Lavario Portable Manual Clothes Washer - Non-Electric Camping Washing Machine for Apartments, RV Travel & Delicate Laundry | Compact & Lightweight | USA Made (Blue & White) | Perfect for Small Spaces, Off-Grid Living & Emergency Use

I writing a review 2 years later since I bought this washer, as I was under the impression it would be eco friendly and easy to manuever around. I guess I didn't really think out how this would help. I'm renting a room in my cousin's house. While I do my laundry on the weekends at the laundromat, I thought this clever portable clothes washer would be the idea in between because I travel on the weekends and sometimes when I get back home, I don't have time to drive out of the house to wash clothes before going back to work on a Monday. When I purchased it, it was delivered in a plane box with no padding and wasn't wrapped. So here is my experience with pros and cons:PROS1. Simple to use (Place clothes into container, fill with water, up an down motion).2. Needs no electric. All man power.CONS1. You use a lot of water (must use 3-4 gallons for a smaller load) in order to have an "up and down" motion. Wash and Rinse refilling.2. Must be placed in a tub or somewhere low so once you are finished washing, it's easy to drain and refill for rinsing.3. You MUST have a filter on the drain hole to catch lint or it will eventually clog your drain (if using in a sink or tub).4. Bulky to move. It is quite large to store out of the way.Now of course this is my experience. Some people might have a better and practical use for it in the space they have, like going camping, use in an RV or use it in a cabin. I have a small room and closet and the limited space I have can't accommodate it. I'm probably going to use it as an apple washer for fruits or other vegetables for filling when I make lots of pies as it will be more convenient than a kitchen sink. Hopefully this will help someone else's decision to purchase it. The price has increased by $30.00 since I bought it 2 years ago.I became aware of the Lavario portable washer (I think) when I stumbled across a short blurb in a camping/RV magazine and was immediately intrigued.I then saw a "how to" video on the Internet and that only served to increase my interest and curiosity.Finally was able to order it and now I finally have it in my hands. And first impressions are very good. Not perfect, but pretty darn close!First off, I have to saying I was surprised at the speed of shipping. Ordered it and had it on my doorstep within three days. Your results may vary, but Wow! It was also shipped in a very hefty box (no good shipping in a box that allows damage, right?). My point here is that I don't even yet have the product in my hands and I'm already being taking good care of.Upon un-boxing I was initially less than thrilled. The item seemed big, bulky, awkward. It isn't, but I always size things in relation to where I will put them in the camper. And in this case, there's no good place for it to go. I know one of the "double uses" of this Lavario is as a hamper and yes we had planned to use it as such, but it doesn't fit (I know, folks will say to put it in the shower we're on the road, but we already use that space for other things). Not a disaster, but disappointing. So it will go in the "toad."Once I got past this initial disappointment I was able to appreciate the top-notch quality. This really is quite nice. Properly taken care of and it should last just about forever. Use is pretty straightforward (from both the directions and on-line videos we found). Not really sure you get much capacity, but that's okay. We're thinking a number of pieces of underwear and socks make up a load or several t-shirts or a pair of pants. If we need to wash a larger item (or more items) we'll hand wash using just the tub section.I really do think this is really well thought out. I understand Lavario wants to broaden its appeal, but I think the core audience is where Lavario will find its most satisfied customers: campers/RVers, cabin owners, off=grid folks, etc. I can understand why apartment dwellers would be dissatisfied: too small. Frankly, if I lived in an apartment I'd used the tub (if it had one) or buy a big tub from a local retailer and go that route.So, if I love this so much why only "4 stars"? Well, for three reasons. First, cost. $129.95 (Amazon-shown price at the time of my purchase) is a bit steep. Yes, I know that includes shipping but I would love this item a bit more if it were $10 cheaper. Hopefully the company will be able to get the price down as it gains popularity.Second, my wife and I both think this is missing an accessory. We're going to use a spare bucket to push down on the wet laundry to "wring" out excess water/start the drying process. Lavario tells you to take the clothes out of the agitating bucket, put it in the tub, and use the agitating bucket to push down and wring out the water. But that means I am dumping out the water I used to wash. Frankly, I don't need (or want) to change the tub water every time I use it; there are times when reuse is both smart and sensible (we would take the agitating bucket and press down/out the water in the sink while the Lavario is in the shower still holding the water for the next load. So we think Lavario should include a "press down plate" (with