Do you have a portable washing machine?

[Rec]

We have a portable twin tub. I’ve had it for two years now and would not be without it. We mostly wild camp and prefer to. The twin tub means we don’t have to go to campsites as often as we used to. The only thing we need is access to water as it uses quite a bit to rinse. If it is sunny we can run it easily off the leisure battery and the sinewave inverter. In the past, we have resorted to running the engine just to keep the batteries charged.
A good tip is to use soap nuts, bicarb soda and white vinegar. Cleans well, no smell and uses much less water in the rinsing as less soapy suds.
Reckon it has more than paid for itself, probably 10 times over. We have come across campsites that charge as much as €10 for a wash.
And on a sunny day with a glass of vino it really isn’t a chore.

Have you tried laundry balls? We use them in our twin tub offgrid in portugal, Need less rinsing...just one with lavender oil dropped in for perfume. Used them for years and fine if clothes are not very dirt. Then you need to use a stain remover first and extra rinse after wash.

 

[BOTCANU]

Electric toothbrushes, washing machines.....,be heated water beds next??

 

[Andrew9999]

We use an old pail with lid and leave washing plus water and liquid in it, in the shower, when traveling between stops. The rocking of the van in transit is fine to wash them.

 

[skippy]

As soon as I post the question, I find the answer in a charity shop: View attachment 42100

Isn't that for rolling pasta?

 

[Clunegapyears]

Have you tried laundry balls? We use them in our twin tub offgrid in portugal, Need less rinsing...just one with lavender oil dropped in for perfume. Used them for years and fine if clothes are not very dirt. Then you need to use a stain remover first and extra rinse after wash.

Not heard of them so googled. Wikipedia is not complimentary about laundry balls https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laundry_ball
Anything that agitates the water must help though. Soap nuts produce little to no foam so need very little rinsing.

 

[Rec]

We found the balls ok. Don't always trust Wikipedia, some makes are better than others. Had an issue with the last batch of ecover ones I bought ( green ones) but still refill my original ones.Its the minerals which clean, Dave has some pretty dirty work clothes and it sorts them! Do use soap nuts too, find they work about the same but do an extra rinse. A lot of people just like the chemical smell of detergent and miss that, but our water goes into a soakaway so don't want to pollute.
These are the ones I ordered last
Qualtex Eco-Friendly Magic Laundry Washing Machine Clean & Soften Clothes Wash Ball - 1000 Washes

 

[jagmanx]

The obvious and sexist reply is....
Yes and it came with a wedding ring !
But it is true my wife quite happily washes everything by hand in the MoHo
Even though we have a washing machine here in Thailand ..She still washes most things by hand ...
Who am I to interfere.

 

[SimonM]

The obvious and sexist reply is....
Yes and it came with a wedding ring !
But it is true my wife quite happily washes everything by hand in the MoHo
Even though we have a washing machine here in Thailand ..She still washes most things by hand ...
Who am I to interfere.

Is that because it’s the way her mum showed her, and her mums mum, and so on? These old wives traditions are difficult to break.

 

[jagmanx]

Is that because it’s the way her mum showed her, and her mums mum, and so on? These old wives traditions are difficult to break.

Indeed ! Several other "habits" re cooking..
EG we use a bucket BBQ with charcoal to cook most evenings...suits me fine...marinade the chicken or pork and grill it.
Then stir fry in a medium wok whilst the charcoal is still hot..
We have an induction heater which is handy sometimes and a table top round electric grill/oven which does for cakes (pineapple muffins) and bread

 

[SimonM]

Sounds good, set an extra place ?

 

[hairydog]

We use an old pail with lid and leave washing plus water and liquid in it, in the shower, when traveling between stops. The rocking of the van in transit is fine to wash them.

Have you read Steinbeck's "Travels with Charlie"?

 

[hairydog]

Isn't that for rolling pasta?

Nope. Rubber rollers, drain spout. About three times the size of a pasta thingy.

 

[Clunegapyears]

Thanks Rec. ordered one. Whilst at home will have to do smaller washes than normal. But in the twin tub the washes are small anyway.
Can I just check ... do you need to rinse after?

 

[kanga]

We were away 3 weeks last year and took enough clothes for 1 week . Then I used a vacuum bag ( I made some grid patterns inside with a hot glue gun at home) and some bicarbonate of soda . I put the clothes in the bag, added a teaspoon of bicarb and some water and closed the bag and expelled as much air as possible. Then worked it back and forward in the bag over the grid for a couple of minutes. next I emptied it all out and squeezed the water out as much as poss. Then laid them on a microfibre towel and rolled it to death. Lastly hung it up on strings tied to the van. I got the idea from seeing the scrubbie bag online and it works quite well though probably wouldnt get out terrible stains. There was no smell or anything from the clothes after washing .
We are in a Kangoo though wildcamping not a motor home with vast amounts of space.

 

[hairydog]

We keep one of those squashy buckets in the shower. Handy for collecting the cold water you avoid showering with till it runs warm, and useful for washing clothes in, or for transporting water for washing the van with. When travelling, it is mostly full of cleaning cloths. It would squash into a locker if we had no shower.

 

[hairydog]

We found the balls ok. Don't always trust Wikipedia, some makes are better than others. Had an issue with the last batch of ecover ones I bought ( green ones) but still refill my original ones.Its the minerals which clean, Dave has some pretty dirty work clothes and it sorts them! Do use soap nuts too, find they work about the same but do an extra rinse. A lot of people just like the chemical smell of detergent and miss that, but our water goes into a soakaway so don't want to pollute.
These are the ones I ordered last
Qualtex Eco-Friendly Magic Laundry Washing Machine Clean & Soften Clothes Wash Ball - 1000 Washes

Translated from their leaflet, I'm told:

... In washing machines with a capacity of more than 4 kg, you should use 2 ØkoVaskeBolde. To maintain the effect, you should put ØkoVaskeBold an hour in the sun every month. This allows the microorganisms of the microbubbles to regenerate the ØkoVaskeBold be stored when it is not used .

This is how the ecosystem building works. The microorganisms change the composition of the water, protect the colors in the laundry and give it a comfortable blood. OkoVaskeBold is filled with ceramic balls. Disese ceramic balls emit negative ions and produce a pH value of 10, like the usual chemical detergents. This combination causes the surface tension of the water to break so that dirt and grease are released. At the same time stay. But first and foremost clean for nature. No chemistry, no phosphate. OkoVaskeBold does not use surfactants at all, germ and bacteria are killed. The laundry is clean and smells good. Without the use of chemicals, without detergent chemical substances, without phosphate or bleach-ecoVaskeBold is an advantage for all of us! part that pays off nature and the environment. OkoVaskeBold has an antibacterial effect and removes perspiration. It is the microorganisms that suffer from this effect. The ceramic balls in ØkoVaskeBold contain these effective microorganisms which cause a positive change in water-

OkoVaskeBold contains ceramic stones containing microorganisms. Some of these are photosynthetic bacteria. These need sunlight.

 

[Rec]

We do use two and I do put them in the sun, to dry them... didn't know there was another reason! Never read these instructions as had the Ecover ones for years, the translation is a bit strange!

 

[Clunegapyears]

Ball arrived!
Instructions in English. Two small loads completed. Seems clean. Didn’t use conditioner as though it would affect the effect of the ball.
Read about sticking it in the sun... Ho ho with this weather. Too late to think of a ball double entrendre! Can only come up with freeze the balls off a brass monkey!