Tumble dryer

Andrea15

Against my better judgment I am looking at tumble dryers.
So far I see that heat pump driers are more expensive, but consume between 1/3 and 1/2 less than condensing ones. But are they really worth the extra money? The saving appears to be real (according to the spec sheet at least), but I would need to run it for a few years to recoup my money, assuming electricity doesn't go through the roof too (there again, if an appliance is expensive to run I would tend not to use it...).
Also, in the specs I see that there is an energy rating (usually A+ or A++) and a "drying performance" which, when mentioned, is always "C rated". I have googled the latter, but can find no explanation of what it means and what I should look for.
Does anyone know?

Any advice is welcome

casper_gutman

Heat pump driers should use significantly less electricity than normal condenser ones. As far as I can tell the extra energy used is lost as heat to the room where the drier is. Certainly our utility room is lovely and toasty when we use it - it's like there's a fan heater in there.

Whether energy which goes to heat your house is really wasted depends on the time of year, I suppose. In winter that heat will offset some of the energy the central heating would otherwise have expended. The bit of heat from the drier will cost a bit more because the drier uses electricity instead of the cheaper gas the boiler would have used, but environmentally it strikes me that heating the house with electricity (we're on a 100% renewable tariff) might actually be better than using the gas boiler!

In summer when we have no need for heating, the heat from the drier would genuinely be wasted. Then again, we're more likely to use the washing line in summer.

getmore4less

WARNING : you will get people tell you they take longer so use more power.


The ratings are there to compare between models and sizes.

think in terms of units per KG of washing gets close

you need to find the delegated regulations for appliances to get an understanding of what they all mean
tumble dryers have their own.

this may not be the latest but should do.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eur/2012/392/contents

the interesting bits are in 
Annex.
VI the relative ratings
VII  how they measure them


thing is that is for just a mix of two cycles the full and half load cotton,  chances are you won't be using them so you need to look at the details (in some manuals) of the energy use of the cycles you will use.

For a heat pump (A+++........D) you wanted   A++ or A+++  

the A+++ some are hybrid models that have a HP and a regular heater



the question asked
 "drying performance" which, when mentioned, is always "C rated". I have googled the latter, but can find no explanation of what it means and what I should look for.

Condensing efficiency(A.....G) is how much of the water removed from the clothes end up in the tank of water, the rest goes into the room.

the condenser efficiency you want A(90%+) or the higher end of B(80%+-90%)

Check the actual product because it you are only seeing "C" then then something is wrong.
I see the likes of AO seems to have C for ones I know are A rated.


if you look at the product fiche you can get to more detailed information.

here is an example for a Grundig model.
https://brain-images-ssl.cdn.dixons.com/file/37/29/30/00/793403_sp0108962_attribute_gt76824ew-39273.pdf

the key items 

Annual consumption  for the 160 test cycles.
you can use this as a more fine grained comparison  than the A rating gives you.

the single cycle energy consumption for full and partial.

condensing efficiency Letter and %  for those in the B you are looing to get near 90%.  


For the record we got a Grundig GTN38250 Dec 2015 and have been very happy.
5y parts and labour warranty (basically a Beko inside)


Bought some extra condenser filters sponges as they need cleaning fairly regularly and this year it looks like the cage that has a mesh filter got blocked with what looks like scale but has not come off with vinegar and a scrub, new cage(different design with no mesh) £30 while I try to clean the old one again..


You will get people moaning they take too long and don't dry properly.

Never had a problem  time is solved by a bit of planning, also if you have a quality washer that has efficient(not speed) spin the dry times will be shorter than the specifications,  we load and leave and don't wash things 10mins before we are going out.

drying has been fine,  ours sits in a garage and works all winter.   


one thing is the prices YO-YO a lot so do check out the history so you know a decent price point, whwn we were buying +-£100 was quite common over a few weeks.

[Deleted User]

Ours is rated A++ (heat pump and condenser as described at purchase). "Which" magazine tested it and reckoned around 35 quid a year to run for an average family. We use it a lot less than that and reckoned 5 years to make up the extra cost over a traditional vented. We are at year 6.

If you can get a look at the Which magazine reviews they go into them quite well. Mine is no longer made and they will have the latest tested.

