Washing clothes - ideas and equipment

[Kanga]

On camino I always hand-wash my walking clothes each night. A bit fanatical but in my family "cleanliness is next to godliness" was an oft quoted saying. One of the side effects is that my hands and nails get horribly dry and split and crack. I've just found this ingenious device online and ordered it. I can't recommend it yet because I've not tried it, but I'll let you know how it works. It will certainly save my hands.

http://thescrubba.com.au

Wondering if anyone else has tried it or has other ideas.

 

[J Willhaus]

I am going to try a 3 gallon ziplock bag. Don't know how it will hold up. Probably could also use a dry sack. It would not have a "wash board" built in though.

 

[peregrina2000]

Kanga, that looks pretty ingenious. But how much does it weigh?

 

[Anemone del Camino]

64 $ for a plastic bag with little teeth? If you trying to protect your hands, for the same 140g. bring a pair of Marigolds? But you have to give it to the Aussies for their wonderful humour. Loved the video.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Kanga, that looks pretty ingenious. But how much does it weigh?

According the video, 140 grams, and 64A$ ;0)

 

[Mark Lee]

Looks pretty good to me. You are just washing the sweat out of most of your clothes while walking the Camino anyway. The only thing I got any amount of dirt on was my socks. My shorts, underwear and shirts just got sweaty.
Oh shite...just saw the price! I'll stick to elbow grease....

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Mark, lucky you for not walking in rainy weather that would cover you in mud, and mud that is not easy to take out of your clothes. I would try to wash by hand, but things only came clean every 3 or 4 days later, when I found a washing machine. Cannot imagine getting clothes cleaned in that bag if there are truly dirty. If only sweat: then rise well, with no soap and save your hands. But what was this about God and cleanliness Kanga spoke of? ;0)

 

[dougfitz]

My wife bought an earlier, heavier version for a trip two years ago. It was good while it lasted, but didn't prove that durable, and sprung a leak. The version shown has a different a approach to sealing that looks like it might avoid the problem. It was certainly more effective than hand washing, and this one looks like it could be dual use if you wanted dry bag during the day.

 

[nidarosa]

I often suffer with (really bad and huge) heat blisters in sunny countries, especially on my hands, and one of the big problems is doing the hand washing every day. Not just does keeping my hands in water - often cold water - for a certain time make the itching worse but the agitation tends to make blisters burst and they can get infected. Last time I was on the Camino I met a walking companion who was good enough to do the hand washing / rinsing out for me and I paid for the washing machine when we came across one. I am thinking that something like this Scrubba (though expensive) could be a good thing for me not only on the Camino but also when travelling in general, to keep laundry in and then wash and rinse without worrying about my hands or paying for a service. Has anyone else with hand or skin problems tried this? And would the scrubbing get rid of the galician mud at the bottom of my trousers? Thanks for bringing it to my attention, @Kanga !

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Has anyone else with hand or skin problems tried this? And would the scrubbing get rid of the galician mud at the bottom of my trousers? Thanks for bringing it to my attention, @Kanga !

When I posted I came short of suggesting one ask for help or offer to pay a drink, a meal, a night, a washing machine, in exchange for private hand washing duty. So glad others have been able to help out. I also have an intolerance to heat, but mine in on the ankle and feet, so people give me dirty looks for limping along the way as an inapt cow who should have stayed home. I have walked with muddy hems, and only the washing machine would do it, despite all my hands on scrubbing. Imagine in a bag: you get it all over!

 

[nidarosa]

Well it so happens (I just checked) that there is a little bit of Wirralian mud on the bottom of my walking trousers after the raingear test walk earlier today so I think I'll try washing it in a drybag tomorrow to see if the same principle works without the valve - the washboardy thing will probably be handy for stains etc but for just rinsing out sweat a drybag with most of the air carefully squeezed out might do the job. It would be a lot cheaper for sure!

