Hands-Free Portable Sink

In a disaster, how will your neighbors, your community, wash their hands? How CAN you wash your hands without running water? If they CAN'T wash their hands — they're likely to get sick, and spread disease. Sanitation saves lives. Same when we're away from plumbing, like at a farmer's market or out camping.

Here's the answer: A PORTABLE HANDWASHING STATION that you can make with two plastic buckets and a one-way squeeze pump. Call a work party and make a bunch. If your community has 4 or 5 of these stacked in garages every few blocks (along with stored water), they'll be ready to set up immediately when needed. You don't want a handwashing station to spread germs itself, so it needs hands-free operation.

How many do you need? The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends at least 1 sanitation station for every 20 people. If you have fewer than that, more people get sick. So, a stack of 5 Handwashing Stations can protect 100 people.

Compare this design to the one-bucket "Easy-Build Handwashing Station" https://www.instructables.com/Easy-Build-Handwashing-Station-With-Videos/ I previously posted on Instructables. The one-bucket model is quicker, easier, and cheaper (Less than $5) to make -- this model is easier to manage. It takes moderate skill to make, more materials, and costs a bit more, $15 - $20. Ask food businesses for used buckets; if you don't ask, they go to the landfill.

This foot-pump model is the best for indoor use, because it's free-standing and self-contained. Put it where you want it. No spillage, because used water goes to a bucket that is part of the design.

I combined & improved two foot-pump handwashers already on Instructables, "Camp Sink" and "Field Sink," and other designs online.

Let's get to work!

MATERIALS

Two 5-gallon buckets, with lids. Lids don't have to fit perfectly.

1 siphon pump, must have one-way valve, and about 6 feet of tubing 1/2-inch/15mm inner diameter (ID)

Do not buy a cheap siphon pump that does not have a one-way valve.

Amazon link

1 metal spring grip clamp, aka tool hanger

Ace Hardware link: White enameled steel. Comes with screws, but for this application you want machine screws and nuts

Fasten to bucket with short #8 machine screws and nuts

1 brass adapter, 5/8" Barb x 1/2" MIP

1 adapter, 3/8" barb x 1/2" MPT (MPT = Male Pipe Thread)

1 adapter, 1/2" FPT x 1/2" slip (FPT = Female Pipe Thread)

1 PVC trap, slip x slip (trap is shaped like "7"), for faucet

1 length of 1/2" PVC pipe, ~12" long

Half a dozen hose clamps, worm drive type, 9-16mm and 16-25mm sizes, preferably with thumbscrew

Amazon link: Assorted sizes, steel, steel thumbscrew

Plastic bowl with 8" - 10" base. A supple plastic, like polypropylene, works best. Drilling drain holes in a brittle plastic will crack it.

TOOLS

Drill for attaching spring grip clamp to bucket, and drilling drain holes in basin bowl

Optional: Hole saw attachment for drill, or spade bit, 3/4" diameter

Cut a 3/4" hole in the side of the bucket, about 3" below the top of the bucket. Looks neatest if you use a 3/4" hole saw attachment on a drill, but can be done by hand. The hole will be slightly larger than the tubing, for pressure release.

Thread the upstream end of the siphon pump tubing --

First, through a hose clamp (this one will remain on the outside of the bucket).

Next, through the hole in the bucket.

Next, through another hose clamp (this one will remain on the inside of the bucket, to keep the tubing in place).

Slide enough tubing into the bucket to comfortably stay at the bottom of the bucket.

Fit the brass weight tightly in the end of the tubing. Adjust so the end of the tubing rests on the bottom of the bucket, and there's enough tubing outside the bucket so that the foot pump bulb can rest on the ground.

Look for an arrow on the siphon pump bulb. The arrow tells you which direction fluid can flow through this pump.

(If there is no arrow -- meaning, no one-way valve -- you may have fallen for the siren song of a too-good-to-be-true low price. Back to the drawing bo, er, store. Hey, I fell for it, too.)

Identify the intake side of the bulb. Attach the tubing on the outside of the clean water bucket, from the previous step, to the intake side of the bulb. Before attaching to the bulb, shorten the tubing so it comfortably reaches the ground, where the bulb will be.

Attach the cut off portion of tubing, about 3 feet, to the outgoing side of the bulb.

Optional: If desired, assemble a foot pedal housing for the bulb. Go to the Field Sink on Instructables, by hpstoutharrow for clear instructions on making a foot pedal for the bulb.

Attach spring grip clamp to outside of bucket, about 1"-2" below top edge of bucket. You may have to whittle down one of the bucket ribs, as in the photo.

Drill pilot holes for the machine screws, see photo.

Insert the machine screws from the inside of the bucket, so the screw heads will be inside, and the nuts outside. That will reduce material inside the bucket, so they will be easier to stack. Note that some of the photos show the opposite; that's because I hadn't figured that out when I made the first models!

Cut out most of the top bucket's lid, leaving a 2" ring. The basin will sit in this ring. This lid does not have to fit the bucket perfectly.

Screw together the two PVC adapters, barb x MPT and FPT x slip. Clamp the adapters in the spring grip clamp, with the barb facing down, see photo.

Using a 1/4" drill bit, drill a pattern of drain holes in the bottom of the bowl.

Optional: Apply masking tape to the inside and outside bottom of the bowl, to reduce scatter of plastic shreds.

Fit 12" PVC pipe into adapter held in spring grip clamp, from Step 3, so PVC pipe extends upward.

Fit PVC trap, shaped like "7", onto PVC pipe.

Set bottom bucket in place where you want to use it.

Fill with clean water.

Put lid on bottom bucket. Lid doesn't have to fit perfectly, it just has to be stable.

Set top bucket on top of bottom bucket's lid.

Put cut-out ring lid on top bucket. Set drilled bowl on ring, as basin.

Rotate buckets and faucet to your liking, so bulb is in front where a foot can operate it.

Tie soap in a nylon stocking to the top bucket's handle, or leave a bar of soap in the basin.

Step on the bulb a few times to send water out of the faucet into the basin.

Wet and soap up your hands. Then pump some more water to rinse them.

Congratulations! You have a portable sink for washing hands or dishes.