Jul302010
Wonderwash ~ Is it worth the money???
Guest post by Rightwingmom.
During the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, my family was without power for 10 days. Luckily I prepared and had ever piece of laundry pre-washed and ready. After the first week, I found myself needing to do some wash. My only alternative was to wash and rinse in our bathtub…NOT a chore that was agreeable to my lower back! As soon as life returned to “normal” I set out to find an alternative. Enter the Wonderwash.
Hiking and geocaching in clean clothes, thanks to the Wonderwash. image by rightwingmom
We purchased the unit and almost immediately took our 9 and 11 year-old sons on a ten day camping trip to the Colorado Rocky Mountains. We only packed three days worth of clothing. Each evening we washed three loads: jeans, shirts, sweats, shorts, and underwear for two adults (bigger than size 12) and two (not-so-small) boys. We heated river water, added very little laundry detergent, put in our clothes, and tightened the lid to create pressure inside the tub.
After a two-minute spin, and due to my impatience, I skipped using the drainage tube and simply dumped the water out of the top. We quickly wrung the clothes, returned them, filled the tub with warm clean water and gave it a second spin. The entire process took 45 minutes. The clothes came out remarkably clean. (Reminder ~ We were camping on a river in the mountains and my youngest son has an aversion to cleanliness. The Wonderwash actually got s’more goo out!) We line dried and wore the clothes the next day.
Benefits ~
1. Manually operated / NO electricity.
2. Compact design, but surprisingly large capacity.
3. Uses very little water and detergent
4. Washes and rinses quickly and completely.
5. Easy to assemble and use.
6. The cylinder, lid, and handle are a solid design.
Drawbacks ~
1. The base does seem a little rickety, but if it breaks my husband assures me he can build a new base without too much trouble.
2. Despite the surprisingly large capacity, you will NOT fit a queen or king size quilt or comforter into this machine.
The Wonderwash has proven to me that it can handle my day-to-day laundry needs in a TEOTWAWKI scenario.
© 2010, thesurvivalmom. All rights reserved.
(23) Readers Comments
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MikeLaws
Looks Neat.
Couple of questions: What is the weight of the unit?
How portable is it? (Is it a bulky object to carry?)
You said you did three loads per night was the 45 minute time frame per load or all three loads?
The price point is pretty good (a little under $45 on the link).
Please let us know how it holds up under continued use. See if it has durability for the long haul.
rightwingmom
Mike,
Size: 12" x 12" x 16" (L x W x H)
Weight: approx. 4 lbs.
The base is rickety, but I found the tub, lid, and handle to be solid.
I still have a 5 gal. bucket and (clean) toilet plunger as a back up.
Like Lisa has taught, always have more than one way to get a job done!
It's sold through Laundry Alternative and their customers give in a 90% approval 365 days – lifetime. http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/seller/at-a-glance….
There are also more reviews and a video demo on their website: http://www.laundry-alternative.com/products/Wonde…
Jack
Great post… I have been looking at these for about a year, and have been skeptical at best with the results. Can't always trust the good reviews you read on the sites that sell stuff, so this was a good review… This is also something I thought about taking camping and throwing in my SUV for long trips.
Thanks for this!
rightwingmom
I carried it in our pop up camper. It fit nicely between the collapsed table and the couch.
I stored the laundry detergent in a small Rubbermaid screw top container inside the tub.
dee
I bought one in 1999. I still have not used it, but good to read your review!
Melinda
Thanks for this info. We've been discussing alternative laundry methods for a while now and looking for a solution other than the old washborad and tub routine. Can you use any laundry detergent with it? Thanks!
rightwingmom
Yes. I used 3X concentrated liquid All b/c iIt was on sale AND I didn't have to carry as much. I prefer liquid b/c it dissolved faster than powder, but you can use any laundry detergent.
lemniskate67
I had one; now, I would just buy a new 5 gallon bucket with a sealing lid instead. Sturdier and you could even use a stick to agitate the clothes a bit. The one thing I didn't like was having to use warm water to really make it work, and most of the time I like to use cold so that any stains that don't come out aren't permanently set.
