Author Topic: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money  (Read 15846 times)

ducky19

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Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« on: September 23, 2016, 11:44:35 AM »
Trying to see if we can get the "Overheard at Work" thread back on topic. Aaaand..... go!

boarder42

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #1 on: September 23, 2016, 01:04:54 PM »
the other day a coworker came in talking about this truck he just bought an how awesome it was ... he got a deal on it only 750 a month at 0% can you believe it ... it will be his in 10 years.

chesebert

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #2 on: September 23, 2016, 01:08:24 PM »
I spent $20k to install washer/dryer in my high-rise condo.... DW says it's important and not a waste of money.

Zikoris

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #3 on: September 23, 2016, 01:13:13 PM »
They're mostly stupid, for sure. I haven't had one for most of my adult life, and it's fine. The amount of laundry we go through for two people, one load a week, fits perfectly on my indoor drying rack. If I have to wash sheets or blankets, I hang them on a door to dry. Voila.

They're good if you have to kill off anything though. We had a bout of bedbugs once many years ago, and the recommendation was to crank up a dryer and cook your bedding for an hour. It must have worked, since we never had a resurgence.

LeRainDrop

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #4 on: September 23, 2016, 01:17:21 PM »
My washer and dryer were purchased with the appliances allowance that was part of the deal when I bought my condo.  I didn't pay anything out of pocket for them or their installation.*  My condo has a "laundry closet" which is perfectly suited to the stacked washer and dryer.  It's not like I could buy my condo and get a reduced price by telling the seller that it could just keep that closet and not include it with my unit.  If I wanted this condo, which I did (and do), the laundry closet is simply part of the unit's space.

As to ongoing expense, my monthly electric bills are extremely reasonable -- typically $40-$60 per month (and there's no gas bill).  I live where the humidity means it's hard for clothing to air dry.  When I have to air dry the sweaters that I wash, it often takes two days for them to dry.

*They were negotiated in after I caught the seller covering up the reason for my condo not closing on the day that it was supposed to -- i.e., seller's fault and lied about what happened.  At that point, it would have delayed things further to change the sale price of the condo, but it was okay to increase the allowance.

AlanStache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #5 on: September 23, 2016, 01:37:01 PM »
Yeah today is like +70% humidity and it feels very dry.  While possible to not use or own a dryer I think I will go with the convenience of it.  The set was ~300$ off CL, not sure what it costs to run.  After mondays rain run I put my wet shoes on the drying rack, they were still wet thrusday night so they got a round in the dryer. 

MBot

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #6 on: September 23, 2016, 05:42:57 PM »
Meh, I'm 80% in favour of using the dryer. The cost is worth it to me.

But I put cloth diapers out to dry in the sun or on hangers because the elastics' durability is significantly affected by putting them in the dryer, and that's one load every 2 days.

As far as initial cost, there are always dozens of used washer/dryers for sale.

We got a used set (it needs a washer part replaced, but that's a <$60 job) for $300. High-efficiency front-loader washer and dryer, 4 years old. Another $80 for the stacking kit to put them upstairs in the washroom, plus some DIY plumbing/venting.

So the only space "lost" is vertical space, which we didn't need for storage anyway. It was empty before.

We were given the washer/dryer we had beforehand, so those were free. Although a lot less energy-efficient.

It was hard to air-dry before, because I had a stone basement that was moldy and damp (wet with water in a trench running down around it). Mold would literally grow on damp things down there, so that was a no-go.

With the laundry upstairs, I still have to put built-in cupboards around it and I'll have a drying rack pull out of the top.


MilesTeg

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #7 on: September 23, 2016, 06:42:37 PM »
The True Believer (TM) zealotry about driers is one of those things that is absurd.

It costs about $25 a YEAR to run one if you do 1 load a week. (and another $25 for each additional load). If you are being careful with your clothes and running on low heat settings, it will cost even less than that. Spinning the drum doesn't cost much, it's the heating that uses the most energy. Conveniently, using low heat settings and longer run times also lessens the wear and tear on your clothes -- particularly shrinking.

