Convert Your Washing Machine to Pedal Power Part 1 (Top-Loader) - Getting Started

After over ten years of pedalling, our old washing machine finally threw in the (freshly laundered) towel - it had sprung a leak which could not be repaired. Some years previously I had actually managed to get hold of a top-loading machine from the local tip, this machine had been dumped due to electrical failure but the mechanical parts were in good working order and it was watertight. I have also had several comments from subscribers asking for a step-by-step description of the conversion of a washing machine to pedal power and so I decided with this new project, this was a great opportunity. My mind was further also focused on the task by having a request from our local organic shop to exhibit our pedal powered washing machine during 'Do-it-Yourself Week'. In this new project and also not to exclude those without welding equipment I decided to make wooden supports for the bicycle.

A Broken Washing Machine Doesn't Automatically Mean Goodbye

The most frequent reasons for machine failure is of an electrical or electronic nature. Neither of these preclude using it, as long as the drum is watertight. Even if you don't already own a machine I can guarantee that one of your neighbours, friends or family has at least one of them in their garage. Due to the heavy nature of these beasts, most people choose not to dump them but to leave them alone hoping that one day someone just like you will come along. The good news too is that you won't need all the heavy stuff, so you will be able to remove it with impunity before loading it up. In the next article we will go into detail on what to remove.

What better way to do the laundry than pedalling in the garden on a sunny day! Below: Have Washing Machine will Travel - a whole new career as an ambulant laundryman has opened up to me!

Introduction - Know your machine

Before we start with the hands-on conversion we should familiarise ourselves with the configuration of the drive train of our own machine. This might sound complicated but in essence, this just means 'what makes the machine go round' and we need to know this so that we set up the machine and the bicycle on the correct side. Our bicycle is going to power the machine via the chain and thus a chain wheel (sprocket) will need to be attached to the side of the washing machine drum which was originally driven by the electric motor.

In the case of a front-loading machine, the drum is driven from the rear, so the bicycle is placed behind the machine.

On a top-loader, it is less evident and so we need to determine where the washing machine's transmission is located. This is done simply by tipping it up and looking underneath.

Once we know where the drive is, we can establish which way round the machine will have to face for the drive to function. Here below in close up you can see the motor on the right of our machine.

Additional Materials:

 

PALLET

In order to create a neat laundry set up, that functions well, looks good and can be moved and relocated efficiently, I made this design to fit on a standard European wooden shipping pallet size 140 x 80  or   55" x 31½". These pallets are normally readily available but if you can only find the standard US size grocery pallet of 42" x 40" then join two of these together and saw off any excess to neaten.

Using a pallet means that if, as in our case, you would like to use the machine in the garden or where there are uneven surfaces, the two machines will always be on the same foundation. Plus, the additional height provided by the pallet makes it much easier to drain the water from the machine.

BICYCLE 

Living by the seaside means that we have a plethora of discarded materials that holidaymakers leave behind, usually around the recycling bins. This includes everything from furniture and bicycles to kittens and dogs! As people around here are great recuperators, this means that everything including the pets get rehomed. Here below you can see our latest crop of bikes, on a bumper day we can get four or five at one pickup point.

When choosing a bicycle to power your washing machine, remember that you do not need tyres or even wheels! The bare essentials would be a comfortable seat, a sturdy frame, handle bars, pedals and chain - a bell is fun particularly if you are expecting kids to help with the laundry!

In addition you will also need a second chain wheel (see left) and an additional length of chain. This is another reason to collect a couple of bicycles before you start your conversion. Remember that additional and unused components maybe of use for other projects or repairs.

TOOLS & EQUIPMENT

All the work involved in this conversion can be achieved with hand tools but it might be a good idea to invest in at least one power tool just to save time and effort. I work on the premise that tools are a great investment and that if you are going to consider DIY then they are essential. Similarly Safety Equipment is also a necessity, in particular when handling heavy objects and using power tools. Buying these items has an initial outlay but if you buy wisely these will last you for years of projects, for example my current electric drill is well over ten years old.

