, the old Hoovers are just a better cleaner as far as picking up cat hair on a short pile carpet :yuck:


Ha! I use to sell Rainbows in the '80's and Kirby and upright Hoover owners were e a s y sell for us, as our machines sucked better than their machines did.... Pun intended.... My '85 Rainbow is still going today....

It looks gray.....

Big improvement in the carpet thanks to my Hoover Elite 200. It's tough to push, but it sure gets the job done.

have a Eureka commercial upright vacuum that is at least 35 years old. New belts and bags were all it needed. Got it from my grandparents and it's heavy, but works better than the new garbage I have tried out. Outlasted 2 plastic vacuums (which were used much less) so far.

Yes I imagine she does work better :)


Do me a favour buddy would ya?? Give her a pat for me next time ya use her :)


Merci :)

Since I love vintage appliances, I figured I would ad to this thread.
Here is my washer and dryer. They are 1963 Lady Kenmore(50 years). As you can see they are in turquoise. Both work great. Have had to replace the pump and a valve in the washer.
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/1963LadyKenmore_zpsf5f2100e.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/1963LadyKenmore_zpsf5f2100e.jpg.html)

My everyday fridge is a 1949 Hotpoint. Had to put a new gasket on it, as well as rewire it. Ended up having it repainted. It was originally white. Works great, and has the second door for the freezer. Haven't checked to see how much energy it uses.
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/1949Hotpoint_zpsde0cf1a4.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/1949Hotpoint_zpsde0cf1a4.jpg.html)

As far as tv's, I only have 2 flat screens. One is in a cabinet in the kitchen. My partner likes to watch tv while he cooks. The second one is hanging on the wall under the backyard patio. It is a 42" and has been out there for 3 years now. No issues yet(knock on wood). It does good with the extreme heat here in Arizona.
I have other vintage appliances as well. A 1941 O'keefe and Merrit gas stove, 1955 Hotpoint dishwasher(only appliance that currently doesn't work), 1963 Hotpoint refrigerator in turquoise(used as a secondary fridge) and a mid 60's G.E. Americana fridge in coppertone brown. That is under the back patio used for soda, beer, and other drinks.

Great apliances wish I had those my grandparents had a washer and dryer like those after they passed in 1993 the family junked those after I told them I wanted them... that is bad karmamjan .....

Where the devil does one FIND vintage washers and dryers? With the price of scrap metal, most of them I imagine went to the recycler, as I haven't seen one for sale in like.....ever.

The turquoise set were given to me by a friend. I do have other vintage washers and dryers from the 50's and 60's, that I've gotten on ebay or craigslist. You can still find them. Just need to look. There was, and maybe a set just like my turquoise set, even same color, on craigslist in Las Vegas.

Wow, I'd get this in a minute if I didn't have a gas dryer.....

http://buffalo.craigslist.org/app/3991368553.html

http://images.craigslist.org/00O0O_4OJOQbH4W20_600x450.jpg

Those are some impressive laundry machines. My theory about the cause of the motors going bad in newer machines is that they use shielded bearings rather than sealed, lots of opportunities for crap to get in there and seize them up. My new hand truck has shielded wheel bearings which have been subject to complaints, so I plan to have the bearings upgraded before I even put the wheels on. It was on sale, 40% off, so I can't complain. Not only that, it has a 1000-pound capacity and is in about the same shade of blue as the Mercury Lynx I want.

That Hamilton dryer looks a lot like the Bendix "Home Laundry" Washer/dryer I have in storage in the old mobile home I have. It washes and dries in the same machine. It dates from the 40's.

Where the devil does one FIND vintage washers and dryers? With the price of scrap metal, most of them I imagine went to the recycler, as I haven't seen one for sale in like.....ever.I suppose you could find one @ salvation Army if someone brought one in :)

I've been on the lookout. Only thing I've seen is an avocado green early 70s "Lady Kenmore". The wife would have never approved :nono:

Kamakiri: I would have picked up that Lady K set. I'm a big Kenmore fan.

Just a quick look on craigslist in your area and I found this Maytag Set. The Washer is a bit newer from the 70's, but the dryer is from the 60's.
http://buffalo.craigslist.org/app/4070756029.html

http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/maytag1_zps9369027f.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/maytag1_zps9369027f.jpg.html)
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/maytag_zps78e49624.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/maytag_zps78e49624.jpg.html)

Oh, for the love of all that is holy. I want it :tears:

Problem is, those things have a very low wife approval factor. Though I do most of the laundry, she does her stuff because it needs "special care" :screwy::blah:

The 1953 Norge in the kitchen was here when we met, so that was accepted as part of the terms of our relationship :D. Getting a washer and dryer means I'd have to displace something else.....which would be the 1947 Westinghouse fridge and the 1938 GE fridge....or TVs.

*sigh*

Kamakiri: I would have picked up that Lady K set. I'm a big Kenmore fan.

Just a quick look on craigslist in your area and I found this Maytag Set. The Washer is a bit newer from the 70's, but the dryer is from the 60's.
http://buffalo.craigslist.org/app/4070756029.html

http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/maytag1_zps9369027f.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/maytag1_zps9369027f.jpg.html)
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/maytag_zps78e49624.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/maytag_zps78e49624.jpg.html)
Those old Maytags, still used a standing pilot, on their gas dryers.
Whirlpool and Kenmore had electric ignition, from the mid 50's and it was trouble free.

Since I love vintage appliances, I figured I would ad to this thread.
Here is my washer and dryer. They are 1963 Lady Kenmore(50 years). As you can see they are in turquoise. Both work great. Have had to replace the pump and a valve in the washer.
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/1963LadyKenmore_zpsf5f2100e.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/1963LadyKenmore_zpsf5f2100e.jpg.html)

My everyday fridge is a 1949 Hotpoint. Had to put a new gasket on it, as well as rewire it. Ended up having it repainted. It was originally white. Works great, and has the second door for the freezer. Haven't checked to see how much energy it uses.
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/Appliances/1949Hotpoint_zpsde0cf1a4.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/Appliances/1949Hotpoint_zpsde0cf1a4.jpg.html)

As far as tv's, I only have 2 flat screens. One is in a cabinet in the kitchen. My partner likes to watch tv while he cooks. The second one is hanging on the wall under the backyard patio. It is a 42" and has been out there for 3 years now. No issues yet(knock on wood). It does good with the extreme heat here in Arizona.
I have other vintage appliances as well. A 1941 O'keefe and Merrit gas stove, 1955 Hotpoint dishwasher(only appliance that currently doesn't work), 1963 Hotpoint refrigerator in turquoise(used as a secondary fridge) and a mid 60's G.E. Americana fridge in coppertone brown. That is under the back patio used for soda, beer, and other drinks.

I remember we had a "Lady Kenmore" drier like that one but it was made in 1966.

I have a 1938 Frigidare that still works, my grandfather got it at the same time my mother was born.

Countryford: When my parents moved to a new house in 1966 my grandfather gave them a set of GE appliances; fridge, freezer, dishwasher, washer, dryer; all in that copper brown. They didn't need the stove because there was already an early 50's GE white pushbutton one there. They still have the fridge in their basement.

