Current thinking on laundry in salt water?

[SailingHarmonie]

I am going to run down the middle here. It's one thing to have a pair of shorts that might have a bit of salt in them, but salty sheets??? That's a level of roughing it I have no interest in going to. That's just miserable and unpleasant. And no, "shaking out" salt crystals does not cut it on my boat. Call me a princess. I can take it.

But.. you CAN rinse the salt out of hand washed laundry. It's just a LOT of work, and saves only a little water. How much that little matters, is up to you.

Following is the procedure I used to use. Nowadays I have a watermaker, laundry machine, and the power to run them, so this is little more than an unpleasant memory...

Wash your cloths in as much salt water as you care to use. Use whatever soap you think will work for you in salt water. Water of high ionic strength (salt water) interferes with a lot of detergents, so experiment.

Now... wring out the clothes. Wring them as dry as you can, and then do it again. Wrap them around a shroud, and twist. Hard. No HARDER!

Once you get all the water you possibly can out of the cloth, put them back in the bucket, and add JUST enough fresh water to get them good and wet again. Agitate well. Repeat the wring out process. Again, as much as you POSSIBLY can wring out.

Repeat the rinse and wring again.

And once more for a third rinse and wring. Hang them to dry.

If after doing that your hands are not tired and cramped you probably haven't wrung them out enough and they are still salty.

Honestly, I don't like soap in my clothing any more than salt, so this is what I do even if I wash in fresh water. So for me, the net savings on using salt water was only a bit more than 25% of the total usage for laundry. Hardly worth the trouble.

[boatman61]

If your on a 'water budget' that's when one starts collecting rainwater.. get the buckets and rain catchers out..

[Scubaseas]

Originally Posted by motion30

I tried it. Used more fresh water trying to rinse the salt out then if I just wash them in fresh water

My experience also. I use one like this. Works great.

https://www.simplygoodstuff.com/wond...5abf015b3fb91c

[Nekton73]

Perhaps rainwater could be a solution to your laundry needs. If you contrive a quick and easy way to catch rainwater then any time it rains you can do a wash, or fill a jug for use later when you have time. Looks like rain is in the forecast for next week, if you can wait that long.

[Mike OReilly]

Salt water is fine to wash. It's the rinse that is the problem. The amount of fresh water rinse pretty much negates any savings. But I think Wottie's got it right, if you want to use salt water as the initial wash, just hang to dry.

These days we mostly use rain water to do the laundry. But if need arises, we bit the bullet and use our limited fresh water supplies.

[Wotname]

Just to be 100% clear, the "Wottie method" involves a salt water wash and rinse, then dry in a stiff breeze which removes a large amount of the salt and then rinse again in fresh water which removes the remaining salt and dry again of of the way of any sea spray.

Of course, if you have a surplus of fresh water, then use it for the complete cycle.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Wotname

Just to be 100% clear, the "Wottie method" involves a salt water wash and rinse, then dry in a stiff breeze which removes a large amount of the salt and then rinse again in fresh water which removes the remaining salt and dry again of of the way of any sea spray.

Of course, if you have a surplus of fresh water, then use it for the complete cycle.

Yes, that's what I understood. Did I confuse people . Sorry.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by motion30

I tried it. Used more fresh water trying to rinse the salt out then if I just wash them in fresh water

^^ This. Tip: Use less detergent than normal. I've done a bunch of side-by-side testing.


Another methods that works for some is washing with weak ammonia-only (no soap), wringing, and drying. The ammonia evaporates leaving no smell, but it does not clean as effectively as even very dilute detergent and is not safe for wool or silk.

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Yes, that's what I understood. Did I confuse people . Sorry.

^^ It wasn't you Mike, it was others who apparently didn't comprehend the method and figured there was still salt in the dried laundry.

[Papasail]

I’ve read 2 things that I’ve read, that are both wierd facts, and completely unrelated…. (sort of).

1. You know those hand-sized salt shakers you see in restaurants?
=== > That’s just about how much salt there is in a single gallon of salt water.

2. On the west coast of Africa, you never leave your shirts out to sun dry…. there is a fly that will lay it’s larvae on them, and then they bore into your skin once you wear the shirt. Very un-fun. I think they try to suffocate them with vaseline, and then the extraction requires some skill. They aren’t small.
The prevention is either a regular dryer, or ironing your shirts to kill the larvae.

Uhmmm… hope that helps?

Bonus round: I saw a crew member put a metal rod through a 5 gallon bucket, and riveted some thin flaps vertically. This contraption was filled with soap, water, & clothes, and hauled behind the boat with a “Y” cable attached to the metal rod…. the 5 gallon bucket would slowly spin as they sailed.

[Atcowboy]

Originally Posted by Wotname

Back in the day (pre water makers and marina docks etc), we did our laundry in salt water, let it dry in a good breeze (hoisted it up to the lower spreaders or whatever). The wind would shake out most of the salt crystals, then we would give it a quick rinse in fresh or even brackish water and dry again but out of the way of any spray.

Worked well enough for sailors.

I think it's odd to see so many people saying it flat out doesn't work, because I was surprised just how well it worked for me. I could get my stuff really clean and smelling great using salt (bay) water for cleaning and fresh for an immediate rise. A lot of work but good exercise.

A load of laundry, so say a week's worth, would take about 2.5 gallons of fresh water. I would just apply directly to one article and ring it out onto the next to try and reuse the water for the next article.

I found my forestay to be a great tool for the dumb end when wringing out heavy stuff like jeans and towels.

- AT

[wackerb]

I finally got a wall mounted washing machine, a bit pricey, but makes the most efficient use of fresh water. The only problem was it was a lot cheaper buying directly from Korea so all the labeling required google translate to understand I thought it was well worth the price.

[Morris Wilson]

I have accidentally bathed in salt water (winter coat and all) twice after staying too long in a bar and survived just fine, but I don't recommend it.

[Craig_B]

Washed in salt water rinsed in fresh water the entire 6 months we where in the Exumas.

Works just fine.

[Bill O]

Wow, almost an anchor thread!

No, wouldn't use salt water to do wash. (you could try it first hand and see if you like it )
We use very little fresh water per regular clothes wash/rinse (~4.5galload) and use a high speed spinner to remove dirt and soap between rinses. Used it for years and works well. https://phoenixketch.blogspot.com/20...d-phoenix.html

p.s. we have one of our extra spinners up for sale/pick up in the Annapolis area if anyone is interested https://annapolis.craigslist.org/bpo...595932276.html