Living in a garage, any tips living with no running water? (tank, microwave)
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We are working full time trying to save up to build a house. In the meantime we have no running water. I fill plastic jugs up every week with a hose for our water. We have a microwave & a cook top so that i can atleast cook meals. My husband's parents have a house but it is a distance away.
Instead of trying to pack all our dishes down and to the main house, is there a way to clean dishes without running water? It doesn't help that the in-laws do not do their dishes, and i end up having to do theirs just to do mine.
Some kind of dish-safe wipe to just wipe away the food and also clean it? Or some other way? We've tried paper plates and the like, but we are really trying to save everything we can. Plus i know my husband isn't too keen to eat soup from a paper bowl and eat with a plastic spork.
Really the worst part is not having a restroom nearby. My husband has it pretty easy. At first i was disgusted at the fact that he didn't bother going to the house to do such things. I guess i've been getting used to this way of living.
But for me i just hold it best i can until i make it to the main house. I've seen those little portable pee-pocket things that women can use.. but again i'm kind of scared to do that outside or even to go outside to dump it (we live on a hwy and kind of dead center of our small town) plus i would need to clean the darn thing.. making it useless because i cant. Doubtful we can do anything about it, besides installing a porta potty but those things are costly.
Wash the dishes like campers do.
Get 2 plastic dishpans like these Camco Dish Pan, Natural - Walmart.com. Heat up some water on your cooktop for one with detergent. Cold water in other for rinse.
Visit the camping department of stores. They have 5 gallon water jugs with an on/off spout. You can lay it sideways on a table and turn the water on/off! (Running water!)
And you CAN'T wash grease off dishes with cold water- need warm/hot water. Get a camping stove (use it outside) to heat the water for washing dishes.
Basically read about what campers do. Search for... camping dishes cold water
Yes to the above ideas. Why are you living like this and for how long? Do you have children living like this? Please get some help from your county or state. This doesn't seem healthy at all.
I just saw your other post about building your house. I still think this is no way to live until this house is built. If you did not consider the camping equipment solution this is not very well thought through. Are you in a moderate climate that you can live in a garage? Why can't you put in some plumbing to the garage and get that going as long as there is going to be a house. I must say for an engineer this doesn't seem like a very viable plan to live without plumbing (and heat?) until a house is built. Please get some help, emotionally if not physically.
You can always use disposable dishes such as paper plates and bowls, and plastic utensils. To urinate you could use a 5-gal. bucket with a toilet seat that is made for that. You can find the seats for 5-gal. buckets at outdoors stores such as Cabela's, Sportsman's Warehouse, and so on. For other than urinating you could buy a portable toilet that uses a chemical solution such as the ones shown at the Amazon link below. But you will still have to dispose of the waste a few days later by emptying the waste in the tank into a toilet. Amazon.com: portable chemical toilet
How long are you going to be there? If it's more than a few months, it's worth $ get a semi-working RV to use as a cantina and shower/restroom. You can re-sell that when you move.
You have electricity right? An electric kettle will heat water faster than a stove. Empty the hot water into your dishpan, then start a new kettle right away. Wear good thick kitchen gloves, wash some dishes in hot soapy water, by the time you get some done, the next kettle will be ready, pick up the item to be rinsed, pour a little hot water on it to rinse it, letting the rinse water run into the dishpan. Repeat.
The water will be plenty hot enough to cut grease and kill germs.
The toilet seat on a 5 gallon bucket is a good idea, to keep from having to go to your in-laws house every time you have to pee. You could empty a bucket outdoors without anyone knowing what was in the bucket. If you ever have to use the bucket for a bowel movement, put a trash bag in to make disposal easier. A menstrual cup can go longer without being changed than tampons, which would also help cut down on bathroom trips during your time of the month, but you'd have to be able to wash the cup twice a day.
How long have you been living in the garage? I wouldn't be able to handle it for more than a week, I don't think. My husband has had some bad ideas sometimes that I've had to just shut down...this sounds like the kind of idea he would have come up with, "just for a while so we can save up" and I would have had to veto.
It also sounds like you might be violating some kind of city codes for minimum standards for housing, depending on where you live. You might need to check into that.
It also sounds like you might be violating some kind of city codes for minimum standards for housing, depending on where you live. You might need to check into that.
One hint: dishes that have been cleaned with dish soap do not actually need to be rinsed if the dishwater is not dirty. I knew a healthy old farm family that did this. The solid sewage disposal on the other hand is a real issue. Our modern techniques are required to prevent disease. If you have other options, living like this to save for a house is not a good idea. If you are otherwise homeless then do the best you can within the law.
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