I think it's worth pointing out that many of the places that sold TV's also sold appliances too. Especially in small towns. And, especially if they sold GE, Westinghouse, RCA, Philco, or Admiral.

I remember we had a "Lady Kenmore" drier like that one but it was made in 1966.
Appliances would come out with a new design each year. They would continue making that design even though a newer design was being made. Mine for instance are a 1963 model, yet were actually produced in 1965. I can't remember exactly how many years the made the 1963 model.

Countryford: When my parents moved to a new house in 1966 my grandfather gave them a set of GE appliances; fridge, freezer, dishwasher, washer, dryer; all in that copper brown. They didn't need the stove because there was already an early 50's GE white pushbutton one there. They still have the fridge in their basement.
Would that be the Americana? This is a GE Americana that I use out on the back patio for drinks.
http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/americana_zpsfa6c308c.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/americana_zpsfa6c308c.jpg.html)

No, theirs is a conventional freezer over fridge, but that's the color.

My grandmother had the sink top washer in that brown too.

I had another 63 Lady Kenmore set(same as the turquoise set) but it was in that same coppertone brown. I ended up trading a guy them for a 1954 Kenmore gas dryer in white.

And....on the other side of Kamakiri's room.... :D

From left to right, a 1949 Westinghouse refrigerator, that I'm in the process of cleaning up. Gotta love lead based paints.....just a little steel wool followed by chrome polish, and the rust (well, most of it) comes right off :)

Next is a Coldspot chest freezer that I trash picked during a snowstorm about 2 years ago, and finally, the 1938 General Electric fridge, that works great but needs a new door seal.

The second picture is what the Coldspot looked like when I got it. Pretty ugly, but it sure cleaned up nice! Sanding, epoxy primer, and paint. The inside is porcelain lined and keeps things frozen easily at -10 F.

By the way, on top of the GE is my agile modulator setup :)

If they told you the older ones use less energy, they wouldn't sell too many new ones. My sony LCD uses 300 watts of power about the same as a roundie color set. Not much savings there. The Sony is always consuming energy while plugged in and the old sets do not. People will believe almost anything they're told.

My Insignia 19" flat screen TV also uses a small amount of power (under one watt) as long as it's plugged in. That's just to keep the channel memory and other functions from disappearing every time the set is turned off; the TV uses something on the order of 25 watts in normal operation. There is no way to disable the standby function short of unplugging the set from the line when not in use, so we are pretty much stuck with TVs that use power even when turned off. The "instant on" tube type televisions of the '70s had the same problem, but the feature disappeared by the end of the decade due to concerns over fire hazards, to say nothing of increased energy use even with the set off.

Where the devil does one FIND vintage washers and dryers? With the price of scrap metal, most of them I imagine went to the recycler, as I haven't seen one for sale in like.....ever.
I would think that by the time the scrapper population exploded, most of those who were going to toss away vintage appliances had already done so, so the scrappers are less likely to get those that remain. Seems that major appliances being advertised here as being up for grabs to scrappers are never more than a few years old.

I saw a 1955 Frigidaire refrigerator at my local scrapyard Friday. It was complete and probably still worked. I tried to buy it but the scrapyard doesn't sell anything once it's in the yard.

And....on the other side of Kamakiri's room.... :D

From left to right, a 1949 Westinghouse refrigerator, that I'm in the process of cleaning up. Gotta love lead based paints.....just a little steel wool followed by chrome polish, and the rust (well, most of it) comes right off :)

Next is a Coldspot chest freezer that I trash picked during a snowstorm about 2 years ago, and finally, the 1938 General Electric fridge, that works great but needs a new door seal.

The second picture is what the Coldspot looked like when I got it. Pretty ugly, but it sure cleaned up nice! Sanding, epoxy primer, and paint. The inside is porcelain lined and keeps things frozen easily at -10 F.

By the way, on top of the GE is my agile modulator setup :)

And to think all the fine equipment in your photo there uses the same energy that one (1) mid-80s refrigerator!!!! That Westy is a real miser as my 1947 unit is.

I saw a 1955 Frigidaire refrigerator at my local scrapyard Friday. It was complete and probably still worked. I tried to buy it but the scrapyard doesn't sell anything once it's in the yard.

Doesn't that make you totally sick? These scrap yard guys cannot be bought OR taught either:rant:
That old Frigidaire probably still had water dripping out of it - meaning: It was making cold before being junked.:tears:

It did make me sick. It looked like it had only recently been taken out of the house. But I did have some good luck, I found a mid 50's Frigidaire that's been in a shed for the past 30 or so years. It's on a friend's place and was working when stored, probably still does. It's a TOTL fridge, too. I'm negotiating a deal for it and I'll most likely get it soon.

And to think all the fine equipment in your photo there uses the same energy that one (1) mid-80s refrigerator!!!! That Westy is a real miser as my 1947 unit is.

Does yours have crisper drawers? I'm missing the bottom shelf in mine, and I can't seem to find a pic of what the rest of the inside *should* look like. Since I can't seem to find a shelf on ebay, I might have to make one.

Here's the inside of mine, before I started the rust cleaning :)

Doesn't that make you totally sick? These scrap yard guys cannot be bought OR taught either:rant:
That old Frigidaire probably still had water dripping out of it - meaning: It was making cold before being junked.:tears:

Frigidaire refrigerators of that era were notorious Freon leakers. My brother's Frigidaire, bought new in 1963, developed a leak after about eight years.
It froze the milk and other items in the bottom, while the freezer wouldn't get cold enough. A common indication of low charge. :sigh:

Sadly, the scrap yards won't relinquish stuff that they have unless you have an 'in' with them... I think it's part of the government crackdown on old appliances... read also global warming... biggest bunch of money-making nonsense out there, designed to part you from your money. ..
Here in my town, it is now illegal to pick up appliances at the curb since the city now sells the scrap and tells us how much they are saving us from rising garbage rates... YET, every year rates rise and they send out a notice of what you cannot put out... yes sports fans... higher cost, less service... seems to be an American institution of late....
IMHO, but what do I know???... I'm just a dumb mechanic.... FWIW....

Sadly, the scrap yards won't relinquish stuff that they have unless you have an 'in' with them... I think it's part of the government crackdown on old appliances... read also global warming... biggest bunch of money-making nonsense out there, designed to part you from your money. ..
Here in my town, it is now illegal to pick up appliances at the curb since the city now sells the scrap and tells us how much they are saving us from rising garbage rates... YET, every year rates rise and they send out a notice of what you cannot put out... yes sports fans... higher cost, less service... seems to be an American institution of late....
IMHO, but what do I know???... I'm just a dumb mechanic.... FWIW....
Not only that, I believe scrap yards are paid by the ton. Illegal to pick up curbed appliances? That's pathetic. If things were that way here, well, call me a criminal. What about all the greenhouse gases produced making all these crappy new appliances? It's more than what would be produced keeping the old ones going. Higher cost, less service is not merely a hallmark of the American government, we have plenty of it too.

Being a mechanic makes no difference as to whether someone is intelligent or not; hell, I work in a store. There are plenty out there with a lot of education but zero sense.

