WWII Fleet Submarine Laundry: The Forgotten Luxury

[@bsalightning69]

My mom used a ringer washer up into the early seventies, and stopped then when she had hip trouble. She had a rectangular stick that she used to stuff the clothes through the wringer. It had turned grey from the continuous use over the years raising us kids. It's a labor intensive job, but does save money on hot water, etc. Thanks for jogging my memories, I appreciate your efforts in the production of the videos, you guys are doing a great job.

[@vvogt4252]

That's Gotta be Evans, whew nothing smells that bad. Ha ha ha. Great Video!!

[@klsc8510]

As an Army National Guardsman deployed to Iraq in 2003-04, my personal washing machine was my 5 gallon Homer Bucket donated by Home Depot. Not a fun way to do wash, but it worked. We had special laundry soap for hand washing. Hot water wasn't a problem. Midday the water coming into the team house was solar heated as the pipes were barely under ground. It was HOT!. I would put the water clothes and soap in and hand agitate. When ready I would hand twist wring the heck out of the poor clothes. Then I will empty, rinse, and rebill the bucket with clean water. Add the clothes and hand agitate again. Then again twist wring the clothes. Drying wasn't a problem. Hang outside in the almost zero humidity 100+ degree heat and in minutes they were bone stiff dry. It worked. Again not fun.

[@paulfarace9595]

So much for the Army's laundry crews😮... must have disbanded them.

[@jastrapper190]

Moon dust… it was a monster.

[@ericsimons4976]

My respect sir.

[@emerycreek8016]

Oh the memories. We used a new unused toilet plunger to agitate the clothes. Worked pretty good. There was a laundry unit around but it took days to get your clothes back. We much preferred to do our own and keep control of our uniforms. You didn't want to lose anything!

[@tomhenry897]

Use to send a detail back with Landry More interested in beer then Landry Brought back thier freinds stuff and lost everyone elese

[@ryanjones6303]

I love the shout out to Down Periscope. One of my favorite movies.

[@johncaldwell-wq1hp]

My Dad was in the Aussie Navy,-W.W2---he saw those U.S.-"maytag"-washing machines,--and would not buy a "local'' made one untill he could get a "maytag"--we got one (this is in the 50s)-and that beauty lasted "forever"--it cost heaps,-but would not give up !

[@crazyguy32100]

"I'm the skipper, I shouldn't have to do this kind of dirty work". Well Paul, a Chief may work from sun to sun but the Captains work is never done.

[@paulfarace9595]

You got that right!

[@therealbarnekkid]

They're lucky to have Paul as director. He has a great sense of humor.

[@NewmanAttack]

I met him at the boat with my son. He talked to everyone to come across his path and he was very friendly.

[@toastnjam7384]

When I was young I was only interested in combat and strategies. Now it's mundan things like this that I find interesting.

[@paulfarace9595]

It's called maturity 😂❤

[@tcschenks]

My great grandmother was still using her ancient ringer washing machine in her basement next to her newer automatic in the mid-1980s..

[@Electriceye1984bySam]

Dude! I love this series ! ❤❤❤❤❤ Thank you sir🫡

[@johnslaughter5475]

Serving on a super carrier, laundry was never an issue. Once a week the entire division's laundry went in and came back 1-2 days later nice and clean. Our socks, as they were a little difficult to stencil, were put in a little mesh bag. That had a tag with our name. But, just for grins & giggles, I decided to try washing some stuff by towing them over the side. I put 3 t-shirts in my sock bag, got enough line to reach the water, and dragged them for 1/2 an hour. I was on my favorite sponson, which very seldom had anyone else. Hauling them back in, I took them back to my berthing. I wrung them out really good and hung them over my curtain line. They were clean alright, but loaded with salt crystals that scratched really bad. If the guys on sailing ships cleaned their clothes that way, they must've had hides like a rhino.

