Richard Hewitt, a student from the UK, has designed a bicycle washing machine that can wash a load of laundry while you cycle.
Hewitt was inspired to create the SpinCycle after volunteering at a children’s orphanage in Burundi, Africa. The orphanage regularly hand-washed 30 loads of orphans’ clothes.
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SpinCycle can be attached to any type of bicycle.
Burundians also regularly cycle to work and run errands, so Hewitt decided to use the power of the bike to wash and rinse clothes in a rear-mounted barrel.
The invention also serves as a portable micro-enterprise for people in developing countries.
He was inspired to create the machine by watching women and children “enduring many hours of backbreaking labor”, washing clothes by hand.
It does not need electricity and can be used for washing and spinning. It’s designed to be easy to use and reduce the time spent doing laundry by hand.
The SpinCycle is available now as a tech guide ($24.88) for anyone looking to build their own bike washing machine. The guide includes labeled diagrams, dimensional drawings of parts, as well as assembly and operating instructions.
More information: thewashingmachineproject.org