 

[Anniesantiago]

Here's my idea. I've used these tiny sink plungers to wash my clothes and they work great!
You will need a rubber stopper.
Fill sink with soapy water.
Put clothes in.
Plunge them a while.
Rinse.
Your hands only need to get wet wringing them out.
Cost is under 5 euros and weight is minimal.

On the other hand, wear a Macabi skirt and only wash it once every 2 weeks!
(But yeah, there's underwear and socks...)

 

[Anniesantiago]

Ohhhh.. I tried to edit my post but I can't find it.
I think the thingy you posted is a good idea... I just am not sure I'd spend the cash.
But if it saves your hands.. go for it!

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Well it so happens (I just checked) that there is a little bit of Wirralian mud on the bottom of my walking trousers after the raingear test walk earlier today so I think I'll try washing it in a drybag tomorrow to see if the same principle works without the valve - the washboardy thing will probably be handy for stains etc but for just rinsing out sweat a drybag with most of the air carefully squeezed out might do the job. It would be a lot cheaper for sure!

I say go get a bit more mud on them and see what happens. If you didn't know you have mud on, there can't be much on there to start your test with.

 

[txpeah]

Lots of reviews on US Amazon if this helps: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BUI7HFC/?tag=casaivar02-20

 

[jpflavin1]

On camino I always hand-wash my walking clothes each night. A bit fanatical but in my family "cleanliness is next to godliness" was an oft quoted saying. One of the side effects is that my hands and nails get horribly dry and split and crack. I've just found this ingenious device online and ordered it. I can't recommend it yet because I've not tried it, but I'll let you know how it works. It will certainly save my hands.

http://thescrubba.com.au

Wondering if anyone else has tried it or has other ideas.

A bit pricey at ($64.), 140g extra weight and you still need to carry detergent. I will stick with washing and stripping in the shower and finishing up in the wash sinks.

Joe

 

[Kanga]

Yes, it is expensive but my husband just ordered a "cheap" case of wine online.....
Worth a try as I've tried every cream and ungent immaginable. I like @Anniesantiago 's idea but it's a bit cumbersome and this washing bag seems to have a dual purpose as @dougfitz pointed out.

 

[SYates]

A bit pricey at ($64.), 140g extra weight and you still need to carry detergent. I will stick with washing and stripping in the shower and finishing up in the wash sinks.

Joe

That is my opinion / approach also: Take clothes with you into the shower and they get their pre-wash whilst you get your full wash. Then finish / rinse clothes off at the sink. For those with sensitive skin: A pair gloves are lighter and cheaper and protect your hands also from the water. BTW as I see it, you still have to rinse the clothes when they come out of this bag, so your hands still get exposed to cold water. Buen Camino, SY

 

[koknesis]

my recipe was rather simple. I took from home 50ml container with liquid detergent, which had 2ml cup for convenient dosing. when in shower, I rinsed my daily laundry (shirt, underwear, socks) or weekly laundry (+pants, hat, ), put them in an ordinary plastic bag (pants in the second bag) and ad a cup of detergent. then gave them a good rumple, still trying not to break the bag but rather spread the detergent. half an hour later just rinsed the clothes in running water and put them on a line.

 

[MichaelSG]

On camino I always hand-wash my walking clothes each night. A bit fanatical but in my family "cleanliness is next to godliness" was an oft quoted saying. One of the side effects is that my hands and nails get horribly dry and split and crack. I've just found this ingenious device online and ordered it. I can't recommend it yet because I've not tried it, but I'll let you know how it works. It will certainly save my hands.

http://thescrubba.com.au

Wondering if anyone else has tried it or has other ideas.

On my second caminho, I used that product. My wife has similar problems with her hands and thought it would be a good idea to try. She was the smart one though as she got me to wash the clothes most days anyway. Her hands didn't get soapy at all! IMHO, it certainly was expensive, probably not worth the costs but quite useful none-the-less. We used it almost every day and never had to queue at washing basins. It takes longer than the video shows as getting the air out takes a while but it is neat and our clothes got clean. It easily got out the sweat and light mud. We also used it as a dry bag inside the backpack. I never understood the obsession with weight so that didn't bother me. We used very concentrated camp soap but next time, I might just use Woollite. Count on it only doing one person's clothes at a time. Knowing everything I know now, would I buy it again - probably not at that cost but it's a close call.

