Hand washing and drying racks/lines
- Thread starter aernan
- Start date
Hi
We previously used a small portable but mains powered washing machine, twin tub, top loading. The hardest thing about that was getting the soap out again which used a huge amount of water. The best thing was once that had been achieved the spinner was worth it's weight in gold.
You could connect a hydronic heater to domestic towel rails? That's our plan A, but probably with a washing machine though. I'm assuming a domestic machine will use less than the massive amount the machine above did with us controlling quantities.
In the UK at least you can buy clothes airers with a small 2-300W heater in which are supposed to be much cheaper than a tumble dryer but then fold up, costing very, very little to run. Might be worth investigating? From Lakeland Plastics in the UK anyhow.
We previously used a small portable but mains powered washing machine, twin tub, top loading. The hardest thing about that was getting the soap out again which used a huge amount of water. The best thing was once that had been achieved the spinner was worth it's weight in gold.
You could connect a hydronic heater to domestic towel rails? That's our plan A, but probably with a washing machine though. I'm assuming a domestic machine will use less than the massive amount the machine above did with us controlling quantities.
In the UK at least you can buy clothes airers with a small 2-300W heater in which are supposed to be much cheaper than a tumble dryer but then fold up, costing very, very little to run. Might be worth investigating? From Lakeland Plastics in the UK anyhow.
nick disjunkt
Adventurer
I mostly use coin laundries when on the road. We have a couple of cheapo home depot towel rails between the cab and the box to hang towels on, a heated towel rail in the bathroom, and a pull out line in the bathroom which I use for drying soaking clothes when we come in from being out in the rain.
This is the pull out line I use. It works pretty well,
https://www.sdslondon.co.uk/eros-hotel-bathroom-accessories/retractable-clothes-line-2400-mm.html
If I have to do hand washing in the truck, I either do tiny loads and hang them in the available space inside, or do larger quantities and hang them from a rope which I string up outside. If it's cold and wet outside, it's no fun drying loads of clothes inside the camper as it makes it humid, and its no fun dodging dripping clothes.
This is the pull out line I use. It works pretty well,
https://www.sdslondon.co.uk/eros-hotel-bathroom-accessories/retractable-clothes-line-2400-mm.html
If I have to do hand washing in the truck, I either do tiny loads and hang them in the available space inside, or do larger quantities and hang them from a rope which I string up outside. If it's cold and wet outside, it's no fun drying loads of clothes inside the camper as it makes it humid, and its no fun dodging dripping clothes.
J!m
Active member
In hot dry Africa what I finally devised is a very simple solution. It wouldn’t work as well in a wet and or cold climate but here you go:
Small plastic tub, maybe 18” square roughly. Dirty clothes from the day go in at shower time along with soap water and a half dozen golf balls. This sits up on the roof rack.
As we drive, clothes get soapy and scrubbed by the balls. It was 110f in February so water was nice and warm.
Mid day dump water and wring our clothes. Add clean water and repeat.
Dinner/camp unload and wring our clean clothes. I usually hung them on the limb risers but anywhere works when there is no humidity.
In morning they are dry! Get dressed and repeat.
Small plastic tub, maybe 18” square roughly. Dirty clothes from the day go in at shower time along with soap water and a half dozen golf balls. This sits up on the roof rack.
As we drive, clothes get soapy and scrubbed by the balls. It was 110f in February so water was nice and warm.
Mid day dump water and wring our clothes. Add clean water and repeat.
Dinner/camp unload and wring our clean clothes. I usually hung them on the limb risers but anywhere works when there is no humidity.
In morning they are dry! Get dressed and repeat.
