Have you ever heard of this??

[beansmama]

Washing and spin drying your laundry in a 5 gallon salad spinner?

I have been wanting a wonderclean or wonderwash along with an electric spin dryer for some time now, but haven't had the funds. We spend around $30/mo right now at our apartment laundromat and once the baby comes...along with those cloth diapers, that price will jump significantly.

Has anyone ever tried this method?

I also found something called the laundry pod, but i don't think it's for sale yet...it was made when a company realized women were washing their "delicate" in a large salad spinner! LOL

[Purple*Lotus]

Hi again I think it sounds like a lot of extra work, especially seeing as you are going to have a newborn. Is it possible to get a secondhand washing machine? We got ours for $50 back when we first started living together. Or maybe your apartment isn't set up for that. It might even be cheaper for you to just wash the clothes in the laundromat then get some wooden racks and hang dry in the apartment. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[beansmama]

Originally Posted by Bunnyflakes

Hi again I think it sounds like a lot of extra work, especially seeing as you are going to have a newborn. Is it possible to get a secondhand washing machine? We got ours for $50 back when we first started living together. Or maybe your apartment isn't set up for that. It might even be cheaper for you to just wash the clothes in the laundromat then get some wooden racks and hang dry in the apartment. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Hey

Our apartment doesn't have hook-ups...i wish it did though! I have a w/d that i'm storing at my moms house.

I think the danby twin tub washer/spinner is pretty neat (can be hooked up to a sink, small, portable) but it's about $300, and with all the other stuff i need to buy right now...not gonna happen

[MCsMom]

I have a washer/dryer combo in our condo that does not have hookups. It is ventless and runs on 110. I have been cloth diapering with it for a while and it works pretty well. Even better to just wash and then hang dry. We got an LG that we are very happy with 2nd hand. here are some http://www.nextag.com/ventless-washe.../products-html so you can see what I mean. Just another option, you can sometimes find them for cheaper then those prices, I think we paid about 300 or so.

[CameronsMama]

We used to have a hand crank washer that we got from a camping supply store. It only cost about $40, and it worked pretty well. It was a fair amount of work though

[dancebaraka]

That does sound like a lot of work. Do you know anyone with a W/D that you could barter with. I'd love to trade with another Mama in my area for use of my laundry. Maybe look after her kids for a couple hours, mop the floor, or fold some of her clothes as a trade.

[Doodlebugsmom]

Originally Posted by beansmama

Washing and spin drying your laundry in a 5 gallon salad spinner?

I've never heard of that, but I did hear Alton Brown recommend drying salad/greens in a pillowcase in a dryer on the "no heat" setting.

[beansmama]

LOL!

I can't afford the bigger washer/dryer combo...otherwise that would be awesome!

I used to have the hand crank washer as well (it was either wonderclean or wonderwash?) and i thought it worked really good, but it KILLED my hands to wring the clothes out before hanging them. The washing part itself didn't take very long at all.

I'm thinking of purchasing a spin dryer that spins MUCH faster than a rinse cycle and gets your clothes nearly dry so hang time is shortened. It only takes about 3 minutes.

For the hand crank washer/spin dryer it'll be around $200 including shipping. I thought the salad spinner thing might be cheaper and nearly as effective...who knows! LOL!

[Longhairedbeauty]

I , too, have to do my laundry in the laundromat downstairs as there is no hook up for a washer and dryer (although I do have one- had it in my last apt and it's now in my brother's basement).

I think I'm averaging ~$14-18 per month for one person (me). There are 75 c and $1 washers and I try to always select the 75 cent ones if they are available. I also put a big amount of clothes/towels in them as they are heavy duty machines...more so than I would with a home one. And sometimes I entirely skip the dryer which saves $. And I go back to my apt and hang clothes. It does increase the humidity in the apt, but I welcomed that in the colder months.

So perhaps you can find ways to make it a bit cheaper? (more clothes per load, no dryer time...)

I looked at the wonder clean machine as well....I don't think I have the energy to do that each week for all my stuff (clothes, plus towels, plus bedroom sheets). Plus, If I understand correctly, it washes them, but then they are soaking wet...and the wringing out the water from the clothes would be additional work, not to mention wear and tear on the clothes depending on the wringing method.