What can I buy to optimize the hand washing of washing clothes?
August 17, 2020 3:11 PM Subscribe
I have access to a washing machine and dryer, but I am lately finding it easier to wash certain things by hand. What hacks are there to make this more efficient, and what can I buy to optimize this process?
As an adult, I have never found a washing machine to not do the job. However, now I have a young child and I’m finding I occasionally have to deal with things like I just did laundry but then he wore one bathing suit to his grandma’s or ate a juicy orange or whatever. And of course with the advent of cloth masks in our life, there is that aspect too. And of course with the advent of cloth masks in our life, there is that aspect too. Sometimes, I just want to wash one or two things.
Current method is to fill a large Tupperware with water and a dash of a product called Soak, which does not require rinsing. I let it sit for about 20 minutes, swish it around a few times, ring out the stuff and put them on a dish rack overnight.
Is there anything I can buy to make this easier and more efficient? I’m finding that it’s hard to get the right balance between something which will fit in the sink, but yet also be big enough to wash the things without splashing. I’m wondering if something purpose-built might do a better job.
As an adult, I have never found a washing machine to not do the job. However, now I have a young child and I’m finding I occasionally have to deal with things like I just did laundry but then he wore one bathing suit to his grandma’s or ate a juicy orange or whatever. And of course with the advent of cloth masks in our life, there is that aspect too. And of course with the advent of cloth masks in our life, there is that aspect too. Sometimes, I just want to wash one or two things.
Current method is to fill a large Tupperware with water and a dash of a product called Soak, which does not require rinsing. I let it sit for about 20 minutes, swish it around a few times, ring out the stuff and put them on a dish rack overnight.
Is there anything I can buy to make this easier and more efficient? I’m finding that it’s hard to get the right balance between something which will fit in the sink, but yet also be big enough to wash the things without splashing. I’m wondering if something purpose-built might do a better job.
Do you have a salad spinner? You can wash and spin dry small items in a salad spinner. Plus, since you are using Soak, you get to skip the rinse step!
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 3:23 PM on August 17, 2020 [5 favorites]
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 3:23 PM on August 17, 2020 [5 favorites]
You could get an actual washboard, which helps a lot for soiled items and also makes a fun musical instrument.
posted by SaltySalticid at 3:30 PM on August 17, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by SaltySalticid at 3:30 PM on August 17, 2020 [1 favorite]
When I was a kid, my grandmother had a little hand plunger with holes in the rubber part that was used to agitate hand laundry in a bucket of soapy water. I've Googled all the terms I can think of and can't find that exact thing. But you could probably buy a small bathroom sink plunger and make the holes yourself.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 3:34 PM on August 17, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 3:34 PM on August 17, 2020 [4 favorites]
It's not purpose built, but dry bags work in both directions: to keep water out, or water in. My neighbor uses a dry bag as her "washing machine" and has a salad-spinner device as a dryer.
posted by sacrifix at 3:47 PM on August 17, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by sacrifix at 3:47 PM on August 17, 2020 [1 favorite]
The agitator tool Serene Empress Duck suggests sounds like it might easily be substituted by a potato-masher, if you have one handy. You could also consider skipping the Tupperware part and just washing the item directly in your bathroom sink, or putting it in the bath with your juice-sticky child. (Obviously not face masks)
posted by slightlybewildered at 3:55 PM on August 17, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by slightlybewildered at 3:55 PM on August 17, 2020 [3 favorites]
I do laundry at home a lot lately, mostly in the sink. In case you want to maybe wash a few more than dish-drainer capacity things, there are a lot of terrific drying "solutions" that you can get which will just pull across a tub and then back again, or bungie over an area. You can often find these by looking for camping laundry solutions (portable example, fixed example)
posted by jessamyn at 3:57 PM on August 17, 2020
posted by jessamyn at 3:57 PM on August 17, 2020
It's not cheap, but I've used a friend's Scrubba, which is more meant for camping and backpacking but might be inspiration for something you could mimic at home?
This is a weird low-fi solution, but what about a mop bucket with a wringer? Amazon has them cheaper than Staples, on first glance, but you might have a local office supply or hardware store with better deals since they don't have to ship. For me, I don't mind hand-washing stuff in the sink, but if it's much bigger than a hand towel I have trouble wringing it dry enough to hang dry in less than a day.
posted by Lyn Never at 4:07 PM on August 17, 2020 [2 favorites]
This is a weird low-fi solution, but what about a mop bucket with a wringer? Amazon has them cheaper than Staples, on first glance, but you might have a local office supply or hardware store with better deals since they don't have to ship. For me, I don't mind hand-washing stuff in the sink, but if it's much bigger than a hand towel I have trouble wringing it dry enough to hang dry in less than a day.
posted by Lyn Never at 4:07 PM on August 17, 2020 [2 favorites]
For the drying step, if it's small enough and you have some outdoor space you could do my salad spinner hack: put the wet stuff in a kitchen towel, gather up four corners and swing it around your head or by your side. It's fun and gets a good amount of water out.
posted by purple_bird at 4:08 PM on August 17, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by purple_bird at 4:08 PM on August 17, 2020 [1 favorite]
Here's a washing plunger you can buy.
posted by purple_bird at 4:10 PM on August 17, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by purple_bird at 4:10 PM on August 17, 2020 [2 favorites]
Welcome to a subject that is dear to my heart! The world of alternative laundry methods is a weird and wonderful place, occupied by environmentalists, boat enthusiasts, RV dwellers, and preppers alike.
Laundry plunger (mentioned above).
