Backcountry dishwashing

[Shiraz-mataz]

No post? Must be nothing to wash!!!

 

I'll go out on a limb and assume the original poster intended to find out how people wash up their dishes. I like to do mostly "freezer bag cooking" where you simply pour boiling water into a dehydrated meal in a Ziploc type bag - nothing to clean, you simply put the bag in the trash. On the rare times I actually use a plate or bowl, I boil a little extra water and pour it onto/into the plate or bowl and let it soak while I eat. Give it a little swish with my hand and toss the water in the woods. Good to go! No soap or anything like that required...

[+Kit Fox]

Dang!

 

I hate it when that happens.

 

What methods do you use for camp clean-up after eating/cooking? Since contact with contaminated water is very risky, how do you process dishes? do you do it in stages?

 

Any pictures you could post would be greatly appreciated

[+cyanide41]

I carry a small bottle of Camp Suds. I use it for dishes, clothes, hands ... everything. My brother like Dr Bonner's soap for all the same stuff including brushing his teeth.

[+briansnat]

I have a small bottle of Dr. Bronner. I prefer the lavender soap but usually can't find it and wind up with the peppermint soap. I keep a copper Chore Boy pot scrubber in my cook kit as well as half a Scotch Brite. I use the copper scrubber for the tough stuff and the Scotch Brite for everything else.

 

I'll usually fill up the pot halfway with water, add a squirt of Dr Bronner and put it on the stove to boil. I add the dirty utensils and if I have another dirty pot once the water boils I'll pour it back and forth between the pots until it gets cool enough to get my fingers in the water.

 

I'll scrub the pots and utensils with the scrubber or Scotch Brite, then pour out the dirty washwater a good distance from camp or a stream.

 

If water is plentiful I'll fill them up with clean water again and repeat without the soap. If not I'll just use enough water to rinse the soap off everything.

 

If water is low and there is no source nearby I'll dispense with the boiling stage and just dry scrub the pots and utensils with a tiny bit of soap and rinse with a little bit of water.

Edited June 28, 2009 by briansnat

[+rlridgeway]

No post? Must be nothing to wash!!!

 

... I like to do mostly "freezer bag cooking" where you simply pour boiling water into a dehydrated meal in a Ziploc type bag...

 

Humm.. the Ziploc type bag won't melt? If not, its a great idea. I hate, really hate having dishes to clean at camp.

Edited June 29, 2009 by rlridgeway

[Shiraz-mataz]

Humm.. the Ziploc type bag won't melt? If not, its a great idea. I hate, really hate having dishes to clean at camp.

 

Nope - they won't melt. Get the good ones though, like Glad Freezer Bags. As a matter-of-fact I have made instant grits (or oatmeal if you prefer) by pouring hot water right into the paper pouch they come in! Be careful because, well... you can burn your fingers! These are just tricks used by people who are into ultralite backpacking.

[+CurmudgeonlyGal]

No post? Must be nothing to wash!!!

 

... I like to do mostly "freezer bag cooking" where you simply pour boiling water into a dehydrated meal in a Ziploc type bag...

 

Humm.. the Ziploc type bag won't melt? If not, its a great idea. I hate, really hate having dishes to clean at camp.

 

Try here: Freezer Bag Cooking (well, that's what it used to be called, anyway.)

[+TotemLake]

Humm.. the Ziploc type bag won't melt? If not, its a great idea. I hate, really hate having dishes to clean at camp.

 

Nope - they won't melt. Get the good ones though, like Glad Freezer Bags. As a matter-of-fact I have made instant grits (or oatmeal if you prefer) by pouring hot water right into the paper pouch they come in! Be careful because, well... you can burn your fingers! These are just tricks used by people who are into ultralite backpacking.

They will if hot grease is involved.

 

Don't ask.

[+Jeepergeo]

The "cook in the bag" dehydrated food means only having to boil water and no clean up. The food is good, but not great.

