My mom always did her laundry on Monday morning. There seemed to be a little competition with a neighbour who would phone up to say, “I have six loads done and they are all on the line before 9 a.m.”
Wash day as I remember it started by gathering dirty clothes, taking them to the basement and then moving the washing machine and wash tubs into the middle of the basement and filling them with hot, hot water.
The clothes were sorted by whites, light colours, dark colours and work clothes and the hankies were set to soak in cold water in the sink. The whites were first and then the colours progressed to the really dirty work clothes. They were all washed in the same water with maybe a little extra detergent added. Sometimes the old scrub board and a bar of Sunlight soap were brought out for the really dirty shirt collars.
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Once the clothes were washed, they were put through the wringer into the first rinse water. For the whites, this had bleach in it. This water was drained and saved in a bucket for using to clean up and disinfect the machine and tubs at the end.
The clothes were then put through the wringer again and rinsed a second time. Then it was a matter of hauling the baskets of wet clothes up the stairs and hanging them on the line to dry.
In the summer a nice breeze and the warm sun dried the first load by the time the second was ready to hang. In winter, the clothes freeze dried and I can remember trying to get my father’s set of work coveralls through the door without cracking them. My mom also had indoor lines for drying in the winter and on rainy days.
When I was a baby she wanted my cloth diapers to be soft so she would shake each diaper 100 times before hanging it up. She ended up with bursitis in her shoulders as a result. She first got a dryer and then an automatic washer but the water still had to be recycled because, on the farm, we had to conserve water.
When my husband and I were first married, we used a laundromat and then we got a wringer washer and a dryer. My first automatic washer was a day of celebration.
Last fall I had another interesting washing experience when I hit my engagement ring on the agitato and lost the diamond from my ring. Unfortunately the stone had fallen through the holes in the tub and the agitator could not be removed without breaking it.
The repairman said I could claim insurance for my diamond, but that was not an option. The old machine that was badly rusted and starting to leak was sacrificed so my diamond could be retrieved. I was much happier shopping for a new washing machine without insurance than for a new diamond.
Shopping for a washer
In my research I learned there are three types of washers: traditional top loading, high efficient top loading and high efficient front loading.
After reviewing the buying guide information on the Consumer Reports Canadian website www.consumerreports.org/cro/canadaextra/index.htm, and shopping around to see what was available, I chose a high efficient front loading washer. My son and daughter-in-law had a front loading machine and I was amazed at how little moisture there was in the clothes when they were removed from the washer.
The high efficient front loaders use 20 to 66 percent of the water used by traditional agitator washers and as little as 20 to 50 percent of the energy because there is less water to heat. Better moisture extraction in the spin cycle reduces drying time and energy consumption as well.
The machines clean the clothes by lifting them to the top of the tub and dropping them back into the water and they work best with a low-foaming, high efficiency detergent.
The front loaders tend to be quiet and can handle a 12 to 20 pound load. An added bonus is that many can be stacked with a dryer to save floor space.
Cold water washing
Dear TEAM:
I would like your opinion on washing clothes in cold water and any facts you might have. I have read several articles in the newspaper about the environmental benefits of washing clothes in cold water and one that discouraged it, as all you get is clean germs. – M.W., e-mail.
Dear M.W.: Washing in cold water could benefit both your electricity bill and the environment. Procter & Gamble, the maker of Tide, claims that cold water washing could save consumers up to $63 a year in energy costs.
According to TerraPass.com, an environmental website, we could stop 30 million tons of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere if all washers in the United States used only cold water.
Whether using hot or cold water, use a detergent recommended that temperature. If you are using a high efficiency (HE) washer then use an HE detergent, which is designed to clean in less water with less suds. Excess suds can damage an HE washer.
To answer your question, for most lightly soiled clothing, cold water is fine. Hot water is better for diapers, underwear, towels and bedding. This approach seems to be supported by science. Cold water may not be enough for microbes that can cause disease.
In an article from Environmental Science & Technology, Ian Hardin, a professor of textile sciences at the University of Georgia, recommends hot water washing of clothes worn by people who have a bacterial or viral illness to avoid spreading the illness throughout the household.
I have found that when I wash my towels, especially wash cloths, in cold water they develop a sour smell over time. Washing them in hot water has solved the problem. But nothing makes a load of laundry any fresher than an old-fashioned clothesline on a sunny day.
Busy day beef stew
When my brother, Ron, asked me what I was writing about this week and I said stew and dumplings, his response was “my mouth is watering for the good doughy taste of the dumplings.” It is a meal that we both fondly remember.
2 cans (10 oz. each) 284 mL
beef consommé
1 can (19 oz.) diced 540 mL
tomatoes
11/2 cups tomato juice 375 mL
or V8 juice
1/4 cup sherry cooking 60 mL wine
2 tablespoons minute 30 mL
tapioca
2 pounds lean stewing 1 kg
beef, cut into 1/2 inch (1 cm)
cubes
1 large onion cut in large
chunks
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup celery stalks and 250 mL
leaves, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 cups carrots, sliced 500 mL
2 cups potatoes, diced 500 mL
1 cup mushrooms, 250 mL
sliced or 1 can 284 mL (10 oz.) sliced mushrooms
2 cups frozen mixed 500 mL
vegetables
1/2 teaspoon ground black 2 mL
pepper
parsley flakes to garnish
Preheat oven to 300 F (150 C). Put the consommé, tomatoes, juice and sherry into a six to eight litre ovenproof pot or casserole with a tight fitting lid. Stir the tapioca into the cool liquid, mix well.
Trim the fat off the meat and cut into cubes. Put one quarter of the meat into a medium heated nonstick frying pan and quickly stir-fry until lightly brown, stirring constantly. Add to the liquid and repeat with the other meat. After the meat has been browned, add the onions and garlic to the same, unrinsed frypan and stir-fry for a minute before adding to the meat and broth mixture. Add the celery and bay leaf. Bake covered on low for four to five hours. Add the carrots and potatoes for the last two hours.
If you are going to be away from home, the potatoes and carrots can be boiled separately for 20 minutes while the meat is browning. Refrigerate and then add about an hour before serving along with the mushrooms, frozen vegetables and pepper. Mix well and add more juice if needed. Before adding the vegetables, increase the oven temperature to 350 F (180 C).
When the liquid is boiling, add the dumplings, cover and steam for 20 minutes, no peeking. The dumplings should be sitting on the meat and vegetables, not in the broth. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.
Dumplings
1 cup flour 250 mL
21/2 teaspoons baking 12 mL
powder
1/4 teaspoon salt 1 mL
2 tablespoons canola oil 30 mL
Mix these ingredients together and then add enough milk to make a thick, sticky dough. Mix gently. Drop by spoonfuls onto the stew. See above for cooking time. If you cook your stew in a crockpot the liquid will not get hot enough to steam the dumplings. An alternative is to use a vegetable steamer with one inch (2.5 centimetres) of boiling water or broth in the bottom. Drop the dumplings by spoonfuls into the steamer and cover and cook on high heat on the stove for 20 minutes.
Betty Ann Deobald is a home economist from Rosetown, Sask., and one of four columnists comprising Team Resources. Send correspondence in care of this newspaper, Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask., S7K 2C4 or contact them at team@producer.com.