Does yours have crisper drawers? I'm missing the bottom shelf in mine, and I can't seem to find a pic of what the rest of the inside *should* look like. Since I can't seem to find a shelf on ebay, I might have to make one.

Here's the inside of mine, before I started the rust cleaning :)

My Westy is a entry-level model and has no drawer at all, just the little icebox in the right center like yours. My 1951 Kelvinator TM-R does have a place for the full-width crisper drawer, which is missing:sigh:

Not only that, I believe scrap yards are paid by the ton. Illegal to pick up curbed appliances? That's pathetic. If things were that way here, well, call me a criminal. What about all the greenhouse gases produced making all these crappy new appliances? It's more than what would be produced keeping the old ones going. Higher cost, less service is not merely a hallmark of the American government, we have plenty of it too.

Being a mechanic makes no difference as to whether someone is intelligent or not; hell, I work in a store. There are plenty out there with a lot of education but zero sense.

I haven't seen old TVs or appliances on curbs here in my small town for some time (I've lived here since November 1999). The last old (?) television I saw was a flat-panel Westinghouse by the trash barrels in back of my apartment this past summer. Just as well, I guess, since I don't have room for old things here.

This is also the first I've heard of any community in this country now declaring it illegal for anyone to pick up old appliances, electronics, etc. from curbs. My town doesn't have a law like that yet, that I am aware of anyway. Those areas that do have such ordinances must have found out how much money they can get from scrap metal, copper, etc., and obviously don't know or care that these appliances can, in many cases, be repaired and used again for a few more years. Another example of the power of the almighty dollar. Tsk, tsk. :no:

Kamakiri

Here's a couple of magazine ads for Westy fridges in '49. One is for the TOTL model, and the other must be mid-line. Looks like the drawer fronts are different, but I bet they were same size, shape, etc. Maybe this helps.

http://books.google.com/books?id=dE4EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA24&dq=westinghouse%20refrigerator&pg=PA24#v=onepage&q=westinghouse%20refrigerator&f=false

http://books.google.com/books?id=Vk4EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA98&dq=westinghouse%20refrigerator&pg=PA98#v=onepage&q=westinghouse%20refrigerator&f=false

I've seen (and had chance to purchase) over a dozen vintage appliances in the last few years. I don't buy them though as I don't cook or do laundry and my folks don't want vintage appliances on the ground level of the house. There is no chance in heck I'm going to buy something that big and heavy that I'll barely use if at all and have to haul up or down stairs.

Though I could see having a GE monitor top in the basement as a drink cooler...

There is, or at least was a crappy modern dishwasher curbed across the street from me when I came home tonight. I went back outside immediately with tools to beat the scrappers to the motor. I probably got most of its metal by taking that one part.

About 5 years ago, I aquired a one-owner Whirlpool washer and dryer pair that is avocado, and was built in 1970. They are a matching set.

On the washer, I replaced the pump, inlet water valve, the motor belt, the tub snubber, and the fluorescent light in the cover.

On the dryer, I replaced the drum rollers, the belt, and the tensioner, along with the fluorescent lamp in the cover.

Absolutely no problems in over 5 years now.

One thing: There is no lid lock. I have to force myself NOT to open it and cram my head down into the spinning tub. I don't know HOW we managed to survive before lid locks.

The machine also has a mercury switch that will make the tub stop spinning, but not before I can cram my head into it. Imagine a modern machine with a working lid switch in 40+ years. I used to work on modern laundry appliances. All junk.

Oh yes, I bought a new WIG-WAG for the washer at the time, but did not install it. The OEM one cleaned up really nicely, so I have at least one spare part.

Reallllyyyy nice appliances wish I was that lucky keep the oldies running I use to have a washer like yours the best of luck to you...Timothy

Kamakiri

Here's a couple of magazine ads for Westy fridges in '49. One is for the TOTL model, and the other must be mid-line. Looks like the drawer fronts are different, but I bet they were same size, shape, etc. Maybe this helps.

http://books.google.com/books?id=dE4EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA24&dq=westinghouse%20refrigerator&pg=PA24#v=onepage&q=westinghouse%20refrigerator&f=false

http://books.google.com/books?id=Vk4EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA98&dq=westinghouse%20refrigerator&pg=PA98#v=onepage&q=westinghouse%20refrigerator&f=false

I think mine was used primarily as a beer fridge, so it probably parted company with the drawers long ago.

I'll keep cruising eBay just in case, but I'm not really optimistic....

Doing laundry today...

One of the (newer) washers in my building has been pretty unstable for a long time, doing a lot of shaking when spinning. Today, a couple of very grumpy-looking women came into the laundry room, overloaded said unstable washer, which proceeded to do the most violent shaking I ever saw, moving itself farther back and rotating a little, then blowing its front panel clean off. I had to get building management on it. The drum is askew with a piece broken out of the top of the plastic tub.

Reminds me, do the drum springs on washing machines wear out? No matter how many times I level my old Maytag, I have to readjust the load about 30% of the time or it will start to BANGBANGBANGBANGBANG

On some machines it is a ball joint kinda suspension, and there is a movement limit thing. Both of these can use a lubricating to make it all work better.... And my favorite dry lubricant is chapstick, so lube up the 4 rubber balls, and that rubber/plastic movement limit and it may just work better...

The "genocide" affects newer stuff mostly - as in 1980s and newer appliances. The really old stuff tends to get spared because it looks cool, tends to work, and is usually moved to the basement/garage/man cave. Or ends up in the hands of retro enthusiasts.

Having worked as a deliveryman for Lowe's, and being a regular visitor to appliance junkyards, I can assure y'all that 90+% of the stuff being replaced is boring junk made within the last two decades. And the few vintage appliances you find in the junkyards are usually in really bad shape, already stripped of any useable parts.


-Tim

Tim, Thanks for the reality check. I was originally reacting to the Power Utilities "power hog" contest and thier shameful "recycle the oldest appliance" contest.

Normally a reasonable and mellow guy into pre-1970s anything, I became obsessed and enraged at this mis-characterization of vintage USA-built engineering marvels, so I raved to whoever would listen that old stuff was NOT inefficient and should be saved, and deserved a place somewhere in a home or business if not the kitchen.

I used to deliver appliances and TVs in the mid-80s while in college. I saw very few items of interest that we hauled back to the shop. The most memorable and gawd-awful heavy item was a 1950s Westinghouse Front-loading washer, I was a bit teary-eyed as it slipped off the hand truck and tumbled off the tailgate. Oddly enough, most returning stuff was 15-20 years old, even then! Even more ironic, new stuff made in those years was durable enough but also the most inefficient IIRC, even sporting the Gummint-mandated "Energy Guide" yellow tags.

I live near an "appliance boutique" that started as a Allis Chalmers tractor dealer in the 1930s. They sold RCA, GE and Zenith TVs but stopped around 2000.
The "junkyard area" behind the barn there is VERY BUSY but has had only a few "treasures" over the last 15 years I have been doing drive-by inspections.
I rescued one of them, a 1947 Westinghouse and its in my second kitchen for seasonal and event use.

Another crappy modern dishwasher curbed nearby last night, another swiped motor for me. All in a day's work.

