Drying laundry

[Cami]

How do you dry your laundry? Does it go in the dryer? Does it get line dried? If so, is the line inside or outside (assuming nice weather)?

[Shanna]

Dryer :nod: We just bought a new washer and dryer set a month or so ago and LOVE it :nod:

[TtownAnne]

Dryer for everything here too, except for some stretchy-material tops that would shrink, so they get hung up in the basement to dry. Our HOA does not allow outdoor clotheslines.

[magoo]

In the summer, I use the clothesline for everything but our socks and underwear. Our houses are really close together, and the neighbours just don't need to know that much about us. :lol: Otherwise, it's the dryer unless it's something that shouldn't go in the dryer as Anne mentioned. Generally I avoid buying anything that I can't just machine wash and dry.

[TtownAnne]

Me too - I only have about 3 tops that have a certain spandex or lycra or something content that I don't want to shrink up. Stopping working certainly helped with this idea.

Generally I avoid buying anything that I can't just machine wash and dry.

[Eva]

Mostly everything gets dried in the dryer with the exception of things that have to be flat dried or hung up to dry.

[LISA]

Mostly everything gets dried in the dryer with the exception of things that have to be flat dried or hung up to dry.

Ditto that..the last time I air dryed something was probably 15 yrs ago..I started pulling my clothes off the line and shook them only to find most of it covered in earwigs :dead: I screamed and left my clothes out for days until I knew they were all gone :lol:

[Nichole]

Oh yuck, Lisa! :errr: Earwigs creep me right out. :dead:


Mostly everything gets dried in the dryer with the exception of things that have to be flat dried or hung up to dry.


This is me, too. :nod: We don't have a clothesline, so I just hang stuff on hangers in a doorway.

[Lynn]

In the summertime, outside clothesline. :nod: I just got one in mid-August and was wishing I had gotten one much sooner. It took a lot of convincing on my part to get Keith to agree with me. He think they're WT. I say that's DUMB because we have a fence and no one can see it! :disbelief: And like Sarah I don't put underwear or socks out on it, nor do I put small things like washcloths on it.

In the winter, I'm all about the heat from the dryer warming up the basement. Most of my pants are line dried (we have a closet rod hung from the beams in the basement) and a few shirts are too.

[Jayne]

For those of you who line dry, Do you find that your clothes are stiff??? I tried line drying for a while as we didn't have a dryer and I was trying every which way to save money. I hated how stiff my clothes were. Once I got a dryer I never ever line dried my clothes again as I loved how soft my clothes were from they dryer

[Lynn]

Jayne, I was going to mention that yes I have noticed that. I will sometimes throw towels in on air/fluff for about 10 minutes just to soften them up. Also, liquid fabric softener seems to help.

[Silke]

Mostly dryer. We live in a community and aren't allowed to display clothes lines, not even the ones that look like a foldable spider net :rolleyes: (if someome can fill me in what ya call it, I be mighty obliged :lol: ) I have several clothes I handwash and those end up on a drying rack either outside or inside in the bathtub.

[Cami]

not even the ones that look like a foldable spider net :rolleyes: (if someome can fill me in what ya call it, I be mighty obliged :lol: )

Here they're called whirlygigs and the abundance of them in my neighborhood is what inspired my question. :)

[Darcy]

We have a rather large clothesline outside (hung from the deck to tree and baxk) that we use in the summer. I love it, and Phil does, too. The only things I find stiff are towels. I tend to do laundry in the summer based on the weather. Nice weather=laundrytime :)

[Girlo]

I dry most everything in the dryer as well. :nod:

My aunt line-dries her clothes and I do find them a little stiff. When I air-dry something at home, I will sometimes throw it into the dryer for a few minutes on low heat (once it's dry) just to soften it up. :)

[Silke]

Here they're called whirlygigs and the abundance of them in my neighborhood is what inspired my question. :)
My mother has one. I bought one here and used it until I got a letter from the community association.
Relaps to last night, Cami. In Germany we call them clothes spider (directly translated) :lol: Whirlygigs is not so bad either since my brother and I loved spinning it around with clothes on the line. :lol:

