Cheap methods of cleaning clothes?

[Juanito]

Bumping this thread because I'm curious to hear from more people who have washed their clothes without a machine. I'm likely going to be traveling in areas where there wouldn't be any laundromats available.

[Antius]

i am guilty of washing my clothes by finding a Clean body of water and "beating my clothes against a rock" but a Run in the Laundromat is not expensive. Keep your eyes open for change on the ground (check under and around vending machines)

[paddle2paddle]

I have to reply about the campsuds. Campsuds are indeed biodegradible, but should not be used in bodies of water. They require soil to degrade. Any kind of soaps should be used at least 50 feet from any water and the rinse should be buried.

[sim0703]

[quote:66f5cc82f1="loner79"]How does one wash their clothes for little or no money on the road? Rivers? Lakes? Fastfood restrooms? Ive been trying to figure this one out, but I could use some ideas.[/quote:66f5cc82f1]

Wear swimming underpants with a swamp, cause that´s easy to clean in a handwash. Get air to your feet, you just need to change socks once every second week or so. That´s all.

Basic Vagabond Information

[CrowFeather]

Alot of times I smoke roll your own ciggarettes on the road, and after a few days, they tend to stain your fingers a bit, there are two ways to get them out, you cant wash em out, #1 would be to switch to filters and wait a couple days, the other would be to stand in the rain for an hour. If the rain can take the nicotine stains out yer fingers, (which a shower and vigorous scrubbing will not accomplish) Im sure itll do a hell of a job on your clothes.
:thumbs:

[elguero]

i'm a pastor's kid, and i grew up next-door to church for ten years. if word gets around that a church hands out freebies to anyone who asks, then people come out of the woodwork. in a place like where i grew up (rural kansas), it's not too much of a problem: there aren't too many desperately poor people, and the church members give a lot of money to the church. but, most churches in this country barely make ends meet. a lot of them are in the red. the reason my family moved out to kansas in the first place is that the church we were at went bankrupt.

however, whenever my dad would see a cyclist making his way across country, he'd offer a place to stay for a night or two (my dad used to do a lot of l-d cycling). no one is going to give you cash. they have you fill out a form so they know you're not hitting them up for food every three weeks. my advice, if you need to do laundry or desperately need food: hang out at church until someone shows up, and then ask that person if s/he knows someone who can help you.

[quote:fb27acced7]why not? its not a sin.. Jesus told them to help people and your getting what you need while making them feel good.... just say you dont even know that much but you have a personal relationship with God, it works... [/quote:fb27acced7]

using people by lying and faking a relationship with god is definitely not of the best moral character. jesus said to help people, yes. and people should help you out, whether you're a christian or not. frankly, people would probably be suspicious that you're lying anyway, and you'd be better off just telling the truth.

[Guest]

incidentally, the white robes of the priesthood exist to remind people of the purity and holiness of god .. not because the priests are full of themselves (which, i admit, some are).

and, yes, i've also found that smaller churches are more giving than big ones. maybe it's because simply used to giving more of their own money for christ and his church. i think the people in big churches are used to other people (rich people) footing the bill for stuff.

i still think you'd be better off asking for quarters at a laundromat, though. you'd have a better chance there that someone has actually been poor than you would at a church, IMO.

[vincevince]

the camp suds sounds like a good idea as does just politely asking someone to throw your t shirt and socks in with theirs. explain you're a traveler and you'll probably have luck.

if you let your stuff sit out in the sun the sun's UV rays will kill the stuff that makes your clothes stink. Ive read this works particularly well with socks. baking soda could unstink your stuff too.

[CelticGypsy]

I have used church laundry facilities and have also used some emergency shelters...I can remember one time I asked a lady if I could put in a couple of things with her wash, surpirsingly she was ok with it...I helped play with her kid while doing laundry so that helped at a laundry mat...

[oogelebush]

I think somebody mentioned fast food bathrooms earlier. Body soap or hand soap definitely can be used to clean clothes, and in many parts of the world laundry is done with cheap soap in cold water and it works just fine. In addition to bathrooms (a very cramped unclean environment usually), there are spigots outside many restaurants and at some rest stops/parks. This is the best as you're not stuck in a sink.

When I was in Paraguay we filled a tub partway with cold water from underground and did our laundry by grabbing two parts and rubbing them against each other all over the clothing in that. It takes some getting used to, but after a little whiel its faster than machine laundry.

It's also a handy trick if you are out a pair of underwear, socks, shorts or anything that wouldn't be a whole load by itself. The only thing that sucks is trying to wash jeans, takes forever.

P.S. Washing in a stream, while not as good as clean water, works well if you can find fast-flowing (no algae, few plants, few fish, really cold) water to do it in. If the only thing around is a lake or slow streams it's not worth it to just change your stink from body odor to stagnant water.