 

If I do cook something and get a pot dirty, I always put a little extra water in the kettle and let it get to a boil while I eat. A few drops of Camp Suds, a little boiling water, and a green pad is all is takes. This process is never fun, and I really hate to do it in bear country.

 

I sometimes rinse in fresh, unfiltered water. In those cases, I make sure the next time the pot is used the water comes to a boil, just in case there was any contamination in the rinse water. Of course, this is not a problem if filtered or disinfected rinse water was used.

 

If you want to make your own cooking boil bags, get the Heat Seal or Seal a Meal bags that are used with vacuum and heat sealers. These taking boiling water quite well, and will not melt with some grease (if you have cooked bacon inside, the grease only gets to 212 degrees and won't melt the bag...but hot grease might.

[+tzipora]

I live in bear country, so I try to have as few dishes as possible. My family often makes fun of me, because I live on granola bars, beef jerky, and dried fruit when I'm out. As I venture into longer trips, I'll probably add in those dehydrated cook-in-bag meals to my menus.

 

When I have dishes, I won't wash them within 150 feet of camp in order to prevent bears from coming around, preferably in a stream or lake. I typically use Dr. Bronner's and use the boiling water method for getting food un-stuck from the pot/pan.

[+TotemLake]

Every time I see this thread pop up, I'm reminded of an old soap and water joke.

Edited July 17, 2009 by TotemLake

[+cmisty2001]

I'm usually with groups of scouts.....

 

1. Cook in pot lined with foil or use the ziplock bags with dehydrated items

2. after cooking - about 1 - 2" water in pot, heats up to boiling while eating; add a few drops of soap; wash dishes with rubber gloves so the temp isn't an issue. Double rinse - first with plain treated water second with bleach water

3. scrub up cook pot and bury wash water, pour 1st rinse water into cook pot, and run the 1st rinse container through the bleach rinse

4. swish cookpot and disperse the plain water then pour bleach rinse into cookpot

5. disperse bleach rinse

6. air dry everything if possible

 

If it's just adults, then it's #1, 2 with only a rinse of plain treated water. The kids have their hands into everything and never seem to get their nails and fingers very clean.

 

Don't like to leave the pot rinsed with untreated water, since it may need to be utilized for food items in a hurry that wouldn't allow time for boiling.

 

Soap isn't magic only helps the stuff slide off easier - love the boiling water.

 

Just got back from the Boundary Waters - the group generated very lttle trash and we did as much as possible in the ziplock bags with some foil - also generated very few dishes to wash - mostly our personal eating items. Packed very carefully at home and planned it out as I don't ever like doing dishes anywhere.

[+SAM.T]

when i was in the forces, we used to use a metal mug that fitted over the water bottle for everything, heat your hot water up in it, eat out of it, shave in it, srub with a scotchbrite and rinse using minimal water, brilliant!

If you didnt want to burn your lips on the edge when sipping your hot drink, you just placed a band aid over the rim (some of us didnt change that old band aid for weeks!)

[+Mredria]

I'm not a backpacker or much of a hiker, so this will probably sound stupid... but...

 

Doesn't so much clorox in so much water = sanitary wash liquid? That's how it worked in the restuarant business at least. Then you just leave it to dry and the clorox is enough to kill anything on the utensils but not enough for the next person to taste/make them sick.

 

Maybe you wouldn't want to carry chlorine in a backpack though... that could be a mess.

[MikeB3542]

I'm usually with groups of scouts.....

 

1. Cook in pot lined with foil or use the ziplock bags with dehydrated items

2. after cooking - about 1 - 2" water in pot, heats up to boiling while eating; add a few drops of soap; wash dishes with rubber gloves so the temp isn't an issue. Double rinse - first with plain treated water second with bleach water

3. scrub up cook pot and bury wash water, pour 1st rinse water into cook pot, and run the 1st rinse container through the bleach rinse

4. swish cookpot and disperse the plain water then pour bleach rinse into cookpot

5. disperse bleach rinse

6. air dry everything if possible

 

If it's just adults, then it's #1, 2 with only a rinse of plain treated water. The kids have their hands into everything and never seem to get their nails and fingers very clean.

