This spring I started hanging some of our clothes outside to dry. I wanted to conserve energy and be green. I also wanted to take advantage of the natural bleaching effect of sunlight on the baby’s cloth diapers. I had an old drying rack kicking around, so I decided to try hanging some clothes on it and see how it went.
Hanging the clothes worked really well. But sadly my small drying rack won’t hold a full load of laundry, let alone two. I often resorted to hanging the overflow laundry on our railings or gazebo. Which worked, except that the railings and gazebo aren’t exactly the cleanest drying surfaces, so I had to be careful to only hang dark-coloured clothes on them.
My small drying rack
There are a lot of advantages to hanging clothes to dry. It’s environmentally friendly, and it also saves money since you’re using sunshine, which is free. As I mentioned sunlight has a natural bleaching effect, removing stains. It’s also a natural disinfectant. Line-dried clothes have no static cling, and they smell fabulous.
Cloth diapers hanging to dry
My small drying rack wasn’t cutting it, so I decided to upgrade. I chose one that would be usable both indoors and out, so that I can move my laundry inside in case of sudden rain. I headed off to the store, children in tow. When I saw it in person I realized there was no way it would fit in my car, especially not with two kids in carseats riding along. Luckily my husband Jon and the store came to my rescue. I paid for the rack and the store set it aside, then Jon picked it up on his way home. Now I’m ready for all drying contingencies.
My new clothes drying rack
There are some downsides hanging clothes to dry. My drying rack doesn’t easily accommodate large items like sheets. You can fold sheets or towels and they will dry, but you might need to move them around mid-dry (although you sort of have to do the same thing with the dryer). Hanging laundry items one by one takes more effort than tossing them in the dryer, especially teeny little baby socks. The natural bleaching effect of sunshine may get your whites whiter, but it can cause colours to fade. And I have found the occasional spider in the dry clothes, fun times!
4-year-old Hannah’s clothes hanging to dry
Of course, not everyone can line dry clothes. If I still lived in an apartment building with a small balcony and shared laundry facilities I don’t think I could swing it as easily. There are even communities or housing complexes that forbid clotheslines, deeming them ‘unsightly’. And line drying is fairly weather dependent, it works much better in the summer than the winter. But the biggest objection is probably the scratchiness.
I have found a way to overcome the dreaded scratchy towels. Once my laundry is dry I throw it in the dryer on ‘air dry’(the setting that doesn’t use any heat). Then I tumble for 5 or 10 minutes. Sometimes I even combine the particularly scratchy items from multiple loads. It softens the clothes considerably, and uses a fraction of the energy.
What about you? Have you tried line drying? And what kind of line do you dry your clothes on? I would love to hear how you make it work for you.
I hang dry year round in the basement (I miss out on the benefits of the sun, but the upside is that it’s not weather dependent). I have a clothes hanger on wheels (one horizontal bar at head height, supported by two posts on either end with wheels on the bottom) and I use hangers. I machine dry awkward items such as towels and sheets, and finicky items such as socks, but I hang dry pretty much everything else.
Oh, I don’t think line-drying is unsightly at all! I think it’s charming and sort of, well, hearkens back to simpler times. I haven’t done it myself (yet, anyway) since we share our back yard with the downstairs neighbor… but you never know.
When we moved into a house we actually owned, the first thing I did last summer was have Steve install a retractable clothes line outside. Our backyard is small, so the line criss crosses our yard and pretty much takes up all the space, but I love it.
My struggle is this – we live in a bi-level with the laundry on the lower floor, right beside our bedroom. To take the laundry to the back yard I have to haul it up stairs and then down them again to get to the back yard. As you know, wet clothes aren’t light! Especially the honking loads front loading, heavy duty washers can accomidate now adays. So, I have started just popping the screen out of our bedroom window and setting my baskets down in the backyard.
To keep the scratchyness off I have been using environmentally friends fabric softner (liquid) when I wash the clothes. It makes a world of difference in the comfort of the clothes off the line. It takes alot more time to hang your clothes and then take them off, but there is something wonderful about the way they smell. I love it! When the weather turns cold out here, I lament the days of hanging my clothes. This spring I was oh so happy to pull out my line and hang my first loads!