Electric Drill - Two of my favourite makes are Makita and Black & Decker
Set of Bits for the Above
Wood Saw
Set of Spanners
Range of Screwdrivers
Pliers, Drift or Chain Splitting Tool
Hammer
Centre Punch
Tape Measure
Safety Gloves, Boots and Glasses
Metal File
Tri Square
Additional if Possible:
Jigsaw with blades for sheet metal

Wood Screws, Nuts, Bolts, Washers and Wood Glue

..and here's the film:

In the next article (link below) I will be looking at taking the machine apart, removing unnecessary components and the initial stages of the conversion to pedal power.

If you read this article and found it interesting then share it with your friends on social media or suchlike. Please also feel free to ask questions and or make comments and if you found this helpful and would like to support this site you can always 

You can also find all my films Youtube and also now on Odysee 

Until next time and from a sunny day in Normandie,

Cheers, Andy

© Andy Colley 2022

RELATED ARTICLES

Convert Your Washing Machine to Pedal Power - Part 2 Break Up to Make up

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How to Convert your Washing Machine to Pedal Power 2 - Modifications (Front-Loader)

If you have just arrived at this project then you might want to to go back to Part One which can be found here, this will give you the steps needed to achieve your basic bicycle washer. The following shows the modifications I made to perfect the machine, making it easier to pedal and also giving us some 'spin cycle' too!

Update - I have recently completed a 'new' pedal-powered washing machine as this one finally sprung a leak after years of great service. The new one is a top loader and also has wooden stands. Due to requests from subscribers, I am writing this project up in step-by-step detail. There are also tips on removing and recuperating materials and complete photographic documentation of each step in the conversion. The first in this series of what will probably comprise 5 articles with their respective films has just been published and is available through the link at the end of this article.

 At last year's Art & Garden Expo with our convivial host Daniel Renouf

Apart from the many other advantages of a pedal washing machine - saving on bills and energy consumption, fitness, fun, and time to read... everyone wants to do your laundry. Family, here on vacation, including the children, actually ask us to save up some washing! Even passing holiday-makers stop and ask to have a go pedalling. What could be better than to give them enjoyment and get your laundry done to boot!

 

Modifications

The first arrangement had a 1:3.3 ratio from the bicycle pedal crank wheel to the gear on the motor shaft and between the motor and the drum pulley  a ratio of 14:1. Thus providing an overall gear ratio of: 4.2:1 i.e. just over 4 rotations of the pedal crank to get 1 revolution of the drum. No wonder 1 felt very little resistance when pedalling..

I thought that the gearing ratio should be at least 1:1 that is one revolution of the crank would produce one revolution of the machine drum. To this end, I disconnected the drive belt and screwed to the face of the large pulley wheel a pedal crank wheel from another bicycle. The drive chain was attached to this crank wheel. I had to increase the chain length by about 6-8 links to get it to fit. I had determined this to be the minimum ratio as I believed pedalling/drum speeds of  around 40-50rpm allowed the contents to be sufficiently agitated for effective washing. At this speed, one could feel the load changing as the wet laundry was picked up in the drum by the paddles and then fell back to the bottom of the drum due to gravity. This cadence was very easy to maintain even when the direction of pedalling was reversed. Unlike with the first highly-geared arrangement I had, the load provided a resistance to the pedalling which actually made it easier.

Surplus water removal (spin drying)

We’ve exhibited this machine on many occasions and the most frequent comment from spectators has been ‘let’s see you spin dry now!’. Modern washing machines have very high spin speeds (in the region of 1200 rpm or even greater). The need for these increasingly higher speeds is questionable as the additional amount of water extracted is relatively small. (See end of article for links to 'The Great Spin Debate'). Reading through it, it seems that so much, if not all, of the escalating speeds are nothing more than sales gimmicks and may result in damage to the laundry.