[Clare]

Line-dry. I have three options. The Hills Hoist (whirlygig, whatever) in the sun,
http://blindman.com.au/images/clothesline.jpg
a retractable clothesline under the pergola for wet weather
http://www.baileyladders.com.au/resource/bundle.1/illusionId=7365&c=published&f=image:jpeg&w=127&h=127/resource/hero.jpg


and a small foldaway one that I use indoors. I use the clothes dryer very rarely.
And no, I don't find that the clothes are stiff. My clothes have been line-dried since the day I was born, so I don't know any different.

[pam]

Mostly everything gets dried in the dryer with the exception of things that have to be flat dried or hung up to dry.

Same here. I usually don't buy clothing that can't be put into the dryer.

[Mary DK]

I line dry a few of the boys' nicer shirts, pretty much all of Blair's shirts & polos & I have a few shirts of mine too. No lines outside though, our HOA would NOT allow them even though we have fences. I have a rod (closet rod) on one of the walls of the laundry room that's where I hang them in hangers to dry.
I put the clothes in the dryer for a few minutes then hang them up, I bearly have to retouch Blair's shirts with the iron ~ when I iron :giggle:

[Jen]

Wow, I've never known anyone that line dries their clothes. I'm surprised at how many people do it. I wouldn't have the patience to hang them all up, wait for them to dry and collect them. It does seem more pure to line dry.

I will lay some things flat (sweaters or lycra) but majority of my things go in the dryer. If it needs ironing, it goes to the cleaners. There are rules against visible lines in our neighborhood as well and I've just never seen any in our city. :dunno:

[MrsPeacefrog]

I line dry as well, all year round. We have the sun pretty much all year round here so there is no reason NOT to use it.

I have a Hills Hoist in the back yard and I love going out there to hang my clothes, it's time in the sun for all of us, the boys like to hand me the pegs, and Jacob get's to lay on the grass eating all sorts of fun things :lol:

I do not find the clothes stiff (I do have a dryer and when it's wet I use it) and my clothes are not stiff at all... I find if you use too much detergent that can make the clothes feel stiff when line dried, but being I have line dried my whole life I know the right level of detergent required to get my clothes clean and avoid stiffness.

I also find the sun is a great bleacher, so with the kids bolognese stains, I don't have to use chemicals, I just wash them regularly and then hang them in the sun and the stains disappear.

[Cami]

I know drying things outside is pictured as being so nice and fresh, but all I can think about are the mosquitos, bees, leaves and other junk from the trees, all flying into my clean laundry. So I don't get the joy of line drying. :snob: :lol:

We had to put in a special request to get a dryer in our house, and it sucks, so I am line drying more. But I prefer to do it inside. I hang clothes from the shower rods or towel racks. I have hung our sheets over the stair rail. (can you say WT.) :)

[MrsPeacefrog]

I guess it's the climate you live in Cami, we don't have a problem with mosquitos I don't live near a body of water, and even though I have tree's etc, it's rare for any of the stuff to create a problem with our clothes. ONE time I had a spider on one of my shirts, but after freaking out, I managed to hit it off, and from then on when I get my house sprayed once a year I get them to the Hills Hoist too :lol:

To be honest I do love the convenience of the dryer, but I hate how you have to wait for that load to finish before you can do another, with the Hills Hoist you can do a whole weeks worth of washing in one day! by the time the load is finished the clothes are dry on the line, alot faster than a dryer. But then again that is the Australian climate, I am sure in London you guys don't get the best "sun" :lol:

[Kristen]

I dry everything. Items that are 100% cotton get dried on the air setting (no heat). I'm probably killing our electric/gas bill! heh

[Clare]

but I hate how you have to wait for that load to finish before you can do another, with the Hills Hoist you can do a whole weeks worth of washing in one day! by the time the load is finished the clothes are dry on the line, alot faster than a dryer

:nod: Today I did 4 loads, hung the first load out at 11am and it was all in and folded and put away by 5pm :)

[Jayne]

:nod: Today I did 4 loads, hung the first load out at 11am and it was all in and folded and put away by 5pm :)

I can do at least 7 loads in that time and have them washed and dryed :dunno:

Here things don't dry near as fast because of the Humidity. I can put wet towels outside to dry from Swimming and sometimes it is the next day before they are dry. :dunno:

[magoo]

I wouldn't have the patience to hang them all up, wait for them to dry and collect them. It does seem more pure to line dry.

