Any suggestions for drying washing indoors

prosaver

Thriftybynature wrote: »

Have you got a bannister upstairs? Mine can just about fit a double duvet cover on it and with one turning it's dry overnight if it goes on as soon as I am home from work. I've also given the tops of the doors a good clean and a varnish (they are stripped pine) and hang sheets over them. The first lot I did picked up a stain from the pine

I have wee radiator wire attachment thingumys so stuff goes on there and I close the curtains so I can't see it! I do try to keep stuff upstairs drying so I can't see it downstairs.

I do find the timing helps - if you have one of those machines that has a delay, or if you don't mind having washed stuff sitting in the machine all day then time it so that when you get home from work (and the heating is on!) the first thing you do is hang out washing. That way it gets one full night and a morning of heating which I find is ok to dry most stuff.

I also hang t-shirts & shirts on hangers and they go in the bathroom on shower rails and suction-pad hooks on the tiled wall over the radiator.

To avoid the complete 'Widow Twanky' washerwoman look I also try to do a mix of washing so that there is one big sheet, a few bits on hangers and the rest fitting onto the 2 radiator rails in my bedroom. That seems to cut down on having lots and lots of any one thing hanging around (pun intended!) at any one time.

I do have a tumble drier so towels get fluffed up when they are nearly dry, which is a big luxury for me as I hate using it!

best thing to do when washing towels dont ad comfoft as it make the towels less absorbent, they are a bit rough but soak the water (dry u) up like a sponge..
we have nailed small nails just below the ceiling above our radiators upstairs and hang clothes on it (on hangers) and also have a hot press cupboard. so we never use a dryer (havent got one)or sometimes cant be bothered puting them outside on the line. it sometimes look like a chinesse laundrette ....but who cares

Battie

Hi Justamum, not everywhere seems to have spin dryers, certainly don't seem to have any on display anywhere I looked! Got mine from Curry's by reserving on line first and then collecting it. Another bonus is you can use it for hand-washing a small amount or when the washing machine's busy - and you can control how long it's in there for, I agree you don't want things in there for too long at high speed, I stop it as soon as the flow slows to drips coming out and that's more than enough to take most of the excess water away. Truly, it makes a difference - there's not so much water going in the air for damp/condensation in the house - plus the clothes don't need to go over the radiators so the heat from them can go into the room instead! :-)

Battie

Oops reading that back, I meant using it for spinning a small amount of handwashing ... not actually using it to do the washing in!! :-)

allybee101

To keep your towels soft and fluffy, use white vinegar instead of conditioner. It doesn't smell like a chip shop, just v fresh and clean.
I've been doing this for a while with mine, it works wonders. I use about 2 tbsp per load I think ( a good slosh of vinegar into the drawer.

Thriftybynature

allybee101 wrote: »

To keep your towels soft and fluffy, use white vinegar instead of conditioner. It doesn't smell like a chip shop, just v fresh and clean.
I've been doing this for a while with mine, it works wonders. I use about 2 tbsp per load I think ( a good slosh of vinegar into the drawer.

I never use conditioner anyway, and am in a soft water area so no probs with fluffy towels. I used to live in a hard water area and the towels were awful so I spent ages using white vinegar and Calgon in each load until the limescale on them dissolved away. I do give them 10 mins in the tumble drier when they are 99% dry and that fluffs them up beautifully! Not very green I know but I justify it to myself by reminding myself we only have 1 car. Daft I know but it makes me feel better, not going to wear a hairshirt over 10 mins tumble drying!

Agree with everyone else who says that you need ventilation when drying inside. Even if it's cold a window needs to be open.

Just seen a 3m retractable indoor clothes line in my local Yorkshire Trading Company. Very discrete when rolled away but not sure what weight it would hold and can't remember the make. Was £1.99.

northern_star

Battie wrote: »

Hi Justamum, not everywhere seems to have spin dryers, certainly don't seem to have any on display anywhere I looked! Got mine from Curry's by reserving on line first and then collecting it. Another bonus is you can use it for hand-washing a small amount or when the washing machine's busy - and you can control how long it's in there for, I agree you don't want things in there for too long at high speed, I stop it as soon as the flow slows to drips coming out and that's more than enough to take most of the excess water away. Truly, it makes a difference - there's not so much water going in the air for damp/condensation in the house - plus the clothes don't need to go over the radiators so the heat from them can go into the room instead! :-)

I was lucky enough to get one of these from freecycle recently. They really do take a lot more water out of the clothes than the washing machine alone (I think the spin speed is around 2 or 3 times faster). For us it will make a great difference as now the washing isn't so 'wet' when we put it on the clothes horse and therefore dries quicker. Great help with our condensation problem (made much worse by drying indoors). I've seen them for sale online so they are still available new but I'd recommend asking around/ freecycle etc to see if one can be sourced 'old style' . The one we were given must be years old but is in great condition and small enough to fit in the pantry when not in use. As they are only used for a short time, they must be economical too. And, I agree, they're great for the odd bit of hand washing. Moneysaving all round if you can get hold of one without too much outlay.

*miaomiao*

I highly recommend getting a dehumidifier in and placing in next to wet clothes hangers. Since we started doing this this past autumn, my life has been much easier as far as laundry is concerned. It is dry much faster (used to take 2-3 days) and our flat is no longer cold from the water evaporating into the air as we try to dry clothes. Definitely the way forward. There is also a lot of info on this forum about dehumidiers if you think of buying one.

Justamum

northern_star wrote: »

Moneysaving all round if you can get hold of one without too much outlay.

I had a look on Google - not cheap are they?:eek: Mind you I have been thinking that it would be a good buy, especially for things like towels and bedding. It will just have to go on my 'wish' list.

[Deleted User]

I am expecting sun tomorrow so one big wash is going on first thing ie at 6.30 and I expect it to pretty well dry outside. I confess that I would have bought and used a condensing tumbler by now if I had children at home and if I were working.

frugalbrunette

I know this thread is named suggestions for drying indoors but it was the nearest I could find.

My question is...

We have glorious sun today and looks set to continue all day according to the forecast. The temperature is still only just 2 degrees though.

Would my washing dry in such cold temperatures?