Clothes lines can be unsightly, but so is a hazy sky and rolling back outs! I say, bring on the hanging clothes!
Hi, I just wanted to know do you have problems with the amount of washing powder you use when you have been using a rinse for your final cylce? I do I use to much I think of washing powder because it just doesn’t seen like it feels soapy. I use to love to see alot of bubbles and soap but I had read to where washing repair men says that if you see a little bit of soap are bubbles in your wash then that is enough. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks Linda
LOVE LOVE LOVE my clothes line. It holds one large load of diapers. Then I have to add my clothes dryer (looks a lot like your ‘before’ picture) if I need to do any more laundry that day.
i have come to like the scratchiness…
I love line-drying & was taught by my Memere that it is the only way to go!! We do the same thing as you for the scratchy towels…10 minutes usually does the trick. And there’s nothing like the smell of sheets that have been dried outside
PS If I’m not mistaken… those are Bum Genius one-size diapers! That’s what we use too & we love ‘em!!
this is my fancy one from Can Tire..I heart it too much
http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/3/HouseHome/Laundry/IndoorOutdoorDryers/PRD~0428835P/Deluxe%2BMetal%2BDryer.jsp
It is very sturdy though..which I love and I LOVE not using the dryer even though we grew up without one and have memories of the kitchen DRIPPING from the pulley mechanism up above with all the wet clothes…
yes I grew up in Victorian Times
I love that new drying rack! Thanks for the anti-scratchy tips.
There are a number of things that we hang to dry inside our laundry room (saving wear and tear of fragile clothing), but it hadn’t occurred to me to dry towels that way. Our yard is so small that we might need to turn the whole thing into a drying rack!
Amber, I love your comments and pics on drying on the line. I have had a clothesline in the backyard that Ev put up over a year ago and love getting the clothes out in the sunshine. I remember how wonderful it was years ago to get the diapers out for the sunshine bleaching effect (unfortunately, or fortunately? I don't have diapers anymore, although a daughter does put her diapers out as well). Joan.
I love tis eco-friendly alternative to a laundry room dryer. It’s a great way to not only save money on your energy bill, but it’s also better for your clothes, and your house! I will surely be passing your message on to all of my friends. Thanks for posting.
You have the TVATTA rack from IKEA. Consider yourself fortunate, it’s the best (and nicest looking!) laundry rack design on the market, of all I’ve seen. It’s a brilliant design, trust me. I got lucky and got mine for $5 in the As-Is section. The only downside to it, is its no longer made. I only found this blog because you have a decent photo of it. I have constructed a copy of the design, and needed your photo for reference, after mine didn’t close so well (so now I realize I put all the holes in the wrong place, but anyhoo…).
Yes, you can dry sheets on it. But just one. Simply drape the sheet over top of the opened rack, walla. (But if you hang things under the sheet, they won’t dry as well, of course). There are not many racks you can do that with, where the bedsheet wont touch the ground. As far as drying in the winter or an apt., not a problem here. I dry in the winter all the time in my apt. One way is to use a drying rack (or two, I also have the “FROST” from Ikea, which is probably the next best thing to the TVATTA). But I also have drying lines hanging here and there around the apt.. So multiple loads in an apt. in the winter are not a problem. You can find some at the dollar store that are retractable, so they cost a couple of bucks, and you barely notice they’re installed. .
In the summer, i string lines across my balcony, attached to the rail. I don’t know if the neighbours like that or not, but then… I’m not really asking for their opinion on that.
Hope that helps.
Gilbert Grape’s last post … Welcome to The Recipeless Cook
Hi Amber, thank-you for reminding us of the economic and environmental benefits of air drying our clothes. You mention the issue of drying large items indoors. Well, I think I may be able to help.
I own a small company which sells unique wall mount drying racks. The drying racks are designed for indoor use and can accommodate up to 5 QUEEN sized bed sheets!
The best part is the drying rack extends from the wall only 3.5″ when not in use so it takes up very little space in the home. The sturdy 1″ diameter drying rods won’t bend and are made of strong Douglas fir.
If you are interested please visit http://www.hoganwood.com
Hopefully more people will be turning off the most energy intensive appliance in the home.
Thanks for your post!
Best regards,
Miles Hogan, Owner
The Hogan Wood Company