Running a Washing machine outside?

[Dr. Sandman]

So, Mrs. Sandman tends to do A LOT of laundry and use various scented detergents and stuff. I am relatively paranoid with regard to my scent control and I find myself running an empty load or 2 in our washer before I put my camo in there just to clean the washing machine! I had an idea of buying a cheap washing machine just for my camo and keeping it in a non-heated pole barn. How well would that work? Has anyone done anything similar? Could you somehow rig it up to drain COMPLETELY after each use to avoid freeze issues? Thanks!

 

[Sam1911]

Doubt it would be hard to drain the waste line. If you can figure out how to winterize your supply lines and waste lines from the area (maybe you can get away with a "greywater" dump?) then I don't think it would be that hard to winterize your machine. Heck, just push some RV anti-freeze through it before real cold weather.



It sure is a good thing all these manufacturers came up with scent-locking and sent-blocking technology, because nobody ever killed a deer before we had such creative ways to spend so much money.

 

[mooosie]

Well here is the way I would do it , build a box around the washer and insulate it with an inch or two of Styrofoam make a top and hinge it ant insulate it the same way . Install an electrical box down low inside and put in a light bulb socket and a 100 watt bulb. Your water line would have to come in under ground inside the box or be valves top and bottom so when the water is shut off you can drain the line. If you dig a hole about 2'x2'x2' put in a 5 gallon bucket drilled full of holes and fill in around the bucket with gravel, now you have a French drain to run the washer water into. The light bulb will keep anything inside the box from freezing

 

[TimSr]

External clothes I hand wash with baking soda in place of detergent. Clothes that are not external that I am still concerned about, I use baking soda in place of laundry detergent in the machine.

 

[desidog]

If you stand hunt, just leave some of your dirty laundry in the stand... that way they'll be used to the smell.

 

[jmr40]

I'm sure it could be done, but I'm also sure there are better options. I'm not that anal about scent control, but others that I know only wash their hunting clothes on rare occasions. They just take them off and store them in a plastic garbage bag and get them back out the next time. Maybe only wash them before and after the season.

I have to drive past a house to get into an area of public land where I sometimes hunt. The home owner is obviously a dedicated hunter because his hunting wardrobe stays outside on the clothes line the entire hunting season. He apparently walks out into his yard and gets what he needs for each hunt. He hangs it back on the line when done.

 

[Patocazador]

If you hunt from a tree stand, morning thermals will lift your scent up and away.
If a deer is downwind of you, you are probably 'caught' regardless of how clean your clothes are.

 

[dirtykid]

All of my predator hunting gear gets washed with some cheap unscented detergent , and only to remove the scent of me and my body oils/skin.. I then store all of them in Rubbermaid totes with Pete Moss dumped on them, and sealed until ready to use.
.
I smell like fresh dirt when on stand, If I get winded, then it's my own fault..

 

[oneounceload]

You can always put some baking soda in your laundry - works well for smells, both on the clothes and in the washer

 

[jim in Anchorage]

When I lived in NY I spent hundreds of hours in tree stands during the bow season. And I would smoke. Open oak woods so I could see deer 200 yards away. Not once did I see one that appeared to be alarmed by some thing it smelled.

 

[clearcut]

I you take the lift hose off of the washer it will drain at the pump.

CC

 

[DeepSouth]

I just make sure the wind is in my face, no special washing for me.

 

[buck460XVR]

I see no real advantage to using a separate machine for hunting clothes. Running a rinse cycle or two with baking soda in the water with the regular machine before doing your hunting clothes would probably do as much good. That's what I generally do, along with drying them with baking soda and then leaving them outside, or packed in bags with earth/pine branches from the area I hunt. Still, I always try to place my stand downwind of where I expect the animals to come from.

 

[98Redline]

I typically run 2 loads of towels with my hunting detergent and baking soda prior to washing my hunting stuff. Then it gets air dried hanging on the fence outside all day. From there it goes into a rubbermaid tub and sits until I put it on, right before I go into the woods.

The scent coming off your body is going to be much more powerful than your clothes after air drying.

You can try and make your clothes as scent free as possible but you will never beat a deer's nose. What is that old saying...Full time deer, part time hunter.

 

[jmorris]

Sit in front of a camp fire for a few hours, that should cover up any fragrance.

 

[Davek1977]

I've had plenty of luck deer hunting, and have never taken any special measures with my clothes,. Even the 10 years I smoked and hunted both, I never had any issues and got my deer every year. YMMV

 

[Nature Boy]

In my experience, if the wind is working against you, you're busted no matter what sent control measures you take. I've read a few articles that back that up.

If the wind is in your favor you could be smoking a cigar while taking a leak off your stand and the deer would walk right past you if you're not moving.

As a matter of fact, I can think of one time where I had a deer walk out on me when I had my other gun in my hand

 

[judgedelta]

Down here where I live, most everyone has a washer on the front porch of their trailer. Sort of a status symbol, you know...

 

[Sunray]

"...rig it up to drain..." Of course, just don't let it drain down just any drain. The storm sewers for example are not connected to water treatment.
What do you think is in your hunting clothes that is not in your regular clothes?

 

[Missionary]

Greetings
Been bow hunting with recurves all my life.
My deer gear ... I run one cycle through the washer with "no scent soap" washing some misc. jeans or shirts that go for walks or the kayak.
Then I wash my deer gear with the same no scent UV soap. Hang dry out side on the line. Straight into the large garbage bags with cut apples inside. The apples I get from the ground under apple trees.
Hunting day all my outer layer gear gets rubbed with cut apples. Also bow, quiver and arrows. Boots get it 3x. Last 50 yards into my stand area the boots get it again especially on the lowers.
I have deer track me to my stand and lick the apple flavor off the tree pegs. I hunt river bottoms in a major deer hide area down below corn and bean fields.
Mike in Peru

 

[anothernewb]

a bit off topic.. but it got me thinking. drain completely and not freeze up.

my first thought was an old ringer washing machine. they can be emptied. might be a bit more work than you want though, lol.

 

[rcmodel]

I doubt you can completely drain an automatic washer well enough to prevent freeze damage.

Why not just get an old wash tub and do your hunting clothes by hand.

Then hang them outside to dry??

But, I'm in the don't matter anyway crowd.

I have had deer walk up to me after being at work all night and wearing the same clothes.
While smoking a cigarette and coughing my lungs out.

They ain't that oder sensitive if you aren't making any movement to catch their eye.

Rc

 

[jmorris]

FWIW I have stored "hand me down" washing machines over the years down at our farm in non climate controlled storage and never had one busted from freeze damage when put back into service some years later.

For that matter the one in our A frame cabin never gets any special treatment even though we shut off the water, drain the H2O heater and flush the toilet and put a cap full of antifreeze in the bowl, to prevent freeze damage, when we are not there.

 

[Jason_W]

One of the most successful deer hunters I ever encountered had an in-stand ritual of smoking like a chimney (not recommended on account of the detrimental health effects) sipping brandy (possibly illegal and unsafe if done to excess) and eating pepperoni.

 

[Snyper]

While clean clothes are helpful, if the wind is from the wrong direction they will smell you anyway.

Throw a handful of baking soda in the rinse water and don't worry about it.

Unless you hunt really remote areas, most deer are accustomed to smelling all sorts of things that are unnatural, but won't alarm them.