Can I freshen my clothes on the ISS with a clothes line?

Asked Nov 16 '18 at 17:53

Active Nov 16 '18 at 18:00

Viewed 216 times

There are a number of questions about washing clothes on the ISS, the short answer is that they do NOT wash them.

Answers that go into detail about the challenges talk about the different methods of washing clothes on Earth and how the are problematic in space. When I read them, I realized that washing clothes on Earth is much like what is going to happen to Elon Musk's Tesla, just from being in space

So the question becomes; If I hang my dirty clothes out on a clothesline, from the ISS, how long will it take for them to be freshed?

Maybe the space exposure damages the cloth to fast to make this practical, I don't know.

Obviously I am oversimplifying the solution, as you can't just open a window run the dirty clothes out on a line, but say you had a small air lock with a retractable clothes line...

edited Nov 16 '18 at 18:00

asked Nov 16 '18 at 17:53

James Jenkins

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You want to hang them on the outside of the ISS? – Hobbes Nov 16 '18 at 18:12
@Hobbes, yes why not? – James Jenkins Nov 16 '18 at 18:19
just asking for clarification as you didn't specify it in the question. – Hobbes Nov 16 '18 at 18:23
@JamesJenkins Are you washing them first and hanging them out to dry, or just running out the dirty clothes? – Punintended Nov 16 '18 at 18:24
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@Punintended just running out the dirty clothes. Oils and such should evaporate. – James Jenkins Nov 16 '18 at 18:25
Possibly related: https://space.stackexchange.com/q/8743/26446 – DrSheldon Nov 17 '18 at 01:51
Hanging the clothes would be difficult in zero gravity. – Uwe Nov 17 '18 at 16:59
That's what clothespins are for! – ikrase Apr 30 '20 at 10:26
I'm tempted to just build a space simulation rig to test this but I feel like I'd end up with vacuum pump pill that smells like sweaty socks – ikrase Apr 30 '20 at 10:28

Can I freshen my clothes on the ISS with a clothes line?

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