The base really is rickety though, I had to reinforce mine and glue it, and it just wasn't worth it. Now, I'd just sit down and roll the bucket a few feet back and forth.
Mary
I bought one of these but have never used it. It is in my long term (TEOTWAWKI) storage. I was impressed with how sturdy it appears.
Ryan
I really like mine. Not the cheapest way to go but they really work and are convenient. If I was going to use it a lot I would fashion some way to secure the base. Either a clamp to put it onto a table or attaching it to a piece of plywood seems like the way to go.
rightwingmom
Thanks for the advice Ryan. The base does seem to be it's only flaw. I plan on having my sweet husband build something similar, if we ever need it.
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prairiechick
I found mine on ebay and only paid $25 with shipping. The base is rickety and you have to be sure you balance it when you add the water. I use it once a week and have only had to tighten the handle once in 11 months. I love it. I did buy an antique wringer to get more soap and water out of the clothes and they dry much faster. I live in an apartment and the nearest laundry is a mile away. My great aunt Bessie would be proud at how long my hand washed, line dried clothes last now. I use 2x soap and the small container has lasted me 6 months. I used to buy the same size every 2 months. It sure beats the bathtub and I don’t have to start up my car to do the laundry.
rightwingmom
prairiechick, You make excellent points. It's tough to prep on a budget, but I think this machine (plus a 5 gal. bucket and new toilet plunger as back up) are worth the investment.
Where did you find the antique wringer?
MamaLaundry
Wow – well written review.
And I'm totally intrigued. I've just started to research alternative laundry situations. This seems like a very realistic alternative.
Thanks!
-Lauren
ccc
2 sturdy toilet plungers and 2 -3 5-15 gallon buckets and you have a laundry. Do not use the buckets or plungers for other uses. Disolve the detergent in hot water and add to warm or cold water in washing bucket. Plunge side to side to get things sloshing for about 10-15 minutes depending on how dirty things are. Pull from water and wring well and drop into clean water. Plunge to rinse. Wring well. Change water and repeat. You are done. I like to start with the cleanest laundry so I can reuse the soapy wash water once and save some labor. In the winter you can place the buckets in the bathtub but in the summer just put them on the lawn or walk near the clothesline.
LizLong
We just got ours today. I must say I was amazed – I thought Ikea had the worst assembly instructions anywhere! LOL. Good thing it's not too tough to figure out since there weren't ANY. I do feel better knowing I have this, clothes pins, clothes line, pulleys for the clothes line, and a drying rack. While it obviously won't do the job of my regular washer, if it gets bad, just knowing that we can wash some less-dirty things in there and reduce electric usage may be huge. And, obviously, if there is NO electricity, we'll be the envy of everyone else. :-p We might even be able to start a new business….
rightwingmom
Excellent Liz!
To be honest, I was pleasantly surprised that it got our camping clothes remarkably clean!
Give it a whirl and get back to me w/ your opinion!
Yes, you could barter your laundry service. I'm sure you'd fetch some sweet deals!
LizLong
I'm also stockpiling A LOT of HE laundry detergent. That is something you definitely can't make yourself and that lots of people use. SHTF, there could be a lot of people with lovely newish HE washers they can't use because they lack detergent. So, I am getting extra for bartering. (I figure a year of detergent at my regular usage rate will be stretched A LOT further, SHTF, because we'll wear things more times before washing them.)
Lei
I'm confused The ad seems to say it runs on electricity. Yet people are talking about using it
when there is no electricity. What is its power source ?
LizLong
Your arms are the power source. They turn the crank to make it rotate.
Liz Long
I figured out the problem! It looks like there are TWO products called the Wonder Wash or something similar.One is a metal canister you turn with your arms. The other is a plastic device shaped similar to a coffee cup with no handle – slightly smaller on the bottom. The first one is hand cranked, the second one plugs into a power source. Yeah! I figured it out!
Laundry Alternative
Thanks for the review .. stay tuned new products in a couple of months…