Would you still consider buying a vented tumble dryer?

artyboy

So my very basic dryer (that we got as settlement over the Whirlpool fire safety issue) has packed up beyond my ability to repair, and it's time to replace.

I'm considering just getting another vented model - I know they are being phased out of the market, and based on usage, I'd probably only be looking at a 2-3 year ROI on the extra cost of a heat pump model.

BUT - everything I've read tells me that heat pumps are slower, and some people don't 'sense' that their clothes are as dry as with vented.

I have a picky and impatient bunch of people in my household so I can see that this might not be the hill I want to die on in terms of effecting behavioral change.

So, any other reasons I've not considered why I really shouldn't get another vented one and stay in the (relative) Stone Age here...?

silvercar

Another option would be a condensing tumble dryer. In my experience they dry better than vented ones.

casper_gutman

We have a condensing (but not heat pump) dryer. I find it similarly effective to the vented model we had previously.

I wasn't convinced paying the premium for the heat pump model would be worthwhile. We almost exclusively use the dryer in winter when the heating is on, and although a condensing dryer wastes more heat in principle than a heat pump model, the 'wasted' heat ends up heating the utility room together with the adjacent shower room and kitchen.

artyboy

silvercar said:

Another option would be a condensing tumble dryer. In my experience they dry better than vented ones.

But they use about the same energy as a vented one... and you then also have to empty the water tank after each cycle the same as with a heat pump version.

marcia_

 I have a vented dryer and would buy another if it packed in. 

 I've tried washer/dryer and condensing dryer they take forever to dry and clothes need ironing unlike the vented dryer. 

jennifernil

silvercar said:

Another option would be a condensing tumble dryer. In my experience they dry better than vented ones.

My experience is the exact opposite.  We have always had a vented dryer, 3 different one in 50 years, and find they dry better and much faster than the condensing ones.  Our  daughter had a condensing one (Bosch) and it took ages to get things properly dry, compared to the 30-40 minutes our one takes.    Took so long that she had washed clothes queueing up to be dried!   We bought her one like ours (AEG) now she has an external wall for a vent,  and she said the difference was amazing.

Her condensing one is still going strong and has found a new home with her MIL.

sheenas

Another vote for vented. 

ButterCheese

I have used a vented for 8 years, and now a condenser for 2 years.  I cannot tell any difference between the two.  I suspect that most people's experiences are not scientific i.e. performance and efficiency vary greatly between models. And the "it dries creased" argument is also very subjective.  We have found some drier balls work very well - they seem to dry stuff quicker and also reduce big creases.  But it's all a bit pointless unless you are comparing identicle loads with identicle clothes with identical amounts of water in them, which most people don't tend to measure!

JGB1955

I've recently 'converted' from vented to condenser and find the latter far better - it doesn't 'over-dry' items (if you see what I mean), meaning they can be folded, smoothed down and put into the airing cupboard (yes, we still have one of those) to finish off.

grumpy_codger

artyboy said:

silvercar said:

Another option would be a condensing tumble dryer. In my experience they dry better than vented ones.

But they use about the same energy as a vented one... and you then also have to empty the water tank after each cycle the same as with a heat pump version.

Not sure about energy, but many (most?) can be plumbed into a waste pipe and don't need emptying. 

ic

I got a heat pump dryer 18 months ago, A+++ rated, previous to that we only had a combined washer-dryer, which we only used for drying bed sheets.  Normally a load dries in about 90 mins - however it always shows a worse case of 4hrs when starting.  I can't compare to vented, but have no complaints - its also hardly registers on our electric bill so we are comfortable running it through winter - summer we use the line still.  If anything does come out damp, it dries in seconds/minutes given chance to air.  The dryer is plumbed to the waste, so we don't have to empty any tanks.