Rope Washer

[ijg0]

What do you use for washing ropes? Our uni club rope cleaning brush has gone missing so we are looking at buying / making something better

Currently thinking along the lines of hose pipe, plastic tube and some sort of brush like here

 

[paul]

My club has a rope washer made by somebody years ago - don't know who but they made a brilliant job.

Its mounted on the wall in the changing room at the club hut and is a metal framework with two pairs of scrubbing brushes mounted vertically one above the other. There is a copper pipe also monted vertically with holes drilled in which sprays water at the rope from behind as it is pulled through the brushes. At the top are two small jockey wheels through which the rope passes, one being movable but held in place by a weight hing on an arm attached to the wheel axle.

 

[JB]

I use the Caving Supplies model which you can get from either their shop in Buxton or Hitch n Hike in Hope. Similar to the one in the pic - plastic tube with Astroturf inside. Probably not as user friendly as the wall-mounted affair but pretty effective.

 

[langcliffe]

The wife's washing machine - with a minute quantity of soap to break up the surface tension, and no spin cycle. The ropes come up an absolute treat.

 

[Dave H]

Two wooden floor scrubbing brushes, held together on the sides by plywood.
Cheep and simple, you just stand on it in a stream (or bucket of water) and pull the rope through.

 

[Brendan]

University halls have washing machines. Get gullible freshers to use them to clean your ropes.

 

[chriscastle46]

Buy an Astro-Turf doormat, bend some bits and shove them into plastic pipes pre-drilled with large holes in the side to take a water supply of your very own design.

 

[ianball11]

Recently bought the beal rope washer, seems to sork okay but is cold to do alot of rope with and I doubt it will last that long. Can't be put on mid-rope though.

Always used a caving supplies on and admired the Orpheus design from afar.


Ian B.

 

[ian mckenzie]

Two wooden floor scrubbing brushes, held together on the sides by plywood. Cheep and simple, you just stand on it in a stream (or bucket of water) and pull the rope through.

Saw one of those in the UK in 1984, and built one for our club. Our caves tend to be muddy, so it was great for use in the field before packing up the car. I think the new tube and astroturf ones are better tho.

I thought long and hard about designing one for use on in-situ ropes, pushed down the rope below a rappeler, but nothing came of it.

 

[paul]

Always used a caving supplies on and admired the Orpheus design from afar.Ian B.

How about admiring our rope washer from nearby (while making use of the equipment) - especially when there's a pile of dirty ropes that need washing (say after a Maskhill/Oxlow trip)? :wink:

 

[ianball11]

Because that would be a tad too much like hard work! :wink:

 

[hrock]

I thought long and hard about designing one for use on in-situ ropes, pushed down the rope below a rappeler, but nothing came of it.

i was thinking about this as i have just been through a set of rack bars in 3 months. an sugestions. more for the wather than the brushy bit