Giving up my dryer?

[Fuamami]

We recently moved, and my dryer died a few days after. There was an older dryer here that I was planning to freecycle, so we just installed it instead.

However, it is a real piece of junk. Even though I have front loading washing machine, the dryer still won't get them dry. AND it stinks like mildew.

So today I bought a drying rack at Target for $11, but it only holds about half a load. I'm thinking about going back for two more, and just using those. Anyone else do this? If so, do you wish for a dryer?

BTW, I would prefer a clothesline, but our new house has so many trees and birds, there's just not really a good place for it. Which is fine! I'm not complaining about the trees!

[zebra15]

I use the dryer here for towels, socks, undies and sheets. So i guess 'clothes' get hung up. Pretty much split 1/2 and 1/2. I just can see hanging up socks LOL but IMO 'clothes' just shrink in the dryer, I have no idea why.

[EmsMom]

A year ago I moved into a house that had a washing machine but no dryer and no room to install a dryer either, ,really. But it has a clothes line so I line dry everything or put up a rack inside when I need to. I am absolutely fine with it. The only negative I notice is the wrinkles. The clothes are definitely more wrinkled and often need ironing. My kids occasinoally complained about the towels being kind of hard and not soft (also true of jeans), but a couple of shakes as I take them off of the line (also helps wrinkles) helps with the hardness and we all just got used to it.

I haven't once thought, oh man I wish I had a dryer. And my electric bill hovers around $40 a month...

If you occasinoally have something that would really benefit from a dryer, like a heavy comforter or something, there is always the laundromat.

[laohaire]

I started with a rack and liked it ok but, yeah, it was limited on space. I couldn't really keep up with it. (But I had only 1).

Will you be able to put your rack outside? The difference drying in the sun vs inside is pretty great. It not only dries faster, but also smells fresh in a way that indoor drying doesn't. Also I like the sun's antibacterial properties.

When you say there are too many trees and birds for a clothes line, you're talking about bird poop?

Are there little places here and there you could install a 9 foot line? 9 feet isn't very long but it's perfect when you have a sheet or blanket. I could not dry sheets or blankets on the rack. Also, a line is waaaay better for towels than the rack - the towel takes up too much space. I think I'd try to at least get one 9 foot line out there for specific items, even if you mostly rely on the racks.

[chely7425]

We have 2 drying racks and use them to dry probably half or more of our loads. Big heavy stuff like blankets gets put in the dryer and I use the dryer to fluff stuff or when I need something dry right away.

[enkmom]

I did it for a year. The only real issue I had was the socks - no one liked the way they felt after being line dried. No one complained about the underwear, towels or jeans. I had 2 drying racks and did some sort of wash every day so I always had enough room. I was able to use a clothesline in the summer, though. I took large items like king-sized bedding to the laundromat to dry.

We did save a ton of money on our electric bill, but gave in to the convenience and bought a dryer after 13 months of being dryer-free. I still try to line or rack dry as much as possible, but socks always go in the dryer now.

[hippiechickinsing]

I haven't had a dryer in years and don't really have an outdoor space to dry. I have a drying rack from IKEA that holds two loads of laundry. It's a metal "A" frame with two sides that can be opened to hold more. I've found that the wooden racks are good for clothes, but are not strong enough to hold a load of towels.

The only thing I really miss about a dryer is pulling warm clothes or towels out right before wearing/using them.

[justmama]

Originally Posted by hippiechickinsing

I haven't had a dryer in years and don't really have an outdoor space to dry. I have a drying rack from IKEA that holds two loads of laundry. It's a metal "A" frame with two sides that can be opened to hold more. I've found that the wooden racks are good for clothes, but are not strong enough to hold a load of towels.