I'm with Deb. I actually really like hanging the clothes out and bringing them in. I especially like when there is a new baby in the house, and the line is full of tiny sleepers and cloth diapers. :heee: It's a nice peaceful time. The kids are out with me - Jacob playing in the box of clothespins and Anna on the slide. I think about the pride my grandmother used to take in being the first on her street to hang her clothes out in the morning, and how she would take the time to line everything up perfectly on the line with linens together, shirts together, even pairs of socks together. I think about how I'm minimizing the negative effects on our hydro bill, and more importantly on our environment.

Eric and I were looking at the real estate section of our paper and I pointed a house out to him. He said it was in a neighbourhood where clotheslines aren't allowed. Can't live there! :lol: It seems kind of silly to actually enjoy doing the laundry, but I guess it's one of those simple pleasures.

[Clare]

I can do at least 7 loads in that time and have them washed and dryed :dunno:



Well it's all in the experience, isn't it? If I was brought up using a clothes dryer and spending the day in the laundry transferring loads to and from machines, then that's probably what I'd prefer. But to me, running the washer 4 times, hanging it out in the sunshine and bringing it in a couple of hours later smelling fresh, is a good day.

[Jayne]

Well it's all in the experience, isn't it? If I was brought up using a clothes dryer and spending the day in the laundry transferring loads to and from machines, then that's probably what I'd prefer. But to me, running the washer 4 times, hanging it out in the sunshine and bringing it in a couple of hours later smelling fresh, is a good day.

Don't get me wrong. I would love for it to work that way for us. I like line drying my sheets and such but in our climate I am lucky to do it twice a year. It just doesn't seem worth it here. I wish I lived where line drying was something that made me happy. My neighbor used to line dry his clothes and we would laugh because he would just get them out and it would rain or he would leave them out there for 3 days because it took that long for his jeans to dry :lol:

[Karri]

I agree with Sarah (and Deb & Clare). To me, hanging laundry on the line is one of life's simple pleasures. I love that its a part of summer and fall.

I grew up with most of my stuff being line dried, so to me, there is nothing better than the smell of line dried linens.

I don't dry undies, bras, socks, or towels on the line (towels get too crunchy for me). Otherwise, everything else gets line dried. And we have the perfect amt of sun in our backyard so that it dries quickly enough. I can get 2 loads up at a time.

In the winter and rainy weather, I have a clothesline and wooden dryer thingey in my basement so that I can line dry certain items. I don't like to use the dryer for a lot of things of mine and the kids...I fear shrinkage and fading.

[Clare]

Every time this question comes up here, I'm shocked that other people don't line-dry and the majority are shocked that some of us do. It's all a question of where you live. The comments about line-drying not being allowed in some areas is mind-boggling to me. Here, line-drying is almost a condition of citizenship :lol: You'd be hard pressed to find an Australian that doesn't hang their washing outside to dry. And that includes socks and undies. I've never heard of anyone keeping those out of the neighbours view before :dunno:

Cami - I'm kind of surprised at the line-drying in your neighbourhood. The people that I lived with in London and Edinburgh used clothes-dryers because of the weather. If I didn't live in a sun-drenched country I'm sure I'd be an advocate of the dryer! :lol:

[Nichole]

I grew up with line dried linens and I :heart: that smell. I'd love to hang our stuff out, but Brendon's allergies are so bad and sheets full of pollen would not be so good for his sleep. :awink:

[Cami]

Cami - I'm kind of surprised at the line-drying in your neighbourhood. The people that I lived with in London and Edinburgh used clothes-dryers because of the weather. If I didn't live in a sun-drenched country I'm sure I'd be an advocate of the dryer! :lol:

Well, I wish you were my neighbor! :lol: I feel a little guilty every time I see laundry on my neighbors' lines and hear my dryer whirling away.

