Clothes Washer

[Astrid]

Does it really work and they stated that it really made their clothes REALLY white!! Can anyone confirm this?

Yes it really does work quite well. Most fabric whiteners actually contain salt and that is a major active agent. You will still need to rinse in fresh water though. But it does work

[nautilass]

Originally Posted by shadow

Sounds and looks like a great alternative!! I had several friends that did the old tow your clothes off the side of the boat thing. Does it really work and they stated that it really made their clothes REALLY white!! Can anyone confirm this?? Or is this just an old wives tale that they were spreading??

Tried this a few times, but wasn't wowed. And it's not possible if you're swinging off the hook or moored up. of course.

Preferred method now is to soak laundry in large (very, very large) bucket of hot soapy seawater (done by filling bucket and leaving in full sun - with pan of boiled seawater added for good measure). Chuck in dirty clothes. Agitate occasionally in passing, and then after several hours slop laundry into a net bag dunk in sea vigorously to rinse, then wring out and do a final rinse in freshwater. Hang out to dry in sun. All very possible most days in the Caribbean. Not so possible in cooler climes. As with fresh water, hot seawater gets clothes a lot cleaner than luke warm.

[Astrid]

All very possible most days in the Caribbean.

Just don't try it near a BP oil spill.

[Extemporaneous]

Originally Posted by emagin

Extemp, I admire your ingenuity. I think you are onto something here, the idea of throwing this sucker over the stern and letting her rip does sound attractive. Umm....start with some old underwear for your tests so you don't lose your best kit in the testing stages!
Perhaps a cone shaped top with the 'blades' or twist in the cone might make for a more hydrodynamic shape. Would not want this thing to turn into a "laundry-series-drogue"

Ya, I was thinking a large funnel for a cone, but no blades.
I will do some tests at some point.

Regards,
Extemp.

[Chief Engineer]

How much drag does one of those things inflict?

[osirissail]

Probably about as much as a Jordan Series Drogue depending upon how big your bloomers are. Dragging a dinghy is about 1 to 2 knots for a 6 knot boat. Since this is a "dead" drag that is not streamlined which a dinghy is, you can expect some serious speed loss. However, it may only be a temporary loss of speed if there are sharks or other game fish about.

[colemj]

I was thinking about drag also. If our folding props don't fold, we lose 0.5kt per prop. Dragging a drum behind us, no matter how hydrodynamically modified, or a bag of clothes would be a drogue (say, there's a dual use!).

Mark

[Minggat]

Originally Posted by osirissail

Dragging a dinghy is about 1 to 2 knots for a 6 knot boat.

Thread drift alert.

Is this true?

I've never been a big fan of towing dingys. But I can see it a convienient in the right situation/conditions. But that sounds like a serious drag to me.

[colemj]

Our previous boat was a 7kt monohull and dragging the dinghy (Zodiac 310 RIB) by a bridle without the motor cost us 1 knot. Maybe a bit more in very light air and in heavier seas.

Mark

[osirissail]

Even more than the speed loss/drag of towing a dinghy is an additional consideration - money. Dinghies are now big dollar items ranging with motor from $1.5K to $2K for little bitty ones to $5K or more for larger RIB boat/motor dinghies.
- - If you look carefully at the restrictions in your insurance policy you will probably notice an exclusion of coverage for "towed dinghies." Which means if it breaks loose or is damaged by flipping or other things you will not get any insurance money. The insurance companies are well aware of the large numbers of lost and damaged dinghies caused by towing so write the exclusion. Needless to say there has been a boom in the sales of davits as a result.
- - For those who cannot afford insurance or those with high deductibles like $5K to keep the policy premium down, it is also true that they cannot afford to lose a $3K-$5K (+/-) dinghy/motor. Beside just losing the dinghy while towing there are a host of other self inflicted problems like backing over the dinghy; getting it between you and the dock; and the annoying and destructive problem of the dinghy overrunning the boat and smashing into the transom during rolling seas.
- - But back on topic, towing clothing or containers with clothing is just not done for a host of reasons more relevant than drag or speed loss. The oceans and rivers/waterways are terribly polluted, acidic, and full of debris, not to mention hungry marine life that sees anything small zipping through the water as possible "dinner." A container full of clothing can snag considerable sea grass/weed and other floating vegetable life including all sorts of flotsam and jetsam. On a "short leach" the container will be smashing into the boat which is not great for that $10K paint job or windvane.
- - Add in the physical nuclear attraction for anything plastic or polyester/nylon and stainless steel or bronze propellers and shafts and you can see a myriad of reasons why the old fashion 5 gallon bucket and a toilet plunger is a better way to do the laundry.