Washing clothes by hand is a very tedious task. For centuries human beings have tried to invent different types of machines to make this chore easier. For ages, people have known that forcing water through clothes will remove dirt from them. For instance, many sea voyagers would place their dirty clothes in strong cloth bags, tie them to the ship, and toss them overboard. They would let the ship drag the bags for hours, thus washing their soiled clothes with the help of the force of water. From that period until now, there has been a significant change in washing clothes as different machines were invented and modified over a period of time. The fully automatic-washing machine that resulted from many such modifications is a boon to mankind. It saves time and energy, is safe to use, and improves the durability of clothes as compared to manual washing and the first electric washers.
In early days, without running water, gas, or electricity, even the most simplified hand-laundry used a staggering amount of time and labor. Water had to be pumped from a well or a faucet and carried in buckets and wash boilers that weighed as much as fifty pounds. The process of rubbing, wringing, and lifting water-laden clothes, especially heavy blankets and men's work clothes, proved to be tedious work for the person washing. This time consuming process of washing clothes by hand wearied the washer's arms and wrists and also caused injuries to the back, shoulders, and joints. For example, I remember my grandmother telling us stories of her childhood. In the village where she lived, people used to wash their clothes by hand with bar soap in the nearby river. They would scrub and hit the clothes on rocks to beat the dirt out. As a result of constant scrubbing with detergent, their hands became rough, they suffered back and joint ache, and the clothes lost their durability. To simplify this tedious task faced by all households, people have tried to invent machines to wash clothes.