Nevertheless, being able to remove some water prior to removal from the machine was desirable so I started by calculating what kind of drum speeds were necessary to keep the contents held against the drum wall for the complete cycle i.e. drum speed needed to overcome the acceleration due to gravity. Obviously this rotational speed varies with drum diameter and I've included at the end of this article a link to determine G forces.

With sufficient force holding the garments to the drum walls the water can escape through the holes in the drum. Higher rotational speed will obviously increase the rate of water loss.

For our drum of 46cm diameter, a calculated speed of 62.3 rpm would mean the contents would experience a force of 1g. Fast pedalling I could achieve a consistent speed of 100rpm producing a force of 2.6g but, if I dismounted and turned the pedal by hand I could achieve 170rpm producing a force of; 7.4g. Such an action produced a significant increase in the flow of water leaving the drum but it was not possible to maintain this speed for more than 60 seconds or so. On removing the garments there was still a considerable amount of water in each item which could be extracted by wringing by hand.

A Word About Tools

All the work involved in this conversion can be achieved with hand tools but it might be a good idea to invest in at least one power tool just to save time and effort. I work on the premise that tools are a great investment and that if you are going to consider DIY then they are essential. Similarly Safety Equipment is also a necessity, in particular when handling heavy objects and using power tools. Buying these items has an initial outlay but if you buy wisely these will last you for years of projects, for example my current electric drill is well over ten years old.

Electric Drill - Two of my favourite makes are Makita and Black & Decker
Set of Bits for the Above
Wood Saw
Set of Spanners
Range of Screwdrivers
Pliers, Drift or Chain Splitting Tool
Hammer
Centre Punch
Tape Measure
Safety Gloves, Boots and Glasses
Metal File
Tri Square
Additional if Possible:
Jigsaw with blades for sheet metal

Wood Screws, Nuts, Bolts, Washers and Wood Glue

Further modifications and improvements:

Pump removal

After using the machine in this arrangement for 18 months or so I found a leak had developed in one of the flexible hoses connected to the pump. The end result was I found it easier to remove the hoses from the pump cut out the perished part of the tube and re-connect them via some rigid pvc pipe, bypassing the pump completely.

Spin drying and the future of our laundry needs

Without a doubt removing excess water at the end of the process is the most significant improvement to make. To this end I have obtained from my local dump another non-electronically-functioning washing machine. I propose to set this up as the bicycle-powered washing machine and to convert the existing machine to a more efficient spin-drier by altering  the gear ratio.

When setting up this next machine I will endeavour to fix the drum more securely to the machine frame. This, I now realise, would be an ideal use for the brackets normally supplied by the manufacturers specifically for transporting the washing machine.

 

 

Future Projects - Mark 3 Laundry

Next year I intend to design and create a solar water heating system which will link directly to the machine. This will obviate the need for the alternative hot water sources, we use at the moment, viz water heated on our wood cooker and in Summer, by means of a couple of plastic bush-shower bags.

..and now if you'd like to, sit back and watch the film

Have washing machine, will travel! If you read this article and found it interesting then share it with your friends on social media or suchlike.

 Please also feel free to ask questions and or make comments and if you found this helpful and would like to support this site you can always 

You can also find all my films Youtube and also now on Odysee 

Until next time and from a sunny day in Normandie,

Cheers, Andy

© Andy Colley 2015

RELATED POSTS

Convert Your Washing Machine to Pedal Power - Detailed Instructions (Top-Loader)

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USEFUL LIVE LINKS

The Great Spin Speed Debate

G Force RPM Calculator

RETURN TO GREEN LEVER CONTENTS PAGE FOR MORE ARTICLES

How to Convert your Washing Machine to Pedal Power 1 - The Basic Model (Front-loader)

Many years ago now, we heard a radio report on a guy who had built his own pedal-powered washing machine. We both decided that once our own electrically-powered machine developed an irreparable fault, we would convert it. In fact this is what we have been doing systematically with all our electrical appliances, as they breakdown. We divide them into unnecessary, (the case of the hair-dryer is a good example of this, its only function being an extra aid to heat up cold baby pigeons) or we convert them to human-powered. The following appliance has now been running manually (or rather, by being pedalled), for over four years and we would recommend the conversion to anyone who wants clean clothes, healthy exercise, a well watered flowerbed and help in getting off the grid.

