portable washing machine
For many people, standard hookups for a washing machine and dryer are not available in the home or apartment. Now we have another option — other than laundry mats or hand-washing and hand-drying your clothes — you can use a portable washing machine. This smaller version of a traditional washer is perfect for those who travel, camp or just have a small space with not much clothes to be washed. This is also an effective way to avoid high-costing and high-energy using laundry mats or traditional washers and dryers. As technology advances, portable washing machines have become even more portable, as opposed to just “move-able,” being designed and enhanced to be better operating and space saving. As a side note, besides portable washing machines it’s of course possible to find a portable clothes dryer!
New model units are even offering energy efficient benefits such as the use of less water and the ability to toggle settings such as the water level, washing actions and length timers. Just keep in mind if you’re debating on the purchase of a portable washing machine that they are best suited for residents who don’t have a lot of clothes to wash. They are sometimes nicknamed mini washing machines because they generally can hold about 6 to 10 pounds of clothes, with the largest units holding about double that with two loading basins. The standard double unit is about three foot wide and three to four foot tall, and most come with wheels or a rolling cast for easier moving.
To use the portable washer just attach the hose up to any standard faucet, such as the one in your kitchen or bathroom, and filled up the basin with the proper amount of water. I recommend that you use liquid detergent as it seems to work the most sufficiently with portable washing machines, this being because they generally do not provide enough power or activity to breakdown powdered types of detergents. After the clothes are washed and the wash cycle has completely stopped, drain out the remaining water before filling it back up with cold water in order to rinse the load. Once rinsing is done, drain the water again and move the clothes from the washing basin to the spin extractor basin.. this basin is dedicated to spinning the clothes in order to extract any absorbed water. Following the spin cycle, the final step is to take the clothes out which are now ready to either be put on a line to dry or into a drying machine. Portable washing machines are usually priced starting at $100 and going up. Around the $100 price range you will probably only find portable washing machines that are very small but might fit your needs regardless.