Gas Dryers vs Electric Dryers?

[qualin]

Hello everyone.

I'm considering buying a matching dryer to go with my Huebsch ZFN50R.

My choices are the Huebsch ZDE4BR or the Huebsch ZDG4BR, the only difference is that one is electric and one is gas. (The Speed Queen equivalents are ADE4BR and ADG4BR.)

The ZDE4BR has an electric 5350 watt heating element.
The ZDG4BR has a 22,500 BTU gas burner.

According to a Watts/BTU calculator I found, http://www.borino.com/GYC/wattsbtu_calculator.htm ... 22,500 BTU = 6594 watts..

So, my question is.. Which dryer is more energy efficient, better value, safer, better for clothes, etc?

My mother once had an older Frigidaire gas dryer from the early 50's.. she hated it because she said it made all the clothes smell like Natural Gas. Since Modern Dryers don't have a pilot light anymore, would that still be a problem if I left the clothes in the dryer overnight by accident?

Is there a danger of fire from lint build up inside the machine over time, even if the lint filter is cleaned out regularly? (As opposed to an electric model.)

There is one problem I face which may force my hand. The gas line is right above the dryer, but I need to hire a pipefitter to run an outlet from that pipe because there currently isn't any gas outlet for the dryer right now, there's only an electric plug. I've been told to expect to pay about $300 to get it done.

FYI, I only have two gas appliances right now, the furnace and the water heater, so I don't think adding a dryer would affect either one of these appliances.

So, Gas or electric? What are the pros and cons?

Thanks!

 

[dj-gabriele]

more energy efficient, better value, safer, better for clot

The gas dryer is more energy efficient than the electric resistive one, to my knowledge there are no heat pump dryers in the north American market.

Safer and better for the clothes would be the electric dryer. My father swears (he has a commercial laundry) that gas dryers will turn fine textile yellow because of the combustion fumes and higher heat. Plus most gas dryers aren't modulating but single stage on-off

Both gas and electric will dry at around the same speed because, even if the gas one is more powerful, the combustion gases will have all the water created by the methane combustion so the incoming air will be more humid than the electrically heated one.

Electricity in Canada comes mostly from hydroelectric and nuclear, both clean forms of production, coupled with the very cheap price you pay for it and the usually lower buying price for an electric dryer, I'd say to get an electric one

 

[thomasortega]

Many people say that gas dryers are fasters.

Finally, i've found the first person who noticed the same factsI did years ago.

1) They dry faster, but the difference is insignificant.
2) Electric is cleaner. (if the electricity comes from clean sources) so, why leave a bigger footprint?
3) gas can turn some white clothes yellow. #fact!
4) Gas makes the softener or detergent or any other "good" scent simply dissapear. Clothes smell like... how can I say... uh... dried in a gas dryer.
5) Gas driers have a flame. They are very safe and if installed correctly they can be even safer, but no matter how well it's built, the chance of a fire is always a little bit higher than in an electric dryer.

For these and for other reasons, I'd go for electric.

 

[arbilab]

I've had both. Gas is much cheaper to run almost everywhere but yes it makes clothes smell burnt. It also has more to go wrong, valves, igniter, IR sensor. I prefer electric.

 

[DADoES]

 
I've never had a gas dryer ... or any gas appliances for that matter, although I've used granny's gas range (seems a lot of superfluous heat is emitted).

The appliance dealer where I worked back in the day did not sell or service any gas appliances.  He strongly disparaged gas dryers as being bad for clothes.

 

[DirectDriveDave]

Gas is the way to go, I have never had any type of natural gas scent on any of our fabrics and the scent from the fabric softener sheet is still on them by the time it has finished. From my experiences, they also cool down much better when the dryer enters the cool down period.

As long as you have everything cleaned, maintained, and installed properly, the risk of fires are minimal.

That being said, don't EVER let your dryer get this bad as ours was, shown below. This was very stupid on our part, but thankfully I got it all cleaned out and nothing bad ever happened.

 

[moparwash]

Side by Side comparision

My 1978 Maytag gas dries faster than the Electric Kenmore Dryer. The clothes are softer and dont come out feeling burnt. I have not noticed clothes smelling like gas or turning yellow

 

[maytagbear]

I've owned gas heated dryers

all my laundry life. Here in N.E. Ohio, they are vastly cheaper to run. The 50.00 or so extra to buy a gas dryer is quickly recouped in most places.

