Hills Rotary Hoist Clothesline – Review and Giveaway!
Jul 30
This giveaway has now ended – Congratulations to the lucky winner Beth Dally!
There really are very few Aussie icons that are more recognisable, and bring back more happy memories of our childhood than the famous Hills Hoist – still going strong for over 65 years! This is the one I grew up with!
The house suddenly became a home when a Hills Hoist was plonked into the backyard giving Aussie families all over the country the chance to stake their claim of The Great Outdoors! And hands up who’ll admit to that great Aussie past-time of hanging on the big old clothesline while the kids from the neighbourhood would swing you around…. and around…. and around.* Not that we ever did that of course **cough, cough**
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A lot has changed in our backyards these days. Our families are bigger, the backyards are smaller, and we want to be able to utilise our outdoor space for more than just servicing our household chores.
It was only a few weeks ago that I found myself hanging washing over the pool fence and out outdoor chairs because our old clothesline just couldn’t hold even two loads of our everyday washing. It was crazy. The sun was shining, the clothes were flapping in the breeze, but I couldn’t get through any more washing because I was restricted by the size of our crummy little clothesline. Now in all fairness, when the family of 3 built this house, they probably didn’t consider the future family of 6 that would one day call this place home.
And as a first time mother I thought there was something quite charming and sweet about filling up my clothesline with teensy little baby clothes and cloth nappy squares. But then as the family grew, the joy of washing became a stark necessity. I needed to be able to get it done when I had the time – whether that meant 1 load or 3 loads, or catching the sun when it was shining. My clothesline was letting us down. It was the weakest link. It had to go.
And with much fanfare and celebration, and squealing and Hip Hip Hoorays, we welcomed our brand new member of the family – the Hills Premium Rotary 8 Folding Head Hoist.
This little baby packs a punch with 8 lines, totally a MASSIVE 58 metres of line space.
Take THAT Mt Washmore! The outer lines are plenty big enough for blankets, quilt covers etc and are even big enough for king size sheets! And it’s a rather gorgeous looking clothesline if I do say so myself (OK, I admit to falling in loving with it at first sight). It’s smooth and sleek and is a beautiful Ocean Breeze blue colour.
It doesn’t fight me when I want to wind it up, it just turns smoothly and I can almost hear it whispering “As you wish, madam”.
I was so excited to test this baby out, so I started washing like a mad woman. As I was hanging the clothes, I noticed how closely the lines were positioned, which of course is the secret to the huge capacity.
On a huge wash day, I will use up all the linespace I can get. However if you have a smaller load, you could simply miss a line between rows, giving the clothes more space to flap in the breeze. I washed and I washed, and then….. I ran out of dirty clothes! The contest was over. Hills Hoist 1, Mt Washmore 0 !
Below is 1.5 loads, which would have filled up my old clothesline! I couldn’t possibly wait for another sunny day – I had to put it through it’s paces in all sorts of weather (OK not really, it’s probably not recommended for rainy days, or snow… just sayin’).
All this line space does not mean that you have to sacrifice backyard space. In fact, the head diameter of the Rotary 8 is only 4m – which is roughly the same size as my old clothes line, and yet has double the hanging space.
And the clever thinking people at Hills have designed the clothesline to be very light and easy to remove from the ground socket (I even did it myself!), and once the cap is in place, you wouldn’t even know it had been there – perfect for entertaining or setting up a game of tennis or soccer in the backyard.
I think sometimes we just don’t realise how simple it can be to fix such a frustrating problem. I put up with my old clothesline for far longer than I should have, because I simply didn’t realise how quick and easy it would be to upgrade. And of course, I never dreamed of how much easier it has made our entire laundry routine.
To make the most of your Rotary Hills Hoist, here are a few tips which will help you to become a laundry goddess:
- Raise your hoist for maximum drying efficiency and to ensure clearance for longer items.
- The wind brake assists in the pegging and unpegging on windy days by restricting the free rotation of the clothesline. It can be engaged by winding the “head” of the hoist fully down.
- Place smaller items of clothing on the lines nearest the centre and work your way outwards for larger items.
- When hanging thick or bulky items you may hang the item over more than one line.
- When you do not expect to fill the capacity of your hoist, hang your clothes on the outer lines; this will allow your clothesline to spin more easily.
I could go on and on about our Hills Hoist. But I won’t. Instead I’ll tell you that I am giving one away to one of you! That’s right – this awesome Hills Premium Rotary 8, valued at $347 could be yours thanks to our generous friends at Hills!
