Cheap cloths drying

YorksLass

We live in a block of maisonettes and have a communal drying yard but I don't use it - unfortunately, I can't see it from my property and things tend to go walk-about!     I do however have a small patio area outside my living room so when the weather is fine I drag my clothes airer out there so I can dry stuff outside - not undies though!  They hang in the bathroom on one of those round spider contraptions with pegs that I can hook over the shower curtain rail.  In winter or bad weather the airer sits in the hall way where things dry quite quickly.  I also put things on hangers over the curtain rail in the spare bedroom, window open - bonus, it cuts down on ironing.  I do have a tumble dryer that I use in winter for bedding and towels but use it as little as possible - they're real energy guzzlers.

Rosa_Damascena

I was going to get rid of my clothes horses but am glad I didn't now.

This week is absolutely glorious weather-wise and I gave an old rug - story behind it for another day - a good brush-down and wash (no detergent) first thing this morning, and it has dried hanging off my clothes horses on my suntrap of a patio. Its now clean enough to be brought into my no-shoes home  

jbrassy

I personally use a heated clothes rack instead of a tumble dryer. Something along the lines of one of these: https://www.lakeland.co.uk/around-the-home/household-electricals/electric-dryers-and-airers

They're cheaper to use than a tumble dryer and dry the clothes quicker than a normal rack. I would advise keeping a window open to allow moisture to escape or use a dehumidifier at the same time to avoid mould.

Teapot55

We finish our shirts off by hanging them from an older-style radiator clothes airer that happens to fit over the top of the spare bedroom door frame. 

Glad

Pssstoff said:

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.  

Using a fan to move air around while drying clothes is a great tip, thank you 🙂 

Not everyone can easily access outdoor washing lines all of the time, much as I like mine out on the line, work and life gets in the way sometimes, especially when the weather is unpredictable. So it often has to be dried indoors 

I don’t have a tumble dryer now, but it was great when the children were at home and they wanted ‘that top’ right now 😀

shandyclover

We don't have an outside drying area, but we do have an airing cupboard that we managed to fit 2 drying racks in. Sturdy clothes get spun twice and most things dry in 24 hours. I started adding a cap of zoflora to the last rinse, mainly for hubby's sports clothes, but have since noticed nothing smells fusty now, so add it to every load. Previously we lived in a house with a covered drying area outside - once we moved to present flat I put a strict limit on how much washing can be done, especially in winter, and daughters become experts at spot washing rather than chucking things in the laundry after 1 wear!