Abstract: A washing machine having an outer, stationary, liquid impervious container, having a plurality of adjacent, peripheral walls, preferably in the form of an octagon. An inner drum has perforate walls, is preferably in the form of a hexagon and is mounted within the outer container for rotation about a horizontal axis. The inner drum is driven in rotation, causing variations in the adjacent liquid volume between each drum wall and the outer container as the drum walls pass through the liquid. Because the wall is contoured to have a distance from the axis of rotation which varies as a function of peripheral, angular position to form a plurality of relatively protruding, liquid pushing perforate lobes, the movement of these lobes through the washing liquid causes an inflow of washing liquid into the drum through the leading perforate surface of each lobe and out of the drum through each trailing perforate surface.