They are certainly not essential, but not using one isn't going to make you FIRE earlier.

Typhoid Mary

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #8 on: September 23, 2016, 09:36:44 PM »
We take the fluff-than-air-dry approach. Our front load washing machine spins so quickly that the washed clothes form a compact wad at the end of the cycle. Wadded clothes comes out of the washer super wrinkled. I hate to iron. We fluff the clothes in the dryer for 5 minutes to get 99% of the wrinkles out, then hang it on our indoor clothesline.

Tom Bri

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #9 on: September 24, 2016, 12:38:45 AM »
We have used ours maybe 20 times in the ten years we have been here. Mainly for pillows, which my wife washes once in a while. I have used it a few times when she was gone, to dry the sneakers that I had just washed (she doesn't allow sneakers in the washer).
Seriously, that dryer, even bought on sale, has been a waste of money.

Papa Mustache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #10 on: September 25, 2016, 10:27:57 AM »
I don't miss going to a laundry-mat one bit.

Did it for years when I didn't have machines of my own.

Crowded sometimes. Screeching and bored children and they aren't mine so I couldn't quiet them. Newer laundry-mats have wifi which can be nice.

Back when I was working 3rd shift I took to doing my laundry on nights I did not work. No crowd, no kids, good for reading. The only problem were the occasional "interesting" people who would drift into the laundrymat. Sort of the same people found at WalMarts late at night.

I don't miss being captive to the place for however long that used to take. I'd run multiple machines to go faster of course. Fold at home.

I adore being able to throw the dishes in the dishwasher and the laundry into the washing machine and doing something else in my own home.

MayDay

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #11 on: September 25, 2016, 07:34:55 PM »
We don't live in the jungle or anything, but there are times in spring and fall, when it's not intensely sunny, not is it super dry winter air, when hang drying results in musty clothing. Ick.


Plus no thanks to ironing work clothes.

We run one dryer load a week, typically, for 4 people. Worth it.

Metric Mouse

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #12 on: September 25, 2016, 07:54:57 PM »
Dryers are an investment. Moisture content
The True Believer (TM) zealotry about driers is one of those things that is absurd.

It costs about $25 a YEAR to run one if you do 1 load a week. (and another $25 for each additional load). If you are being careful with your clothes and running on low heat settings, it will cost even less than that. Spinning the drum doesn't cost much, it's the heating that uses the most energy. Conveniently, using low heat settings and longer run times also lessens the wear and tear on your clothes -- particularly shrinking.

They are certainly not essential, but not using one isn't going to make you FIRE earlier.

Don't reject the MustacheMath. Over ten years, that 25 dollars, plus 750 dollar purchase price, add up to over a 1000 dollars, plus interest, in the stache.

AlanStache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #13 on: September 26, 2016, 05:06:59 AM »
Dryers are an investment. Moisture content
The True Believer (TM) zealotry about driers is one of those things that is absurd.

It costs about $25 a YEAR to run one if you do 1 load a week. (and another $25 for each additional load). If you are being careful with your clothes and running on low heat settings, it will cost even less than that. Spinning the drum doesn't cost much, it's the heating that uses the most energy. Conveniently, using low heat settings and longer run times also lessens the wear and tear on your clothes -- particularly shrinking.

They are certainly not essential, but not using one isn't going to make you FIRE earlier.

Don't reject the MustacheMath. Over ten years, that 25 dollars, plus 750 dollar purchase price, add up to over a 1000 dollars, plus interest, in the stache.

Why the heck would you pay 750$ for a dryer?  as I said my set cost 300$ delivered & installed.  Its like saying biking to work will save you 500,000$ in ten years with 200$/year in gas and a 450,000$ koenigsegg.  (/sarcasm)


GuitarStv

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #14 on: September 26, 2016, 05:51:57 AM »
We have a dryer.  It's unused the vast majority of the time.  Maybe two or three times a year it becomes vitally important though after an emergency laundry session (instigated by our dog or child most often).  My clothes seem to last much longer without machine drying them, and we waste less electricity.  In our climate, hang drying in an area that gets good ventilation means that the clothes never smell musty or take more than a day to dry completely.