Please note in this simplified version of our pedal-powered machine there is some welding involved, both for the pinion and the  bicycle supports. However, in Part Two, (the modified version), the transmission layout does not require any welding and the bike supports could of course be fabricated from timber. In effect, the modified version worked better but all of the steps needed to complete the project, excepting the transmission, are contained within the following. I also wanted to show how I developed the idea, I think it is a useful exercise both for myself and to share with others that I show how the design process works. In the event, with this first version I got the feel for the effect of a full washing load versus the effort required to pedal.

Note 2 - I have recently completed a 'new' pedal-powered washing machine as this one finally sprung a leak after years of great service. The new one is a top loader and also has wooden stands. Due to requests from subscribers, I am writing this project up in step-by-step detail. There are also tips on removing and recuperating materials and complete photographic documentation of each step in the conversion. The first in this series of what will probably comprise 5 articles with their respective films has just been published and is available through the link at the end of this article.

Test-drive with the approval of the fantails!

The Backstory

The electronic fault that arose in our automatic washing machine rendered it useless - an extremely frustrating but frequent problem in today’s world. I knew that the machine was watertight and that there was no problem with the rest of its mechanics and hence I started to think about doing away entirely with the electric motor and all the fancy pumps and stuff and converting the machine to human power.

Pedal power was the ideal choice as the washing machine functioned by the drum rotating with the laundry, water and detergent within it and leg power was much greater than arm power - and could keep going longer. The rotary motion of a bicycle was perfectly suited to this requirement.

A Word About Tools 

All the work involved in this conversion can be achieved with hand tools but it might be a good idea to invest in at least one power tool just to save time and effort. I work on the premise that tools are a great investment and that if you are going to consider DIY then they are essential. Similarly Safety Equipment is also a necessity, in particular when handling heavy objects and using power tools. Buying these items has an initial outlay but if you buy wisely these will last you for years of projects, for example my current electric drill is well over ten years old.

Electric Drill - Two of my favourite makes are Makita and Black & Decker
Set of Bits for the Above
Wood Saw
Set of Spanners
Range of Screwdrivers
Pliers, Drift or Chain Splitting Tool
Hammer
Centre Punch
Tape Measure
Safety Gloves, Boots and Glasses
Metal File
Tri Square
Additional if Possible:
Jigsaw with blades for sheet metal

Wood Screws, Nuts, Bolts, Washers and Wood Glue

Method

The first step I made after I had moved the machine into an outbuilding was to investigate the layout of its moving parts. This I did by removing the rear panel where the motor, pulleys and flat drive belt could be clearly seen.

At the time of removing the rear panel I decided to also remove the massive ballast weights (see above) that were bolted to the machine; these are fitted to help absorb vibrations caused by off-centre loads in the machine especially during the spin-drying cycles. I also lifted off the top of the machine so that I could take out any other superfluous items.

I decided to keep everything as simple as possible choosing to weld a small gear from the rear hub of a bicycle to the end of the electric motor shaft, a chain would then connect this gear to that of the pedal crank of the bicycle and the original pulley/flat belt transmission would remain.

I wanted the two machines to be on a common base and this I chose to be a wooden pallet (of course) this was a non-standard sized one of  140cm x 80cm (55” x 31½”). I could fit the two machines on this pallet because I’d decided that the chain from the pedal crank would go forward to a gear on the electric motor shaft, the limiting factor became that of the proximity of the pedals to the side of the washing machine. I established that I required a clearance of 75mm (3”) between the pedal at its closest approach. to the machine to allow me an unobstructed pedal action.

