Use a dehumidifier or heater to dry clothes?

dllive

Hi

I live in a old property thats susceptible to mould.

I wondered if its better/cheaper to use a dehumidifier to dry clothes than a heater.

I bought a (Which? winner) Meaco dehumidifier last year. So it should be pretty fuel efficient compared to drying clothes in the washer/dryer or using an electric/oil heater.

What do you think?
Thanks

EssexHebridean

The fire service absolutely recommend NOT using a heater for clothes drying - unless a properly designed item like a heated airer. 

facade

The dehumidifier is better, it will help prevent mould growth, and the waste heat will warm up the room slightly.

As you already own the de-humidifier it is better to use it

I don't know how it would compare to just using the drier in the first place though...

And an oil heater (assuming you mean one that burns paraffin) converts the paraffin into water anyway, so it will make the damp worse.

ChaunceyGardiner

The dehumidifier is much better, since it actually collects the moisture from the laundry, rather than dumping it into your home's atmosphere.

rothesy

Think about the damage to your property and your health as well.  This should come first over the cost of running.

EssexHebridean

rothesy said:

Think about the damage to your property and your health as well.  This should come first over the cost of running.

Which is fine if someone is in the financial position to make the decision based on those factors as well - right now, many folk aren’t. 

rothesy

EssexHebridean said:

rothesy said:

Think about the damage to your property and your health as well.  This should come first over the cost of running.

Which is fine if someone is in the financial position to make the decision based on those factors as well - right now, many folk aren’t. 

They are if they are considering a heater over the dehumidifier.

Astria

If you have a head pump drier they are very efficient, but I find dehumidifiers can be very efficient also and also provide other benefits.

Last time I did some washing, I put the dehumidifier in the middle of the clothes horse so the output air was directly on the washing, it did a surprisingly good job of drying the washing. I did leave it on for about 6 hours though! At the highest point it recorded the humidity at 85% and when it had finished it was 55%.

dealyboy

Hi Astria ...

Astria said:

If you have a head pump drier they are very efficient, but I find dehumidifiers can be very efficient also and also provide other benefits.

Last time I did some washing, I put the dehumidifier in the middle of the clothes horse so the output air was directly on the washing, it did a surprisingly good job of drying the washing. I did leave it on for about 6 hours though! At the highest point it recorded the humidity at 85% and when it had finished it was 55%.

... that's a good idea. My dehumidifier manual says within 1.5 meters, so I set my dehumidifier at 1.5m from the clothes horse of socks. After 12 hours they are still slightly damp and they were not that wet to start with ... so I am using the sun this morning at about 93 million miles from my clothes horse to finish them off. 

wittynamegoeshere

If you want a dehumidifier and heater to dry your laundry then the best option is a heat pump tumble dryer, this is basically a heated dehumidifier blowing through a drum while your clothes are tumbled about in the path of it.

This is more efficient than using multiple appliances to do the same job, it probably costs more upfront but will save money in the long term and also prevents the moisture from the laundry getting into the air in the house.

The days of tumble drying being an expensive luxury are in the past, it's often cheaper than drying inside the house if using a heat pump dryer.  Also they don't shrink and crinkle fabrics as much as the older types did, which basically cooked the water out of the fabric.  Clothes will be in much better condition than when hung on a rack, they're soft and fluffy and don't have any lines or folds imprinted on them.  It's also a lot less hassle, just tip a full load of washing in instead of all that folding and dangling chore that we used to endure before getting one.  Plus wash day is over and done with in a few hours.

Astria

wittynamegoeshere said:

If you want a dehumidifier and heater to dry your laundry then the best option is a heat pump tumble dryer, this is basically a heated dehumidifier blowing through a drum while your clothes are tumbled about in the path of it.

I thought ours was a heat pump dryer, but I think it's actually a condenser dryer. It lives in the garage however as there is no room in the house and when its raining I really don't want to get soaked to try and dry some washing, seems a bit counter intuitive.