I have never personally experienced fabric yellowing from a gas heated dryer. I am not saying that it could not happen, but I am saying that it has not happened to me. However, my dryers have always been well maintained.

Also, a gas heated dryer can be as safe as an electrically heated dryer, it depends on ducting (solid metal,) and on emptying the lint filter regularly, and cleaning the ducting regularly.

I have been known to have my gas dryer, water heater, furnace, and now, gas stove running all at once, and no loss in performance in any of them.

From a real estate standpoint, the ability to have either type of dryer will be a big plus if you ever sell your house.

I have used electrically heated dryers, as recently as yesterday (November 26,) but I would not want to own one.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[mattl]

We've had gas driers all my life, my folks got a Hamilton in'61 and it ran until it was replaced with a TOL Kenmore in '73 ( now in storage) that was replaced in '96 with another TOL Kenmore.

 

Not one issue, cheap to run, after all these years none of the whites are not white, there is no gas smell to the laundry, and there is simply no issue.  so, if gas is cheaper in your area and you can hook it up, there is no reason not to use gas for drying.

 

How close is the water heater and furnace to the dryer?  If it's near by the cost should be low.  Odds are a "T" could be installed in a drip leg of either appliance and a 1/2" line could be fed off it.  Cutting into a line above the dryer could get expensive if you hire it out.  I've run lots of gas line and am comfortable doing it, if you are not stick with the pros...

 

[qualin]

The dryer is immediately to the left of the water heater. There are a variety of places a professional could take a T off the line, I'll leave it to the professionals though if I go that route.

 

[sudsmaster]

Cost:

Depends on your electric rates, I suppose. But around here gas dryers are much cheaper to run than electric ones. Our electric rates are tiered, and if I were to switch the gas dryer to an electric one, I'd be paying $.30/KWh for that.

From an overall energy standpoint, a gas dryer will always be more energy efficient, due to the energy losses involved in turning thermal energy into electricity, and also the losses involved in transmitting electric power over distances. If you are only considering the energy as it arrives at the dryer, though, both versions could be considered 100% efficient, since all the heat energy is used to dry the fabrics.

If your electricity is very cheap (less than $.10/KWh with no increase for more use), and you have no natural gas service, then an electric dryer might be cheaper to run than a propane powered one. But I think in most cases where there is gas service the gas dryer is cheaper to run.

Fabrics:

I've never had a gas dryer yellow clothes. Maybe it depends on the purity of the gas and the efficiency of the dryer's burner. In terms of wear, I think that depends more on the dryer's design than the fuel source. I recall that WCI/Frigidaire non-sensor gas dryers were notorious for getting way too hot if the "hot" setting was selected. When I had one, I always selected "warm" and that was hot enough. My Maytag Neptune 7500 gas dryer is very gentle on fabrics, and its sensor errs on the side of leaving more moisture on the fabrics than I'd expect from the setting (Very dry, more dry, normal, less dry, damp dry). I usually set it to "more dry" for most loads, because the normal setting is a bit too damp.

Safety:

Modern gas dryers appear to be quite safe, but they are slightly more dangerous than electric dryers in that the exhaust MUST be vented outdoors, due to the combustion products that can be harmful (like carbon monoxide) if the burner isn't 100% efficient. Electric dryers theoretically can be vented indoors but the increased humidity and lint might be a problem so I figure this is a non issue - all vented dryers should be vented outdoors. There may be slightly more chance of lint igniting with a gas dryer, but that wouldn't happen if the dryer ducting were maintained properly, and that goes for electric dryers as well. I figure there are enough safety devices on a modern gas dryer to consider them safe. However as a rule I do not run the gas dryer when I'm not in the house or on the property.

Overall, I prefer the gas dryer. It adds only a nominal amount to the monthly gas bill and works well.

 

[a440]

Clothes come out burnt?
Clothes come out Yellow?
I have never had this experience with a Gas Dryer,
and I don't think I ever will.
I have had gas dryers for most of my life and have never had any of these issues.
I will say however that I have had issues with electric dryers in the past.
Most of this thread concerning gas dryers almoset seem like Urban Legend instead of actual first hand experiences. If it is first hand experiences, you must have an issue with your gas dryer. NEVER HOOK A GAS DRYER TO A OIL TANK! GAS DRYERS SHOULD NEVER BURN OIL FUEL!
Brent

 

[retro-man]