[@paulfarace9595]

Thanks for sharing your experiences! The dragging a laundry line overvthe side only works for Sweetwater sailors on the Great Lakes (fresh water)!😅

[@johnslaughter5475]

@@paulfarace9595 I don't think you can get an 1,100' 80,000 ton ship up to the great lakes. Use it as an AVT like they did with Lexington. I remember they had 2 specially built ships on the lakes used for training new pilots before sending them off to war.

[@BilgeDweller]

I used to clean engine room mops that way on the Mississippi. 🙂

[@BilgeDweller]

@@johnslaughter5475, USS Sable and USS Wolverine. They were originally sidewheel propelled lakes passenger steamers, and converted into flat tops. Great docu here about the whole operation and the present day recovery of some of the aircraft from Lake Michigan. kzbin.info/www/bejne/m3W1aa2kdpaertk

[@wtmayhew]

+1 for the guest appearance Diving Officer Lt. Emily Lake. And +1 for rescuing the engines from the actual SS-186 Stingray.

[@paulfarace9595]

You know your stuff! ❤

[@JoshuaTootell]

I think it was a clerical error. I think it was supposed to be LT Emilio Lake. Admiral Graham was known for that kind of thing.

[@NewmanAttack]

Did you mean Grahamamam?

[@wtmayhew]

@@NewmanAttack That hadn’t occurred to me.

[@John-jl9de]

USS Sirago SS485 here. I spent a year on her in 1971/72 and qualified aboard her until decommissioning in 1972. We never washed any clothes or used our showers during my service while aboard her. They weren't called pig boats for nothing. We did a Northern run to Norway, Denmark Scotland and England out of Norfolk, VA in the fall and winter of 1971 transiting on the surface 95% of the time participating in NATO exercises. Laundry was done while in England and along side of the tender in Holy Lock, Scotland. Very rough sea state and lots of seasickness aboard as well as our sanitary tanks venting inboard made for some very bad odors. We also spent a lot of time snorkeling and that made life miserable when the head valve would cycle and pull a vacuum on the boat. Ugh, not fun. I ended up at SUBLANT and rode Fast Attacks and Boomers out of Norfolk, Charleston and New London. The difference is night and day in comfort and every other way.

[@paulfarace9595]

Thanks for sharing your story! It's amazing how different life aboard the fleet subs degraded with the introduction of those damn snorkels!😢 Suffice to say your fleet boat comrades in WWII had a better experience in general. But in rough seas, it didn't matter... seasick is seasick!😮

[@RoL6641]

I was on he Salmon (SS573) 1968 and 1969. One Westpac. No showering. No wash machine. Reuses dirty cloth 2-3 times.

[@BB12659]

I spoke to a bubble head (submariner) and he indicated that you never knew the odor onboard until fresh sea air was let in. Unfortunately, the smells became very aromatic after that occurred, and many sought whatever means to bathe themselves, wash their clothing, etc. Thanks, Paul!

[@banedonrunestar5618]

Learning how the men lived on board during the war has been great. Thank you to the entire team at USS Cod for these videos about not just the weapons and equipment but also day-to-day life.

[@paulfarace9595]

Thanks for your kind words!❤

[@Russojap2]

I had no idea the laundry room would be so interesting. 😂 Nice addition with the vintage soap too.

[@BilgeDweller]

Wringer washers! All the old towboats that I started out on had wringer washers aboard, we didn't see the first automatic till the early 1980's, and the first boat that the company tried to put an automatic on board, the chief (to the total disgust of the crew!) refused delivery on the basis of an automatic using too much water. That got resolved fairly quickly... 🙂 Any girl that I was dating in the wringer washer era was always curious about how we lived on board, and inevitably asked about how we did laundry. When they were told that we had a wringer washer, after a moment's delay the usual response was that her grandmother had one of those.

[@milwaukeeroadjim9253]

My mom used a ringer washer into the 80s. I once got my hand in the ringer. Just turned the handle the opposite direction and ran my hand back out. On our ship you could get clothes washed but items got lost. Since being on a tender we were tied to the pier so I would take my laundry into town to get it washed and dried.

