Where do you line dry your clothes?

[pennywise]

We use pant hangers to hang mutlitple things on one hanger. Each clip will hold an item and then I hung the undies over the hanging part. This decreased space for drying.

[Razzy]

I have seen hangers you put over the door that have 3 or 4 bars on them that you can hang clothes on. I thought those were so neat and if I ever need one I will buy one.


Razzy

[kafiske]

I hang outside on sunny days, on my porch on rainy days and inside in the winter. I have lines strung up in the cellar and use them when the furnace is on as it is warm down there. In the spring and fall, I hang stuff on the 8 drying racks I've accumulated. Drying jeans takes up a lot of those. I wear mostly dresses and skirts and hang on hangers from the curtain rods or on the mantle (not touching the woodstove when it is hot). When I lived in an apartment, I would string up lines through my kitchen cabinet pulls and be able to hang sheets and everything there.
Andrea

[CheaplyClever]

There are certainly some clever ideas here!

I have the retractable lines in the backyard and love to hang everything when the weather permits. If it rains I use the dryer or hang everything from the shower curtain rod. If I use the shower rod, I use a small fan and rotate the clothes hangers after a couple of hours for even drying.

My girlfriend lves in a busy neighborhood and has had clothesline theft in the past. She put clotheslines inside her garage, hangs everthing and uses fans to circulate the air.

[Razzy]

When I hang clothes inside I also rotate them and I use my fans for air circulation.

Raz

[PrincessPerky]

So is the fan running really cheaper than the dryer? (if so I have a garage that is empty most all day while DH is at work, I might need to string some line out there)

[gakline]

Sure the fan would be. The dryer is a larger motor. An example: Your dryer probably (should) have a dedicated circuit (breaker, outlet, whatever you want to call it). That way there will be no tripping. For a dedicated outlet that's a max of 1536 W on a 20A circuit. For your fan, you can share the circuit. ie. have 1+ fans running , watching tv, ironing, or whatever.

Also during the summer, the dryer creates a lot of heat that you A/C unit will have to compensate for. So not only are you using energy for the dryer, you using more for the A/C.

I, personally, don't even use a fan. Usually the air is dry and my clothes take a few hours (or overnight) to dry. Try hanging them in doorways, you'll automatically get some air movement.

[Razzy]

I like using the fan to help speed up the drying time on clothes especially during the day and if I have a lot of clothes drying in one place.



Raz

[PrincessPerky]

Thanks for the electric lesson

Though door ways wont work, might be airflow, but I can guarantee there will be Toddler flow! (not generally good for clothes .)

[momma4]

i am not very frugal here I just dry them in the dryer. I do have to hang up 2 of my son's diapers cause they can not go in the dryer and then those go on the doorknob.

I even use hangers on my car and keep my windows open This way , they'll dry fast and I get to do my stuff to ...

[PrincessPerky]

Originally Posted by Hess

I even use hangers on my car and keep my windows open This way , they'll dry fast and I get to do my stuff to ...

My mother used to say that was the only way to dry hair (I think it makes to many knots)

[Razzy]

I think hanging any amount of clothes is better than not hanging any. I know a lot of times I hang clothes inside (when raining) and use the dryer to dry heavy items ( jeans, blankets so forth). So some is better than none.


Razzy

[DivaJen]

Originally Posted by Razzy

I think hanging any amount of clothes is better than not hanging any. I know a lot of times I hang clothes inside (when raining) and use the dryer to dry heavy items ( jeans, blankets so forth). So some is better than none.

I agree. As with most things in life, I try not to be black and white about this. every piece of clothing or linens that gets line dried is one less piece that requires electricity. I will also sometimes line dry heavy items like towels and jeans and then finish them in the dryer, if necessary.

[Razzy]

I know on days when my allergies or sinuses are acting up I will sometimes put the clothes in the dryer to dry then feel guilty for doing so. So I end up taking the small items of laundry out and hang them either on my drying racks or on the line.


Raz

[pennywise]

line drying is a good idea. then the dryer can be used for the jeans and towel to "soften" them if you prefer. Much, much cheaper.

[robex]

I use two drying racks for one large load. I usually do a load in the morning, hang them to dry and then in the evening I throw them in the dryer for a few minutes to get out wrinkles and stiffness. I put wet sheets in with the almost dry clothes and this works great to dry the sheets and get the clothes unwrinkle. We are a family of 5, so a load a day works pretty well for us.

[larosa7357]

We live on the 2nd floor of a 2-family house. The backyard is "shared" between the people downstairs, and the 2 families that live in the house next door (Landlord owns both houses).

I don't like the idea of others walking through and around my laundry all day. So....I hang my clothes on a clothes rack in the living room, plus 2 drying racks in the living room. We also hung a clothes line in the bedroom too!

Quite honestly, I am pretty tired of seeing clothes hanging all of the time. But...it beats the high cost of electricity here on Long Island, by not using a dryer. For our sheets and underwear, we dry them at the laundromat.

Fran

[marglo]

you guys are much more frugal than I...I use my dryer! Only hang some delicate items to take care of them, not to save money. I'm not even sure clotheslines are allowed in our neighborhood...no one has them. But then as Dave Ramsey might say, probably it's just cause they are "normal!" I don't know. But somethings just aren't worth it to me...I will keep using my dryer.

[larosa7357]

marglo...I wish I can share in your luxury of using the dryer. However, I have electric hot water too. Our electric bills are staggering...to say the least. With an average electric bill of $202.00 per month (and that's with trying to conserve it in every way possible), I guess I'll stick to line-drying. I'd rather do that, rather than throw any more money at LIPA...the electric company. I think they're making enough.

Fran