🎧Laundry in a Bucket When You Live on a Boat

Laundry in a bucket? Yep, it may be necessary. When you need to do laundry on the boat and there’s no laundromat nearby, one unexpected tool will make the job easier. Here are the steps to having clean laundry aboard–no washing machine required!

Summary

As budget cruisers in the 1990s, we did nearly all laundry on board. Today, we intend to splurge on laundromats. However, not everywhere has them. Or the cost can be high, like in French Polynesia where we are now. 

So what do you need to wash clothes on board? My supplies include two buckets, cold water detergent, fresh water, and a clean (unused) toilet plunger.  

The Method

Fill a bucket 2/3 full. Pour in detergent and swish until it dissolves. Add clothes and use the plunger for about twenty minutes per piece of laundry. Wring out soapy water before rinsing in fresh water. Then wring clothes thoroughly to help them dry faster.

Pin clothes to your lifelines (watch for rain) until dry. And that’s it.

Smaller loads are easier to wash in a bucket than large ones. So don’t wait too long between washes. Hopefully, if you follow these tips, you’ll find laundry in a bucket isn’t such an awful chore.

Check out my recommended products in the links. Listen to the full podcast for more information, including a tip about how much detergent to use in a load. Or to read more, check out Laundry Aboard for more information and pictures.

Links (Amazon links are affiliate links, meaning that The Boat Galley Podcast earns from qualifying purchases; some other links may be affiliate links):

Clean buckets (Amazon)

Dirty Labs Non-Toxic Detergent (Amazon)

Dirty Labs Non-Toxic Detergent 

Plunger (Amazon)

Laundry Plunger (Amazon)

Nica email 

Carolyn email 

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Some links in this article (including all Amazon links) are affiliate links, meaning that we earn from qualifying purchases.