AndyHandy Water Dispenser: A Game Changer for Hand Washing in the Wilderness
TLDR:
A small gadget that converts any dry bag or bucket into a handy hand washing station. We have used this for well over 150 nights of group camping and it has performed flawlessly providing a convenient and easy to use water dispenser that has increased sanitation and hygiene around camp.
The claim on the label
When you go looking for new kit often the only information available is what the manufacturer or retailer supplies. We made our decision to get our AndyHandy based on this information.
Manufacturer: AndyHandy (The company appears to no longer exist, products which use the same concept are available elsewhere)
Product full name: AndyHandy Water Dispenser
Price tag (at time of purchase): £25.00
Retailer:Raymears Bushcraft
Key claims or standout information:
The Andy Handy Water Dispenser tap is BPA free and can be installed in the base of a bucket or a dry bag.
It works as a simple but effective hand washing or shower device.
To activate the flow of water all you need to do is tap the single moving part at the centre of the dispenser and you will get a handful of water.
There are only five things in the packet; The main tap dispenser body, the rod for dispensing water, two hard plastic O-Rings, and a screw connector.
Out on the trail
We all know that manufacturers and retail staff's claims are all well and good but the real proof is in the use on the trail. We try to give you an understanding of how much we have used the equipment and critically in what conditions before we cast judgement on its performance.
Estimated time of use so far: 150+ nights away.
Adventure we have used this on: NFCT, Canoeing the Thames, The Great Glen, Klaralven Timber Rafting, Canoe touring lake Båven, New tent weekend, Salhouse broad, A breath of fresh air, and many more.
What we have used it for: Hand and face washing when away from fresh running water.
How has it performed: This is no exaggeration but this little device has revolutionised hand sanitation while out on the trail! While at camp it has made hand washing a breeze completely doing away with the need for hand sanitizer, or getting someone else to pour water over your hands. This is fantastic for group adventures as it provides a quick and easy hand washing solution that can be put in a dedicated place where all the group know where it is and use it as necessary.
We fitted ours to a 5L dry bag and this was more than enough for a group of six for an evening for everyone to wash their hands a couple of times. It is amazing how it reduces a group's water usage compared to pouring water from bottles when it comes to hand washing.
A pro tip: When setting up, use 'old' water you've been carrying in bottles or bags for the hand washing station. This avoids wasting potentially questionable tasting but safe water, and it may even be a little warm to start with.
Any modifications made: We have not made any modifications to the AndyHandy itself however it is probably worth mentioning the set up that we have for it now. The Andy Handy is installed on a 5L Ortlieb Mediumweight PD350 Drybag (Cranberry / bright red). This type of bag has stood up better than the first dry bag we used, an Alpkit Airlok Xtra 3L which just about made it the three months of our NFCT adventure. We also have a small mesh bag which we have attached to one of the loops of the dry bag. This mesh bag holds a bar of soap when at camp and the dry bag when traveling. We have also sewn a UGM Mini marker glow in the dark bead to the bag which makes it easily visible in low light conditions. We tend to pack the set up with a length of paracord that we hang the drybag of a convenient tree trunk or bough.
The Good The Bad and The Packable
Being realistic there is no perfect piece of equipment, there are always pros and cons and so we try to give you our balanced view of what we feel about it and answer the question: does it make the packing list for our next adventure?
The bits we liked:
Provides a sanitary way of dispensing hand washing water while in the wilderness.
This device has reduced the amount of water used while camping to clean our hands.
It is easy to install and remove from a dry bag even on the trail, meaning if like us you have a dry bag give out on you then it can easily be removed and fitted to another with only the use of a sharp knife.
It has proven itself to be robust having lasted many trips.
How it could be better:
If this product was only made for dry bags then if it was more vampiric in installation and cut its own hole exactly the right size it would make installation even easier. We have had one installation attempt where the hole was just a millimetre too big and it resulted in the bag leaking.
There is one major snag, the AndyHandy is no longer produced! We decided to write this review anyway because the concept is a game changer. If you can't find an AndyHandy (there are one or two kicking around on the internet), we recommend looking at alternatives like "The Drop Hand Wash Water Dispenser". Based on the photos and product description, it appears to function in a very similar way, providing the same high level of convenient sanitation.
What we think it is best suited for: Group adventures where there is not going to be fresh running water for hand washing. In saying that we like ours so much we take it even if it is just the two of us canoe touring. This gadget may not be 100% necessary if you are going lightweight, however the added convenient sanitation and hygiene benefits that it provides we think is well worth the few extra grams that it takes to carry.
Are we going to pack it for our next adventure?: This has become one of our standard canoe touring pieces of equipment. We have even started taking it to campsites in the UK that may only have composting toilets and may only rely on hand sanitizer.
Does it get our seal of approval?
It is no small statement to make that this little gadget has revolutionized sanitation and hygiene on our outdoor adventures. While the original AndyHandy was relatively expensive for what it is, the convenience, water saving, and hygiene benefits make the hand wash dispenser concept worth every penny. When we get asked for one single must-have piece of kit that we would not have thought of already, this has become our go to recommendation. This 100% gets our seal of approval."