[@Name-ot3xw]

My dad was laundry boss on a supply (surface) ship for a time, so this is personal. I had a neighbor who was using a ringer-washing machine up into the early 2000's. Might still be kicking if they are.

[@werewolfsaves2179]

Thanks.

[@richardhardin9469]

Twenty-eight Gato-class ships served in this capacity, some as late as 1971. In this role, the ships were rendered incapable of diving and had their propellers removed. They were used strictly as pierside trainers. These were in commission, but classed as "in commission in reserve", thus some were decommissioned and recommissioned on the same day to reflect the change in status

[@tractorguysgarage7057]

I love the down periscope reference!

[@chrismaverick9828]

As a kid in the 1980's my mother was a bit anachronistic and had a decent sized wringer-washer she used. We had a large back yard and a rather robust pair of clothesline poles (4" diameter base pipes) set about fifty feet apart with four taut lines on it. I caught my fingers in that thing at least once, and I think my sister was nailed twice at least. It had a big ol' release lever for when that happened. Certainly of decent utility, but it was a blessing to move onto an automatic washer and real dryer when we moved from that place.

[@RobertDumont-q8d]

Great video - keep up the good work!!!

[@davidstrother496]

Love the end of the video, let us see Ryan top that one. Thanks, Paul, for the video.

[@ericsimons4976]

I was about ready to move but worth the wait!

[@tomnewham1269]

I’m guessing Ryan is too busy with dry docking to talk about laundry. Anyway he has already done a video on the topic.

[@dan1elhalas]

Engines and the transfer of power to the screws would be amazing one day.

[@paulfarace9595]

Yes... all in good time...

[@USNVA11]

My dad’s first boat was the SS-424 USS Quillback. He was an electrician’s mate aboard her around 1961-62 until he was assigned to Naval Nuclear Power training. He completed the program and the went on to a successful career in boomers until retirement in 1981. It’s cool to watch these videos about the old fleet diesel boats. It gives me a view of his early Navy life before I came on board. Thanks ! 😃

[@prsklenar]

Bon Ami was made here in my town of Manchester CT!

[@mr.somebody1493]

I was looking away and just listening when you said "who is Lt. Emily Lake" I instantly started laughing out loud. Got the Down Periscope reference right off. 😂

[@paulfarace9595]

You're a sharpie!😅

[@bobforman3489]

In 1968, when my tank unit went to Vietnam, some enterprising sergeants stashed a wringer washer and a fridge into a conex container. They allowed me, a 2Lt to join in with them. When our camp got established with electricity we were in business. The washer did a good job of getting the smell and sweat out of the fatigues' and provided a delight when we put clean close on after a shower from a hanging bucket. It was so hot there, drying was not a problem.

[@ericsimons4976]

I can't help but wonder if they were letting you in on it as a friend, or as an officer scapegoat. Either way, thank you for your service and my freedoms.

[@paulmanson253]

That tank unit,was that the Blackhorse ?

[@jamessotherden5909]

I remember my Grandmother using a ringer washer back in the 50"s. She had her arm caught in one to.

[@dw3897]

Later model ringer washers had a trip device on the ringer to pop open if something got caught. A little safety to prevent crushed arms/hands.

[@dfirth224]

@@dw3897My mother had a wringer washer in the 1950s. Sometimes I helped and it had the spring loaded safety release.

[@tomnewham1269]

Is the ringer hand operated or electric?

[@Curmudgeon2]

my Mother's first washing machine was a wringer...it was in the back yard...filled with a hose, drained onto the ground a bit away from the machine and then onto the line to dry...but, my Dad's left over khaki pants went back into the machine with a ton of starch and then into pants stretchers on the line.

