Laundry?

[2 dogs and a Yurt]

Originally Posted by Jafo

Me too considering the only time I go to one is to wash the blankets from the dog house and crates lol..

Or saddle blankets after a sweaty trail ride....

[hierony]

Even with a good washing machine, clothes can come out not so clean if you don't do it right. You also have to know how to maintain them. You can't leave the door closed, especially with front loaders--they need to air out. If you have a dog, cleaning out hair often is important.

I use the front loaders when I go to the laundromat, and I give them a good sniff until I find one that doesn't stink. Then I check around the door seal for gunk. Some laundromats maintain their machines better than others.

I think clothes are often over washed. People often declare their clothes dirty after one day of wear, then declare them clean after putting them through the wash. There certainly are skin cells, general dust, and maybe a small amount of salt from sweat after a day or two, season depending--which can easily be flushed out with a light wash in a bucket (right soap, temp, water softener, good rinse or two). Then there's grease spots, food spills, dirty knees--these areas need a good scrubbing (glass washboard?) with soap to actually get fully clean. I've not met a washing machine that can realistically get bad spots out in one run.

I'm not doing handwashing right now, but I would like to. A good spin dryer I think is essential for it though--way smaller than most any washing machines, uses just a little electricity, and gets your clothes well wrung without wearing them.

[Wintergreen282]

I agree 100% with Hierony (on all his points.) With a little care, clothes don't have to be washed so often.

I took one of the wooden, 2x4, vertical supports (not used in front of the windows when the yurt was put up) and drilled angled holes in them, then put assorted length dowel pieces in and slid it up against another vertical support - over by the wood stove for an easy drying rack. I hang my boots there in the winter - upside down on dowels - and any wet stuff. But also anything I've been wearing - as opposed to tossing it crumpled in the hamper.

Also periodically hanging clothes outside in the sun and fresh air, revives them. A lot does depend on how much you sweat and get dirty though.

Spot cleaning, airing out, even a quick rinse, all helps extend laundry day.

Then I go to a good laundromat. Ones with someone working there watching things and keeping the machines clean is a good sign. Mine even has wifi, so I catch up on downloading podcasts.

I also check the machines by smell and touch - before choosing it. And bring things home wet to hang outside.

There are lots of decent off the grid laundry systems, but getting most of the water rung out is key. However you do it. Hand ringing gets old and is difficult for many.

Like most of yurt life - you make it up as you go. Learn from others, but figure out what works best for you.

[2 dogs and a Yurt]

Thanks for all the great info! Good to hear what others are doing. I love Wintergreens idea with the pegs. Will have to try that. We are planning on moving into a yurt where we don't have any family near by to fall back on in case something goes wrong. So the the trial and error learning could be disastrous!
But, what is life without some adventure?!

[Bob Rowlands]

Humanity was basically pretty filthy until recent times, just from getting by every day. Thank God for the invention of detergent and washing machine. Being a carpenter all my life makes me like clean clothes. They may be worn but I like them clean, at the start of the day.

As for laundromats, yes some folks wash nasties in there. I used to look in the washer before loading up. Most folks that don't have their own place or access to Mom and Dads laundry room, use laundromats to launder their clothes, not rugs etc. There's no difference then at home, based on my experience.

All that aside, laundry in a yurt is a real nice modern convenience. If I was a single guy living in a smaller trad yurt, I'd be hitting up the laundromat at least once a week if not twice.

[yurtsong]

This is something I'm also in the process of gearing up for. I've finally settled on using a 5 gallon bucket with a "Rapid Laundry Washer" and using an industrial sized salad spinner to wring and rinse. Bronner's soap is biodegradable and works great on laundry. (that's what I use now at the laundry mat).

[2 dogs and a Yurt]

I ended up purchasing an old fashioned wringer, a metal laundry plunger and a glass washboard as well as two sad irons from Lehman's. They will hopefully arrive the beginning of next week. It will be an adventure but I am in for the long haul! My washer and dryer are leaving today!
One thing I've noticed, it doesn't seem like a 5 gallon bucket allows for enough water movement. Just my opinion. I will use laundry tubs (big galvanized metal squares) because they seem to allow full agitation.
Bronner's is good stuff and I currently use it for all sorts of things. I plan to go back to making my own detergent. I may not last as I will have plenty to do without having to make the soap too!

[Bob Rowlands]

A five gallon bucket is way too small for laundry. A standard laundry tub in a tract house (ours for example) is about twenty gallons, the perfect size for hand washing laundry. Set your galvy tub on a solid 2x redwood framed platform so you aren't bending over, and have at it. Too big a tub and you might be

heating

more water than you really need. 'Slosh action' in a twenty gallon tub is great. I think that size is ideal.

[hierony]

Walmart and a few other places have started to carry bar soap for laundry (Zote's, Naptha, and one or two others). Grate finely & put in water or rub against stains. Washing Soda is also often added. Both are cheap & last a long time & fairly natural.