Yirego foot-powered washing machine

I have an old Maytag Gasoline motor for a cloths washer (runs) if you get tired of peddling. On my sailboat the cloths went into a net bag at the end of a line towed behind the boat.

I've used one of these and it worked quite well if you don't mind the wait for drying.

Definitely chafe.

Jeffk said:

Definitely chafe.

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and then, the splinters.

Didn’t Janice just get one of these micro clothes “washer”? OH JANICE !!!!

Note : Wifey- is a live person on the forum. She will fill you in

Fish53 said:

I've used one of these and it worked quite well if you don't mind the wait for drying.View attachment 86654

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I have the same washer and use it for shorts and tee shirts. Does a good job cleaning, hang out to dry does take a long time.

Didn’t the professor make something like that. I think Gilligan peddled it

Follow up: I purchased two five-gallon buckets, a plunger-style agitator and a manual spin dryer (looks much like an oversize salad spinner). I've been using for over a month with excellent results. Clothes are clean, I don't have to schlepp dirty clothes to a laundry, and I'm getting an upper body workout w/o costly gym fees. Win-win-win.

Fish53 said:

I've used one of these and it worked quite well if you don't mind the wait for drying.View attachment 86654

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I also have a "wonder washer" and it worked very well for the two summers that we cruised full time.

When I went to university in Chicago when Jesus was in diapers, I bought this clothes dryer about the size of a smaller convection counter top oven. It had a small tumbler inside and basically was hooked up to some kind of hair blower mechanism. I could dry about 8 pair of socks or about 4 pair of under wear or two lighter shirts. The thing worked for a very long time. I bought it used somewhere and I've never seen on since then. It would have worked well on a boat.

This is about the closest I could find: https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0734M89QC/ref=olp_twister_child?ie=UTF8&mv_size_name=0

About the washer... (and thanks Gmarr)

Yes, I did buy one of the $55 washers with the spinner basket from Amazon. I wrote an article about it here:
Best Choice Washer article on janice142



In a nutshell, since publication I was able to sell the washer ($35!!!) to another boater. He/they like it!

As for dryers, I bought one from http://laundry-alternative.com and LOVE it. Frankly, if I had purchased the mini-spinner counter-top unit First (before the Best Choice washer) I would not have bought the washer. Doing laundry by hand is not terrible.

Wringing out wet fabric is NOT fun. It's tough on my hands.
The spinner takes 3 minutes per small batch (not a lot fits in at one time) and things come out almost totally dry.

Being able to do my clothes and bedding aboard Seaweed is So much easier than hauling everything to shore. That gets old the first time.

That said, given a choice (and space) I would definitely opt for a Fully automatic washing machine. I simply do not have space for one.
In scanning Amazon, the one I would buy is the Giantex Portable unit (on sale now for $180 -- it's normally $200) Link: https://amzn.to/2YHFtD8

That's my Dream unit. If there was any place I could fit it aboard Seaweed... sigh. It is small, 17" x 17" x 30" and weighs 37 pounds. That's doable, if only there were space.

Anyway, that's my Real World opinion. Either buy a Fully automatic washing machine Or plan on hand washing and using the Laundry-Alternatives spinner. Hand washing is not terrible. It is Loads better than hauling everything to shore.

Good luck.

On and the Wonder Washer? I am not a fan. Turn for two minutes doesn't sound like a lot, but it is. Any of you fellows that think it is not long, ought to volunteer to turn the dang handle every time you need to do the washing. It will get old real quick.

There's a reason you will always find these on sale at marine flea markets (usual price $10) -- the folks all sing the praises, while selling 'em!

Well, I've run on at the fingertips. I'll hush now. G'night folks.

meridian said:

View attachment 86413

And a bucket

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That's what I used for several years while cruising, & why the skipper & I only used hand towels to dry ourselves post-showering. Mostly saved the sheets for whatever laundry services were available when in port. We once took a stroll in Costa Rica & discovered our farmed-out laundry drying on a barbed wire fence.

One of my most difficult post-cruising adjustments to life ashore was relearning to use full-size bath towels. It took over a year for me to become comfortable again with being so wasteful as to use such a large towel when a hand towel would have done the job. I also felt deprived going to sleep looking at a white ceiling instead of a sky full of stars every night.