[laurie]

Dryer..for everything! :blush:

[Bridget]

1. :wtf: is an earwig? It sounds HORRID.
2. Clare, I knew you were going to say that (about how it's always weird who line drys/who doesn't). :lol:
3. We don't have a line but I wish we did. Nothing gets whites whiter than hanging in the sun. :)
4. I use the dryer for everything except stuff that can't be dried. Some things I dry flat on top of the machines and other things hang if needed.

I love the way things smell off of the line. :)

[MrsPeacefrog]

Jayne: My dryer takes about 1 1/2 hours for a full load, and my washin machine takes about 45 minutes to wash a load, so it's more time efficient to do the clothes line, I also think that hanging towels out that have been used for swimming is a bit different they always take longer because they haven't gone through a spin cycle and are wetter than general clothing that comes out of a washing machine. Jeans and heavy items always take longer to dry here too :nod:

Sarah: You said it perfectly about the "experience" of it all. I can't imagine there being a place that doesn't allow Line drying. Can anyone explain to me why that is? I have heard of not being allowed to do it on balconys of apartments, that I understand, but why can't you hang washing in your OWN back yard? :scratch: I am confused.


I also have to add though that I could not live with out my dryer, I think they are incredibly convenient, and when I forget to wash something or I ran out of time, it's great for that quick night time wash and dry to get things clean for the next day :nod: And it's a life saver in winter during the rainy patch. But I couldn't imagine our electricity bill if I used it 24/7 :errr: I feel bad for those that don't have the climate to be able to line dry!

[sabrina]

I would love to line dry clothes, but our yard is totally shaded except for about 1 hour per day. Unless of course I wanted to hang them in front of our house and I don't think my neighbors would like that. But for me, dry time and wash time are about the same length of time. It takes my washer 54 minutes to wash and my dryer takes about 45 minutes to dry.

[Bridget]

Well, I'm no expert but I'll take a stab at explaining why I think it is Deb. In the old days of course, no one had dryers. After WWII Americans became increasingly obsessed with the aquisition of new/modern things, including appliances. A washer and dryer were marketed as "must haves" and over time, the signs of line drying became associated with individuals who couldn't afford a dryer, or part of "backward" communities such as groups of immigrants or rural farmery/redneck people who by choice or necessity still chose to line dry. In America it's not cool to be poor or rural, so the two became sort of linked.

Add to that the increasing development of subdivisions/gated communities where community laws prohibit and regulate all sorts of things: the height of your grass, the color of your house (right down to the color of the front door), the type of roof you install, the length of time you can have your trash barrel out, no cars in the driveway and certainly NO clotheslines which would be considered - ahem - trashy and unsightly. Who wants to see Mrs. McGregor's flimsys hanging on the line? Perish the thought! Even though a lot of people who live in such communities scorn these laws, they still put up with it. The land of the free eh? :lol:

So again, parts of town that allowed it were unregulated areas and by the definition of some, less desirable areas (only poor, backward people would even WANT to hang their private clothing outside!!). Whether everyone agrees with it or not, that's the general viewpoint of Americans towards line drying. It might have its merits, but you don't actually "do" it. I think some people, if they saw line drying in a more affluent area, might think that the occupants of the house were pretty granola. :lol:

Anyway, :blahblah: that's just my opinion on why it's that way here! I'll shut it now! :colfish:

[Bridget]

Oh and I should have added that I don't think Americans would see the tendency of Australians to hang out laundry to be trashy. I think they'd consider it quaint, because Australians are, by definition, "cooler than shit".

;)

[MrsPeacefrog]

OKAY! now it is starting to make sense. What a different world we live in! The Hills Hoist was an Australian invention, we are a sun drenched country and we think people who would waste their money on using a dryer when we have the sun for free are a bit :crazy: it's funny how you become a product of where you live!!

