Alternative Laundry 🧺

[LadyLocust]

Yes, I realize this sounds like the suspense thriller you never imagined reading, but there was a time not so long ago when clothes and fabric items were highly valued and well kept. They were to be kept as long as possible. Our current plastic clothes (polyester, acrylic etc) are not made to last, are not eco friendly, and ultimately cost more in the long run than quality items.
In attempt to offer some ideas for thought, I will split up the posts.
For this one though, the natural fibers that have been used for ages are: wool, cotton, linen, silk, & leather. All of these items are compostable. (Eco friendly, no waste)

 

[randyt]

Looking forward to it. As a did you know, urine was used for washing clothes not in our too far distant past. The term pi$$pot is a true term. There was folks that collected it for use.

 

[LadyLocust]

In another thread I mentioned washing my clothes pins. My good clothes pins were $2 each and I love them. I seldom use the dryer (except this week since doing so much extra washing). The one on the left is one of the American clothes pins that were $2 each years ago. Next to it is an older “good” one. The two on the right are more common today (when you can find them). They don’t open wide enough to hang a pair of jeans and the springs are weaker. Clothes pins do well with some butcher block wax every once in a blue moon.

 

[LadyLocust]

Looking forward to it. As a did you know, urine was used for washing clothes not in our too far distant past. The term pi$$pot is a true term. There was folks that collected it for use.

Stale urine set the dyes so helped keep colors from fading.

 

[LadyLocust]

There are multiple ways to wash clothes without modern detergent (toxic) and fabric softener.
I use a couple of methods depending upon what I’m washing. I make my own soap which can be used solely but I grate it and mix equal parts soap, borax, and washing soda. I use this on our jeans and “rougher” items. For “gentler” items I use soap nuts and magnesium pellets. From a prepping standpoint this is about the best. The soap nuts do wear down but last multiple washes. As they wear, I add a few more to the bag. 8-ish soap nuts for a regular sized wash. I have enough to last us years. I also have extra magnesium pellets, though they can be revived by soaking them in a little citric acid.
I put white vinegar in the fabric softener receptacle. (It rinses out & doesn’t smell).
I get the soap nuts from Azure Standard and the magnesium pellets off Scamazon

 

[Neb]

Sailors used to put clothes in a bag and tied a rope to same. Threw off the bag of the back of the ship.

Ben

 

[LadyLocust]

And if you are interested in how they did laundry in the past, this is a great book. You wouldn’t think there could be a whole book about laundry, but she’s a great writer and describes what her family did, what works, why and so forth.
She

 

[Weedygarden]

Stale urine set the dyes so helped keep colors from fading.

The thing that is used to set the dyes is called a mordant. I am glad to know that stale urine was once used.

Wikipedia:
A mordant or dye fixative is a substance used to set (i.e., bind) dyes on fabrics. It does this by forming a coordination complex with the dye, which then attaches to the fabric (or tissue).[1] It may be used for dyeing fabrics or for intensifying stains in cell or tissue preparations. Although mordants are still used, especially by small batch dyers, they have been largely displaced in industry by directs.[2]

The term mordant comes from the Latin mordere, "to bite". In the past, it was thought that a mordant helped the dye "bite" onto the fiber so that it would hold fast during washing. A mordant is often a polyvalent metal ion, and one example is chromium (III).[3] The resulting coordination complex of dye and ion is colloidal and can be either acidic or alkaline.

Common dye mordants
Mordants include tannic acid, oxalic acid,[4] alum, chrome alum, sodium chloride, and certain salts of aluminium, chromium, copper, iron, iodine, potassium, sodium, tungsten, and tin.

Iodine is often referred to as a mordant in Gram stains, but is in fact a trapping agent.[3][failed verification]

 

[Amish Heart]

My favorite cousin still has the big ol cast iron pot that she used outside to heat up water to do the clothes washing. She'd get a fire going under it. Nowadays she's old and her daughter does her laundry with the wringer washer. The cast iron pot has a plant in it.

 

[randyt]

When I was first dating my wife she showed me a hole in the enclosed porch wall. It was were the muffler from the maytag engine exhaust went.

I'm expecting to catch heck on this post

 

[Neb]

When I was first dating my wife she showed me a hole in the enclosed porch wall. It was were the muffler from the maytag engine exhaust went.

I'm expecting to catch heck on this post

Lehman's has a gas powered ringer washing machine on display in their store. I was fascinated with it. It had a meat grinder option!

Ben

 

[randyt]

Lehman's has a gas powered ringer washing machine on display in their store. I was fascinated with it. It had a meat grinder option!

Ben

I have an old maytag engine in the barn. One of these days I'm going to start it up. I also have a Briggs and Stratton with a foot starting pedal

 

[Neb]

I have an old maytag engine in the barn. One of these days I'm going to start it up. I also have a Briggs and Stratton with a foot starting pedal

Yep!

It had a foot starter pedal.

Ben

 

[Weedygarden]

Lehman's has a gas powered ringer washing machine on display in their store. I was fascinated with it. It had a meat grinder option!

Ben

I am trying to imagine a load of wash going and grinding up some meat with the same machine. We need photos!

 

[randyt]

I had a photo of one I had taken at a old engine show but couldn't find it
Got these off line

 

[randyt]

 

[Patchouli]

Great thread, @LadyLocust .
She could write a book on country living.

 

[LadyLocust]

Great thread, @LadyLocust .
She could write a book on country living.

She has one called “Home Comforts” that’s quite good and is how I came across this one.

 

[montanabill]

There is a whole forum on facebook all about the maytag gas engines. When I was a kid we had one with the foot pedal starter that was hooked up to a generator for charging batteries..

 

[LadyLocust]

My favorite cousin still has the big ol cast iron pot that she used outside to heat up water to do the clothes washing. She'd get a fire going under it. Nowadays she's old and her daughter does her laundry with the wringer washer. The cast iron pot has a plant in it.

Here’s mine before we cleaned it up. I could sit in it.

 

[montanabill]

Much classier than my 5 gallon bucket and toilet plunger. long ago on a trip the length of mexico we washed clothes in a lidded bucket sitting on the floorboards of our old plymouth valient... A days drive on "washboard" roads would do a pretty good job.

Clothes washing is a immense amount of work if you don't have even the rudimentary equipment...