Meh, dumped both motors. Almost impossible to separate either one from the pump. Newer stuff, made to be difficult if not impossible to repair. Also, the proprietary mount on one motor would make using it for other projects difficult.

Maybe one of you guys can help me. Through a freak accident, the timer dial/knob on my 1963 Frigidaire DW-DUF got broken. I have put a generic knob on for now, but would really like to find a correct replacement. It is
Ivory and Chrome, Frigidaire used this same basic knob up to the mid 70's
in black & silver and plain black, any of these would do also. The same knob was also used on their portables and says Dishmobile, that is acceptable also.
If is says push to start, it will probably be correct or close enough.

Vintage parts dealers have not turned up one so far, but you guys that visit
graveyards (all gone from my area) may spot one.

Have a pic?

No problem. The push to replace older appliances makes me cringe too.

Trading in a perfectly good appliance doesn't make much sense. Sure, you might get $50 off a new one, and save $25 more a year on your electric bill. But that doesn't really offset the cost of buying a new appliance, especially with the economy as it is. And the environmental impact of making the new appliance and scrapping the old one isn't factored in either. Plus that new fridge probably isn't built as well as your old one, and will need replacing/service more often than its replacement.

Essentially, these trade-in programs do more harm than good. Kind of like that "cash for clunkers" thing, but that's getting into politics....

Retro is taking off like never before. There's a big push to preserve mid-century American houses and goods. People will pay more for a well preserved 1950s rancher house than one with a hasty remodel.

I go to estate sales frequently, and see all kinds of old stuff sitting in basements still earning my keep. At two separate sales, I saw two identical 1950 Bendix dryers that still worked fine after more than half a century. Both were priced high, and both sold.

At one house, there was an ancient 1950s-era fridge in the basement that hadn't been touched in decades. I opened it up to find shelves of ice-cold pop that expired in 1992.

Retro stuff is everywhere, and it's being saved.


-Tim

Tim, Thanks for the reality check. I was originally reacting to the Power Utilities "power hog" contest and thier shameful "recycle the oldest appliance" contest.

Normally a reasonable and mellow guy into pre-1970s anything, I became obsessed and enraged at this mis-characterization of vintage USA-built engineering marvels, so I raved to whoever would listen that old stuff was NOT inefficient and should be saved, and deserved a place somewhere in a home or business if not the kitchen.

I used to deliver appliances and TVs in the mid-80s while in college. I saw very few items of interest that we hauled back to the shop. The most memorable and gawd-awful heavy item was a 1950s Westinghouse Front-loading washer, I was a bit teary-eyed as it slipped off the hand truck and tumbled off the tailgate. Oddly enough, most returning stuff was 15-20 years old, even then! Even more ironic, new stuff made in those years was durable enough but also the most inefficient IIRC, even sporting the Gummint-mandated "Energy Guide" yellow tags.

I live near an "appliance boutique" that started as a Allis Chalmers tractor dealer in the 1930s. They sold RCA, GE and Zenith TVs but stopped around 2000.
The "junkyard area" behind the barn there is VERY BUSY but has had only a few "treasures" over the last 15 years I have been doing drive-by inspections.
I rescued one of them, a 1947 Westinghouse and its in my second kitchen for seasonal and event use.

Maybe one of you guys can help me. Through a freak accident, the timer dial/knob on my 1963 Frigidaire DW-DUF got broken. I have put a generic knob on for now, but would really like to find a correct replacement. It is
Ivory and Chrome, Frigidaire used this same basic knob up to the mid 70's
in black & silver and plain black, any of these would do also. The same knob was also used on their portables and says Dishmobile, that is acceptable also.
If is says push to start, it will probably be correct or close enough.

Vintage parts dealers have not turned up one so far, but you guys that visit
graveyards (all gone from my area) may spot one.

Here's a website/forum just for vintage washers: http://www.automaticwasher.org/

It's a neat site and someone on there might have what you need.

I don't have a picture of my dial (it is in pieces), but I found this picture on the internet
and is identical to mine.
http://img831.imageshack.us/img831/6360/p3012018.jpg

As I said earlier, the same basic knob was used for many years, later versions were
black & silver or plain black. The portable models say Dishmobile on the front of the
knob.

If any of you see one or a junked machine in your travels, it would be greatly
appreciated.

I found an even better picture of the dishwasher and a close up of the dial/knob on
automaticwasher.org. See link: http://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi%3F33308&sa=U&ei=ZOpZUu_zGY-K9ASa14DYCw&ved=0CBoQFjAA&usg=AFQjCNEnX13WHuE6aHFFFm9B0tECVGMbtw

GE range from mid 60's? Was this "Coppertone" popular before harvest gold and avocado?
http://lancaster.craigslist.org/app/4256947206.html

GE range from mid 60's? Was this "Coppertone" popular before harvest gold and avocado?
http://lancaster.craigslist.org/app/4256947206.html

I think so, my parents had a house full of appliances in that color.

I believe it was the mid 50's that the appliance companies started making them in colors. In the early and mid 60's (before harvest gold and avocado) there were colors like Coppertone Brown and Turquoise. Earlier there was another brown, but it was a lighter color. I have a G.E. Americana fridge that is in Coppertone Brown, it is from about 1966. Actually tomorrow I'll be purchasing the G.E. Americana range also in Coppertone Brown.

