I'm in a fourth-floor walk-up in the Village and the basement machines have been 'out of service' going on six weeks. I'm tired of dragging a duffel to the laundromat. I've been looking at those portable washers that hook to the kitchen faucet—the ones that wheel over and drain into the sink.

My super lives in the basement right below me, and my lease says no washing machines. But I know at least two people in the building who run one. Do supers actually care if you're not flooding anyone? I'm not trying to do bath towels daily, just shirts/socks/underwear and a sheet once a week.

Also how loud are these on spin? I don't want to be the new noise complaint. I already had a neighbor leave a note about my window AC last summer and I'm not trying to collect another one. If you run one in a prewar, does the floor transmit that bad? Spill everything.

Wait people really do this? I just moved into a one-bed in East Harlem and our basement machines are okay but the dryer eats socks lol. Is there a brand you're looking at? I didn't know they could hook to a kitchen sink, I thought you had to fill them with buckets.

Does the sink faucet need a special adapter? I ask because my faucet is one of those pull-out sprayer ones and I feel like it won't fit. Also if the super says nothing, does renters insurance care? Sorry if that's dumb. I've just never had my own washer and I'm so tempted but my floor is insanely creaky. I'd probably only run it when I'm home. Thanks for asking this!

I'm so glad someone finally asked about the sink-hookup portable washers! I went down this exact rabbit hole last winter. The big thing nobody tells you: the drain hose is more dangerous than the fill hose! If that clamp is loose, you get a full sink's worth of greywater under the cabinet. Use a zip tie AND a hose clamp, not one or the other. Also, put a plastic bus tub under the whole unit—not just under the connections. If your floor is even slightly sloped toward the hallway, the spin water walks.

If you have a pull-out sprayer faucet, a regular adapter might not thread! You usually need a different quick-connect or an adapter that fits the sprayer base. That's firstwinter's question. It's worth checking the exact faucet before buying.

And no, they are not whisper quiet! The spin on mine is louder than my window AC. Best trick is a thick rubber horse stall mat cut to size—looks weird but kills the floor vibration. Run it in the kitchen, not near the bedroom wall.

For anyone who already uses their kitchen as a storage puzzle, this is exactly the same energy as the earlier thread Oven as storage in a galley kitchen: what’s your preheat ritual? Oven as storage in a galley kitchen: what’s your preheat ritual?—except instead of forgetting a sheet pan in the oven before preheating, you'll forget a wet sock in the drum for two days. Do not do that.

I ran a used one for two years in a prewar building until the motor started sounding like a subway brake. Super only cared once water showed up on the ceiling below—turns out my drain hose had a pinhole. Put the bus tub and also get the braided stainless fill hose, not the clear plastic one that comes with it. The plastic one balloons and will fail overnight.

And firstwinter, renters insurance generally won't cover damage from a prohibited appliance if it leaks into the unit below. That's a real reason to keep it quiet and not cheap out on the hoses.

For spin noise, I put a folded yoga mat under it and didn't run it after 9pm. Also if you have a pull-out sprayer, don't force the adapter; unscrew the sprayer head and check the threads.