[@Ganiscol]

Never ask your subordinates to carry out tasks you wouldnt do yourself - that includes laundry. 😅

[@randyogburn2498]

You better keep that pink thing at the end. I believe you fire them out of a torpedo tube if you're ever depth charged by friendly fire.

[@klsc8510]

When I toured the Ore Boat Valley Camp at the Soo in Michigan, the ship had a classic Maytag wringer washer just like Mom had in the 1950s and early 1960s in the engine room.

[@paulfarace9595]

Hummmmm.... really? When do they close for the day and how tight is their security? 😅

[@klsc8510]

Paul, my GF and I are planning a trip there this summer. I will have to get back to you. Heck, you are welcome to come with us. We are planning to visit the USS Silverside and the LST in Muskegon. Then across the state to visit the Destroyer USS Edson. Then to the straights of Mackinac to tour the retired Coast Guard Icebreaker Mackinac. Then on to the Soo to tour the Valley Camp. I would invte Ryan, but his Battleship will see be demanding all his attention coming out of dry dock.@@paulfarace9595

[@BalshazzarWastebasket]

i remeber a all purpose soap called "sintabon". the bar was red and had grooves ob the side for getting a good grip and it was good to both washing cothes and dishes and showing. had a neutral smell, abut it worked pretty well, if you need to do stuff by hand. years later, whn i had a baby, those lessons of washing stuff by hand came in handy, when i had to do her clothes....

[@lawrenceberlinski7643]

"Lt. Lake, you're... almost... out of uniform." -The most accurate submarine movie.

[@sr7312]

On a carrier our issue uniforms were sent down to ship's laundry and washed just fine but they were never really dry when they came back. Scivvies and sleepwear/PT clothes were the crew member's responsibility and the ship had a laundromat. I can't recall what brands of detergent the Ship's Store sold because I always brought a container of pods with me and we never cruised long enough for me to run out.

[@KentAJDK]

Lol. Stingray. Great fun movie 😊

[@haunter_1845]

When I'm on long motorcycle ride I do my laundry in the sink with the room's complimentary shampoo. I hang it above the heater or A/C and it's usually dry in the morning. I get a lot more room for other things on the bike. Most people think it's weird, but a WWII submariner wouldn't.

[@paulfarace9595]

Yes indeed

[@dougjohnson9345]

Another great show and tell! I love Paul's educational and humorous descriptions of day to day Life aboard a fleetboat.

[@1boortzfan]

Thanks for another great video Paul. Those wringer washers were great. It's a shame you can't still get them today, I've checked. The only ones you can get today are made in Saudi Arabia. My wife's family used a wringer all through the 50s and 60s. You were right about them using less water. That was an important factor when you had to carry water from a well.

[@PakaBubi]

Emily Lake lol. Wasn't she a character in the movie Down Periscope? I love that film. Best regards from Ireland

[@JoshuaTootell]

Correct. Great documentary

[@andrewcorrell1923]

Nice job Paul! Always informative & entertaining!! Lucky to have you!! 🙌

[@mg1342mg]

Never thought about laundry on a vintage sub. Considering how pungent some of my modern day service memebers were, this must have been a godsend.

[@paulfarace9595]

It was, along with air conditioning and ice cream makers!😅

[@spigot993]

Keep it coming, these are great, there are museum boats in the UK I wish had activity and community engagement like this. Fine fine example!

[@cosmopezzolla996]

The ending....... classic! 😂

[@simplyamazing880]

That's very interesting because I was on the 523 boat and we had no washing machine.

[@paulfarace9595]

Did a chief take it home to his wife?

[@zxggwrt]

That is an extraordinary amount of water for the batteries. I guess that was they were being cycled so hard? I’ve worked on huge flooded systems (larger than a sub for sure) and so this just threw me.

[@TimMacCartney]

Love the down periscope reference, well done!

[@jastrapper190]

Another great video. Many thanks for all your efforts in making them. I love the history.