Circa 1950
International Harvester and Caloric start offering different colored handles on their fridges and ranges respectively to give the woman of the house a choice of accent colors to harmonize with the color of her kitchen.
Late 1953-1954
Frigidaire introduces the first appliances in colors. You can choose Stratford Yellow, Sherwood Green, or White.
January 1955
GE introduces 5 new colors for their appliances, Woodtone Brown (the color of light chocolate milk), Turquoise Green, Cadet Blue (a sort of Navy Blue), Petal Pink, and Canary Yellow. Woodtone Brown and Cadet Blue are not very popular colors. Cadet Blue is gone by 1957 and Woodtone brown is replaced by Coppertone in the early 60's
1955-1956
Frigidaire adds Mayfair Pink and Sheffield Gray to its color palette for the 1956 line of appliances/ Maytag washers and dryers become available in Pasteltone Pink, Green, and Yellow, Kelvinator produces 8 new colors, Bermuda Pink, Spring Green, Fern Green, Dawn Gray, Sand Beige, Buttercup Yellow, Harvest Yellow, and Lagoon Blue, non of which are all that popular. The majority of these colors were dropped sometime around 1960 and replaced with the standard pink, turquoise, and yellow colors. It is also around this time that stainless steel appliances start to make their debut...especially in the new field of built in appliances range, oven fridge etc.).
1957
Frigidaire replaces Sheffield Gray with Charcoal Gray on its new Sheer Look line of appliances. This color is not at all popular and is discontinued after 1960 1958
Frigidaire replaces Sherwood Green and Stratford Yellow with Turqouise and Sunny Yellow (which is a more pastel Yellow)
1959
Frigidaire introduces Aztec Copper to its line of appliances and this color will eventually become know as Coppertone or Copper Brown and be offered all the way into the early 1980's
1963-1965
The number of companies offering Pink, Mint Green, and Yellow appliances have dwindled while the hot colors of the early 1960s are Copper Brown and Turquoise. About this time Frigidaire offers a color called Honey Beige which is lighter than Aztec Copper. Also about this time Whirlpool offers a very rare color on certain RCAWhirlpool and Sears Kenmore models that is very similar to the Woodtone Brown GE had offered a decade earlier, it is called Doeskin and is not very popular and is dropped rather quickly.
1966
GE introduces a new color just in time to go with the Danish modern look of the late 1960s.....Avocado. Maytag offers Turquoise for the last time on its redesigned Washpower automatics. RCA Whirlpool adds 2 more rare colors to their color pallet, Edged Fawn and Edged Sapphire. These to colors do not last long and are gone circa 1968
1967-1968
Around this time, Frigidaire also introduces its line of Fashion Colors which consists of Matador Red, Biscayne Blue, Tahitian Green, and what could be considered an early version of almond called Autumn Haze. Maytag appliances are offered in Cordoba Copper Spanish Avocado and Castillian Yellow. Castillian Yellow is replaced circa 1968 with California Gold (aka Harvest Gold). GE introduces another new color called Harvest (GE never called it Harvest Gold) which becomes available in the Spring of 1968.
Circa 1970
Frigidaire introduces the color poppy on its appliances
1971-1976
No major changes are made in colors during this period
1977
All the appliance manufactures get together through the American Home Appliance Manufactures Association [AHAM ] and agree on new colors that all match from brand to brand. GE is the first to introduce them and calles these colors the New Naturals. The colors are named, Onyx, Coffee, Harvest Wheat, Fresh Avocado, Snow, and a brand new color is added and is called Almond. These colors are more vivid then their predecessors and GE advertises The New Naturals in a huge campaign in all the "home magazines" of the day.
Early to late 1980's
Copper Brown and Avocado start to fall by the wayside as the favorite colors of the early 80s seems to be Almond and what is now known as Harvest Gold. During this time GE and Whirlpool experiment with a light brown/beige color that Whirlpool calls toast and GE calls Sand, as well as a silver/gray color that Whirlpool calls Platinum and GE calls Silver. Both of these colors prove not to be too popular and they are dropped after a few years. Also in the mid 80's Whirlpool starts offering the top of the line Lady Kenmore washers and dryers in black.

GE range from mid 60's? Was this "Coppertone" popular before harvest gold and avocado?
http://lancaster.craigslist.org/app/4256947206.html

My mother has a range exactly like this one (except in avacodo green). It was purchased new when her and dad got married in 1968. She still uses it daily, and the only problems she has had with it in over 40 years is a couple of elements and an oven thermostat.

GE really made some high quality appliances back in those days. Now-a-days, the GE name on an appliance is the kiss of death.

My mother has a range exactly like this one (except in avacodo green). It was purchased new when her and dad got married in 1968. She still uses it daily, and the only problems she has had with it in over 40 years is a couple of elements and an oven thermostat.

GE really made some high quality appliances back in those days. Now-a-days, the GE name on an appliance is the kiss of death.

Unfortunately GE commercial/industrial electrical distribution gear is about on par with their appliances these days. It used to be good, solid stuff all the way through the 1980s.:yes:

Great info Countryford!

Totally true about GE today. Their commercial AC units used to be the best available, now they're junk.

GE has been trying to sell their appliance division for several years now and apparently nobody's interested. Not even Whirlpool, who's bought out every other American appliance name. They still have Appliance Park in Louisville, but maybe not for long. A lot of their stuff is now rebranded Samsung.

Today's GE is nothing like the GE of old. The company has been badly mismanaged for several years now.

Great info Countryford!

Totally true about GE today. Their commercial AC units used to be the best available, now they're junk.

GE has been trying to sell their appliance division for several years now and apparently nobody's interested. Not even Whirlpool, who's bought out every other American appliance name. They still have Appliance Park in Louisville, but maybe not for long. A lot of their stuff is now rebranded Samsung.

Today's GE is nothing like the GE of old. The company has been badly mismanaged for several years now.

Maybe, "Haier", a Chinese firm, will try to buy them. They tried buying Maytag but Whirlpool prevailed in the purchase.

I just picked this up yesterday. I have the matching fridge already. Same color. I'll try and get a picture of the two side-by-side.

http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/americana_zps81b0ea6d.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/americana_zps81b0ea6d.jpg.html)

some ge appliances are now samsung. run fast and run now.....

I just picked this up yesterday. I have the matching fridge already. Same color. I'll try and get a picture of the two side-by-side.

http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y440/countryford83/americana_zps81b0ea6d.jpg (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/countryford83/media/americana_zps81b0ea6d.jpg.html)





Your's has kin for sale in Louisville. Only $80!:
http://louisville.craigslist.org/app/4227987306.html

http://images.craigslist.org/00W0W_gsavXMdkoUw_600x450.jpg

Unfortunately GE commercial/industrial electrical distribution gear is about on par with their appliances these days. It used to be good, solid stuff all the way through the 1980s.:yes:

I don't know if this is really a fair generalization to make - their medium voltage vacuum circuit breakers and especially their protective relays seem to be as good as anything on the market. GE Multilin protective relays are used extensively in power distribution and from what I have seen they've been reliable and well performing products.

Electrical distribution gear by all manufacturers is getting lighter and cheaper over time... if GE didn't make some changes to keep up with modern needs they would go the way of Westinghouse.

It seems to me that GE is a company which is heavily (or exclusively) driven by profit margins and quarterly reports, but when the giant flexes its muscles it can accomplish great things. Look at their jet engines for example for some very impressive US technology.

The fact is no electrical company in North America will ever again see the glory days where the whole country needs power, and foreign competition is nearly non-existent. Let's just hope GE can hold on and the whole world doesn't get owned by the European giants like Siemens, Schnieder Electric, ABB, etc.

GE's appliance division has slipped considerably over the past 20 years. Back in the 90's when Maytag was considering purchasing Amana from Raytheon, General Electric was wanting to exit the home appliance business and sell the entire division. Problem was, nobody was willing to pay their price for a part of their business they hadn't spent any real money on in years. Negligence can destroy a business.

After management realized nobody was interested, they started spending money to update the line (and by "update", I mean "cheapen"). Their laundry was the first to be changed, and it was not for the better. While the old design was hopelessly outdated compared to the competition, the new line was plagued with quality issues. We won't even get into what they done to the refrigeration line, but suffice it to say it was the end of the road for what was once a reliable and well-built product.

One of these days, GE is likely to be simply a name and not a manufacturer in the home appliance business. Of course, they sure won't be the first. It has happened to some of the biggest names in the business (Amana, Maytag, Westinghouse, Admiral, to name a few).

I don't know if this is really a fair generalization to make - their medium voltage vacuum circuit breakers and especially their protective relays seem to be as good as anything on the market. GE Multilin protective relays are used extensively in power distribution and from what I have seen they've been reliable and well performing products.

Electrical distribution gear by all manufacturers is getting lighter and cheaper over time... if GE didn't make some changes to keep up with modern needs they would go the way of Westinghouse.

It seems to me that GE is a company which is heavily (or exclusively) driven by profit margins and quarterly reports, but when the giant flexes its muscles it can accomplish great things. Look at their jet engines for example for some very impressive US technology.

