[gexla]

>Some important challenges remain, most notably the washing machine, the bathroom and the laser printer. The problem with washing machine and bathroom is that they're on the north side of the building, far from the solar panels. We could go to a laundromat but there are none in town. A pedal powered washing machine requires space that we don't have.

You could try washing your laundry by hand. It isn't as much work as it might seem if you have never tried it. There must be something magical in the detergent because I can get clothes cleaner than I ever had with a washer back home with little work.

For example, to wash a shirt I just put the water / detergent mix in a basin and agitate the shirt with my hands for a couple minutes. Leave the shirt in the basin for 15 minutes for the detergent to do it's work. Agitate for another few minutes and then hang. First hang in the bathroom or outside for 20 for the shirt to quit dripping and then I put in front of a fan. The shirt is dry within a couple of hours.

Pants can be a bit more work depending on the material. Denim is heavy and eats up the dirt. I do the same as with the shirt but I use a tide bar to spot soap areas which get more dirt (bottoms of the pant legs) and brush those areas.

This does take longer than using a washing machine. But the clothes last longer and get cleaner. You aren't using electricity, buying an appliance and birthing a hung of metal and plastic that you may one day have to dispose of.

One weird effect that doing laundry by hand has for me is that it sort of puts me closer to my stuff. It's too easy to get something dirty, throw it in the washer and forget about it. Hand washing makes me more aware of how what I own also owns me and the energy it takes to maintain and carry this stuff around with me.

[pjc50]

Sadly, giving up on the washing machine is giving up one on of the great labour saving inventions, and going back towards the time when washing took at least one woman-day per week.

http://johnquiggin.com/2012/05/03/housework-in-utopia/

http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_and_the_magic_washing_...

[gexla]

Back in the day when men were out working and families were larger, women had to do a lot of work do to laundry because they would do laundry for the entire family. Doing your own laundry doesn't take long. Still more work than using a washing machine, but not too bad.

[xioxox]

Don't you rinse your clothes before wearing them? Detergents can do nasty things to your skin.

[gexla]

Yes, after washing with detergent you put fresh water in the basin and rinse the detergent.

[skc]

Yep, and washing clothes by hand is oddly therapeutic as well. You end up looking for other items to wash, like bedsheets and towels and what not.

But it does do a number on your hands.

[pbhjpbhj]

Use a bucket and a washing stool (wooden agitator)?

[ChemicalWarfare]

For me personally it's more about the dryer. I live in a cold/damp climate where it takes forever to line dry except for like 2-3 sunny/warm weeks in the summer.

[gexla]

During rainy season I can't line dry. I just hang the clothes in the bathroom until they stop dripping and then put them in front of the fan. This is as quick or quicker than line drying in the sun.