Small washing machines
Submitted: Monday, Apr 05, 2004 at 21:47
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Rick Blaine
Has anyone had any experience with the small washing machines available for use on 240 volts. I'm tempted to buy one to compliment the small hills hoist on the van's A frame. Also the cost of doing a load of washing could make the investment break even after only a year of travel....I'v made myself the bucket with the agitator in it but they dont wring clothes.. or do more than a few pairs of socks....Just curious to see if any fellow forumists have a wife who must maintain appearances & do a daily wash and discover if the little electric jobs are worth the money. Oh model & brands would help....couldn't find any at the "shop"
Reply By: jolls - Monday, Apr 05, 2004 at 22:12
Monday, Apr 05, 2004 at 22:12
Rick,
I havent tried a washing machine but use a 5 gal bucket. I throw the clothes in with some detergent and let the natural agitation of the bumps in the road do the washing. Wring them out and replace the water half way with some fresh water. Hang them out overnight and walla, clean clothes minimal effort. The precurser to all this is a ready supply to H2O. Not real good for some of the more out of the way outback travels.
Sorry I cna't help you on the 240v version, but this method may save you a couple of sheckles.
Cheers
Jolls
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53315
Reply By: Member - StevenL - Monday, Apr 05, 2004 at 22:21
Monday, Apr 05, 2004 at 22:21
G'Day Rick,
The parents have got a 5kg LG Drum washing machine in the back of the truck. This is the style tha does not have a central agitator. They set it up next to the caravan and it works beaut. It is also extremely quiet. Hose clips straight to t-
junction from caravan water intake hose and waste is straight to site drain. Easy!
Weighs about 20kg costs about $500. They say break even at 12 to 15 months based on doing 3-4 loads a week at about $3 in van park machines. You also can be confident that the machine has not been used for washing dog blankets etc!
Possibly a bit big for the back of a wagon style vehicle but if you have the space in a covered trayback style vehicle then they are worth a look. Parents are on the road for 2 years so dependable washing is importatnt.
Steven
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53317
Reply By: Member - Liz- Tuesday, Apr 06, 2004 at 06:36
Tuesday, Apr 06, 2004 at 06:36
I think there is a brand on the market by Lemair (not sure if they are 240V) that has generated a lot of discussion on the caravaners
forum through msn groups. From what I read they were 3-5kg and had a lot of positive
feedback. Can't remember where you could get them.
AnswerID:
53334
Reply By: Willem - Tuesday, Apr 06, 2004 at 09:10
Tuesday, Apr 06, 2004 at 09:10
Rick,
We carted a small twin tub with us for our 5 years on the road. Try Sanyo, Hitachi, Hoover etc. I made space for it in the van but you could carry it on the rear of the van on a bracket.
Too easy....ran it off the gennie when in the scrub..which was often.
Cheers
AnswerID:
53353
Reply By: David N. - Thursday, Apr 08, 2004 at 07:12
Thursday, Apr 08, 2004 at 07:12
We bought a Lemair (model XQBM20-C) just before christmas, the missus loves it. Very compact, very light and works
well. Max power draw only 260watts. No probs at all so far and sure beats the alternatives eg:
laundromat, etc.
Local Retravision got it in for us... took a few days.
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Reply By: Rick Blaine - Thursday, Apr 08, 2004 at 10:59
Thursday, Apr 08, 2004 at 10:59
How much did it cost.. do you recall?
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Follow Up By: greynomad - Saturday, Apr 17, 2004 at 11:55
Saturday, Apr 17, 2004 at 11:55
We got ours for $300 at Harvey Norman in Greensborough. But I've seen various reports of them from $280 upwards.
They do a pretty good job. We tried ours out with a double bed sheet, a few t-shirts, socks and undies.
After we put it through a wash/spin cycle we put the washing in our ASKO front loader and did a spin cycle at 1500RPM only managed to get about another half cup of water out of it. They only weight 17.5 kgs so very easy tomove around.
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