How to Clean and Dry Clothes in Project Zomboid (Build 42.19)

Build 42.19 · Vanilla laundry · Cleaning and drying are separate

Two problems, two fixes

How to dry clothes

Any wet item can dry without washing first. Use the method that matches your power and time budget.

Using a dryer step by step

1. Find a Clothing Dryer or a Combo Washer Dryer (including blue combo units you can pick up and move).
2. Confirm the machine is powered (grid power or a nearby working generator).
3. For a combo unit, set mode to dryer before starting if it is currently on washer.
4. Put wet clothes into the machine’s 20-slot container and turn it on.
5. Wait until wetness drops, then take the clothes out. Stains and blood remain until you wash.

How to clean clothes

Cleaning removes blood and dirt. After a successful hand wash, clothing is fully wet again, so plan a dry step afterward if you need to stay dry.

Hand wash

1. Stand at a water source you can use (sink, bath, well, river, lake, rain collector with access, and similar).
2. Right-click the water source (or use the wash options) and wash one item or All Clothing.
3. Keep Soap (or cleaning liquid that counts as soap) in inventory. Without soap, washing takes about 5× longer.
4. Stay somewhere secure while the action runs—washing is not instant.

Water use scales with how bloody and dirty the item is. Soap is consumed when clearing blood stains; dirt can still be cleaned, but soap makes the job practical in combat-heavy runs.

Washing Machine

1. Load clothes into the Washing Machine container (20 slots).
2. Confirm power and a positive water supply on the machine. Turn On only appears when both are available.
3. Start the machine and wait. This cleans; it is not a substitute for a dryer if you only care about wetness.

Combo Washer/Dryer · washer mode

1. Set the combo unit to washer mode.
2. Ensure power and water. Washer mode is blocked when water is empty (the machine will say it needs a water supply).
3. Load clothes, turn on, then switch to dryer mode later if you want machine drying in the same appliance.

Power, water, and after the utilities fail

Moving laundry machines to your base

Washing machines, clothing dryers, and combo washer/dryers are heavy metal appliances you can relocate:

• Electrical skill 3 required to pick them up
• Need an electrician-type tool for pickup and placement
• 20-slot container capacity when installed
• Very heavy—plan inventory space or a vehicle before hauling

Train Electrical before you try to relocate a full laundry setup. Related skill guide: level Electrical.

Optional mod: Wring Out Clothing (Build 41 only)

Practical loadout tips

• Carry a dry spare shirt/jacket so rain or a post-wash wet layer does not strand you outdoors.
• Keep soap near your main water source; hand wash without soap is painfully slow.
• After fights, clean bloodied gear before long healing sessions if you have open wounds.
• If power is gone but water remains, hand wash and air-dry. If water is gone but power remains, you can still dry—but not machine-wash until the washer has fluid again.

Common mistakes

• Treating washing as a required step before drying.
• Expecting a dryer to remove blood or dirt.
• Plumbing a rain barrel “for the dryer” when only washer mode needs water.
• Assuming any Electrical skill is enough to pick up machines—you need Electrical 3.
• Treating wetness → cold and blood → wound infection as if they were one mechanic.
• Installing a B41 wring-out mod on a B42 save without checking compatibility.