Now I had obtained the layout and positions of the two machines with respect to each other, I had to decide a means of supporting the wheel-less bicycle. As luck would have it, one of the shops that furnish me with wooden pallets had just thrown out a steel framed, wheeled dolly used to transport a ride-on lawnmower crate. This I cut up in the workshop to furnish me with the necessary steel angle for the support frames and four castors which I subsequently used in the fabrication of my cross-cut saw table. (link at end of post)

I welded two cradles from the steel angle to support the bicycle at the front and rear dropouts (the points where the wheels fit). The rear cradle was a  right-angled triangular frame and the front cradle comprised two vertical tubes welded to a base frame both had  a 10mm threaded bar welded at the cradle top to fit into the dropout. The cradles were screwed in place to the pallet, the critical positions for these cradles were at the proper distance between the front and rear dropouts and at the correct lateral position for the bicycle’s pedal crank to align with the gear on the motor shaft.

When the bicycle had been lowered onto the threaded bar ‘axles’, it was secured to the cradles using 10mm nuts, I found it necessary to put a spacer tube between the rear dropouts to give the nuts something to tighten up to, otherwise the process of tightening would squeeze the frame/fork tubes out of shape instead of clamping them.

The drive chain could then be attached.

I had already noted that the force from the drive chain was twisting the drum on its support springs so, to avoid the problem of the chain coming off, I forced two wooden wedges between opposite sides of the drum and the outer walls of the machine.

After a quick pedal to see if it worked I prepared for the first wash.

The Wash Cycle (pun intended)

It was only when I started to put the water into the machine for the first wash that I realised the need for a modification, that being the fact that pouring in water into the machine via the drawer destined for the powder was too slow - if I went too quickly the water just overflowed out of it. As the top of the machine was no longer in place, I sawed the top off the drawer compartment permitting a larger opening for the water.

I was surprised at how easy it was to pedal the full machine. In fact it was too easy due to the speed reduction of the belt drive between the motor shaft and the pulley on the drum. The reduction meant that: at normal pedaling speeds the drum was moving very slowly and I found it very hard to pedal when there was little to no resistance. Nevertheless, the initial laundry results were good and so the logical step was to alter the gearing to a more practicable level.

Emptying the Machine

Normally, an electric pump empties the water from the machine and discharges it via a flexible hose down the drain. Washing machine pumps are of the centrifugal type, a vaned rotating impeller pushes the water up the pipe. If one lowers the pipe to below that of the water in the drum then the water will flow out, simply by the effect of gravity. I, therefore, used this simple technique, the additional height due to the machine being sited on the pallet made it easier for it to be completely emptied. I used the waste water on the flower borders in front of the house so I collected the water in watering cans and buckets.

There you have it, Mark One of our pedal-powered washing machine. We continued using this format for two washes each until we got a good feel of what I needed to change. In Part Two I will look at the add-on modifications for this basic machine, which both made it easier to pedal and gave us something of a 'spin-cycle'.


In the meantime though and if you'd like to, sit back and watch our film.

If you read this article and found it interesting then share it with your friends on social media or suchlike. Please also feel free to ask questions and or make comments and if you found this helpful and would like to support this site you can always 

You can also find all my films Youtube and also now on Odysee 

Until next time and from a sunny day in Normandie,

Cheers, Andy

© Andy Colley 2015

RELATED POSTS

How to Convert your Washing Machine to Pedal Power 2 - Modifications (Front-Loader)

We’ve exhibited this machine on many occasions and the most frequent comment from spectators has been ‘let’s see you spin dry now!’...read more

Convert Your Washing Machine to Pedal Power - Detailed Instructions (Top-Loader)

The most frequent reasons for machine failure is of an electrical or electronic nature. Neither of these preclude using it, as long as the drum is watertight. Even if you don't already own a broken machine I can guarantee that one of your neighbours, friends.....read more

 

Crosscut Saw Table - designed & made from recuperated materials

The home-made crosscut saw table has proven a valuable addition to the workshop. A robust hand power tool into a precision cutting tool at little cost...read more

RETURN TO GREEN LEVER CONTENTS PAGE FOR MORE ARTICLES