Presenting Scrubba, the Portable Washing Machine
If you're a traveler, student or frequent mover, you may already be familiar with the plethora of so-called portable washing machines on the market. Most of these run on electricity and are geared toward apartment dwellers. Even those powered by a hand crank or foot pedal are basically rigid plastic
Posted — UpdatedIf you're a traveler, student or frequent mover, you may already be familiar with the plethora of so-called portable washing machines on the market. Most of these run on electricity and are geared toward apartment dwellers. Even those powered by a hand crank or foot pedal are basically rigid plastic tubs weighing at least several pounds … hardly "pack ‘n go." Not so the Scrubba.
To use Scrubba, all you'll need is a little water, a tiny amount of liquid soap – laundry detergent (biodegradable, please, especially if you'll be dumping it directly onto the ground) or body scrub (if you don't feel like packing a lot of bottles) – and your dirty clothes. The device can hold about a gallon altogether of clothes plus water, which translates to a couple of t-shirts, a pair or so of socks and a few undies ... what the manufacturers consider two days' worth of summer clothes. If you go sockless, you can stretch that a little further.
The process entails six steps, according to the manufacturers:
1. Put clothes, water and cleaning product into the Scrubba.
2. Roll down the top of the Scrubba bag and clip its ends closed.
3. Open the air valve and squeeze the bag to deflate.
4. Press on the bag to rub clothes against the built-in washboard. This takes 30 seconds to 3 minutes, depending on the amount of cleaning power you want. Vary the pressure according to how delicate your garments are.
I do have some tiny quibbles with this mini washing machine. One is that you'll need a source of water, not necessarily easy to find when you're camped on a mountaintop. You also have to line dry the clothes after washing, a procedure which requires a certain amount of space and time; what if your duds are not dry by the time you're ready to move on? Finally, for most campers and hikers, the quintessential experience is getting away from civilization and the trappings thereof. Going for a few days without clean clothes is the equivalent of dining on simple fare like slightly blackened campfire-baked potatoes and gooey s'mores … pure, unsophisticated pleasure.