The Amazing Laundry Alternative

Have you washed clothes in a bath tub? Scrubbed your jeans on a washing board? Driven your t-shirts to the laundromat, spending your quarters as you wondered what that washing machine previously contained? For those of us who have experience renting or living in places without conventional washers and dryers, we may have tried some or all of the above and wondered if there was another option.

I have recently moved into yet another washing-machine-free living space and after some research, decided to invest in two portable machines offered by The Laundry Alternative: the Wonder Wash and the Mini Countertop Spin Dryer.
The Wonder Wash is small but can hold a good-sized load of clothes. One of my loads today held a pair of pants, a pair of shorts, and 5 t-shirts. Before you add your clothes, you should put in the water and detergent - a full load is 6 quarts of warm or hot water and a tablespoon or less of detergent.

Screw the lid on tightly and begin turning. The Wonder Wash is completely electricity-free. For a full load, hand spin the machine for two minutes.

After two minutes, insert the drain pipe into the bottom of the Wonder Wash and let the water drain into the sink. Remove the lid to improve drainage. Then, add 6 quarts of water, replace the lid, spin 30 seconds for the rinse cycle, and then re-drain. You can do a second rinse if desired or hand-rise items in the sink as needed.

You can hang the clothes to dry at this point, but as the clothes come out soaking wet, I've found the countertop spin dryer to be very helpful in speeding up the drying process. The dryer is like a centrifuge and removes an amazing amount of water in a small time -- usually only 30 seconds. The clothes are slightly damp but much dryer than they would come out of a conventional washing machine, and after 2 hours of hanging on my drying rack, my clothes were almost 100% dry. The dryer does use electricity for the brief 30 seconds.

I am amazed by the efficiency and simplicity of these machines, as well as by their minimal environmental impact. Today, it took about 25 minutes to do a week's worth of laundry (2 loads). The washer is a good option for traveling and camping as well.

The machines can be ordered through The Laundry Alternative or on Amazon.