The only thing I really miss about a dryer is pulling warm clothes or towels out right before wearing/using them.

oh yeah. that warm straight-from-the-dryer clthing in the winter feeling. takes me back to my childhood. i used to put my clothing in the dryer for a few minutes on cold winter mornings before I had to stand at the bus stop in 18inches of snow.

the name of the rack is "frost." I have one and LOVE it. Sturdy enough for a full load of towels, holds a full load of diapers(washing every other day) or a full load of clothing(i do really big loads of laundry). If you have a basement or laundry room, the dollar store has clotheslines(obviously just cheapo ones but I used mine for 3 years and only took down after a flood and it still would have worked) and they work great. Just string up clotheslines in the basement and hang them right out of the washer. I did this for literally 3 years straight on everything and it worked great. Enough for one and a half loads per day and in the dead of winter here in southern New England, things were bone dry by the next morning. Now due to mold issues after flooding I don't dry in my basement. I use an outdoor clothesline as much as possible even in winter and then during rainy times, we use our "frost" rack from Ikea. It folds down to about 3inches in height so I store it under my bed and keep it in the kids' room overnight with wet laundry on it to "humidify" the air while they sleep(I have an asthmatic).

[provocativa]

We went without a dryer for a year or 2, and now are dryerless again. I am not fond of the conventional racks- it seems to take so much longer to put the clothes on them, but maybe I just hate bending over. We strung clothesline outside and in the almost-finished attic. Trees are actually a plus- stuff dried in the shade dries slower and is less stiff, and there is less sun bleaching of dark colors. You can have the kids bang pans to shoo away the birds (my mom gave us that job and we loved it). Scarecrows are fun for kids to build, and disposable aluminum pans hung from trees where they rattle in the breeze deters many birds. Here, I would just buy tobacco netting and throw it over the clothes to protect from the birds.

I do think those ikea racks look much more efficient than the ones i found in the big box stores. Since this new house has no attic or basement, i will be getting one this winter. they have other ingenious styles than just the one mentioned here, so getcha a catalog. It is depressing because they have actually put some brains and thought into the idea of drying clothes without electricity, and the designers here have so not done that. One great thing about being dryer thing is that you earn enough crunchy environmental points that you can occaisionally use paper plates without guilt!

[cyncyn]

I went without a dryer for about 5 years and never missed it, really. I had four 20' lines outside, under cover (roof overhang) on the deck but dried indoors too as it was super shady on the lines and it rains a lot here. I had a standard folding drying rack inside, but what worked even better was a coat rack hanging over our wall heater. We had to run the heater nearly year round anyway and the heat rose perfectly up onto the clothes above. Now I have an umbrella clothesline outside, lines in the basement and a drying rack that stands over a heat register in the bathroom floor so again the heat rises right up onto the clothes. I do use my dryer, but if it broke I probably wouldn't replace it. My comforter cover did get pooped on last week, but that is the only time that has happened in years.

My wooden drying racks tend to last only a couple years before the rods break/come out so I would get the sturdiest, best one you can.

[confustication]

I have a dryer, but try not to use it too much- most stuff I put out on the porch where I strung lines above the railings, and across the beams on the top. It's more protected from really harsh sun (which makes clothes really crispy) that way, and I don't have to go far to hang it out or bring it in. In the winter, I can dry inside or out- we have v. low humidity here, so even frozen clothes dry just fine.

I will occasionally iron towels if they are really crispy as it softens them right up and takes no time at all.

[jess_paez]

we lived in spain for 7 months and then right after, italy for 6. we didn't have a dryer. it was wonderful. granted, it is a bit dryer in those countries and spains winter didn't have any snow, but i didn't mind it at all. socks were a bit stiff (just my husbands though and it probably had to do with the material) and towels were also that way. but i really enjoyed it. we had a clothesline on our balcony, but most times i was too lazy to use clothespins so i just used a laundry rack and it sat and dryed in an unused bedroom. in fact, i need to do this again now that we are back in the u.s.

[Fuamami]

Thank you all for your input! I think I'm going to do it.

A couple of you mentioned bird poop, and yes, that's what I'm worried about. I might save up for one of those Australian umbrella style lines, but for now I just don't have a good space where I can do a traditional clothesline, and I don't want to have a bunch strung around, just because the landscaping is so beautiful.

