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University of New HampshireUniversity of New Hampshire Scholars' RepositoryMedia Relations Administrative Offices5-16-2012UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered WashingMachineBeth PotierUNH Media RelationsFollow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/newsThis News Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Administrative Offices at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It hasbeen accepted for inclusion in Media Relations by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For moreinformation, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.Recommended CitationPotier, Beth, "UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine" (2012). UNH Today. 3956.https://scholars.unh.edu/news/3956Media Relations Home | Calendar | UNH HomeMedia RelationsUNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing MachineMay 16, 2012 DURHAM, N.H. – A senior capstone project by three University of New Hampshire mechanical engineering students could make life easier – and cleaner – in developing nations. The project, a bicycle-powered washing machine, harnesses plentiful bicycles and salvaged materials to clean clothing with just six gallons of water, 30 minutes of easy pedaling, and no electricity.“In countries where washing machines aren’t available, this would free you up to do more interesting things,” says Britta Moore ’12, who designed and created the washing machine as a senior capstone project with Garrett Cassidy ’12 and Vincent Lyon ’12. The trio was inspired by a TED Talk speaker who addressed the life-changing impact of washing machines in rural areas.“The purpose of this product is to bridge the gap between convenience and sustainability,” the students write in their research poster. If the students are successful, their invention could bring a whole new meaning the concept of “spin cycle.”The washing machine consists of a 30-gallon plastic drum (the prototype is from a car wash) drilled full of holes and placed inside a 50-gallon metal drum. Clothes, soap, and a scant three gallons of water go into the inner drum, which agitates and spins via gearing that links the user’s bicycle to the double-drum system. Washing, rinsing, and spin-drying each take 10 minutes, a cycle comparable in time to a standard electric washing machine. With an additional three gallons of rinse water, the machine uses significantly less water than the 27-plus gallons a top-loading electric washer uses.“And if you’re using biodegradable soap, you could use the gray water to water crops,” Lyon says.Among the design’s most important features, the creators say, is the ubiquity of its materials in developing nations. “You could build this in a third-world country with minimal tools,” Lyon says, noting that a drill and basic welding are all that’s required to assemble the washer out of scrap materials and a few basic items from a hardware store. Alternately, all materials could be packed and shipped inside the larger drum.And, in an improvement over other such machines, the team assures that no bicycles are harmed in the cleaning of undies. The UNH team made it a design priority to power the washer with a bicycle that could be removed and ridden away.“In areas where the bicycle is the primary mode of transportation, you don’t want to sacrifice it,” Lyon says. Guided by advisor Brad Kinsey, associate professor of mechanical engineering, the team spent the fall semester planning and designing their washing machine; their knowledge of getting clothes clean now far exceeds that of the average college student. This spring, they built and tested their prototype, testing the strength of materials, determining optimal gear ratio to spin clothes efficiently without overtiring the “operator,” and comparing cleaning abilities with varying amounts of water and soap. They even subjected a white shirt to the “mustard test” of detergent advertising fame.University of New Hampshire seniors Vincent Lyon, (from left), Britta Moore, and Garrett Cassidy – all mechanical engineering majors –fabricated a bicycled-powered washing machine that can clean a load of clothes in 30 minutes using only six gallons of water. Credit: Mike Ross, UNH Photographic Services SHAREPrintEmailSubscribeTweet FacebookPage 1 of 2UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine1/31/2018http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2012/may/bp15bicycle.cfm.htmlThe team members – all graduates of ConVal High School in Peterborough – are cyclists themselves. Moore, from Temple, and Cassidy, from Hancock, are regular commuters, and Lyon plans to bike the 70-plus miles home to Antrim after graduation. They’re also active in energy and environmental issues on campus.All three students will return to UNH in the fall – Cassidy and Lyon to begin graduate school, and Moore to finish up her bachelor’s degree – and will work toward bringing the bicycle-powered washer to developing nations, possibly finding a business partner and entering it into UNH’s Holloway Prize Innovation-to-Market competition. In the meantime, they’ll continue to perfect the design in the most practical way: by using it to wash their clothes.The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 12,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students.-30-Photograph available to download: http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2012/may/bp15bicycle.jpgCaption: University of New Hampshire seniors Vincent Lyon, (from left), Britta Moore, and Garrett Cassidy – all mechanical engineering majors -- fabricated a bicycled-powered washing machine that can clean a load of clothes in 30 minutes using only six gallons of water.Credit: Mike Ross, UNH Photographic ServicesMedia Contact: Beth Potier | 603-862-1566 | UNH Media Relations | @unhnewsT-hallCopyright © 2012 UNH Media Relations, 15 Strafford Ave, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824.UNH is part of the University System of New Hampshire.ADA Acknowledgement | Privacy Policy | UNH Home | E-mail WebmasterPage 2 of 2UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine1/31/2018http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2012/may/bp15bicycle.cfm.html

UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine

University of New Hampshire

University of New Hampshire
University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository
Media Relations Administrative Offices
5-16-2012
UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing
Machine
Beth Potier
UNH Media Relations
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/news
This News Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Administrative Offices at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It has
been accepted for inclusion in Media Relations by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For more
information, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.
Recommended Citation
Potier, Beth, "UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine" (2012). UNH Today. 3956.
https://scholars.unh.edu/news/3956
Media Relations Home | Calendar | UNH Home
Media Relations
UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine
May 16, 2012 
DURHAM, N.H. – A senior capstone project by three 
University of New Hampshire mechanical engineering 
students could make life easier – and cleaner – in 
developing nations. The project, a bicycle-powered 
washing machine, harnesses plentiful bicycles and 
salvaged materials to clean clothing with just six 
gallons of water, 30 minutes of easy pedaling, and no 
electricity.
“In countries where washing machines aren’t 
available, this would free you up to do more 
interesting things,” says Britta Moore ’12, who 
designed and created the washing machine as a senior capstone 
project with Garrett Cassidy ’12 and Vincent Lyon ’12. The trio was 
inspired by a TED Talk speaker who addressed the life-changing 
impact of washing machines in rural areas.
“The purpose of this product is to bridge the gap between 
convenience and sustainability,” the students write in their research 
poster. If the students are successful, their invention could bring a 
whole new meaning the concept of “spin cycle.”
The washing machine consists of a 30-gallon plastic drum (the 
prototype is from a car wash) drilled full of holes and placed inside a 
50-gallon metal drum. Clothes, soap, and a scant three gallons of 
water go into the inner drum, which agitates and spins via gearing that links the user’s bicycle to the 
double-drum system. Washing, rinsing, and spin-drying each take 10 minutes, a cycle comparable in time 
to a standard electric washing machine. With an additional three gallons of rinse water, the machine uses 
significantly less water than the 27-plus gallons a top-loading electric washer uses.
“And if you’re using biodegradable soap, you could use the gray water to water crops,” Lyon says.
Among the design’s most important features, the creators say, is the ubiquity of its materials in developing 
nations. “You could build this in a third-world country with minimal tools,” Lyon says, noting that a drill 
and basic welding are all that’s required to assemble the washer out of scrap materials and a few basic 
items from a hardware store. Alternately, all materials could be packed and shipped inside the larger 
drum.
And, in an improvement over other such machines, the team assures that no bicycles are harmed in the 
cleaning of undies. The UNH team made it a design priority to power the washer with a bicycle that could 
be removed and ridden away.
“In areas where the bicycle is the primary mode of transportation, you don’t want to sacrifice it,” Lyon 
says. 
Guided by advisor Brad Kinsey, associate professor of mechanical engineering, the team spent the fall 
semester planning and designing their washing machine; their knowledge of getting clothes clean now far 
exceeds that of the average college student. This spring, they built and tested their prototype, testing the 
strength of materials, determining optimal gear ratio to spin clothes efficiently without overtiring the 
“operator,” and comparing cleaning abilities with varying amounts of water and soap. They even subjected 
a white shirt to the “mustard test” of detergent advertising fame.
University of New Hampshire seniors Vincent 
Lyon, (from left), Britta Moore, and Garrett 
Cassidy – all mechanical engineering majors –
fabricated a bicycled-powered washing 
machine that can clean a load of clothes in 30 
minutes using only six gallons of water. 
Credit: Mike Ross, UNH Photographic Services 
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The team members – all graduates of ConVal High School in Peterborough – are cyclists themselves. 
Moore, from Temple, and Cassidy, from Hancock, are regular commuters, and Lyon plans to bike the 70-
plus miles home to Antrim after graduation. They’re also active in energy and environmental issues on 
campus.
All three students will return to UNH in the fall – Cassidy and Lyon to begin graduate school, and Moore to 
finish up her bachelor’s degree – and will work toward bringing the bicycle-powered washer to developing 
nations, possibly finding a business partner and entering it into UNH’s Holloway Prize Innovation-to-
Market competition. In the meantime, they’ll continue to perfect the design in the most practical way: by 
using it to wash their clothes.
The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel 
of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship 
public institution, enrolling 12,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students.
-30-
Photograph available to download: http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2012/may/bp15bicycle.jpg
Caption: University of New Hampshire seniors Vincent Lyon, (from left), Britta Moore, and Garrett Cassidy 
– all mechanical engineering majors -- fabricated a bicycled-powered washing machine that can clean a 
load of clothes in 30 minutes using only six gallons of water.
Credit: Mike Ross, UNH Photographic Services
Media Contact: Beth Potier | 603-862-1566 | UNH Media Relations | @unhnews
T-hall
Copyright © 2012 UNH Media Relations, 15 Strafford Ave, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824.
UNH is part of the University System of New Hampshire.
ADA Acknowledgement | Privacy Policy | UNH Home | E-mail Webmaster
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1/31/2018http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2012/may/bp15bicycle.cfm.html


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UNH Seniors Create Bicycle-Powered Washing Machine

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