To win this competition, please follow ALL FOUR steps in the Rafflecopter below, including leaving a comment below telling me your best laundry tip. It could be washing, hanging, folding, ironing or more. If it’s to do with dirty clothes, then that’s what we want to hear! Entries close at midnight on Monday 6th August, 2012. Australian residents only.
* Do not allow children or pets to swing on your Rotary Hoist or items of laundry.
** Disclosure: I was supplied with this clothesline to review from Hills. All opinions are my own, of course (who on earth would admit to being in love with a clothesline?)
Sunlight laundry soap. A block of this in the laundry gets out lots of marks and stains – rub a little on the wetted item prior to throwing in the machine. Especially marked underwear – ladies time of the month.
once a month wipe down clothes line wires to stop stains transferring to clean clothes
Use Melaleuca fabric softener, it make the clothes smell devine.
make your own laundry powder out of lux flakes, bicarb soda and washing soda. works just as good as store bought ones but you use only a fraction
Lol I already have this Hills hoist and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it !!! Can’t wait for summer so I can hang clothes outside on it again .
My ”tip” is I have one of those portable clothes hanging frames which I put all of the girls school uniform on so its easy to see if we have enough for everyone and saves time in the morning finding everything !!
School uniform goes straight from the washing machine on to hangers on the frame .
I have 8 of those large plastic tubs in different colours for my husband, myself and 6 children. When the washing is dry I quickly sort it into the person’s colour. THat way, if I never get around to putting it away it is still very easy for everyone to find their own clothes! Works a treat. Even the littlest kids can easily find their own clothes.
Get someone else to do it!! haha
I try to soak the kids whites in napisan before washing them, and it does seem to make a difference
Hang the bottom’s from there top and the top’s from there bottom, and so easy to remember.
I delay wash at night and then have it waiting for me to hang in the morning. Feels like I got up an hour early!
I don’t use fabric softener. If I want soft clothes or towels I leave them out when it’s raining and they are beautiful and soft. This seems to last more than one wash. Maybe it gets out all the left over soap. I only use Earth washing liquid.
Oh I forgot to ask, has Hills invented a line that folds the clothes???
When you start washing winter wollies and doonas to put away until next winter add euclyptus/teas tree oil to rinse cycle to keep away moths
A tall 3 basket type rack to sort light, dark and white, makes it easy to see which baskets full and ready to be washed.
Remember to check EVERY sleeve for tissues before you put clothes in the machine!
always have some napisan on hand for soaking those stains out
Hang shirts (including t shirts) on wire coat hangers then peg the coat hanger to the line…the shirt will dry in its natural shape and eliminate or reduce the need for ironing.
I make my own washing liquid from borax, washing soda and dishwashing detergent. It whitens and gets stains out quite well, and the clothes don’t smell too perfumed afterwards. It doesn’t seem to inflame the kids’ eczema too much either.
The best stain remover is the sun. For stained clothes, especially my daughter’s bibs, I soak in nappy san first, then wash, then hang out in the sun. The stains are gone when I bring the clothes in off the line.
I hang all our uniforms on an air dryer inside, they dont need ironing and are easy to get quickly when getting ready for work.
Best laundry tip – make sure that your husband understands that you are not just saying ‘seperate whites from colours’ to nag him (if he helps with the washing)!!
To remove lint from clothes, using a magic clothes brush, as you hang your damp clothes on the line to dry. It is much more effective when clothes are still damp
There are so many good tips here already! Separate baskets, sun as stain remover, packing the night before – we do it all. The only other tip I have is that vinegar makes a good fabric softener/stain remover/disinfectant. Cheap too!
A little soak in nappy san then let the sun do the rest. Clean your tub with vinegar to get it sparkling clean.
Disposable breast pads make SUCH a mess! Check your washing carfully! Hehe!
To keep on top of the washing I try and put a load in the machine each night & use the delay function so I wake up to a load of washing ready to hang. I also allocate certain days for things like towels & sheets. Makes staying on top of the washing much easier.
Remove perspiration odor and stains on clothin by spraying white vinegar on underarm and collar areas before putting them into the washing machine.
i try to do one load a dayso it does not pile and become a bigg job!!
Use 2-3 balls of crunched-up aluminium foil to reduce static cling in the wash and to make clothes and towells fluffy.
six minutes to go…breastfeeding little home made clothes line is full, washing machine going….please oh please five minutes to go hey ho the diary oh four minutes to go
Ok Emily has finished her feed, washing still humming I go to sleep dreaming that it just might be my yard that sprouts anew hills hoist
Have a basket for odd socks and turn looking for pairs/roll up into fun playtime with kids