The fact is no electrical company in North America will ever again see the glory days where the whole country needs power, and foreign competition is nearly non-existent. Let's just hope GE can hold on and the whole world doesn't get owned by the European giants like Siemens, Schnieder Electric, ABB, etc.

Fair point, I did not mean GE was failing in all markets. My reference was the low-voltage (600V and lower), specifically the discontinuation of the GE's AV line switchboards.

GE medium voltage equipment is still OK, but if you are a specifying engineer, GE has all but eliminated its representation and support compared to Eaton Cutler Hammer, also a US-owned company to date. Therefore, GE can low-ball bids and if there is an issue, you don't have the Engineering support to call like you do with S&C, Powercon, French-owned Square D and German-owned Siemens.

I used to deliver appliances in the 80s between bench sessions and witnessed the declines in the consumer lines, even back then. My employer stopped selling Zenith in 1980 due to system 3 early issues, then Magnavox in 1984 after NAP became less supportive. Then they added Maytag and Panasonic because of the issues starting on the economy-grade GE appliances and Thomsen's combined GE-RCA:sigh:. Through it all, Sony was a popular line with available parts and support. :thmbsp:

Fair point, I did not mean GE was failing in all markets. My reference was the low-voltage (600V and lower), specifically the discontinuation of the GE's AV line switchboards.

GE medium voltage equipment is still OK, but if you are a specifying engineer, GE has all but eliminated its representation and support compared to Eaton Cutler Hammer, also a US-owned company to date. Therefore, GE can low-ball bids and if there is an issue, you don't have the Engineering support to call like you do with S&C, Powercon, French-owned Square D and German-owned Siemens.

I used to deliver appliances in the 80s between bench sessions and witnessed the declines in the consumer lines, even back then. My employer stopped selling Zenith in 1980 due to system 3 early issues, then Magnavox in 1984 after NAP became less supportive. Then they added Maytag and Panasonic because of the issues starting on the economy-grade GE appliances and Thomsen's combined GE-RCA:sigh:. Through it all, Sony was a popular line with available parts and support. :thmbsp:

Yes I have noticed the same issues, it's almost like they don't want to bother competing in all the markets which they could. I work in the electrical industry and to be honest have never specified GE equipment for exactly the reasons stated, but when I've been involved in commissioning it I have been pretty impressed by their quality. Maybe I just like GE because of the history that comes with the little round symbol. I have always been impressed by the way their radios from the 60s were value engineered - they didn't use a single screw more than necessary and still ended up working quite well. A pretty sharp contrast to Zenith radios which used a sturdy metal chassis right to the end of tube radio production.

This should last me as long as I don't screw up and break the jar. Got it today.

Looks quite nice buddy :)

Just don't try to grind coffee beans with it, no matter how desperate you get for coffee. I tried to do that with my ancient Waring, and while it didn't break, the blade nut on the bottom ended up unscrewing when the blade got stuck, the whole thing flew apart, and half-ground coffee went everywhere.

Still use the blender, I was lucky it was none the worse for wear in the end.

Just don't try to grind coffee beans with it, no matter how desperate you get for coffee. I tried to do that with my ancient Waring, and while it didn't break, the blade nut on the bottom ended up unscrewing when the blade got stuck, the whole thing flew apart, and half-ground coffee went everywhere.

Still use the blender, I was lucky it was none the worse for wear in the end.
Duly noted. Perhaps I'll get a junk Chinese blender to do that with, and make a video of it. Of course it will fly apart a lot faster than the Philips shown above would.

Braun made a very nice coffee grinder in the late 60's-early 70's. If you see one somewhere, don't pass it up. I have the one my grandma bought new about 40 years ago and it's never let me down yet.

My wife's sister had this weird combo. It's a Modern Maid oven on top, cooktop, and a dishwasher below! It sat in her vacant house for years, and now she's selling the house.

My wife really wanted this combo unit, but didn't want to give up her new gas oven. Our kitchen is currently large, and inefficiently laid out, so there is a lot of unused space. So we decided to get the combo and have both. She'll have the gas stove, and this electric unit too. This will be nice when she has her family over, and they all want to cook a large meal.

Our current (new) dishwasher had a thermostat fail and will only wash dishes with the heat features turned off. So, the dishwasher will handily replace our newer junker. The dishwasher portion is a Kenmore, and I don't think it's original. The opening is standard size, so any dishwasher will fit in there. It was probably replaced at some point.

It's pretty neat. I'll take some real pics once I install it. Right now it's in pieces, as I had to take it apart to move it. I have the bottom half installed, and the dishwasher works great. I just got the 220v run finished today. Once I get somebody to help me lift the oven top, I can finish the install.

It even still has the reversible color panels on the doors. I has 5 options; black, white, coppertone, avocado, and of course, harvest gold. I am using the black, heh.

Here's an ad from 1972 to give you an idea of what it looks like:

CoogarXR: That looks pretty cool. Would like to see pics of it once you get it installed.

My wife's sister had this weird combo. It's a Modern Maid oven on top, cooktop, and a dishwasher below! It sat in her vacant house for years, and now she's selling the house.

My wife really wanted this combo unit, but didn't want to give up her new gas oven. Our kitchen is currently large, and inefficiently laid out, so there is a lot of unused space. So we decided to get the combo and have both. She'll have the gas stove, and this electric unit too. This will be nice when she has her family over, and they all want to cook a large meal.

Our current (new) dishwasher had a thermostat fail and will only wash dishes with the heat features turned off. So, the dishwasher will handily replace our newer junker. The dishwasher portion is a Kenmore, and I don't think it's original. The opening is standard size, so any dishwasher will fit in there. It was probably replaced at some point.

It's pretty neat. I'll take some real pics once I install it. Right now it's in pieces, as I had to take it apart to move it. I have the bottom half installed, and the dishwasher works great. I just got the 220v run finished today. Once I get somebody to help me lift the oven top, I can finish the install.

It even still has the reversible color panels on the doors. I has 5 options; black, white, coppertone, avocado, and of course, harvest gold. I am using the black, heh.

Here's an ad from 1972 to give you an idea of what it looks like:
That baby must've cost an arm and a leg, at that time.
BTW, do you live in Wisconsin?

That baby must've cost an arm and a leg, at that time.
BTW, do you live in Wisconsin?

Nope, Ohio (although we did briefly borrow some of Wisconsin's weather).

I have seen a few ads for this combo, it's always around $750-$850. I am not sure how that applies to today's dollars, or if that was considered expensive back in the early 70s.

http://wyoming.craigslist.org/atq/4262505803.html

This has been listed several times with no takers, probably because of the price. Anyway, I thought it was kind of interesting.

I have seen a few ads for this combo, it's always around $750-$850. I am not sure how that applies to today's dollars, or if that was considered expensive back in the early 70s.

According to an inflation calculator I found online that would equal to about $4,181.86 to $4,739.44.

I used to have one of those fridge/stove/sink combos. Mine was avocado green with a stainless steel top.