BTW, using this product got me thinking about a bigger issue for pilgrims - drying their clothes. Wouldn't it be nice if each albergue had a simple hand operated spinning drum that got most of the water out of the clothes. Something like this (https://www.katom.com/048-SD92SC.html). It would save on the wringing and cut down on clothesline time.

 

[Al the optimist]

For some reason I just don't find washing clothes as therapeutic as a shower or a cerveza at the end of a days walk! Still one pair of briefs, inner and outer socks, a t-shirt and maybe a pair of shorts fortunately does not take much time between discarding and pinning on a line. Now maybe I could try to multi-task and take that cerveza during the laundry process?

 

[Anemone del Camino]

BTW, using this product got me thinking about a bigger issue for pilgrims - drying their clothes. Wouldn't it be nice if each albergue had a simple hand operated spinning drum that got most of the water out of the clothes. Something like this (https://www.katom.com/048-SD92SC.html). It would save on the wringing and cut down on clothesline time.

Could not agree more with drying being a bigger issue. But I also have to say that I am amazed that so many prolongue their showers, with hot water, to wash or prewash clothes when other pilgrims may end up taking cold showers.

I frainkly applaud the albergues that do the laundry for you. They make sure the albergue remains clean (no water dripping through out, etc.) and probably end up saving on water due to how "intelligent" European washing machines are. As for the spinning drum, it looks like a good alternative to the electrical one I have used in a few albergues. Price is similar, but by being manual perhaps it's more durable, let delicate?

 

[Tia Valeria]

My hands get dry etc if I use soap - so I wash our clothes in shampoo instead. It works even if the water is not hot and my hands are OK too. Socks and undies I can wash with my piece of toilet soap that I know is OK too. We don't take a laundry type soap at all.

 

[Dutch]

The price is not that bad. 64 aussie dollars is about 44 euros, so on a whole walk from Sjpp to SdC and when you use it everyday, like @Kanga , its a bit less then 1,50 a day. I think thats pretty fair deal. And if you walk another camino (or a different hike), it gets even cheaper. And the weight is also good. I say, good idea, why not.

I think i saw something similar once on Dragons Den or Shark Tank. Not sure if it was this Aussie product.

 

[Al the optimist]

My liquid soap/shampoo/washing liquid weights 100g. Job done.

 

[nidarosa]

I have just, as promised, washed my walking trousers in an 8 litre Sea to Summit drybag! I put water in there and a little - very little - detergent, and squeezed out as much air as I could before I rolled it up and clipped it shut. It became like a slightly odd dough so I kneaded it for a minute or two, poured the water out and squeezed out as much as I could by rolling the bag up from the bottom, then refilled with more water, clipped it to, grabbed the handle at one end and the clipped handle on the other and just shook it back and forth a bit. Then emptied water and squeezed out as much as I could by rolling the bag up tight from the bottom. Then it was easy to clip the handle to carry the wet trousers outside before taking them out and pegging them to the line. I didn't wring them further, that is part of the experiment. My hands only touched the wet trousers to hang them out, and even though they were dripping wet there is a limit to how much more water I could have got out by wringing. Wrapping in towel and stamping on it will probably work just as well - or better. I turned the bag inside out and clipped it to the line to dry. Oh, and the line of mud at the very bottom of my trousers was gone! So far so good!

 

[Kathy F.]

I tried washing in a 3 gallon zip loc bag but the seams burst after a few energetic scrubs.
My Camino had lots of mud. Socks and pants especially had to be extra-rinsed every day. I just used whatever was available. After getting the big chunks off, I often let the clothes soak in detergent filled water for a few minutes, gave them a bit of a scrub for a few minutes, then rinsed them out and wrung them dry.
Oh, and one especially tiresome day, I invented the perfect way to kill two birds with one stone.
No. I'm not proud of it.