[@CybershamanX]

(6:22) Just pointing out that this is where "being put through the ringer" came from. 😉

[@MrClutch440T4]

They should have did laundry like on McHale's Navy and put a 55 gallon drum with holes in it plus soap! It worked for them! In one espoide they had a business doing laundry till an enemy sub torpedo hit the drum😅

[@paulfarace9595]

Normally i would say "don't get your history from movies or TV" ... but in addition to McHale's bunch of pipsqweek pirates (according to CAPT. Binghamton) Luther from and his crew of lonely sailors are doing laundry for Nurse Nelly Forbush in the musical SOUTH PACIFIC. 😂

[@robertporterfield9578]

Great presentation!

[@joes8087]

can we get a video dealing with cod's engines? how they work, start up procedure, maybe even seeing one of them running

[@paulfarace9595]

Yes... in the works.

[@jrmotorsports5532]

Love the detailed content, please keep it coming.

[@AugustusTitus]

another great vid, just waiting on the algorithm to catch up

[@pedenharley6266]

I love the daily life videos. Thank you!

[@HootOwl513]

Just curious, but how much sea salt was residual in the kettles after boiling off 100 gallons?

[@paulfarace9595]

It was a liquid brine that was flushed overboard.

[@dennisyoung4631]

Wonder about this, given that the plan is to get a water distiller next month…

[@donaldhill3823]

So the movie “operation petticoat “ got the clothes drying scene correct 😂

[@tcschenks]

I read the book Wahoo several times years ago, and I recall something about them using their air conditioner condensation for washing up.

[@HongyaMa]

The Battle of New Jersey Cod. Ryan's looking for his coffee filter, Think you found it. . .18:46

[@ericsimons4976]

At least Evan has good taste.

[@paulfarace9595]

I didn't mean to insinuate that it was Evan's "delicate thingy" ... but he did grab it and I haven't seen it since...😮

[@justinblach]

Like the reference to Up Periscope!!👍👍

[@paulfarace9595]

You're the first to get it! But it's Down Periscope!😅🎉🎉🎉

[@justinblach]

That’s right!! You are correct sir!! It has been a while since I’ve seen that movie. Keep up the good work. I really enjoy the back and forth with you and Ryan!!

[@chessthecat]

I didn't think there was EVER a time you could smoke on a submarine. That can't be right. Limited air and risk of fire. There's no way.

[@paulfarace9595]

How wrong you are! It's only recently that subs have become non-smoking areas. There's not much damage cigarettes can do beyond the health of the smoker. When batteries are being quickly charged, they can generate hydrogen and traditionally that's when smoking was halted until the hydrogen detectors said it was clear.

[@milwaukeeroadjim9253]

Just watched The Silent Service episode about the Cod's last war patrol and the lost boarding party. Was that film accurate?

[@paulfarace9595]

Yes and no... the basic story is fine but Cod left the men on the junk to go out and ambush the small convoy that the air radtvwas scouting for. After an unsuccessful attack and depth charging, Cod returned to the area to look for the junk with her crew.

[@dw3897]

Down Periscope, great movie.

[@SIBSKYHAWK]

Enjoy all your Videos

[@jeffsr8300]

Thanks again for a great job

[@TiberiusMaximus]

can u show us how the batteries were "rewatered"? When I think of batteries I think of encased batteries w water already in them

[@paulfarace9595]

Well I'm old enough to remember when you periodically checked your battery levels and added distilled water. Our batteries are no different, just much bigger.

[@TiberiusMaximus]

@@paulfarace9595yea but not to the point where you have to fill them every single day

[@J-1410]

@@TiberiusMaximus If you pull and push massive amounts of power out of a car battery, you do.

[@gjs9871]

Can you please do a video on the engine rooms/ engines?

[@paulfarace9595]

It's been partly done and will be covered in segments. All in time!

[@tfc850]

You should do a video on the livability in the submarine while underway. I’m curious on how steady it was could you walk around without being off-balance etc. etc.

