Re-using water for multiple loads?

[kenmore700bill]

I grew up with my mother's Square Tub Maytag.(which I still have and is operational) She would also use the water for a few loads of clothes. The first load was always the Whites, Underwear, Socks, Towels. Hot water and Bleach were in the wash water. The second load was the white linnen sheets and pillow cases. Once the Whites were wrung out they landed in the deep tub of the kitchen double sink which is where the first rinse took place then was wrung out and the sheets went inthe same rinse water. She then emptied out the washer and filled with cold water and a few drops of BULLDOG Bluing to do the final rinse of the white clothes and White linnen sheets then they went to the line, she would save this rinse water and throw in detergent and proceed to to the light color wash. This load was then wrung out and rinsed in the laundry tub 2 times and hung on the line. Once this load was done my fathers work clothes then got the hot wash with detergent and lestoil(my father was a car mechanic with greasy clothes) and this load got the double rinse also. I will say that she did let the work clothes wash for about a half hour or so then rinsed them twice. My mother was not a Fabric Softner user although there was always that bottle of Final Touch on the shelf. Once I got into high school and started making money I then took her to Sears and we purchased the Kenmore 700 washer this was in 1969.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Bill, you are a good son.

 

[ricky5050]

No problem

I can see what your bf means but it was the norm here, water was precious and hot water even more so so by the time the tub was filled and heated by fire gas or electric it was used again and again. Starting with the cleanest clothes through to the dirtiest and darkest as the water cooled. As long as a good detergent and good rinsing I don't see a problem. My mam when using twin tubs would,say that water was " poisoned" and new would filled after a few loads. Ask him to think about this tho a load in a twin or single tub washer would be small so doing 2,3,4, loads in the same water would be no different to stuffing all of the laundry into a modern large capacity machine and have it rumble around in a smaller dirtier amount of water. The advantage of your method assuming you start with whites is water is saved and no Color transfer occurs.

Richard.

 

[virabhadrasana]

re using water

During the 60s there were in Europe some washers with a separate tub which allowed useres to save the suds and using them again for the next wash (Indesit K5 for example). My english is too poor to try to describe how the system worked, but some users described it very well in some old threads.10 years ago I had a Miele top loader and I used to keep the water of the last rinse (without softener added)and put it back into the drum for the next wash, but the Miele didn't drain at the very beginning of the cycle, like lots of modern washers do nowadays.

 

[suds14]

I have always reused the wash water for many loads, as long as the water is not very dirty. I always soak socks and underwear before washing as well as any other heavy soiled items. My mom and grandmother always has suds savers and I followed in thier foot steps. Now I save the water and put it back in the washer by bucket since Kenmore I am using does not have the suds saver feature.

David

 

[ingliscanada]

Limited Sewage

When I was young, most of the homes in our neighbourhood (including ours) were on septic tanks. So many of us had suds-saver washers to lessen the waste going out.

Gary

 

[whirlpolf]

no problem with "gray water" at all

Indeed, I even re-use bathwater.

You all probably know that soothing feeling of a very hot bath that almost gets you this "sauna feeling" of being totally cleansed and soft as a marshmellow (the one that makes you want to go to bed right on).

Well, before the temperature drops too low I use a PE tank of 30 litres to carry it down to my washer and I will run a load or two in the prewash cycle. Shampoo and shower gel have a substantial capability of getting rid of superficial dust and dirt and they have a first run on oily substances. Great for heavily soiled items or workshop clothes, garden clothes and similar. If it was my own house I would have installed a gravity drain pipe to go down to the basement, into some tank for this.

Secondly, I run the hot wash in frontloader one, pumping it up and out to frontloader 2.
Stop on machine 1, waiting for machine 2 to get done (reheating it up again just a tiny bit)
Repeating the same with all rinse cycles and their respective intermediate spins, apart for the last rinse.
This is done with fresh water always (and some softener or laundry scent, just as needed).

Result: Utility back payment of almost 500,- Euros for last year. 486,- that is.

Of course: This will work only for similarily lightly soiled loads of if you just want to do a quick "freshen up" cycle. You get 2x full prewash, hot wash, 4x rinse and spin for the cost of one.

I admit: On heavily soiled items, it won't work: The first wash water is dark gray and smelly (and I want to get rid of it). Same thing with infected clothes (my brother was in the clinic for some severe surgery, all his wash got a new and fresh fill of water for each single load.) Imagine the blood and what have you.

Yet, for regular stuff, re-using is a standard here. (You won't believe our utility bill rates).

 

[maytagmike]

reuseing water

I grew up on a farm, I still have mom's maytag square tub maytag. she would wash 4 loads of clothes in the same water. they came out spotless. then she would drain the wash water and rinse all 4 loads again in the machine. she would just add a little bit more soap powders to each load.