handle?) of a similar quality to the rest of the item as part of the ensemble.Finally, we don't have a long trip under our belt using the Lavario. We want to see how we like it "under pressure" and how will it holds up "under pressure." Both my wife and I are hoping we can revisit this review and bump to "5 stars," but at this point we prefer to start with "4 stars" and go from there.Nice job, Lavario. Looking forward to being a long-term fan and customer.We like this item and in the Amazon universe that means: 4 stars.I purchased this because I had to move into an apartment for a while and wanted something that I could use to prevent going to the laundromat. I have access to a washer and dryer on the weekends, but was hoping not to have to haul my laundry back and forth. I knew I would only be using it for about 6-8 months, but am looking at it as an investment for retirement and the camping we will do.One of the things I anticipated was that there would have to be a way to wring out the clothes. I looked at YouTube videos ahead of time. I was not into hand twisting my clothing as it can be damaging and time consuming, so I chose to get a spinner. It is a manual spinner. It works okay, but not the best. I went into this purchase with the notion that getting the water out of the clothes would be a challenge, so I am not disappointed in Lavario for that. The spinner I use is decent. The clothing is still pretty wet and I put a towel under the drying rack or where I hang up the clothing to catch the drips. None of this bothers me either. I anticipated all of this.I agitate it more than the recommended 10 times and figured out to use warmer water with some items such as my workout clothes. Sure it takes time to fill, but I just start the water and walk away. I have a good idea about how long it takes to fill (I fill it to just above the handle for the lid). If you go gang busters, it will splash out, but I have figured out the amount of force I can use to keep it from splashing all over. I keep it in my tub since I shower at the YMCA daily and do not need my shower in my apartment.I am still playing a bit with the amount of soap to use and am going to try an all liquid soap. I do notice that the marks that get on clothes from deodorant do not always come out. However, I am pretty close to figuring out the right soap/water/temperature/agitation combination I need to address this. I do not have to pay for water in my apartment, so aside from conservation, water cost is not an issue (although I do pay to heat my water).The unfortunate part is that I simply cannot keep up with my laundry. I use at least 2 towels a day and then my other clothes for work and the gym. I am lucky to have time to do three loads during the week and weekends I am not at my apartment. No matter how hard I spin the towels, it takes a couple days for them to dry. So, I have decided not to use this washer for large towels. I am going to take them with me on the weekend. I was hoping to avoid hauling laundry back and forth, but the effort it takes to wash, spin, and length of drying is just not worth it for the large towels.I think this will work great for my training gear and I will be able to keep up with it taking the towels out of the mix.Do keep in mind that you will have to figure out a way to drain/wring out your clothes. If I have time and only doing one load, I open the plug and let it drain for the evening. I will then spin them and hang them right before bed. This seems to produce less dripping and the clothes dry faster.I found this to be well built and sturdy and have not had any design issues thus far.Why only 4 stars? it is soooooooooo expensive for a plastic bucket with basket insert.Have had mine for a couple of years now; mostly used for sport clothes, but it works well for bedding and towels as well, provided you have some means to spin water from the washing afterwards.I am not sure that portability is a big selling point, as the lavario is bulk and a weird shape with the handle installed, but it is low impact for clothes rather than bashing them around inside an electric machine, and for me cleans better than the hand crank style manual machines.I bought my lavario for a small holiday flat where I didn`t want a large plumbed in machine, but did want to stop going to the laundrette. It is well designed, looks smart and does the job very well. Basically, it enables you to do bigger hand-washing loads than you could do in the sink, but more easily and more effectively. I use it in the shower cubicle which is ideal for filling and emptying it. So far, I`ve used it for medium loads and I`ve washed duvet covers in it. I`ve also bought a spin dryer to get rid of excess water before hanging the washing outside to dry. This combination is brilliant and easy on water, electricity and time. Very pleased with my purchases.I may as well have bought a bucket and a plunger. I see this as quite a pointless washing machine as it takes up loads of space because the handle can’t be removed and there is no way of spinning the clothes so everything is soaking and you have to wring it out by hand. Very disappointed.Well, I received it in good time. However upon opening the package, the handle for the Lavario was broken in half. Had to return it couldn’t get to use it which is a shame.