Washing machines are bulky and usually guzzle energy and water. Industrial designer and YiREGO founder Yi Jiang designed a solution to this problem in a 22-inch, foot-peddled washing machine. The Toronto-based designer’s creation uses little water, almost no electricity, and is compact enough to travel with the user.
Since its creation, the mini-washing machine, dubbed Drumi, has won multiple awards. Its eco-friendly design speaks to a generation who value products that lesson their carbon footprint. He came up with the concept while living in a high-rise apartment in Toronto. Tired of lugging a heavy laundry basket up and down flights of stairs, Jiang came up with a low-cost, low-energy way to take care of his laundry while in his apartment.
Regular-sized washing machines use approximately 500 watts of power and 50 litres of water per load. Jiang’s device uses 10 litres of water in total. Its portability also makes it suitable for people living on the road, campers, people living in small apartments and more.
Unfortunately, Drumi can’t totally replace a regular washing machine because it can only wash about three T-shirts, three pairs of socks, and three pairs of underwear at once, or a single pair of jeans. It can’t wash bedsheets or towels, but it can reduce the number of times you have to lug yourself to a Laundromat.
