Efficiently drying clothes

Hsbcarter

I have had a tumble dryer in the past and now use a dehumidifier in a closed room. The dehumidifier is slower but leaves the clothes in better shape and I would never go back to a tumble dryer.

I haven't done the exact calculations but it was cheaper to do this than to tumble dry too. 

I wouldn't go for the cheapest dehumidifier either, look at reviews and get the best you can afford. 

onesixfive

pmk741 said:

Thanks but I wasn’t very clear. I don’t currently have a dryer. I currently use the a couple of racks in the spare room which is now effectively the drying room. It’s just not going quick enough so I am looking at options. Our washing machine is coming to the end so buying a a washer dryer is an option…. 

I wouldn't bother with a washer dryer - I had one (I didn't have space for both) - it seemed to be on 24/7 - it's certainly not a quicker option. You can usually only wash a half load if drying too - So check the machines out carefully before considering this option, particularly the wash/dry times & loads. 
Invest in a washer with the fastest possible spin instead.
I now pop my damp washing on all the radiators overnight, they are usually dry enough to iron by the time the heating goes off the following morning, and air completely on the clothes maden in the back bedroom out of sight.

GaleSF63

onesixfive said:

pmk741 said:

Thanks but I wasn’t very clear. I don’t currently have a dryer. I currently use the a couple of racks in the spare room which is now effectively the drying room. It’s just not going quick enough so I am looking at options. Our washing machine is coming to the end so buying a a washer dryer is an option…. 

I wouldn't bother with a washer dryer - I had one (I didn't have space for both) - it seemed to be on 24/7 - it's certainly not a quicker option. You can usually only wash a half load if drying too - So check the machines out carefully before considering this option, particularly the wash/dry times & loads. 
Invest in a washer with the fastest possible spin instead.

I second that - I'm by myself and found it inconvenient and time-consuming. I imagine it would be much worse for a family of two or more people. 

grumbler

Rosa_Damascena said:

 I would much rather use the great outdoors for this purpose.

Absolutely. We (family of 2, used to be 3) hardly ever use our drier and always dry everything outdoors, in a long passage with a plastic roof.

CasaCroft8

I swear by the Lakeland heated aired. I open the window for a couple of hours during the first part of drying and have never had a problem with condensation or damp. It's not a miracle worker in terms of washing drying in a few hours but it does shorten the time and your washing never dries funny so it always smells fresh. I dry outside throughout the spring summer too.

ukbill69

We use lakeland dry soon and its great. Low energy use. Also, if didn't pick this up cheap I would have got another desiccant dehumidifier, I got the ecoair DD128 and was great. Low energy compared to the tumble dryer and quicker and warms room up

twopenny

If you are working for home I'd put the heating on very low, used to keep mine around 13C, all day and use the bathroom for drying clothes.

It's easy to keep the window open just a tad.

I've kept a stout shower curtain rail in white which hardly notices and is a great place to dry stuff. I've never had problems with damp but it depends on how much washing you are drying I guess. I have sheets, towels etc which I put outside for a while to get rid of the excess then finish off inside.

The over all cost of keeping the heating on very low all day kept the house warm at very little cost because the boiler didn't have to ramp up to reheat a cold house in the evening. It took me a while to get the right temperature for this but a few readings of the meter each day for 5 days did the trick and it's lovely having it warm.

Rosa_Damascena

twopenny said:

If you are working for home I'd put the heating on very low, used to keep mine around 13C, all day and use the bathroom for drying clothes.

It's easy to keep the window open just a tad.

I've kept a stout shower curtain rail in white which hardly notices and is a great place to dry stuff. I've never had problems with damp but it depends on how much washing you are drying I guess. I have sheets, towels etc which I put outside for a while to get rid of the excess then finish off inside.

The over all cost of keeping the heating on very low all day kept the house warm at very little cost because the boiler didn't have to ramp up to reheat a cold house in the evening. It took me a while to get the right temperature for this but a few readings of the meter each day for 5 days did the trick and it's lovely having it warm.

Does 13degC really keep it warm though? I have my thermostat in the coldest part of the house set at 14 and it never comes on during the day, and kicks out a weak heat at night. The half of my home that thermostat controls is permanently chilly.

The reason I kept it so low is that I can only be on one room at a time and there is little point in heating my whole house just for me. I am better off sitting in one the zone-controlled areas.