Is It Really Possible To Wash Clothes Without Any Machines?
The power’s off, or the washing machine’s out of order. You’ve got an enormous amount of washing to do, and you can’t let it wait until the washing machine’s fixed or the power comes on. An unlikely scenario? Not quite. This writer has been in this situation several times, the worst of which happened when I was living in a remote country area (no laundrettes handy) with two children still in nappies (cloth nappies, not disposables) and the power was cut for four days thanks to a severe storm. I have also had a washing machine break down and could not get it fixed for a week while I had one child in nappies and my husband doing a dirty job. As a student, I was in this situation when our flat’s washing machine died. We were too broke to replace it straight away. I also had to hand wash the family’s laundry when my parents worked as missionaries in a developing country.
Knowing how to cope with washing when you can’t use a machine is always useful. While it may not be a life-and-death factor, having clean clothes can be a morale booster in an emergency. You never know when a disaster might leave you without electricity—or you might just be keen on camping!
Handwashing is harder to do than just tossing things in the machine, admittedly, but it is less of a nightmare than it was in days gone by where you had to pump the water by hand, heat it in a copper over a fire and use either lye (eek!) or strong soap (even urine – fact!). Modern plumbing and soap, plus modern fabrics, which are more stain-resistant, make the job easier. And you don’t have to do the whole washing load by hand unless your machine is broken down and you don’t have a laundrette (or a friendly neighbour who will let you use their machine) nearby.
Be Careful Though
One warning, however. This lengthy process will take up to half a morning to complete. I recommend doing this as part of a deep cleaning exercise when the whole house will be in a temporary mess. Experiment at will when you have plenty of free time and no urgent things to do. Depending on when your washing machine is ready is not a good idea for this test.
You will need a large tub or basin to wash clothes without a machine. From experience, I have found that a bathtub is best (it can take up to three machine loads of washing, and more than one person can work at the task), and a large laundry sink is second best. Rubber gloves are also helpful, and having a good quality moisturiser or skin cream handy is an absolute must, especially if you have sensitive skin. A strong stick or wooden spoon can also help, but it is not essential.
Step 1: Initial Soaking
The first part of washing by hand is soaking. Water is closest to a universal solvent and will float much dirt out of the clothing, given time to work. Leaving the item(s) to be washed overnight in a bucket of cold water can do wonders. However, if the item is not colour-fast (sari fabric is often guilty of this), you should not soak it. If the item is all one colour, you can give it a short soak in cold water for about 10 minutes, but if the item has more than one colour, then spot-clean it, blotting, rubbing and rinsing just the dirty patch and nothing else. Cold to lukewarm water is best for soaking, as hot water can damage delicate fabrics. Hot water can also set protein stains such as blood or egg yolk. Be generous with the water – the items should be able to float (if you’re doing a large load, fill the bath to about three-quarters full).
Ordinary hand soap is best for washing delicate fabrics. You can rub the soap onto the damp/wet garment and work it up to a lather, but you can also add the soap as a gel to the soaking water so it can start doing its work. To make soap gel, collect those little slivers and scraps of thin soap that are too puny to wash hands and armpits and put them in a container. Pour boiling water over the soap scraps and let the soap melt. It will cool and set into a pale grey jelly, which is excellent for handwashing clothes. It can also be used as liquid soap or for other home cleaning.
Step 2: Let It Stay For An Hour
Then go away, forget about the washing for an hour, and let it soak. Overnight is ideal, but an hour’s soaking is adequate. After the hour is over, then the hard work begins. To loosen the dirt from the clothes, they must be agitated and moved around in the water. This can be done by stirring with a stick or hauling the wet laundry to and fro with your hands. If the clothes are in the bathtub, you can trample the washing with your feet – a time-honoured method described in Homer’s Odyssey. Wear shorts and do it barefoot. Small children are often enthusiastic helpers if you are using the bathtub, but put barrier cream on their legs first to protect their skin. You will need to agitate the clothing for at least fifteen minutes. It is strenuous work, but treat it like a gym session or aerobic workout, and you will find it more bearable. If you know some filthy items, fish them out and scrub the offending spot.
Step 3: Wring The Water Out
After agitating in soapy water:
- Push all the clothing in a heap at the end of the tub/sink furthest from the plughole and let the water out.
- Once most of the water has drained, squeeze, ring, or trample the piled-up clothes to get as much soapy water and dirt out as possible.
- Use rubber gloves if you are wringing rather than trampling.
- Once you have enough water out of the clothes, replace the plug and refill with fresh water.
- Don’t soak the items this time – get trampling or agitating again for about ten minutes.
Check each item you’re washing for dirt, and rub, squeeze, and add more soap to remove it. Don’t wring and twist delicate items or scrub them vigorously, or you’ll be worse than a washing machine.
Step 4: Repeat
After the first rinse, repeat the drain, squeeze and refill process, followed by another ten minutes of agitating. If you know you will have to wash without the machine again, do not pull the plug – you can use this rinsing water to wash the next batch. If you need to drain the water (e.g. if you know the bath will be required to wash people), push the washing to one end as previously, then squeeze.
Step 5: Final Wringing And Collection
Have a washing basket on hand, as the washing will now need to be taken to wherever you will dry it. This is the worst part of the process. Each garment will need to be wrung out. This is hard on your hands, even if you have rubber gloves on, as it uses muscles that don’t usually get used (if you don’t have rubber gloves, you will chafe your skin with all the friction). Do not wring woollens – squeeze them hard instead. Put the wrung-out clothes in the basket and lug them into the washing line. Don’t try putting the whole lot in the basket at once. The clothes will still be dripping wet and will be excruciatingly heavy.
The clothes will also take longer to drip dry on the washing line—and they will drip! Depending on the weather, some items may take a whole day to three or four days (in the case of a damp, still climate and thick bath mats).
If you have to do this process even once, you will appreciate your washing machine and consider it one of the best inventions of the last 200 years. Even the old agitator and mangle machines beat handwashing!
A word of warning for tenants!
If you want to hire a pro cleaner, here is some intel: A typical price for a London domestic cleaning agency would be around £18-£20 per hour, including cleaning materials and equipment.
Before vacating your property, check whether your washing machine powder/liquid drawer has been professionally cleaned. Letting agents and landlords’ inventory clerks check this little detail meticulously. Don’t let anything fail your checkout report, as it may cost you money. Even if you don’t book a company to do your end-of-tenancy cleaning (which I strongly advise you to do), you can hire a house cleaner to review those details the day before the landlord’s inspection visit.
