Cheap cloths drying

Pssstoff

I hope this is in the right place , sorry if it's not.  Two years ago during the winter my old tumble dryer broke down during the winter months and I was forced to dry the clothes indoors on the radiators and on a clothes horse which took a long time and left the clothes smelling awful. I discovered after trying different things that if I put a 16 inch fan on the floor a short distance away that the clothes dried a lot quicker, they didn't smell and the cost of using the fan to dry them was tiny compared to using the tumble dryer. I did manage to get another tumble dryer but when I am stretching the pennies I still do this as it really does work.  

Teapot55

A couple of questions for you: have you got an outside washing line? Are you having to put washing on every day or less than that? 

I’m asking because the cheapest way is to hang it outside. But it’s better on days when there’s a good wind as well as low humidity (65% or less?) showing on the Met Office weather forecast
 https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/forecast/gcp0zxrb4#?date=2023-09-02. 

Even if the washing doesn’t dry much in the mornings, usually it warms up a bit in the afternoons. Not on rainy days of course. 

turnitround

I have never had a tumble dryer in my life and nor would I want one. I also never dry clothes on a radiator. I put my things on a clothes horse either in the spare room or on the landing and put any shirts/tops on hangers in doorways then put my de-humidifier on.
Clothes dry quickly, the air is kept dry and warm and nothing smells or feels stiff and starchy.

Teapot55

turnitround said:

I have never had a tumble dryer in my life and nor would I want one. I also never dry clothes on a radiator. I put my things on a clothes horse either in the spare room or on the landing and put any shirts/tops on hangers in doorways then put my de-humidifier on.
Clothes dry quickly, the air is kept dry and warm and nothing smells or feels stiff and starchy.

Yes, that’s what I do after our washing has been on the outside line. It’s worth getting a dehumidifier if you’ve got the money. 

elsien

Pssstoff said:

I hope this is in the right place , sorry if it's not.  Two years ago during the winter my old tumble dryer broke down during the winter months and I was forced to dry the clothes indoors on the radiators and on a clothes horse which took a long time and left the clothes smelling awful. I discovered after trying different things that if I put a 16 inch fan on the floor a short distance away that the clothes dried a lot quicker, they didn't smell and the cost of using the fan to dry them was tiny compared to using the tumble dryer. I did manage to get another tumble dryer but when I am stretching the pennies I still do this as it really does work.  

You need to be careful about condensation and mould doing it this way. With any indoor drying that moisture has got to go somewhere – so if no dehumidifier, do you ventilate as well?

Slinky

We hang clothes on racks over the bath in the winter. They do need to be turned regularly to help them dry, if you just hang them and wait for them to dry, they take ages and that's when they will smell.  Things like my husband's work shirts I'll hang on hangers on a long hook off a door, and again swap the order of them round as the outer ones start to dry.

Ef79

I have no outside space or tumble dryer. I now have dehumidifier which seems to have stopped the growth of some mould I was getting. It was a present though, very gratefully received.

Rosa_Damascena

Never underestimate the difference that having the facility to dry clothes outside makes.
 
Today was a 3 load day! Whereas in the winter its one load at a time, early as possible and in before dark (not ideal).

London_1

I too have never owned or wanted a tumble dryer, but then I have always been lucky enough to have an outside line .Even in the winter ,unless its raining I will hang clothes outside for a blow, and once damp dry will finish off on hangers

If tee shirts from my curtain rail in the sitting room, or I did invest in an electric airer from Lakeland about three years ago and use it in the conservatory, its very inexpensive to run and ideal for underwear etc.

My sitting room has 8'6" high ceilings, and when I have several things on hangers of the curtain rails underneath is my central heating radiator which is on at various times .But not overnight, but 9/10 times the tee shirts are dry by the morning.
I've never had a damp or mould problem in over 60 years, as I like to keep the place aired even in the winter time and its been OK so far. 

Mind you there is only me to wash clothes for ,different if you have a family or several children .

Where I used to live at my previous house I had a four line extending line in my kitchen diner which was a good size room, and I would put the washing on it overnight and it would be dry in the morning . I was seriously considering a wooden pulley airer to hang from my existing ceiling in my kitchen, but decided as I'm moving next year not to bother with it.
 We had one at our first house (old victorian pile )and I must admit it was brilliant. But I've always had a conservatory in all three houses I've owned, and even on a clothes horse in the conservatory things dry off and don't smell.
JackieO xx

joedenise

Another that hangs washing outside as long as it isn't raining.  Dries overnight on an airer in our extension (don't have a conservatory unfortunately! but the extension is where a conservatory would be if we had one as it's between the living room and the garden!  Never had a damp problem in the 23 years we've lived here.

Pssstoff

I do occasionally get my son to hang the washing outside, this tip refers to the winter months when the cloths horse I set up in the kitchen as this is geared towards damp steamy conditions and I have the fan in my bedroom over the summer. I walk with either a stick or crutches at all times this makes putting the clothes out to difficult. I leave a window open (or more than one) especially if the heating is on, but the windows are almost always open anyway. I have to admit I like the tumble dryer but cant afford to run it all the time. It did cut back on the electric bill a lot when compared with using the tumble dryer and the saving was a nice surprise.