Use your Handi-Wash on a table, in the laundry tub or bath or outdoors.
Place the clothes to be washed in container, (maximum wash load is around 3kgs, in real terms that’s 2 x single sheets or 1 x large sheet, 2 x towels or 6 x s/s shirts) sprinkle in washing powder or liquid detergent, only a small amount of detergent is required (about 1 level teaspoon) if you add too much detergent you will create too many suds, remember, you are working in a confined environment.
Cover the clothes with water, about 12 litres for a full load, use hot or cold water, however you will always get a better wash result in warm water, (the same applies to any washing machine whether it be your conventional top or front loader).
Clamp the lid on and you are ready to start washing (note: it is not necessary for the lid to be fixed too tightly, however, it is important to unscrew the cap from the combination cap/pourer as Handi-Wash requires air to make it work, it is not designed to work in a vacuum.
Start to pump the handle up and down with a pump and twist action, it is not necessary to pump too far down, once the clothes start spinning just a short pump and twist action is all that is required.
The ideal action is a pump with a twist to the right and then to the left, however, there is no hard and fast rule, develop the action to suit you, adjust the vigour of the pumping action to the type of wash you are after, but resist the temptation to pump it up and down like a dynamite plunger, remember Handi-Wash works like an upside down top loading conventional washing machine, and as you know in a top loader the agitator does not go up and down, it goes backwards and forward.
The idea is to try and replicate that action. As you start to pump and twist the handle and the clothes start to tumble and spin, air or oxygen will be forced through the wash cycle via the holes in the agitator.
The holes are there for good reason you’ll notice detergent advertisements on T.V. talk about oxyfresh and oxyclean etc, they talk about this in the context of removing stains, what they are really saying is if you can force oxygen, just a fancy word for air through the wash cycle, this speeds up the wash cycle and as a consequence the stains are removed.
The wash cycle should go for about 3 minutes, and then you are ready to proceed with the rinsing and the wringing. At this point you break the rules, instead of pumping and twisting you push down on the handle forcing the agitator and clothes underneath it to the bottom of the container.
With the combination cap/pourer extended and the cap removed: refer lid features, turn the Handi-Wash over on it’s side and drain out the water, either in your bath or laundry tub, shower recess or onto your garden or campsite. If you intend to use the grey water to water your plants or emptying it on your campsite remember to use a non-phosphorous laundry detergent, it does not damage our fragile ecosystem, the grey water making it’s way into our waterways creating algae blooms and it will be safe on your plants. Refer: Choosing a laundry Detergent.
Now you are ready to rinse the clothes, to rinse add fresh water and repeat the pump and twist action for about 2/3rds of the time of the wash cycle, just a minute or two, or you can avoid the rinse cycle altogether by substituting the laundry detergent for Woolmix or Napisan (low sudsing).
Once again plunge the handle and agitator to the bottom and drain.
Now you are ready to wring some of the water out of the clothes, please note Handi-Wash is not a Clothes Dryer, it is a washing machine, however the purpose built container is designed to remove some of the excess water from the clothes.
Most buckets have a flat bottom with a dimple in the middle; a flat bottom bucket was never going to be any good to wring some water out of the clothes.
The Handi-Wash utilises a purpose built bucket that has a raised hub in the middle, creating a small reservoir in the bottom of the bucket enabling you to squeeze some of the excess water out of the clothes.
To do this you will be using the agitator blades to squeeze water from the middle of the wash load to the outside extremities of the bucket. To wring, grab the handle, and start lifting and pressing in a circle, incrementally through 360° degrees, every quarter turn or thereabouts, fills the reservoir, turn the Handi-Wash on it’s side and drain off the excess water that you have created, remembering not to let go of the handle when wringing, clothes have a capillary action, letting go of the handle gives the water the opportunity to soak back into the clothes, every quarter turn, release the excess, repeat this process for a couple of minutes and the clothes will be ready to hang up to dry. |