Wonder Wash (small hand cranked washer). Works well if you use it right.
I find the most difficult part of handwashing be the wringing part. A laundry spinner takes care of water removal quite handily. Then you hang up the clothes.
I use this Panda spin dryer, which I find works better than the spin cycle in a normal washing machine,
but you might prefer something smaller, like this countertop spin dryer.
posted by the_blizz at 4:12 PM on August 17, 2020 [4 favorites]
Laundry plunger (mentioned above).
Wonder Wash (small hand cranked washer). Works well if you use it right.
I find the most difficult part of handwashing be the wringing part. A laundry spinner takes care of water removal quite handily. Then you hang up the clothes.
I use this Panda spin dryer, which I find works better than the spin cycle in a normal washing machine,
but you might prefer something smaller, like this countertop spin dryer.
posted by the_blizz at 4:12 PM on August 17, 2020 [4 favorites]
I have the Wonder Wash that the_blizz mentioned, and it works great (i use it for 100% of my laundry!) - but it does take up a fair amount of space compared to a bag, or a simple plastic bowl or tupperware that you can stack other things in when you're not using it. The wonder wash is probably too big to fit in your sink, even a big laundry sink, but would work well on a countertop next to a sink that it can drain into and that has a detachable faucet hose for filling it. I put mine in my bathtub and fill it from the handheld shower nozzle.
posted by moonmilk at 4:19 PM on August 17, 2020
posted by moonmilk at 4:19 PM on August 17, 2020
They make drying racks for laundry; I have a large one that fits in my bathtub but you may be able to find a smaller one that fits your sink.
posted by Hypatia at 4:26 PM on August 17, 2020
posted by Hypatia at 4:26 PM on August 17, 2020
You may want to check out the laundry supplies at Lehman's: https://www.lehmans.com/category/laundry-supplies
They have the plunger-type agitators mentioned above, as well as small hand-operated washers, wringers, washboards, and lots of drying rack and laundry line options.
I used to pretreat stains using a washboard, which was very effective at getting them out, but it's a lot of work.
For my recommendations for hand wash, I have dishwashing tubs that I use for hand wash. I have two, so I can rinse the items I'm washing while the other tub fills. It's also good to have a sturdy clothes drying rack, with a horizontal area for drying knits. I like to have a small fan pointed at my drying rack, too, for air circulation.
posted by Lycaste at 4:52 PM on August 17, 2020
They have the plunger-type agitators mentioned above, as well as small hand-operated washers, wringers, washboards, and lots of drying rack and laundry line options.
I used to pretreat stains using a washboard, which was very effective at getting them out, but it's a lot of work.
For my recommendations for hand wash, I have dishwashing tubs that I use for hand wash. I have two, so I can rinse the items I'm washing while the other tub fills. It's also good to have a sturdy clothes drying rack, with a horizontal area for drying knits. I like to have a small fan pointed at my drying rack, too, for air circulation.
posted by Lycaste at 4:52 PM on August 17, 2020
When I'm ready to dry my hand washed laundry, the step after "gently squeeze out the water" is
Lay a big clean towel on the bed or floor
Lay the item(s) that are just washed on top of the towel, maximixing towel to garment connection
Starting at one end, roll the towel like a jelly roll
Gently step onto the towel roll, moving my feet gently up and down (no rubbing or twisting!) to let gravity help me push the water from the clothes into the towel
Then, I hang the towel over a curtain rod, and dry the clothes as I would (flat for handknits, hanging on a horse or hangers for other things)
posted by bilabial at 6:15 PM on August 17, 2020 [4 favorites]
Lay a big clean towel on the bed or floor
Lay the item(s) that are just washed on top of the towel, maximixing towel to garment connection
Starting at one end, roll the towel like a jelly roll
Gently step onto the towel roll, moving my feet gently up and down (no rubbing or twisting!) to let gravity help me push the water from the clothes into the towel
Then, I hang the towel over a curtain rod, and dry the clothes as I would (flat for handknits, hanging on a horse or hangers for other things)
posted by bilabial at 6:15 PM on August 17, 2020 [4 favorites]
Standing drying rack, fold down or pull out rack, or the retractable clothes line.
posted by Crystalinne at 7:20 PM on August 17, 2020
posted by Crystalinne at 7:20 PM on August 17, 2020
I used the wonder wash (well, a no-name-brand clone) for a year to do all my laundry; it was fantastic, truly recommend. It didn't even take particularly longer than it takes me now to hike across my building and down three floors to do my laundry now! (Smaller loads, though, obviously.) Hand-wringing and then hanging to dry can take a bit of time, though, I'd strongly recommend getting some kind of wringer or something like the Panda spin-dryer.
posted by kalimac at 9:02 PM on August 17, 2020
posted by kalimac at 9:02 PM on August 17, 2020
Seconding the towel drying technique described bilabial. Done properly you can get about as much water out as a good spin cycle will and it is good for delicates.
posted by arha at 12:05 AM on August 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by arha at 12:05 AM on August 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
Using a sturdy, large salad spinner to wash bras is the best thing I ever learned from Metafilter. I bet it would work great for masks and bathing suits, too.
posted by bluedaisy at 1:45 AM on August 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by bluedaisy at 1:45 AM on August 18, 2020 [1 favorite]
I’ve been hand-washing my face masks and I roll up the mask in a swimming chamois to get as much moisture out as I can before shaping it and hanging it to dry.
posted by SillyShepherd at 10:01 AM on August 21, 2020
posted by SillyShepherd at 10:01 AM on August 21, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by clew at 3:14 PM on August 17, 2020 [2 favorites]