So how does one do laundry off-grid? You might envision us dragging baskets of soiled clothing down to the riverside and beating it against a rock. Or placing a washboard in a metal tub and scrubbing our garments clean while sitting barefoot on the front porch. Mental pictures such as this would likely cause many to recoil at the thought. I mean, we live in a first world country for crying out loud!

Well we're hear to deliver the good news that you can have a taste of modernity even while living off grid! We each approach this task a bit differently so we'll share our individual experiences below:

We had a laundromat nearby which I used for maybe a month or so until I realized the cost was too high and the machines were sometimes gobbling up the quarters without working. After much research I bought a portable washing machine that could fit in a tight space next to the commode in our RV and I'm really happy with it. It has washer and spinner sections with timers. Takes about 15 mins to wash one load and another 10-15 minutes to use the spinner for 3 minutes each which squeezes out most of the water and the clothes coming out of it feel about 70% dry. We have a clothesline outside where we complete the drying process.

The first few weeks after moving into our RV we went to the local laundromat. That soon got old and we purchased an outdoor umbrella clothesline which was grounded in cement and started doing our laundry by hand. After some time we purchased a small economic washer and spinner to use instead. We do not have adequate room inside our RV, so we placed it outside near the clothesline. It does take some effort considering it's so small, and you need to pull the hose through the RV window and connect to the facet and then plug it into our outdoor outlet. We also don't have the best system for the washer drainage. The spinner shakes a bit too rough, but besides that it does its job fine enough. With that said, the challenges posed made us revert to mostly washing by hand (hey it's a good workout) and using the washer mainly for sheets or towels.

When I was searching for a travel trailer, I knew that I would be living in it for some time because earthbag home building doesn't happen overnight. So I wanted to make sure that it had the basics. Also my teenage nephew was staying with me that first summer and I knew it would be much easier to have my own washer. So I searched for a trailer that had washer and dryer connects. Apparently that's more common for a 5th wheel than a travel trailer but after prayer and research I wound up with a Keystone 335BH. It was exactly what I needed so that my nephew could have his own room and bathroom! This was crucial ... have you ever walked into a teenage boy's bathroom? I'll just say, gasp and clutch the pearls!

I purchased this washer because it had very good reviews and it was small enough to fit into my RV sized utility closet. I did purchase a dryer which I would hang on the door but I rarely use it because of the wattage ... 900! (I was still new to all of this then). My nephew is now back with my sister preparing for school so I generally just hang my clothing in the trailer to dry. This works out fine for me as I have very good window placment and ventilation in it. Thankfully I've had no issues with the washer and it doesn't use much electricity! This is very important for an off-grid girl. I can wash blankets and sheets in it with no problems and its fairly quiet so I've been quite pleased with it.