 

Don't like to leave the pot rinsed with untreated water, since it may need to be utilized for food items in a hurry that wouldn't allow time for boiling.

 

Soap isn't magic only helps the stuff slide off easier - love the boiling water.

 

Just got back from the Boundary Waters - the group generated very lttle trash and we did as much as possible in the ziplock bags with some foil - also generated very few dishes to wash - mostly our personal eating items. Packed very carefully at home and planned it out as I don't ever like doing dishes anywhere.

 

I would say ESPECIALLY the adults need to follow all six steps. We had a bit of norovirus tear through my son's troop at summer camp (25% of boys and adults ill, including myself) and having the leaders sick threatened our ability to get the guys home on time. Besides, grown ups like us are such babies when we get sick! Kitchen sanitation probably wasn't the culprit -- we have a pretty strict procedure of wash, rinse, bleach and boil that avoids most food-poisoning grief.

[+Sol seaker]

I agree with the last poster. Kitchen sanitation is SO important.

 

Interesting though, information on the Pacific Crest trail says that people who get sick on the trail are getting sick from bad hygene, not from bad water (although I am Not suggesting being lax in your water filtering either!!)

 

Always use only clean water for cleaning dishes. Filter filter filter.

 

My local backpacking expert says he boils filtered water for the food, and then just boils extra for hot water to do the dishes.

 

Limiting dishes is good. Using plastics under a boiling situation is not good. You know all those discussions lately about the types of dangerous chemicals in plastics that has caused Nalgene to make all new bottles (and so many people are throwing away their old water bottles because of)? All chemicals in plastics get into food faster when heated. The hotter it gets the more chemicals get into your food. Plastics are made for specific purposes. If you use a plastic for a purpose other than it was made for, such as using sandwich or freezer bags for boiling, then you're using a product that has chemicals in it that will leach badly into the food.

 

So my backpacking friend uses those cup-a-soup things a lot. He takes the food out of the cups puts them in baggies, but then puts them back into the cups when adding hot water. Then burns the cups when done. (the reason for the baggies is to preserve space in the pack and in the bear canister. You can put the cups all nested together when they won't always fit in if you don't open them).

 

Another thing he does is he brings a couple cans of chicken ( I know the superlightweight people would not consider this one) and opens the lids slightly, then puts it on the edge of the campfire to warm. Does not have to cook, already cooked. Eats it right out of the can, then puts the can upsidedown in the fire afterwards to burn the food out of it. in the morning he adds the can to the garbage he is packing out, but it no longer has food in it.

 

Add these along with dried fruit, nuts, snack bars, and jerky and you only have to wash some silverware in your filtered water.

 

THese ideas are only for short trips of course. If you're on a long trip you're going to have to go with complete dishwashing.

 

I've found campsuds are far superior to dr. Bronners soap for dishes, although I'm a big Dr. Bronner's soap fan (I have it at every water source in my house).

Edited September 27, 2009 by Sol seaker

[XC_Tracker]

We pack much like Two hopeless hobbits described. We each carry a metal cup - everything you eat/drink involves the cup. Pretty easy to do dishes - just boil some water and pour it in - swish it around (get the chunks out) and pour it out. Makes for minimal space when packing for a week or more and most of the food is dried so it won't go bad before you eat it.

 

Also, mashed potatoes in a metal cup after a long day of wilderness backpacking is delightful.

 

I leave my cup on the outside of my frame pack to 'clank' occasionally so we don't sneak up on any unsuspecting grizzly bears...although that method has failed us before!

[jimdean2544]

I have been a fan of the One Cup, One Pot method of camping for years. It can be done, just think of your evening meal as a 4 or 5 course dinner....... For clean up, just a bit of water swished around, wipe out with what ever is handy. After years of this, I find I have developed a phenomenal constitution