Washing Machines

1981

I come from a time before automatic washers when you filled the machine with hot water and soap powder and decided for yourself how long it would agitate the contents.  Then hauled them out into a sink (preferably Belfast) to rinse the suds out.

The first time I came across one of those knee high cylindrical spin-dryers was in the laundry room of Easton Hall of residence for lady students at Newcastle University in 1975.  This was in the bowels of the basement next to the boiler room; where there was some useful warm hanging and drying space. 

You would load your wet washing into the spin-dryer; it took very little and that had to be ‘balanced’.  However careful you were loading it the spin-dryer would still dance around the room after you switched it on. 

The Squireen had a twin tub which I used when we shared a flat in the early 1980s.  One tub washed, the other  rinsed and spinned (span? spun?).  Again the laundress decided how long either process went on for, and hauled wet washing from one side into the other.

I believe I first used an automatic front loader when I moved in with Phil in 1986.

Yesterday’s blog about washing days of yore elucidated this exchange of memories on Facebook

16 February 2026at 09.52

I've blogged https://bentonbag.blogspot.com/2026/02/washing-days.html

Half from archives and half from memory.

Drummerman  My English Grandma was dead posh in latter years - her washing machine had an electric mangle that sat on top of it and swung out of the way.   

It lived in the wash house next to what must have been an electrically heated poss tub.   

The washing machine was passed on to us (Sans long-dead mangle).  It didn’t last much longer: in the immortal words of Mike Harding “Bang, smoke, finito benito”.

Brenda M Boyd  Mum's (electric and/or hand powered) mangle sat above its own drainage slit into the washer, so no soapy water was wasted.  I did see it being used to wring big things like sheets but the rollers were so worn they had little effect.   

Our foremothers didn't need the gym with weekly weightlifting wet bedding into and out of the washer and onto the line.

Mother refused all efforts at persuading her to get a more modern washer, or even a twin-tub (luxury!). She did agree to inherit a spin dryer from her daughter-in-law's mother in 1977.  Father referred to it as Concorde because of the noise it made "taking off", and rumbling around the kitchen.

It also led to this memorable exchange with Middlesister that Christmas...

"Mum, Mrs P's spindryer, is it electric?"

"Yes" then a pause while the question sank in

 "What did you expect it to be?” 

then sarcastically “Gas?"

"No" haughtily with injured daughterly dignity "I thought it might be a wrangler."