I noticed in the ad for this kitchen combo that the stove has "permacoil" lifetime burners. I don't agree with that. Electric stove burners (and, of course, the oven's heating elements) do eventually burn out in time, depending on how much they are used. Either the ad for this Modern Maid combo unit was overhyped, or else the cooktop elements must have been made of incredibly thick wire that is guaranteed not to burn out for 50 years from the date the appliance is purchased.

I've never seen or heard of any electric stove with heating elements guaranteed to last a lifetime. The only way I can see the cooktop on this thing lasting more than, say, 20 years and still have its original elements when it was finally junked would be if the stove was not used much, "much" meaning only once every few weeks or so. Most stoves in homes with large families, of course, are used much more than that, so the Modern Maid combo's claim that the original burners will last a lifetime is probably, even likely, nothing more than advertising hooey. Some stoves have been kept going for years or decades by replacement of burned-out burners and/or oven elements (even though a 50-year-old stove in, say, avocado would look horribly out of date in a 21st-century kitchen, especially if a modern microwave oven is installed over or near the range), but to expect the original burners and/or baking elements to last anywhere near 50 years...well...

However, as others have mentioned, it is possible to keep these units going for years or decades by replacing old, worn-out components as necessary (as some VK members have done with old combo TV-radio-stereo units after the television develops expensive repair problems). As was mentioned, the dishwasher opening in the MM combo is a standard size, so almost any modern kitchen-size dishwasher will fit in it; as for the stove, as I said, the burners can be replaced when they eventually burn out, so it is conceivable that some of these old appliances will live on for a very long time, even after they are supposed to have been junked. The only drawback is that the styling will be out of date in modern kitchens, as I mentioned.

It does still have the original burners with the "lifetime" logo in the middle, and they all still work. I don't know how much it's been used over the years, but it's still in good shape.

I still haven't finished the install yet, or I'd put up some pics.

I noticed in the ad for this kitchen combo that the stove has "permacoil" lifetime burners. I don't agree with that. Electric stove burners (and, of course, the oven's heating elements) do eventually burn out in time, depending on how much they are used. Either the ad for this Modern Maid combo unit was overhyped, or else the cooktop elements must have been made of incredibly thick wire that is guaranteed not to burn out for 50 years from the date the appliance is purchased.

I've never seen or heard of any electric stove with heating elements guaranteed to last a lifetime. The only way I can see the cooktop on this thing lasting more than, say, 20 years and still have its original elements when it was finally junked would be if the stove was not used much, "much" meaning only once every few weeks or so. Most stoves in homes with large families, of course, are used much more than that, so the Modern Maid combo's claim that the original burners will last a lifetime is probably, even likely, nothing more than advertising hooey. Some stoves have been kept going for years or decades by replacement of burned-out burners and/or oven elements (even though a 50-year-old stove in, say, avocado would look horribly out of date in a 21st-century kitchen, especially if a modern microwave oven is installed over or near the range), but to expect the original burners and/or baking elements to last anywhere near 50 years...well...

However, as others have mentioned, it is possible to keep these units going for years or decades by replacing old, worn-out components as necessary (as some VK members have done with old combo TV-radio-stereo units after the television develops expensive repair problems). As was mentioned, the dishwasher opening in the MM combo is a standard size, so almost any modern kitchen-size dishwasher will fit in it; as for the stove, as I said, the burners can be replaced when they eventually burn out, so it is conceivable that some of these old appliances will live on for a very long time, even after they are supposed to have been junked. The only drawback is that the styling will be out of date in modern kitchens, as I mentioned.

Why can't a heating element last 50 years or more? There are plenty of stoves and other appliaces out there that still have original elements that still work. Most stove elements are a coil of nicrome or resistance wire incased in ceramic and inside a metal tube. Sounds an awful lot like a resistor. There's plenty of old tv's and radios that still have their original resistors.

So long as the nicrome stays incased in the ceramic and not exposed to air where it can oxidize away, it should last a long, long tmie.

And, legally a lifetime warranty only means the average lifetime of the appliance, not the owner. So, probably not more than 20 years was it's reasonable expected lifetime.

Why can't a heating element last 50 years or more? There are plenty of stoves and other appliaces out there that still have original elements that still work. Most stove elements are a coil of nicrome or resistance wire incased in ceramic and inside a metal tube. Sounds an awful lot like a resistor. There's plenty of old tv's and radios that still have their original resistors.

So long as the nicrome stays incased in the ceramic and not exposed to air where it can oxidize away, it should last a long, long tmie.

And, legally a lifetime warranty only means the average lifetime of the appliance, not the owner. So, probably not more than 20 years was it's reasonable expected lifetime.

You are quite right as to the longevity of burner coils and oven elements in electric stoves. I said in another post (and put my foot in my mouth in the process) I thought the wiring to the thermostat and heating elements in electric roasters (the large white ones often found in church kitchens in the 1950s-'60s) would crumble after fifty years; turns out these roasters have asbestos-insulated wiring (as the person who responded to my post informed me), and yes, the elements should last a very long period of time before burning out. It is probably more likely that the mechanical timer clocks in 50-60+ year-old stoves wore out first, with the burners still in as good shape as they were when the range was new. Many of these ranges are still in use today, the timer clock having stopped or jammed years or decades ago; but the stove's owner probably doesn't care, as long as the stove itself still works.

You also make a valid point regarding the definition of "lifetime" as applied to electric range burners. I did not realize that the term in this context referred to the average life of the appliance; in any event, you are correct. However, since burner coils (and oven baking elements) are made of nichrome wire and are encased in a rather thick spiral enclosure, they should, in theory anyway, outlive the owner of the appliance by many years. As I stated in the last paragraph, it is more likely that the timer clock and/or the temperature selector switches, or the oven thermostat, will fail long before the burners.

Jeff, I think it's a good point that a lot of times the associated wiring goes bad first.

I grew up with my mom cooking everyday on a circa 1950 GE Stratoliner pushbutton stove until well into the 1980's. IIRC a mouse chewed into the wires in the back and they burned out and dad said let's just get a new one since it didn't match their other appliances.

And, legally a lifetime warranty only means the average lifetime of the appliance, not the owner.
So, by today's standards, that's what, six months?

So, by today's standards, that's what, six months?

That's kind of a self-fulfilling warranty. It's a lifetime warranty. If the item only lasts one day, well, I guess that was it's lifetime. No refund for you!

The only drawback is that the styling will be out of date in modern kitchens, as I mentioned.

When I bought my 1949 brick home, the original kitchen was in bad shape. I ended up gutting it and remodeling it. I could have installed new granite cabinets and all that other over-hyped garbage. Instead I went with natural wood cabinets that have a vintage feel and went with a black and white tile counter top and backsplash. The kitchen, while not original to the house, does look appropriate to the house. Therefore my 1949 Hotpoint fridge and O'keefe and Merrit range fits perfectly in my kitchen/house.

When my Mom & Dad were married back in 1949 they took some of their wedding $$$ & bought themselves a refrigerator. That International Harvester sat in the kitchen for years...then went to the basement after being replaced by a newer fridge complete with ice maker. The IH now resides at my sister's and is still icy cold. Dad fabricated a new door gasket years ago, along with brazing up a door handle to replace the pot metal one that broke.