I do have a covered deck, though, and a nice out-of-the-way spot where I can put two racks. So I'm going to do that for the rest of the summer and see how it goes in the winter. Fortunately, we live in the desert so everything should dry really quickly.

And I would love to get an Ikea rack. I browsed the ones online, but they were all available in stores only. Our nearest Ikea is about three hours away, sadly. It'll have to be on the wishlist!

The only thing about it is that I wish I had already lived here for a year so that I would notice the dramatic electricity bill savings.

[yeahwhat]

I love my clothes line and racks, and I rarely use the dryer in the summer, but I'm not sure I want to totally give it up. In spring/fall when it's cooler and rains for several days straight, I'm not sure things would dry fast enough to keep up with laundry even inside. I didn't have one when it was just 3 of us, but with clothes, towels, and bedding for 6, I'm not sure indoor racks alone could keep up (and where will you hang sheets and blankets?).

[CariOfOz]

I live in Australia, and drying clothes on the line is pretty much the norm here When you build a house, the builders specify that it includes mailbox and clothesline even A lot of houses here have wall/fence mounted lines that fold down against the wall if you don't want them up full time (although mine is never empty to BE folded down lol) But the good ole Aussie Hills Hoist is awesome, you can fit an army's worth of clothes on there I swear

In the 10yrs I've been here, I've had 2 incidents of bird poop, which is really not bad odds And for things like sun fading, the unexpected drizzle etc you can get these. That's just the first site that google came up with, but I'm sure they are available cheaper.

And I can tell you that when I have to use my dryer during long periods of wet weather.. it DEFINITELY shows on the power bill

[sunnysandiegan]

We have a tiny backyard (think large patio) and use a retractable clothesline. Pull it out when I need it. Release it back when I don't. Super easy and not noticeable when not in use.

I mostly use the outdoor line for sheets, comforters (airing), sleeping bags (airing), rugs, and kitchen towels / cloths. I use an indoor rack (in master bedroom due to good air movement) and hangers (directly in closet, which works well in dry climates) for clothing most of the time.

However, we do own a dryer. I just choose not to use it as much as other folks I know in real life. People are always marveling at how I manage in such a small space without looking cramped.

[redvlagrl]

I'm originally from Australia and never had a dryer until I moved to Nth America. You can get the Hills brand clotheslines here in Canada. We got ours from the local Home hardware. It's one that you can take out of the ground for the winter. In Aus I had one that folds up flat against the house as CariOfOz mentioned. You can also mount them on posts. They hold heaps of washing.

If you don't want a clothesline, then definitely get a couple of heavy duty (expensive) clothes horses. Flimsy is bad. You want to be able to move it around fully loaded.

[Fuamami]

Originally Posted by redvlagrl

I'm originally from Australia and never had a dryer until I moved to Nth America. You can get the Hills brand clotheslines here in Canada. We got ours from the local Home hardware. It's one that you can take out of the ground for the winter. In Aus I had one that folds up flat against the house as CariOfOz mentioned. You can also mount them on posts. They hold heaps of washing.

If you don't want a clothesline, then definitely get a couple of heavy duty (expensive) clothes horses. Flimsy is bad. You want to be able to move it around fully loaded.

Yes, I like that Hills clothesline. Or the ones that fold down, not sure if it's the Hills.

But for now, I just got a bigger rack, like the one from Ikea, but from Target for $7 more. It's fairly sturdy, and so far it seems to be working great, in combo with the other one.

I think it's going to work! Luckily, it's super dry here so I don't really ever have to worry about that. And we have a woodstove I can put in front of in the winter. The extra humidity will probably be nice.

[Fuamami]

Dryer's gone! Put it on Craigslist and I'm now dryer-free. Watch my savings grow

[ItsAllGood]

Love the thread! I was thinking of trying to go dryer free! Does it really save on the electric bill? Also any suggestions for me, we have humidity, like in FL! We have great southern exposure, plenty of sun!
Hmmm the indoor drying idea.