 

[JabbaPapa]

On camino I always hand-wash my walking clothes each night. A bit fanatical but in my family "cleanliness is next to godliness" was an oft quoted saying. One of the side effects is that my hands and nails get horribly dry and split and crack.

...

Wondering if anyone else has ... other ideas.

I'd advise getting a lump or 2 of real Olive Oil -based Savon de Marseille prior to departure -- which sadly, is easier said than done ... (3 lumps is too many)

The oil in the soap protects your hands from damage -- so much so, you can even use it as body soap.

 

[jeffnd]

Your hands only need to get wet wringing them out.

To me, that was the worst part about hand washing. Scrubbing the mud and funk out of my clothes was no problem in the sink. But to wring out enough water so they would line dry was a serious chore. I tried rolling my clothes up in my towel, but that didn't seem to help much.

I'll be interested in this product once they figure out how to put a spin cycle in it!

 

[Kanga]

@SYates rinsing is done inside the bag too - you refill it with clean water. I used to use your method of stamping on the clothes in the shower, but.found they still needed to be picked up and rubbed by hand a bit. And then someone pointed out that people pee in the shower ....

 

[Anemone del Camino]

@SYates rinsing is done inside the bag too - you refill it with clean water. I used to use your method of stamping on the clothes in the shower, but.found they still needed to be picked up and rubbed by hand a bit. And then someone pointed out that people pee in the shower ....

Eeeewwww... I would Simply not wash my clothes in shower not to waste warm Water and maie rom for those wapiti g their turn.

 

[SYates]

@Anemone del Camino I don't wash my clothes in the shower, they get their pre-rinse whilst I shower, so, in the end, I even save water with this method! SY

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Eeeewwww... I would Simply not wash my clothes in shower not to waste warm Water and maie rom for those wapiti g their turn.

Oh dear, Ipad autocorrect is really not of much use for those of us who use our technology to communicate in a number of languages. Surely Apple could teach its products to do that.

 

[Pilgrim-S-414]

I've used Scrubba on Camino Frances last year and found it great, definitely part of my gear for all future Caminos
For me it was quicker and more thorough laundry than hand washing.

 

[nidarosa]

I'll definitely be doing my washing in a drybag from now on, both when I travel to Oslo for a week for business and when I go on a three week Camino-then-beach holiday! Whether I eventually buy the Scrubba or not depends on more pilgrim user feedback ... thanks @Pilgrim-S-414 - you'll let us know, won't you @Kanga ?

 

[Stephen Nicholls]

All you guys have excellent ideas.
But mine is best - it gives you extra time to do anything else you want - or drink another bottle of wine.
My idea is simple - I don't wash anything at all.
This has so many advantages: your back-pack needn't contain any changes of clothes - just liquid refreshment.
You sleep better - because no-one else sleeps on the bunk next to you, snoring their head off.
You have a double seat to yourself on planes, buses and trains.
If you like solitary walking - it's perfect.
My wife never joins me on camino - I think it's because of the arthritis in her knees ....

 

[Kanga]

@Pilgrim-S-414 - you'll let us know, won't you @Kanga ?

Will do; I'll take it on the Norte in May.

 

[Kanga]

And presumably, @Stephen Nicholls, when you occasionally take a shower, you just whip that panty liner off the sole of your foot (see blister threads) and use it as a towel.....

 

[Al the optimist]

And presumably, @Stephen Nicholls, when you occasionally take a shower, you just whip that panty liner off the sole of your foot (see blister threads) and use it as a towel.....

With you remembering things like that Kanga I think we should rename you Elephant!

 

[Bajaracer]

Dishwashing gloves, cheap, light, and protects your hands while washing your laundry.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002XJZLK/?tag=casaivar02-20

 

[Piccata]

I did meet a guy who was using a Scrubba on the Camino Frances and after watching him use it and talking to him about it I decided it was going to become part of my Camino kit. I think it will be even more useful for my pre- and post Camino travels because hostels/hotels don't provide the laundry washing facilities that almost all albergues do.