Scrubba portable washing bag
RRP $64.95 www.thescrubba.com.au
Washing clothes on the go has long been a painful affair for any traveller. Finding and paying for a laundromat in a foreign city, carrying around a bag of pongy clothes to wash at the end of a trek or figuring out how many ways to wear your undies are small frustrations born in the name of adventure.
Enter the Scrubba. Taking the idea of a dry bag in reverse, the Aussie-designed Scrubba is a waterproof sack that acts as a portable washing machine for use anytime, anywhere.
Its distinctive feature is a patch of small nodules on the inside for abrading clothes against. There’s also a window to see how the clothes are going.
The idea is to throw a few of your grotty clothes in with some water and detergent, vigorously agitate, pour out the water and rinse with new water. Voila! There are even step-by-step instructions on the side for the washing-challenged.
The company claims it takes three to five minutes per load, but in testing it took a bit longer when getting the hang of filling and emptying the air out. It also depends on how long you agitate the clothes for. It’s also easier to let the air escape from the top before you close it up rather than fiddling around with the small plug.
You need access to several litres of water, so it’s ideal for travelling or taking on treks where water isn’t an issue – you can opt to rinse clothes in the shower or sink. Though at a pinch, you could chuck in a T-shirt and some undies without using much water.
The Scrubba works best when using camping (eco) detergent and not overfilling it – just a few clothes at a time is fine.
It’s compact – weighing only 180g and folding down to about wallet size – and comes in either bright green or olive. It’s a great travel accessory for any trip.