[@paulfarace9595]

We will include that in an upcoming subvet roundtable... that is a good question to include, thanks!

[@arizonasubmarinersperchbas4684]

Submariners can make their skivies last twice as long between laundry by turning them inside out and wearing them for another week!

[@s.porter8646]

I have up on skivvies, more room in that laundry bag

[@bubwal23xifan]

Didn't fleet boats have heated lockers for wet weather gear, raincoats, rubber boots, rain hats, and rubber overalls? I swear I remember reading stories where submariners would throw laundry into those heated lockers to help dry clothes. Or am I mistaken?

[@paulfarace9595]

Yes some if not all fleet subs had a locker to dry foul weather gear. However it wasn't big enough to dry a load of laundry on a regular basis. And those lockers were where you stowed the foul weather gear.

[@shoominati23]

Proof Bob Hope is STILL alive!!

[@prsklenar]

Over the shoulder Boulder Holders! 🤣

[@captainjohnh9405]

Ringers like that were called a Laundry Mangle.

[@paulfarace9595]

Yes i discovered that... so that's where the verb comes from ?

[@Absaalookemensch]

I don't want to think about the smell in a submarine. I know they all looked forward to surfacing at night to freshen-up the airs a bit.

[@paulfarace9595]

We're a WWII submarine... they were surfaced most of the time. Diving was to avoid enemy detection. In the Cold War, it was reversed.

[@burroaks7]

neat

[@georgemartin1436]

Don't really know but the Gato class boats seem way better than the German (type vii & ix)...for the crew anyway...

[@paulfarace9595]

They were luxury liners compared to all contemporary foreign submarines !

[@paulfarace9595]

They were far more technically advanced than the Uboats...

[@wtmayhew]

@@paulfarace9595 It is surprising with Germany’s technical savvy, that U-boats were spartan and uncomfortable as they were. Perhaps it was economizing for the war effort. Despite that, U-boats still managed to be a formidable foe.

[@mjames70]

Compared to the common Type VII U-Boat, a Gato class sub is about 90 feet longer, and twice the displacement. The Gato was on another level altogether in comparison.

[@georgemartin1436]

Sure seems so. The German boats were a lot like WW1 boats in appearance...and maybe more. Except for the XXI@@mjames70

[@tomhenry897]

Think the only navy that did this

[@donaldparlett7708]

I have a completely functional Maytag wringer washer if you want it it’s yours. I’ll get your number somehow.

[@cneuzil]

Did Ryan's clothes take two passes through the washer?

[@paulfarace9595]

We just burned them... 🔥 Libby's clothes had blood stains!

[@wfoj21]

Did the water evaporators for fresh pre-heat the input seawater with the diesel engine cooling water?

[@paulfarace9595]

Don't think so... but I'm not sure! It sounds Iike a good idea!

[@satunnainenkatselija4478]

I suppose they had no economizers. Seems kind of wasteful to throw away free heat but I guess a steam system would not have fit in.

[@JoshHarris-ng8on]

❤❤❤

[@bigsarge2085]

✌

[@hond654]

A real submariner can bath with half a gallon I guess :)

[@tomhenry897]

Who/what had priority

[@paulfarace9595]

Cooks! They handled your food!

[@andrewmortimer3317]

DBF!

[@John-jl9de]

USS Sirago SS485 here. Qualified 1971 and was on the decommissioning crew in 1972. DBF

[@nicholasmcgraw7894]

Less talking, more washing!

[@USSCod]

That’s right!

[@bjarkih1977]

At the end you were mixing colored with whites. You're not supposed to do that ;)

[@paulfarace9595]

I'm just a rebel I guess 🤷.

[@markhenderson9391]

It was red, but now after Paul’s washing / bleaching it’s pink!

[@connorkilpatrick6283]

Remember you best bribe Chief with some “emergency pre heat fuel” (alcohol) and char/tar.

[@trevorruffcorn4424]

HAHA DOWN PERISCOPE