Hand Washing Clothes With a Clothes Plunger (Off Grid)
Greetings sisters in Christ,
I hope you are all doing well today? We are working hard on our 'to do' list before we head out on the road again to share the gospel good news, and we're getting closer!
With the world going the way it is, I thought I'd share with you how to hand wash clothes with a plunger so that you can be prepared if need be. (If you don't have to pay for water, or pay very much for it, you can save money by doing this.) I've been washing clothes by hand for many years, even when we hand pumped all our water back at our former homestead in Wisconsin, and think it's one of the most satisfying jobs for a keeper at home. We all have our own likes and dislikes so if you don't care for it, no problem :-) (In another post I will share a different clothes washing device I use.)
Since we live off grid we have to run the generator to pump our water so I like to fill a 50 gallon barrel full so I always have it.
In warmer weather I wash with cool water right from the barrel and in order to get them clean, I soak them beforehand. I don't like using propane to heat the water and would rather save the money and use cool water. When the days are colder and I have the woodstove going then I use warm water because it's free to heat :-)
Soaking is not necessary but it sure makes the process go much faster with less physical exertion. (If you don't soak it, you have to plunge it for a much longer time.) There's just brother Jim and I so I only wash every few days when we get a bucket full but if you have a large family you would want to have a continuous soaking and washing cycle going. (Yes there are many large families living off grid that hand wash clothes, you just have to plan and get into a pattern of it.) I like to soak overnight but will make do with 4-5 hrs cold soak if need be. If your water is warm, like in the summer time, you can soak less.
Here are the tools you need:
* Bucket(s) Try calling your local bakery and see if they have any empty, I used to get them for .75 cents each. If not, it's a small investment at a home improvement store.
(If you have a bathtub that works great too!)
* Hand plunger (this is what mine looks like)
You can buy them today in either metal or plastic from $20-$30
I have an old hand wringer that helps squeeze the water out so if you find one for a good price, grab it. If not, you can certainly get by without it as I did for many years and just squeeze them. (I don't like to twist clothing because I don't feel it's good for the fabric.)
The wringers can be rather costly to buy new so you'll have to see what you want to do about that in your home.
Once you have soaked your clothes for in soapy water, you plunge them for several minutes until they are clean.
After you get the hang of it you'll know how long to do it for whatever type clothing you have. Once again, soaking is key for less work.
I then run them through my wringer...
And yes you can do bigger pieces of clothing than just socks, like my skirts and I've even done as large as bath towels.
Then I put them in the rinse bucket with fresh water and a little bit of vinegar and go at it again. The vinegar cuts the soap and softens the clothes but you don't smell it on them. (I use maybe a teaspoon in a full bucket.) Sometimes I use a drop of essential oil for a nice smell. I usually only have to rinse one time but if I used too much soap I might have to rinse 2 times. Run them through the wringer, or hand wring them and you're ready to hang them up.
It's true, you can't do many clothes at once lest you fill the bucket too full and the clothes don't agitate well but it's all a learning curve how many, how long, how much soap etc. Once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature.
It's a great way to get some exercise, especially with children, having them take turns and learn some good old fashioned hard work! I grew up hand washing clothes and when someone gave my mother an old wringer washer, I thought we were rich because it agitated them in the big tub and all we had to do was run them through the automatic wringer. I actually had one of those here at the land in MO until I chose to go back to doing it all by hand. Yes, it does sometimes affect me physically but I figure the more I keep doing things like that, the longer I can do them...maybe:-)
It's great when you can hang up clothes outside but when the weather gets too cold or wet, you can hang them inside or use drying racks like these:
Even if you use a washing machine, you could skip the dryer (saving a lot of money) and hang all your clothes to dry. Through the winter we usually have something hanging by the woodstove or on the shower rod.
I'm currently working on an idea for a simple way of washing clothes while in the van life and am exited to work out the details so I can share the outcome with you. (Hopefully soon!)
That's my Titus2 offering for today and I hope that it's a blessing and encouragement to those of you who are looking for ways to do things differently, if need be.
I'm thankful for opportunities to be able to wash clothes in a simple manner as there are people who have to walk miles for water, don't have money for soap, or don't have the physical abilities to even do it. Let us be thankful for each and every day that the Lord has given us.
