4+ year review:
I still stand behind everything I previously mentioned. I rarely use the bag anymore, or bring it with me during my travels (as I don't find it useful in the vast majority of situations), but it's worth mentioning that it still functions and hasn't developed any leaks. That being said, it is somewhat "fragile", so I am careful with it, and would not suggest using it as a dry-bag.
1.5 year review:
After traveling with (and using) this wasbag on and off for over one and a half years straight, I can honestly say it wasn't worth the $55+ price tag (I actually paid $48 for the twist cap version, so the price has gone up)... That isn't to say that it isn't beneficial to have in certain situations (on the rare occasions when there are no laundry facilities/services available), but those were few and far between during our travel through South East Asia, North America, and Europe. Also, we could have just as easily washed our clothes in a sink those times.
In Asia, you can almost always find laundry services which will wash, dry, and fold your laundry for $0.50-$2 (if we were washing literally everything we had). North America wasn't AS cheap, but still not an issue, with US laundry mats being one of the most expensive ($2-3 to wash and dry a load). Europe was hit or miss, but hostels, hotels, and Airbnb apartments usually have laundry on site for cheap or free. If you're camping for longer periods, it can be useful, but you need a relatively large amount of clean water to wash even a small load, much more than you would carry on you, but assuming you have access to a faucet, I suppose it would be better than using a communal sink.
The problem is that once you factor in the time/effort/space to use it, it simply isn't worth it. The *actual* washing process: fill with clothes/water/soap, aggitage/rub for a few minutes, empty water, wring out the clothes (not entirely, but the more dirty water/soap you get out, the more effective the next steps are) it's tiring but necessary to actually get the clothes clean, fill with clean water, aggitage, empty, wring out, then fill, agitate and empty again, completely wring out (or they will never dry), and finally you hang them to dry (which heavily depends on environmental factors, and requires you to carry a clothes line and pins). You also have to buy and carry soap, and a clothesline and pins of some sort, so it simply wasn't worth it.
They make it seem as though it only takes a few minutes, but to do it right takes 15-20+ minutes per wash, especially if you have sensative skin or allergies, and need to get all the soap and dirt out (not that I do, but others have complained about it). Add to that the time to hang a clothes line, wring out the clothes, plus hang them (and hope it's hot/dry out), and you'd be better off using a local service. In the end you will be tired, wet/dirty, and in need of a shower yourself. If you know how to do it, the only time you get wet is when wringing the clothes out, or possibly pouring out the water, but it's not a completely dry process.
**Who I think it would benefit the most: people who plan to travel for months or years at a time, with expensive smart-tech/quick dry clothing. Especially those also traveling with a hammock (you can use the straps as a clothesline). Or, possibly those who are camping with access to a clean water source (I used it a few times while in my RV and camping off the grid for over a week). But I wouldn't recommend it for those embarking on a world trip or simply traveling**
I decided to shell out the money to buy all smart tech clothing ("hi-tech" synthetic materials which are anti-mocrobial, anti-odor, quick drying, etc.) before starting my adventure. The benefit of that is that they are easy to clean in the washbag, and dry quickly. An added pro/con is that they are expensive, and it's not unheard of for local laundry places to lose articles of clothing during the process, which would be incredibly frustrating if they lost a pair of $30 smart tech boxers or $80 merino wool shirt... After realizing how much effort and time it took to wash my clothes, I decided to only wash my smart-tech boxers and shirts and leave the rest to the professionals. After a while, I even gave up on that as it was simply easier and cheaper to have a service do all of it... 20+ minutes for me to properly wash one small load (plus the cost of soap, plus drying time/effort) vs $0.50-$0.60 per KG (2.2lbs) for the local service to wash/dry/fold... I value my time at more than $1.50 an hour, and an actual washing machine will always result in cleaner clothes, so it just makes sense to hand it over. However, I do politely mention to the laundry staff that my clothes were expensive, and that I took photos of everything, so if they "are confused about whether or not something is mine, I can help by showing [them] the photos so they don't accidentally give it to the wrong person". I've never lost anything while using a local laundry service, whereas countless people around me complain that they do almost every time; maybe I've been lucky, or maybe they take extra care because they know every item has been photographed...
There have been a handful of times when we were on small islands or out in the jungle, where laundry services were either unavailable , or relatively expensive ($2 per kilo), where I did use the bag, but the vast majority of other times we used it was simply to feel as though we hadn't wasted money on it... At $55 I honestly think it's a waste, especially if you'll only be traveling for a few weeks or months. I also prefer to give a bit of money to the local businesses, assuming they aren't super inflating their prices for foreigners. I think $20-$25 would be an OK price for the amount of times we actually used it during the year. However, it is still fully functional (no leaks or tears) so I suppose it would even out over the course of a few years of travel.
If you do buy it, my suggestions:
- Wash frequently. A small load is easier, and will result in cleaner clothes. For me, 2 boxers, 2 thin shirts, and 2 pairs of socks was the max, but half that is ideal. The problem is that half that is a lot of work, for not much gain.
- While washing, make sure the bag is closed up tight and roll the opening down to the valve. Sit down on the floor to "agitate", and enjoy some Netflix on your laptop/tablet. It's not as tideous when you're watching something. You can also use your feet, as long as you're careful about it.
- Don't be lazy. If you put in half an effort, you'll get back half clean clothes. Soap, dirt, etc., will irritate you sensative areas, and you'll wish you'd just handed your clothes to a service.
- Bring your clothes to an actual laundry service every other wash, or every third wash, so that you get an actual full clean.
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