ETA: Actually it's almost embarrassing to admit you use a dryer here in Australia, you would be looked upon as if you were nuts! :lol:

[Karri]

bridget - i think you hit the mail on the head. though i think that anyone who thinks its 'trashy' is ridiculous. so is it 'trashy' to drive an economical car? i mean...i try to keep my bills down and also conserve energy for future peoples.

anyway...y'all dont have earwigs in KS? Damn. they are nasty creatures. they like to come in my house in spring-fall.
http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:7d_NLTkKSRtT4M:http://flrec.ifas.ufl.edu/Hort/Turf/Turfpests/foliar/Caterpil/earwig.gif (http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://flrec.ifas.ufl.edu/Hort/Turf/Turfpests/foliar/Caterpil/earwig.gif&imgrefurl=http://flrec.ifas.ufl.edu/Hort/Turf/Turfpests/foliar/Caterpil/striped.htm&h=481&w=498&sz=149&hl=en&start=1&tbnid=7d_NLTkKSRtT4M:&tbnh=126&tbnw=130&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dearwig%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26rls%3DGGLG,GGLG:2006-11,GGLG:en%26sa%3DN)

[MrsPeacefrog]

We get earwigs here too, :errr: but they don't look as nasty as that, they are smaller and all black.

[MrsPeacefrog]

. though i think that anyone who thinks its 'trashy' is ridiculous. so is it 'trashy' to drive an economical car? i mean...i try to keep my bills down and also conserve energy for future peoples.


I agree, that kind of logic makes no sense to me at all :jack:

[Bridget]

I agree Karri. 100%. :nod: My mom still routinely line dries and she's not trashy. :lol:

One thing I find amusing is the detergents you can buy that are supposed to smell like "sun".

[MrsPeacefrog]

One thing I find amusing is the detergents you can buy that are supposed to smell like "sun".


:spit: OH MAN! now THAT is funny!

[Michal]

Every time this question comes up here, I'm shocked that other people don't line-dry and the majority are shocked that some of us do. It's all a question of where you live. The comments about line-drying not being allowed in some areas is mind-boggling to me. Here, line-drying is almost a condition of citizenship :lol: You'd be hard pressed to find an Australian that doesn't hang their washing outside to dry. And that includes socks and undies. I've never heard of anyone keeping those out of the neighbours view before :dunno:



This really explains alot for me, my MIL is Australian and she line dries everything. Whenever we go over to visit them and I am doing laundry I go to put my clothes in the dryer just to find them hanging outside :lol: it would bug me because I wanted my clothes dried faster than the clothesline would allow.

Unfortunatly, yesterday my dryer stopped working and I have had to string clothes up all over my laundry room because I don't have much of a backyard, so it won't even have that 'fresh outdoor' scent.

[Melissa]

Mostly dryer, but I do hang some things.

[Martian Lullaby]

Everything goes in the dryer! It's too humid here to line-dry.

[Melissa in Italy]

I mostly use the dryer but this summer used the line a lot. I stopped because I noticed a lot of clothes were being ruined. My theory is that they were not getting fabric softener (we have to use dryer sheets since our machine doesn't have a dispenser and the downy balls have given me trouble) so they were not able to resist stains as well, so the stains were setting. I stopped, too, because DH and DD seemed bothered by the pollen & dust. The air is very dirty here. I hang some things on my rack inside that can't be put in the dryer, also things that remain a little damp after the drying cycle.

Italians do not own dryers and it is normal to see laundry hanging off high-rise balconies on lines, even over city streets & next to highways, even in the rain. They have plastic sheets they put over it when it rains. :screwy: My neighbors will leave their laundry out to dry for days at a time. I don't really understand it; seems like it would be dirtier after all that than it probably was before washing it?? :dunno:

[Masik]

I wonder how many eBay sellers who claim they line dry things actually do that... I guess I'll stick with my "no used clothes buying" off eBay rule :lol:

[shasta]

How do you dry your laundry?
Clothing always goes in the dryer. I line dry the blankets and comforters outside, only because they don't dry properly in the dryer.