My experience, take a long time on but our bills dropped quite a lot as soon as we started using it. Work patterns meant it was often used when coming  home from a long stay away, wash everything dry and iron and back out the door so saw the gain right away with the meter readings. They also use a device to say when the air is dry and stop the machine.

It also meant we did away with the door vent for the vented exhaust pipe and replaced the upvc panel removing the draughty vent. Made the area a lot warmer.

Ours removes 86% condensate, wasn't exactly sure that was as obvious as its sounds but in the coldest beast from the east we didn't have any condensation indoors running this drier.

eg. I put in a load of towels, the default over 3 hours to end on that cotton program. It will adjust timing as the drying commences and actual doing time might be under 2 but when it is dirt cheap to run, unless you need it in a hurry, just let it get on with it.

Mixed dark wash default might be 1:45 but take a shade under 30 mins. All depends what is going in. Don't obsess over the time and let the machine look after itself.

Water tray needs emptying, a sheets load will fill it, small dark wash will not, some can be plumbed to the waste. No biggie either way. Always clean the dust filter and mine has self cleaning condenser. Meaning water tray emptied and fluff filter is all I have to deal with.


We spent £££ on a good rated well regarded branded looking for the long return and it seems to be paying off.


Edit. Not sure this works for non subs but see what happens
https://www.which.co.uk/news/2021/03/why-heat-pump-tumble-dryers-cost-less-to-run-and-use-less-energy/

casper_gutman

getmore4less said:

drying has been fine,  ours sits in a garage and works all winter.   

That is definitely a situation in which a heat pump drier should be considered, even more so than in the house - energy lost as heat indoors may have a benefit in winter, but in an uninsulated outbuilding it's wasted all year round.

getmore4less

casper_gutman said:

getmore4less said:

drying has been fine,  ours sits in a garage and works all winter.   

That is definitely a situation in which a heat pump drier should be considered, even more so than in the house - energy lost as heat indoors may have a benefit in winter, but in an uninsulated outbuilding it's wasted all year round.

Its an attached garage with some insulation, mainly used for storage we do go in to it quite a lot.

Any heat from the washer, dryer, freezer and boiler helps keep it a touch warmer than outside on the really cold days.
Not had my beer freeze yet 20y+

The main point was they say they don't work if it gets too cold, we have been OK with that.

getmore4less

Which link works.

new energy labels will be out soon A-G, this has already caused confusion for appliances that were rate A+.. now end up as BorCorD....



The idea of the self clean condenser is something to consider, ours has an extra filter and that is not that convenient.
when I looked the models with self clean were quite a bit more than the ~£400 we paid for the Grundig

Also look out for top tank or the ability to plumb,  emptying the tank is a lot easier not having to bend down.

the plumbing attachment is a small diameter tube so can often just fit in the same outlet as the washing machine if close enough and open rather than close like into a sink drain. 

As half_empty says with the sensor drying you can just load and leave. 

I have a jeans wash ready for the dryer it says 2hr for jeans might remember to check how long this one takes.

Andrea15

Thanks for all the interesting replies.
To sum up (random order):
- "drying performance"="condensing efficiency". Yes, the AO site seems to have only "C"
- Heat sensor: I had seen it was there but not given it much thought. Will look for it now.
- Energy ratings: that is confusing... Some stuff is already using the new ones (light bulbs for example). I suppose it makes sense to switch as you start getting too many + signs
- Check prices: I have noticed that prices do vary. I wanted to see if I can get something interesting for black Friday... We shall see.
I have noticed it is sometimes difficult to compare power usage as some give you the consumption for a full/half load, others give you a yearly figure.
Anything else I have missed out?

[Deleted User]

If you can, get in the "which" online reviews. Even a free trial to see what they have now, they really go into the tests and are well laid out and annual consumption figures, they must have a metered unit to see how much they use typically. If a brand has best buy from which, they often advertise the fact on their unit.

They also list don't buys or those with safety issues.

Don't rely on Black Friday deals, all stuff I have bought in a sale has never ever been black friday and I have beaten BF prices every time. But it needs to be the long game to get the deal. Try Price Spy to look up the history.

fifthofwhisky

FWIW I've had a Creda condenser dryer getting on for about 20 years. It has never let me down. Just need to keep it clean of fluff, etc. Yes, it probably uses a bit more electricity but its only used occasionally during winter months. 

[Deleted User]

I think condensers only are not that efficient, has to be the heat pump version.