Laundry
So, the Laundromat's Closed—Here’s How to Hand Wash Clothes in Your Small Apartment
If you're stuck at home without a washer and dryer, worry not.
Photo by Julia Gartland
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7 Comments
usawordle
November 23, 2022
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GigiR
July 15, 2022
The discussion reminds me of washing stuff in uni, when actually going to the laundry was too big a hassle. We have really cold weather in winter. But nowadays, you can get mini washing machines slightly larger than a salad spinner and they work. They just make the chore a bit more fun. Also, if in an emergency, you can use a dedicated salad spinner to help dry that last set of undies. Good luck. What happened to clothes lines over the old bathtub?
Gail D.
July 15, 2022
I opened and read this because I'm in two fb groups of women who camp or even live in their cars/vans. Figured there'd be helpful info. Then began to laugh because I was in an Air BnB on Puget Sound, for my son's wedding, and SOCK--no laundry facilities. While I had enough CLOTHES for a week, I began to run low on my Speax/Thinx underwear. So I did just what the author did--took them into the shower with me, washed them grape-stomping-style, rinsed, squished, and hung on the clotheshangers WITH THE CHEAP BOX FAN blowing on them. Usually take overnight to dry, with the fan, they dried quicker than at home!!! "Travel Grandma!"
pmporter
January 14, 2022
You can use a salad spinner in the sink or buy an inexpensive electric spinner to place in your shower and you will find that much more water will be released than simple wringing and using a towel. Clothes will dry in 1/3 the time.
GigiR
April 14, 2020
Hi. You know, you could try this re drying. If you have an umbrella, open it and put the handle down into a tall bin or waste basket for stability. Drape clothes to be dried over it.
If you had something to from
which to suspend the handle, you could hang the umbrella upside down and drape or clothes pin washed items of the edge. You’d have to balance hanging items on opposite sides.
Also, bikes. Turn your precious mechanical steed into a clothes rack. You might need to cover it with old towels (yet another use) first so you don’t get chain oil on stuff.
Last one, you could use your rolling pin to press out excess water from washed items into a pad of towels underneath. It would help things like jeans dry a bit faster.
One thing: don’t be surprised if you find some items develop a bit of an odor if you are just line drying them all the time. Bacteria can kind of build up over time. Line drying works best with a fresh breeze blowing through the clothes. Several hot water rinses can sometimes tackle that. You might have to resort to some sort of odour squelching product designed for this purpose.
Also, garments generally have been treated with a sizing material, a kind of starch or glue, to help the weave of the fibres line up properly and for the garment to keep its shape. If it’s washable, give the item a wash to remove the sizing. It can contribute to the odour problem, as well as yellow a light coloured garment over time.
Lastly, your iron is your friend. It can help with that last bit of drying.
That’s all I’ve got.
If you had something to from
which to suspend the handle, you could hang the umbrella upside down and drape or clothes pin washed items of the edge. You’d have to balance hanging items on opposite sides.
Also, bikes. Turn your precious mechanical steed into a clothes rack. You might need to cover it with old towels (yet another use) first so you don’t get chain oil on stuff.
Last one, you could use your rolling pin to press out excess water from washed items into a pad of towels underneath. It would help things like jeans dry a bit faster.
One thing: don’t be surprised if you find some items develop a bit of an odor if you are just line drying them all the time. Bacteria can kind of build up over time. Line drying works best with a fresh breeze blowing through the clothes. Several hot water rinses can sometimes tackle that. You might have to resort to some sort of odour squelching product designed for this purpose.
Also, garments generally have been treated with a sizing material, a kind of starch or glue, to help the weave of the fibres line up properly and for the garment to keep its shape. If it’s washable, give the item a wash to remove the sizing. It can contribute to the odour problem, as well as yellow a light coloured garment over time.
Lastly, your iron is your friend. It can help with that last bit of drying.
That’s all I’ve got.
Smaug
March 31, 2020
Hand washing is, on the other hand, not a great way to disinfect. Water heaters should never be set higher than 140 degrees because of scalding danger, and in apartment buildings are likely to be more like 120, and that's straight hot water at the source. You could, of course, use bleach (with gloves!) or Lysol laundry disinfectant- if you can find them- but you'll have to do some pretty extensive rinsing- bleach is especially hard to get rid of. Trying to dry any significant amount of laundry in an apartment is indeed an act of desperation- there are some pretty neat folding racks that you can set in a warm- or breezy- place.
Tutiesmom
March 31, 2020
What great ideas! When the going gets tough, the tough hand wash their clothes!
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