I had to use the laundromat tonight... my house STINKS!

[dkmc]

I had to do the laundromat thing for a couple years and I saw a couple of funny things. One guy came in, went to the biggest front loader, and stuffed it FULL of several baskets of clothes. Dumped in a cap full of soap, and left. When the machine filled and began to wash, the clothes were a solid cylinder that rotated with the drum, the center of them never even got wet. I left before he returned. Second funny, a woman came in, loaded a smaller front loader a bit over full, and dumped in half a big bottle of soap, and left. The suds were amazing to see as they grew and filled the window. I'm sure they didn't rinse out. Probably made for some itchy and slimy clothes.
My place sits on a gravel pit.....that happens to be full. Grey water goes out a garden hose and disappears into the grass.

 

[MossRoad]

Our very used house had four different water disposal systems when we bought it. The original septic system was on the north side of the house. Someone added an addition and remodeled in the 50s and put a new septic system on the south side of the house. The old north one just served the kitchen sink/dishwasher. The north one serves the single bathroom. The washing machine goes out a pipe through the wall to "mystery tanks" buried in places in the front yard. I found one when my tractor fell through it. Finally, there is a laundry sink in the basement that drains through a hose into a pipe in the floor that nobody knows where it goes. Even the previous owner had no idea. He said it takes about 3-4 sink loads before it overflows. We rarely use that.

Over the years, I switched the kitchen to the main septic system and filled in the old one on the north side of the house. A 2nd "mystery tank" was discovered in the front yard when it's metal lid rotted away. I replaced that with a concrete lid. I get the main system septic tanks and dry well pumped about every 2-3 years just for piece of mind. It has a drain tile added off of the dry well sometime in the 70s after the dry well stopped draining, so now it's just a giant sediment trap.

Anyhow, the wonderful world of sewerage.

 

[cqaigy2]

Ugh, recycle clothes washing water? I could maybe see recycling the rinse water to be used for wash water in the next wash but that's as far as i would go. I had to dig in to my fairly new washer and didn't see a storage tank in it. There is some water left in the sump pump and that's some nasty stuff in there.

 

[MossRoad]

Ugh, recycle clothes washing water? I could maybe see recycling the rinse water to be used for wash water in the next wash but that's as far as i would go. I had to dig in to my fairly new washer and didn't see a storage tank in it. There is some water left in the sump pump and that's some nasty stuff in there.

Yeah, I thought it was nasty as heck.

As for nasty stuff... take the stopper out of you bathroom sink sometime and look what's underneath that.

 

[dkmc]

Yeah, I thought it was nasty as heck.

As for nasty stuff... take the stopper out of you bathroom sink sometime and look what's underneath that.

NOOO!

 

[Oaktree]

I get the main system septic tanks and dry well pumped about every 2-3 years just for piece of mind. It has a drain tile added off of the dry well sometime in the 70s after the dry well stopped draining, so now it's just a giant sediment trap.

Whoever put the septic system in here cheaped out and only put in a 500 gal. tank. Not sure how much money was saved, since the tank itself is probably the least expensive part of the project. We get it pumped every couple years, figure it's cheaper than having to replace a leach field.

 

[WVPapa]

I remember seeing that in my in-laws' basement. They ran the discharge into a laundry sink, and it sucked it back out and used it again. The mother in-law's parents had the same thing. I'd never seen it before and thought it was disgusting. Like sharing the bath water on a Saturday night! Yuck!

I really think it was another one of those carry-overs from the depression era.

I recall my mother in-law's disappointment when they built their new house and got new appliances and she found the new washing machine wouldn't do that. She was pretty upset about it.

Today, she doesn't miss it.

Wow, did these posts bring back memories of 70 years ago! dougtrr2 hit it on the head with "suds saver". As a kid I remember waiting by the sink for the washing machine to pump out the water and to suck it all back later on. What can I say, I lived in a small town! I think people bought machines with it to try to keep from having problems with their septic system. Less water going in and less problems later on.

As a kid I never thought about smells. What I didn't like was when my mom hung the clothes on the line outside to dry. They always felt stiff when they dried. It was pretty funny though when she hung them out in the winter and misjudged the temperature. They all froze on the line and the T shirts were like boards.

 

[Oaktree]

It was pretty funny though when she hung them out in the winter and misjudged the temperature. They all froze on the line and the T shirts were like boards.

I think my mother hung clothes on the line in winter too, I do remember shoveling a path to and under it.

 

[Bobrown14]

If you want really clean clothes hang them out in the snow/cold/rain - how the Amish doit. It works. We use soap nut powder for laundry detergent. No smell no scents and clean clothes. The cost of soap nut powder compared to laundry detergent is pennies to dollars and its good for the environment and if you're on a septic tank also good for that too.

We hang our blankets outside in the rain/snow when we wash them.

 

[Alan W.]

When my Granny had a wringer washer she would reuse the first loads rinse water for the next loads wash water. The well only had a pitcher pump on it. No indoor plumbing.