Monday, May 21, 2007

needed, someone clever

Sent: Monday, May 21, 2007 12:27 PM
To: wwo@worldwithoutoil.org
Subject: needed, someone clever


Our household needs someone clever for the following project:

Figure out how to make an open-tub agitator washer like great- grandma had on the back porch- mom still has the family photos - I'll show you.( I wish I could post the photo here, but Mom and I aren't that good at computer stuff). Maybe you can use parts from our electric-powered washing machine, we can't afford to use it anymore. It needs a valve and drain at the bottom so we can take the gray water to the garden, but no other plumbing necessary - we can fill it by bucket. It also needs a hand-cranked wringer on top like the one in the photo. We found a stationary excercise bike we want hooked up to work the agitator. We'll pay you in laundry services or other barter, and you can take the rest of the washer and dryer for parts and scrap. metal. I bet whoever figures this out could open a business.
intwoworlds

2 comments:

Benger said...

What’s wrong with a handwash?

I’m not familiar with your US washing machine designs, but European front loader designs can often easily be modified for manual operation, allowing them to be used as a prewasher, while you can take out any remaining stains by handwashing the specific spots.

To use your old (European front loader) washingmachine as a prewasher (without serious plumbing and mechanical changes):
1. take off the casing of your washer and any other parts you will not need, so you can reach the belt that drives the drum from the outside. Often the washer is equiped with a piece of concrete to add weight to reduce vibrations. This can also be removed.
2. put your washingmachine at an elevated level, so you can place your buckets below the bottom level of the washer
3. after washing put a piece of garden hose (plastic hose you can see through, preferably slightly smaller diameter than standard garden hose) through the top of the washer into the washingmachine, all the way down (this can ususally be done through the soap filling opening)

You can manually fill your washer with water through the top (often through the soap filling opening).
Let your clothes soak and occasionally turn your clothes by turning the drum (there is often a rubber belt that normally turns the drum electrically).
Empty the washer by sucking water into the hose. If you then keep the exit of the hose below the washer, the water will flow out naturally into your buckets.

Anonymous said...

when I was young, 50 years ago, in West Texas, cowboys would put their laundry in 50 gallon barrels in the back of the pickup truck and agitate their jeans while on the way to town, and rinse them on the way back.