Most economic tumble dryer

cannugec5

We are converting our Garage to a bedroom. 

For the past 20 years we have had a tumble dryer in the garage. Not used very often as I acknowledge they are expensive to run. But handy when the weather is bad. 

Now the tumble dryer is to be moved indoors, into the utility room. It is no longer sensible to have a tumble dryer throwing damp hot air indoors.
I have been looking at options to replace the existing machine. A condenser dryer with big water tanks to empty - that may not suit if we position the dryer on top of the washing machine. 5litre/kg tank to empty at head height  may not be sensible at our age. 

Is there a condenser tumble dryer that can be directly plumbed in so doesn’t need emptying? 

Does anyone have any recommendations for a new tumble dryer that might be suitable? 

Alnat1

Have a look at heat pump tumble dryers, they might cost a little more to buy but will save money over time as they use much less energy.

Many dryers can now be plumbed in to a waste pipe, so could share the washer's in your situation.

maman

My condenser tumble dryer has the tank to empty at the bottom. I'm about to to move mine to on top of the washing machine. This will make it far easier to empty (waist height) than currently where I have to kneel down on the floor to remove it. 

matelodave

Our cheapo BEKO condenser tumble dryer has a drain which goes down the same orifice as the washing machine.  haven had to empty a tank for the past dozen years.

MultiFuelBurner

We have.always preferred vented (to the outside) tumble dryers for us they dry faster and since getting a p110 energy monitor have found we have two options for a 7kg load for drying. Either full power for 70 mins for 1.9kwh or 100 mins on eco for 1.5kwh. 

So today when we use it twice for two large loads on full power that's 3.8kwh at today's tracker price of 17.6p kWh so 67p

For added info the tumble dryer is 4 years old and originally cost £139.99 grade B at the time.

When it goes pop we will replace it with a heat pump dryer and suspect that is where you should be looking for your best dryer. We tend to go with manufacturers that offer at least a 5 year guarantee on their products and for a heat pump dryer this would see you recoup your return on investment with the savings on energy used versus an older style dryer.

powerful_Rogue

Another vote for a heat pump tumble dryer.

littleteapot

Definitely go for a heat pump dryer. I've got a now 6 year old bosch one (bought secondhand about 3 years ago) and it typically uses about 1kWh per large load, compared to over 2kWh for the old conventional condenser dryer it replaced according to the Tapo P110 plugtop energy monitor. I suspect the latest ones will use even less.

They do take a little longer than old fashioned dryers, but they don't get the clothes as hot and shrink them all!

DullGreyGuy

If you look at the likes of AO.com you can filter the devices by their energy efficiency if that is one of your priorities. Unsurprisingly all the A+++ and A++ devices are heat pump (unfortunately tumble driers haven't moved to the new scale)

oldagetraveller1

I have a 20+years old Hotpoint vented tumble dryer, still working perfectly.

The last load it was use for cost 20p in electrickery.

To purchase a new heat pump dryer, for say, £400, will be totally illogical. How long would it take to recoup that cost for the small difference in energy consumption between the two?

However, it would be a different scenario if the existing dryer went belly up and had to be replaced. Even so, how long would it take to recoup the extra paid for a heat pump dryer compared to the cheaper price of a heating element dryer with the slightly lower cost per load? The latter probably being more reliable, simpler and durable.

cannugec5

Thank you for all the helpful comments and suggestions. 

I didn’t even know heat pump tumble dryers existed! They certainly appear to fit the bill. I appreciate they are more expensive but the increased economy is for the longer term ( hopefully). I note some have the water tank incorporated into the door, which looks like easier emptying than a tank at the top. 

Our current dryer isn’t vented. Thus it is impossible to move it indoors. It was designed for garage use. 

Installing a vent now would be impractical as the new position will not be on an outside wall. It also feels wasteful to send hot air out into the environment. 

Because of where we live we do struggle with deliveries - AO, for example will not deliver to my postcode.  However I have just found a reasonably priced heat pump model on Amazon. I will keep looking and comparing. The existing machine has until 10th December! But thanks to you on here I now have a far better idea of what I’m looking for. 

MultiFuelBurner

oldagetraveller1 said:

I have a 20+years old Hotpoint vented tumble dryer, still working perfectly.

The last load it was use for cost 20p in electrickery.

To purchase a new heat pump dryer, for say, £400, will be totally illogical. How long would it take to recoup that cost for the small difference in energy consumption between the two?

However, it would be a different scenario if the existing dryer went belly up and had to be replaced. Even so, how long would it take to recoup the extra paid for a heat pump dryer compared to the cheaper price of a heating element dryer with the slightly lower cost per load? The latter probably being more reliable, simpler and durable.

As with many throw away comments if you don't qualify it with the following information it cannot be compared.

Weight of load
The cost per kWh you were being charged at the time