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Fit a washing machine or not..??


4LeggedGrasshopper

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1 hour ago, WotEver said:

Disregarding the mix-up of units, I’m amazed it worked even on an old machine. The heater operates until the water reaches the set temp and then the program progresses. I guess this old machine may have simply had a timer for the heater?

Definitely worked as described, using got water delivered by a paloma, but unfortunately I don't know the detail of the machine he altered. 

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1 minute ago, BWM said:

Definitely worked as described, using got water delivered by a paloma, but unfortunately I don't know the detail of the machine he altered. 

If you are prepared to be canny (disconnect the heater element, run hot water in from another source / switch to cold for the rinse cycle et al)  then it's possible to reduce the electrical load. However, in today's 'society' folks just want to push a button a go and do something else (and why not).

In all fairness the newcomer should be aware that moving from land based facilities to those on the water is not straightforward and requires some redesign or compromises.

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1 hour ago, bizzard said:

washday.jpg

Just add a banjo and you've got all the kit you need for a skiffle group.

I had a 1980s Bendix Supercompact which was small (2.5kg) but fine for the two of us plus (later) a baby.

The advantage was that it only used 13 litres of water and didn't have any new fangled fancy Dan electronics so would run off any old genny or invertor that was to hand.

It is also built like a tank and is still in service in the workshop to this day washing and preshrinking my creations.

Now we are in a house with two sons (11 and 16) I have no idea how we coped with such a small washer back then.

 

 

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5 minutes ago, carlt said:

Just add a banjo and you've got all the kit you need for a skiffle group.

I had a 1980s Bendix Supercompact which was small (2.5kg) but fine for the two of us plus (later) a baby.

The advantage was that it only used 13 litres of water and didn't have any new fangled fancy Dan electronics so would run off any old genny or invertor that was to hand.

It is also built like a tank and is still in service in the workshop to this day washing and preshrinking my creations.

Now we are in a house with two sons (11 and 16) I have no idea how we coped with such a small washer back then.

 

 

Did it have a fold away wringer on it?  My mum had a huge mangle in the garden which my duty was to turn the handle. One day my dads best shirt was fed betrween the rollers,  Ta, tat, tat, tat, tat, tat, tat.------ His false teeth were still in the top pocket wihich shot out like machine gun bullets.

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7 minutes ago, carlt said:

No it wasn't that old...

bendix.JPG.1f7fd3ca898f0abbb799898eb933a35f.JPG

We did have a small mangle that bolted to Lucy's gunwales before we went high tech though.

Ah.   My mums first washing machine was an Indesit. The very first time she used it it went up in smoke. The Indesit  bloke came out to fix it. It apparently had an Italian home market 110v motor in it. She never used it or any other after that. She resurected her trusty old gas copper. We called the Indesit, the Indecent.

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28 minutes ago, bizzard said:

Did it have a fold away wringer on it?  My mum had a huge mangle in the garden which my duty was to turn the handle. One day my dads best shirt was fed betrween the rollers,  Ta, tat, tat, tat, tat, tat, tat.------ His false teeth were still in the top pocket wihich shot out like machine gun bullets.

I thought you were going to say you got her mitts in a tangle 

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5 hours ago, 4LeggedGrasshopper said:

My overall question, is it worth it? I dread the thought of lugging my washing to the laundrette, but i don’t want to go to the trouble of fitting a washing machine only to find it doesn’t work properly. I don’t know what to do, so any advice you experienced boaties have will be gratefully received

Yes get one.  It's nearly 2018 and washing machines are great things to have to wash clothes.  You have to work out how your going to power it and somewhere to fit it, but in the end do you really want to be a slave to find somewhere to wash your clothes?   If your looking for a small studio type (3-4Kg) one then the Candy is recommended for boats.   Forget about the twin tubs, I was surprised on the size of them as they take more room than a small washing machine!.  Only advantage is that they use little power due to manually having to put water in it!

Edited by Robbo
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I really did open up a can of worms! Thank you for all your weird and wonderful replies everyone. 

I know living on a boat (full time and on a residential towpath mooring i.e. No hookup) is going to be very different and I’m prepared for making compromises, I’m just not keen on a washing machine being one of them. I think we’ve definitely got to have one, even if it’s only used once or twice a week...with our water tank that’s about all we’ll be able to use it anyway! 

So taking whats been said into consideration, let me see if I’ve got this right......

I’m not an electrician, but here goes... The inverter is 2000w (not sure what type without looking at it) and there are 5 domestic batteries, also with a solar panel providing a max of 150kw (We have plans to add 2 more solar panels later). No idea about alternator until I see it! And we’ll probably end up getting a generator. That’s got to be enough power right?! Especially if we use a thermostatic valve and supply the machine with hot water from the calorifier and (hopefully) an oil fired stove (also used for cooking and central heating). 

So ...

power supply  ✅ 

Water supply ✅  we’ll just keep the tank topped up and only run the washing machine when we can definitely get to top it up

If I’ve got the jist, I think the only thing left to worry about is water pressure? Or do I not need to worry about this? 

As for drying the washing, I’m hoping the super duper stove will solve that.

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2 minutes ago, 4LeggedGrasshopper said:

I really did open up a can of worms! Thank you for all your weird and wonderful replies everyone. 

I know living on a boat (full time and on a residential towpath mooring i.e. No hookup) is going to be very different and I’m prepared for making compromises, I’m just not keen on a washing machine being one of them. I think we’ve definitely got to have one, even if it’s only used once or twice a week...with our water tank that’s about all we’ll be able to use it anyway! 

So taking whats been said into consideration, let me see if I’ve got this right......

