Drying Method's

[washboy2005]

Hi just another general wondering of mine, does most of America use a Dryer to dry all their laundry? In the Uk and most of Europe Naturally Drying your clothes on a line in the Garden is the most popular choice as its cheap, easy and you get a glorious fresh smell on your laundry.

Does anyone here outdoor line dry their laundry, and do the prefer it to drying in a dryer??

Take Care
Dan

P.S I hope you dont mind me posting this!

The pic below is of a large towel load that I did earlier today.

 

[sudsmaster]

Of course we dry outdoors. I dry most of my laundry outdoors - I do have a gas dryer for rainy periods (mostly during the winter here in No. California). But some things simply dry better on the line - such as large comforters/sheets/etc. I do a 15-minute no-heat air-fluff in the dryer for bath towels before line-drying. It helps keep them softer and fluffier, but still saves energy. Underwear/socks go into the dryer - too fiddly to bother with on the line, and the dryer makes them softer.

 

[pulsator]

My babysitter used to dry things on the clothes line. They lived on a farm, but now she's grown up and married and her parents divorced so I think that the clothes line has been abandoned. I would like to try drying on the line, but I don't have one and I think that there is some law around here that states either you have to register to do it or it's just plain illegal. I can't remember, something about indecent exposure or something? Whatever it is, I'd have to look into it before trying anything. But, for now, my new Smartload is going to be getting all the attention.

 

[toggleswitch]

Parts of this country are too cold or damp to line dry.

Some larger cities here are too densely packed making clothes-lines in large quantites unsightly.

Our machines help us avoid ironing, when we dryer-dry.

 

[gadgetgary]

A beautiful day in CT....

Save energy....hang it all out.....

 

[gadgetgary]

A two load minimum

First load, tshirt...second load.....car towels(anyone need detailing)?

 

[toggleswitch]

But some things simply dry better on the line - such as larg

Don't forget that comforters may need a dryer dry to thoroughly dry the stuffing in the middle.

Chance of mildew and problems if not THOROUGHY dry.
at very least the two-parallel-line method is better than a single line to esure both sides dry WELL.

Just a thought.

 

[bajaespuma]

I dry my clothes outdoors whenever I can because I love the results but, and it's interesting that you began this thread, I must confess that I consider myself an functional idiot at line drying. Firstly, I somehow always manage to put my clothesline directly under the local incontinent bird flightpath, so I end up cursing at the winged buggers and having to re-wash the laundry. Secondly, I always manage to forget about the clothes on the line, so by the next morning, they're damp and covered with little bugs and stuff. Any advice will be appreciated.
Anyone interested in this topic should rent "Dolores Claibourne". Great movie and tour-de-force Kathy Bates, but also a brilliant performance by Judy Parfitt as Vera Donovan. We can only wonder what laundry appliance Vera selected for her linens, although it's possible she insisted on hand washing. I would put my money on an old Maytag Commander Wringer paired with a 1950's gas Whirlpool dryer. There's not a lot of electricity on Monhegan Island and I don't think Vera would have trusted an automatic.

 

[gadgetgary]

And lookie here......

Retractable...when you are finished, simply reel it in and you are done with your load....

Like other paraphilias, ones with the feet are marvelous......

 

[thor]

Too much softner

Gary, I also had the blue streak on the inside of my Maytag dryer. I cut back on the amount of softener (actually diluting it 50/50 with white vinegar and using the same volume as undiluted), cleaned the streak with a damp cloth and it never formed back again. I was obviously using too much softner per wash.

 

[scott55405]

At one time, line drying was the rule of the day here; sadly it is becoming more and more obscure. Silly neighborhood covenants outlawing clotheslines for "appearance" sake are not helping matters. (When I was growing up, it was considered the sign of a good homemaker to see a nice, clean, white wash hanging in one's yard). I haven't lived with space for a clothesline for a long time, but if I did certainly I would be doing it.

I think clothes dryers are overall a good thing and have their place, but to me they're not the be all and end all some folks make them out to be.

 

[gadgetgary]

Too much softner

Emilio,

Thanks for the fabric softener tip. A dear AW friend of mine told me to use the 'cheep' watery stuff to cut down on suds and not gum up the machine and clothes with a gummy waxy residue. It is also more lightly scented and less offensive than waxy type softeners.

 

[partscounterman]

I barely use my dryer...

Of course, here in paradise, there is little need for a dryer most of the year. I have lines strung up on my lanai. I simply hang the clothes up and open the jalousie windows at the far end of the lanai and our lovely trade winds blast the clothes dry nearly as fast as the dryer does. It helps too that Dennis was taught to hang laundry properly by Mother Ferch-a job he still enjoys to this day. I also have a strange little 3 sides folding "dryer" that plants out in the yard. I use that one for airing out pillows and bedding so the direct sunshine kills the germs. The tropical sun is too potent to hang my laundry out all the time though-there would be too much fading.
We do have an electric dryer. I use it mostly in the winter or to give the towels a quick fluff after line drying. I also use it on those days the nice people at Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar are burning cane fields upwind of me. Cane smoke and ash on my clothes does not thrill me.

While we were visiting back in Minnesota it about killed me that we HAD to use the dryer at my friends house as the phony plastic subdivision she lives in FORBIDS clothes lines. It was a beautiful sunny breezy day and we had to pay the electric company for hot air.

 

[gadgetgary]

The pic helps........

Can we say......CRS?????

 

[thor]

Blue streak

Gary, if you are using pink colored softener, what do you think is causing the blue streak on your dryer?

 

[scott55405]

The pink stuff rules for line drying for all the reasons mentioned above!

 

[appnut]

I'm far to darn lazy to line dry a thing. Only ddi when I absolutely had to save on electtricity and all I was wearing at the time were t-shirts and shorts. Simmply put them on hangers and hung them in the garage on the garge door opener track. They had a slight tinge of gasoline odor due to the lawnmower. Line drying is futile for jme cuz too many birds fly around and when I do laundry it's 6 or more loads.

 

[gadgetgary]

Gary, if you are using pink colored softener, what do you th

The blue streak was prior to the pink stuff....caused probably by way too much Downy....

Stopped using Downy when I had major issues with the Neptune(mother board and wax motor-after 8 yrs), and found sudsing problems. Consequently, on the advice of a personal friend, started using the cheap fabric softener and VIOLA....no more suds in the boot~!

So what are your suggestions for cleaning off that 'blue streak'?

 

[toggleswitch]

Ajax, Dutch Boy, Bon Ami or Comet cleanser and a rag..

If you have the nerve to use strong bleach, maybe some Clorox clean up.

RINSE VERY WELL if you choose to use a product with bleach, or your black work pants (trousers) may suffer.