Over 15 years ago we purchased a used Maytag washer & dryer for $250. I'm thinking early 70s with the woodgrain control panels. The washer continues to function flawlessly, and all I've had to do to the dryer is replace the heating element about 10 years ago and a new belt last year. As long as they can be repaired they'll never be replaced.

When my Mom & Dad were married back in 1949 they took some of their wedding $$$ & bought themselves a refrigerator. That International Harvester sat in the kitchen for years...then went to the basement after being replaced by a newer fridge complete with ice maker. The IH now resides at my sister's and is still icy cold. Dad fabricated a new door gasket years ago, along with brazing up a door handle to replace the pot metal one that broke.

Over 15 years ago we purchased a used Maytag washer & dryer for $250. I'm thinking early 70s with the woodgrain control panels. The washer continues to function flawlessly, and all I've had to do to the dryer is replace the heating element about 10 years ago and a new belt last year. As long as they can be repaired they'll never be replaced.
IIRC, the International Harvester refrigerator was made by the Ben-Hur Mfg Co on the northeast side of Milwaukee. Their products were very well built and used the best compressor.
The firm was owned by the Schlitz brewing family and it still in business, under a different name and a different location. :thmbsp:

IIRC, the International Harvester refrigerator was made by the Ben-Hur Mfg Co on the northeast side of Milwaukee. Their products were very well built and used the best compressor.
The firm was owned by the Schlitz brewing family and it still in business, under a different name and a different location. :thmbsp:

I thought I-H made their own fridge and freezers at a plant in Evansville, IN, which was later sold to Whirlpool. Maybe the plant you're thinking of made their a/c units?

Over 15 years ago we purchased a used Maytag washer & dryer for $250. I'm thinking early 70s with the woodgrain control panels. The washer continues to function flawlessly, and all I've had to do to the dryer is replace the heating element about 10 years ago and a new belt last year. As long as they can be repaired they'll never be replaced.

You'll never have to replace those machines. About the only thing you might have trouble finding down the road is a timer assembly, but those usually hold on for years.

About the only thing you'll see replaced on Maytag washers (from the 50's until the early 90's) are the pump and drive belts or a water valve. The transmissions are pretty much bullet-proof.

If the dryer conks out, it's most always something simple (element, limit switch, belt, etc.).

Duly noted. Perhaps I'll get a junk Chinese blender to do that with, and make a video of it. Of course it will fly apart a lot faster than the Philips shown above would.
Well, a suitable blender has surfaced, made under the once-respected name of Black & Decker. The only thing respectable about this blender is the glass jar. However, I'm not paying $5.99 minus my discount plus the cost of coffee beans just to watch the thing fly apart. The damn thing is priced higher than my Philips was.

Timers can be fixed, too. Sometimes it's burned contacts, especially on a dryer. I have cut a brass strip complete with contact from a relay and soldered it in place of a burnt contact in a dryer timer, and back in business. Of course, worn gears or cams could be another story.

Just this weekend I picked up a 1990 Lady Kenmore washing machine and a 1970 Lady Kenmore dryer. The washer is Platinum(gray) and the dryer is Avocado Green. The reason I picked them up is I figured it was time for my 1963 Lady Kenmore set to get some rest. They have been good machines for the 7 years, that I've owned them. I'm not getting rid of them. I have a second laundry room that has hook-ups for 3 washer and dryers. They are getting placed out there to be used on special ocassions. I'll let the newer washer take the everyday use.

I'd rather pay for old, well-kept appliances than be given new ones.

Quite Right KV, a year ago, I bought a 1951 Philco refrigerator in near-new condition.
It sits in my garage waiting for the swap into the basement, which will be some very heavy lifting.

in my basement is a power hog 1985 GE refrigerator . It came with the house, so Im giving it to the neighbor for the hunting cabin, where it will be shut down when nobody is there.

Except for the smaller interior, im trading up to the Philco , which uses about 25% of teh kWH of the GE!

I'd rather pay for old, well-kept appliances than be given new ones.QSL!!

I totally agree :)

A consignment shop near me had a beautiful Whirlpool range. The only thing that gave it away was the 70s color.

Anyway, I looked at it. Other than wear on the coils, it looked brand new! I asked about it because the oven was spotless! Looked like it wasn't used.

The guy at the store told me personally knew the owner of it. She bakes weekly! Cleans up after the oven cools every time she used it. WOW.

Looked better than my Whirlpool from 2000! If only it was white.

I suppose you could paint it white... What colour was it??

At some point, some weird people are going to totally rave over Avocado Green and Harvest Gold. Look at all that "mid-century modern" stuff that sells for high prices now. I thought most of it was ugly in the 1960s and 1970s (when it was aging and left over from the 1950s), and I still do.

At some point, some weird people are going to totally rave over Avocado Green and Harvest Gold. Look at all that "mid-century modern" stuff that sells for high prices now. I thought most of it was ugly in the 1960s and 1970s (when it was aging and left over from the 1950s), and I still do.

Some folks, especially those who lived as adults through the Great Depression of the 1930s, just held on to the old stuff as long as it worked, and didn't care what it looked like or if the styling, color, etc. was out of date if they still had it 20+ years later. My grandmother had a Sears Kenmore stove she bought new in the late 1940s; she kept it until she passed in 1985. The stove was still working at the time. It was white, with just a hint of blue behind the knob for the cooking timer. I have an old friend, one year younger than I am, who just raved over that stove; he thought it was the coolest thing he had ever seen. :D

The stove that I was talking about was harvest gold.

In the late 80's and early 90's I would ask people older than I "what the hell were people thinking buying avacado or harvest appliances?" The response was that up until that point you could only get white, so any new color was welcome.


Well, 20 plus years later, I am that wierd person who would love to have a Harvest Gold fridge and stove. As it is, my stove and fridge, both over 20 years old, are almond, and thus "out dated and need to be replaced with the latest and greatest stainless stuff" or so those who are racing with the Jone's would have me believe.

Al

In the late 80's and early 90's I would ask people older than I "what the hell were people thinking buying avacado or harvest appliances?" The response was that up until that point you could only get white, so any new color was welcome.

That is odd that he would say white is all you could get, up to that point. Appliance companies started making colors in the early 50's. If you read my reply in this thread(reply #201) it lists the years and colors that the different companies sold. At various times, you could get pink, yellow(a pastel yellow), turquoise, brown, grey, blue. Harvest Gold and Avacado came out in the late 60's and even those weren't the only two colors available at the time. You could get a Poppy Red or Coppertone Brown as well.

That is odd that he would say white is all you could get, up to that point. Appliance companies started making colors in the early 50's. If you read my reply in this thread(reply #201) it lists the years and colors that the different companies sold. At various times, you could get pink, yellow(a pastel yellow), turquoise, brown, grey, blue. Harvest Gold and Avacado came out in the late 60's and even those weren't the only two colors available at the time. You could get a Poppy Red or Coppertone Brown as well.

Gotcha. At the time it made sense to me, but I guess now looking back, yeah they did offer colors. And I remember the coppertone brown as well, child of the 70's that I am.

The only thing I can think of is that in his "world" he only saw white appliances so that explanation seemed to work.