I'm thankful for those of you who are striving on in obedience, taking on the role of a godly woman, standing strong on the Word without wavering and pressing on toward the mark.
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you
Philippians 1:3
Blessings to you,
Sister Deb
I hope you are all doing well today? We are working hard on our 'to do' list before we head out on the road again to share the gospel good news, and we're getting closer!
With the world going the way it is, I thought I'd share with you how to hand wash clothes with a plunger so that you can be prepared if need be. (If you don't have to pay for water, or pay very much for it, you can save money by doing this.) I've been washing clothes by hand for many years, even when we hand pumped all our water back at our former homestead in Wisconsin, and think it's one of the most satisfying jobs for a keeper at home. We all have our own likes and dislikes so if you don't care for it, no problem :-) (In another post I will share a different clothes washing device I use.)
Since we live off grid we have to run the generator to pump our water so I like to fill a 50 gallon barrel full so I always have it.
In warmer weather I wash with cool water right from the barrel and in order to get them clean, I soak them beforehand. I don't like using propane to heat the water and would rather save the money and use cool water. When the days are colder and I have the woodstove going then I use warm water because it's free to heat :-)
Soaking is not necessary but it sure makes the process go much faster with less physical exertion. (If you don't soak it, you have to plunge it for a much longer time.) There's just brother Jim and I so I only wash every few days when we get a bucket full but if you have a large family you would want to have a continuous soaking and washing cycle going. (Yes there are many large families living off grid that hand wash clothes, you just have to plan and get into a pattern of it.) I like to soak overnight but will make do with 4-5 hrs cold soak if need be. If your water is warm, like in the summer time, you can soak less.
Here are the tools you need:
* Bucket(s) Try calling your local bakery and see if they have any empty, I used to get them for .75 cents each. If not, it's a small investment at a home improvement store.
(If you have a bathtub that works great too!)
* Hand plunger (this is what mine looks like)
It's the real deal from years gone by.
I have an old hand wringer that helps squeeze the water out so if you find one for a good price, grab it. If not, you can certainly get by without it as I did for many years and just squeeze them. (I don't like to twist clothing because I don't feel it's good for the fabric.)
Once you have soaked your clothes for in soapy water, you plunge them for several minutes until they are clean.
After you get the hang of it you'll know how long to do it for whatever type clothing you have. Once again, soaking is key for less work.
I then run them through my wringer...
And yes you can do bigger pieces of clothing than just socks, like my skirts and I've even done as large as bath towels.
Then I put them in the rinse bucket with fresh water and a little bit of vinegar and go at it again. The vinegar cuts the soap and softens the clothes but you don't smell it on them. (I use maybe a teaspoon in a full bucket.) Sometimes I use a drop of essential oil for a nice smell. I usually only have to rinse one time but if I used too much soap I might have to rinse 2 times. Run them through the wringer, or hand wring them and you're ready to hang them up.
(If you look close you might see the deer in the background)
It's a great way to get some exercise, especially with children, having them take turns and learn some good old fashioned hard work! I grew up hand washing clothes and when someone gave my mother an old wringer washer, I thought we were rich because it agitated them in the big tub and all we had to do was run them through the automatic wringer. I actually had one of those here at the land in MO until I chose to go back to doing it all by hand. Yes, it does sometimes affect me physically but I figure the more I keep doing things like that, the longer I can do them...maybe:-)
It's great when you can hang up clothes outside but when the weather gets too cold or wet, you can hang them inside or use drying racks like these:
Even if you use a washing machine, you could skip the dryer (saving a lot of money) and hang all your clothes to dry. Through the winter we usually have something hanging by the woodstove or on the shower rod.
I'm currently working on an idea for a simple way of washing clothes while in the van life and am exited to work out the details so I can share the outcome with you. (Hopefully soon!)
That's my Titus2 offering for today and I hope that it's a blessing and encouragement to those of you who are looking for ways to do things differently, if need be.
I'm thankful for opportunities to be able to wash clothes in a simple manner as there are people who have to walk miles for water, don't have money for soap, or don't have the physical abilities to even do it. Let us be thankful for each and every day that the Lord has given us.
I'm thankful for those of you who are striving on in obedience, taking on the role of a godly woman, standing strong on the Word without wavering and pressing on toward the mark.
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you
Philippians 1:3
Blessings to you,
Sister Deb
The biblical gospel...