I have had gas dryers both at home and at business for over 20 years. We wash white towels constantly at the business and none have ever gone yellow or had a gas smell to them. They are faster at drying and more efficient overall. Both gas dryers actually 3 now can dry faster than the washers can finish a load. This is with both top loader and front loaders. Yes I agree I think that a lot of myths are just that and urban legends. I have only had 1 problem with a gas dryer and that was when 1 was new and had a defective gas valve and that was it would not open. Never a leak or the smell of gas. If the piping is available I would go with gas and leave the electric for the washing machine.
JOn

 

[yogitunes]

first and fore most.....I always prefer a gas dryer......savings over electric....

but heres an issue.....I have 2 Frigidaire dryers, same model, one gas, one electric.......a simple drying of sheets or blankets/bulky....in gas you can use Regular with high heat, no issues........in electric, this same load must be dried on Perm Press and the heat set to LOW, otherwise they will scorch and melt......at first I thought it was of the dryers design, the rear is connected to the drum and turns and is not stationary like for instance a Kenmore....but having machines with both sources of heat, I can compare......in the electric the heating coil is wrapped around the whole rear of the drum, and this back panel gets super hot, and the clothes don't slide against it, they stay in the same place tumbling the whole time.......in the gas version, the heat comes from a port behind this panel and is distributed in the rear area before coming into contact with the clothes...it most likely get hot too, but not as intense.....now if the gas burner was up against this back panel like a fry pan, I would probably see the same issue.....but its just a matter of adapting to each machine to make them work best

 

[toggleswitch]

Electric dryers are definitely cleaner than gas ones.

Had gas as a kid growing up. The one hour of the clothes being immersed in the byproducts of combustion is not really enough to make a PRONOUNCED yellowing of the clothes.

If one has tremendous allergies and sensitivities then electric is the way to go.
Also good if you want to line-dry in summer and save the heat and moisture (exhaust into the house) in winter.

For a cheaper (most areas) and "greener" method GAS is the only option, really.

Personally I'd do a gas dryer (since a dryer is a "luxury" in terms of energy use), and cook electrically. At least with the dryer one is not breathing in the poisonous byproducts of combustion such as sulfuric oxides, nitrous oxides, soot (carbon) carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.

Natural gas (methane) has a smell (on its own and through a clothes dryer) but nowhere as obnoxious as LP (bottled/propane) gas. I simply won't do a propane dryer. To me, it smells of marsh/swamp.

 

[mysteryclock]

I've had a gas dryer in the past, and currently have electric, and if I had the ability to choose - I'd pick gas again. Never had any problems with smells or yellowing (I would think that would be a case of bad design or poor venting), and everything came out perfect w/o being over-dried. Plus it was cheaper.

 

[mattl]

Toggels and I differ on gas use.  I recall a discussion a while back about gas cooktops, he felt it caused yellowing of walls and ceilings. As a gas cooktop user for decades - with white wallpaper in the kitchen- I can categorically say in my area of the country gas burns very clean on modern well adjusted equipment.

 

Back to the main question, if gas is near by unless labor costs are sky high in your area, i would not believe it would cost $300 for a hook up.  Materials should be $25-40 depending on distance based on US costs.

 

[arbilab]

I didn't say the gas dryer (80s Kenmore) made clothes smell like gas. But burnt. More specifically, made the detergent scent agents smell burnt. EXTREMELY noticeable on sheets. What setting was used made no difference. Switching detergents made no difference (few choices, had to be HE).

The air ports were adjusted properly, blue flame. The gas pressure was correct, worked fine on the (new) WH and (old) stove. I throttled the dryer gas valve down aprx 1/4th. This reduced but did not eliminate the effect.

At the same time I had the Lady Kenmore electric I still have/use. It didn't have the 'burnt' problem at all. However, for both the cost and the speed, I continued to use the gas all 18yr in that house. So it's a close call but the smell is NOT an urban legend, not in my house it wasn't.

If I got another house that had a gas dryer already I would probably use it, just like I did in 1990.

 

[yogitunes]

IF you shop around for a Sat/retired plumber, you may do better at price......

keep in mind most plumbers and electricians charge up to $200.00 an hour for labor alone.....if thats the case, 200.00 for labor, and another 25 to 40 for parts....your still not far off from 300.00....

I just added 5 stations for washers.......not including electrical or the drain....I used plastic pipe, and between the pipe, fittings and valves, I spent 100.00 at Lowes.....and this was a simple run in series valve setup.....parts seem cheap, piece by piece, but it does add up......thank goodness I can do the labor myself....