I’m not an electrician, but here goes... The inverter is 2000w (not sure what type without looking at it) and there are 5 domestic batteries, also with a solar panel providing a max of 150kw (We have plans to add 2 more solar panels later). No idea about alternator until I see it! And we’ll probably end up getting a generator. That’s got to be enough power right?! Especially if we use a thermostatic valve and supply the machine with hot water from the calorifier and (hopefully) an oil fired stove (also used for cooking and central heating). 

So ...

power supply  ✅ 

Water supply ✅  we’ll just keep the tank topped up and only run the washing machine when we can definitely get to top it up

If I’ve got the jist, I think the only thing left to worry about is water pressure? Or do I not need to worry about this? 

As for drying the washing, I’m hoping the super duper stove will solve that.

My guess is that 150kw is a mistype and you mean 150w - plus solar doesn't work in winter!  (150kw is quite a lot of solar panels and you'll need something like a small field to keep them all in!).   The inverter should be okay for a small washer like a compact (ie. 3kg Candy) as mine is 2Kw and my washer works okay on it.   Alternator, if it's something like a 90amp+ then this will be okay (less would still be okay, just not as nice - if your going to be off grid in winter a decent 2nd alternator is good).     

Whats the inverter (Make/model)?  The cheap ones will be a poor wave and washing machines don't like this.

 

 

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17 minutes ago, 4LeggedGrasshopper said:

I really did open up a can of worms!

I’m not an electrician, but here goes... The inverter is 2000w (not sure what type without looking at it) and there are 5 domestic batteries, also with a solar panel providing a max of 150kw (We have plans to add 2 more solar panels later). No idea about alternator until I see it! And we’ll probably end up getting a generator. That’s got to be enough power right?! Especially if we use a thermostatic valve and supply the machine with hot water from the calorifier and (hopefully) an oil fired stove (also used for cooking and central heating). 

 

It was only a small can of worms!

Yes, go ahead and fit a decent washing machine........however the bigger can of worms is the Power. Right?

You say you are not an electrician, but seem to have the basics of a useable system. If you a living aboard 24/7 you will need to understand how to charge your batteries and keep them in good shape. If you add more solar then you should be ok for the summer months but will have to learn your system so by the time next winter comes, you know how to look after your batteries. The key is charging them on a regular basis and getting them to full charge at least once per week or maybe twice per week. This is a huge can of worms and likely to be another 27 page thread. Do a search on 'Charging Batteries' or 'State of Charge'. There has been at least one big thread each month this year. Read up as much info as possible and then come back with questions on what you dont understand. At minimum you will need either a battery monitor or a smartgauge - you may already have one. Yes, you may well end up getting a generator but that brings its own problems of buying and storing fuel. All this has been discsussed many times and is good info to research.

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3 hours ago, carlt said:

Just add a banjo and you've got all the kit you need for a skiffle group.

I had a 1980s Bendix Supercompact which was small (2.5kg) but fine for the two of us plus (later) a baby.

How do you play one of them?, and how do you tune it?

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1 hour ago, 4LeggedGrasshopper said:

 d supply the machine with hot water from the calorifier and (hopefully) an oil fired stove (also used for cooking and central heating).  

Here is another can of worms that Mrsmelly will comment on shortly when he spots it, just add an eco fan for good measure 

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A generator might well be your saviour. BUT it must be a diesel one and preferably fitted inside the boat, water cooled - cuts down the noise apart from anything else.

Petrol gennies will - get nicked

should / must not be run on the boat (fume, leaks etc)

Or consider fitting a Travel Power generator to the engine.

It all depends on what sort and size the boat is - for practical reasons.  

 

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In the early 2000's we lived on our boat and were continual cruisers for a few years. We didn't aspire to a washing machine but bought a small spin dryer which was useful to get as much moisture out of washing as possible - especially in the winter when drying washing is more difficult. As it only ran for a few minutes it didn't use much electricity via the inverter. If you decide against a washing machine I'd strongly recommend a spin dryer.

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10 hours ago, Dave Payne said:

If you have the space, fit one, connect water feed to the hot water supply so the heater element does not kick in, saving power, use quick wash to save water on daily was stuff.

You dont live in a tent!

I'm sure somebody has mentioned on here some modern cold fill only machines 'sulk' and throw up an error if the element does not kick in during a hot wash, (or have I dreamt that?)

Edited by MJG
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6 hours ago, OldGoat said:

If you are prepared to be canny (disconnect the heater element, run hot water in from another source / switch to cold for the rinse cycle et al)  then it's possible to reduce the electrical load. However, in today's 'society' folks just want to push a button a go and do something else (and why not).

In all fairness the newcomer should be aware that moving from land based facilities to those on the water is not straightforward and requires some redesign or compromises.

Almost certainly disconnecting the heating element will throw up an error on a modern machine.

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Our longest trip on the boat so far had been 5 weeks. We use our little Candy washing machine every 3-4 days. It means we don’t have to have loads of clothes on board and we don’t have a pile of dirty washing taking up space. As others have said, use of the machine has to be organised around days when we can top up the water are planning to be on the move for 2-3 hours. The drying’s no problem as OH made a mini version of one of the ceiling mounted drying racks (like my mum used to have in our kitchen) for the cratch and I have a couple of pull out drying lines in the bathroom. No iron though!! 

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12 hours ago, mross said:

Those £100 twin tubs on Amazon are great.  Wash takes about 15 minutes, spin 5 mins.  They don't use a lot of water.

Seconded, we use one of these. Mind you they have gone up a lot in the tank 3 years, we paid about £60 for ours

https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/5kg-Portable-Mini-Compact-Twin-Tub-Washing-Machine-Washer-Spin-Dryer-300w/12003668888?iid=122063477704

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