MasterStache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #15 on: September 26, 2016, 06:37:35 AM »
Waste of space? Not really. We have a small space in our basement that is used for storage and washer/dryer. We have plenty of room left in the finished portion of our basement for the kids to play.

Waste of money? I suppose that depends. I understand the use of a dryer for certain things. We have 4 animals in our house and the dryer does the bulk of "removing fur" (so says my wife) from the clothes. She also works in a hospital and claims the dryer sanitizes her clothes and ours. Not sure if that is true or not.

With that being said I have begun air drying my own clothes and have found not noticeable animal hair on them and they dry perfectly fine. But my wife still refuses to do it. I am thinking about convincing the kids to air dry their own clothes.     

Chranstronaut

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #16 on: September 26, 2016, 06:56:53 AM »
We take the fluff-than-air-dry approach. Our front load washing machine spins so quickly that the washed clothes form a compact wad at the end of the cycle. Wadded clothes comes out of the washer super wrinkled. I hate to iron. We fluff the clothes in the dryer for 5 minutes to get 99% of the wrinkles out, then hang it on our indoor clothesline.

The thermal fuse burned out in our dryer a couple weeks ago and we've been doing similar until we get around to replacing it.  I usually hang about half my clothes, but it hasn't been that bad to do them all.  My fiance prefers the dryer, but he's happy enough in the mean time.

BTW if your dryer stops heating (or you want to buy a cheap used one from a friend that's broken), it's one of three parts and they are all super cheap to buy online.  If you can change your oil, you can probably fix a dryer.

AlanStache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #17 on: September 26, 2016, 07:22:20 AM »
...

BTW if your dryer stops heating (or you want to buy a cheap used one from a friend that's broken), it's one of three parts and they are all super cheap to buy online.  If you can change your oil, you can probably fix a dryer.

That has been my approach, just accept that I will have to spend 20$ every now and then on parts and get to take apart an appliance.

On a side note my treadmill broke many months ago and I could not work out what is wrong and did not want to randomly replace parts so I took it apart and am selling it for parts on ebay.  Paid 100$ for it off CL, may get 150$ for the parts :-)  If I had a truck this could become a side hustle. 

Papa Mustache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #18 on: September 26, 2016, 07:26:29 AM »
How do you know which part not sell? Something is broken in there. ;)

AlanStache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #19 on: September 26, 2016, 07:36:02 AM »
How do you know which part not sell? Something is broken in there. ;)

The motors both work and the control board works - the belt was skipping and this can be caused by a few things, I tried the easy/free ones.  I could figure out what is broken and fix it but things just got way to complicated and selling it off for parts solved several problems, will get a 'new' one off CL at some point.  The utility of having a treadmill was reduced with GF injured & unable to run.

Chris22

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #20 on: September 26, 2016, 07:37:26 AM »
Waste of space? Not really. We have a small space in our basement that is used for storage and washer/dryer. We have plenty of room left in the finished portion of our basement for the kids to play.

Waste of money? I suppose that depends. I understand the use of a dryer for certain things. We have 4 animals in our house and the dryer does the bulk of "removing fur" (so says my wife) from the clothes. She also works in a hospital and claims the dryer sanitizes her clothes and ours. Not sure if that is true or not.

With that being said I have begun air drying my own clothes and have found not noticeable animal hair on them and they dry perfectly fine. But my wife still refuses to do it. I am thinking about convincing the kids to air dry their own clothes.   

You might have an argument to not BUY a dryer, but if you own one already, there is almost no cost advantage to not using it.  It is literally in the rounding.

Miss Piggy

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #21 on: September 26, 2016, 07:40:21 AM »
I'm curious...those of you who don't use a dryer, how wrinkly are  your clothes? (I'm highly allergic to ironing.)

Fishindude

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #22 on: September 26, 2016, 07:42:04 AM »
When I was a bachelor, a buddy and I rented a house with a washer but dryer was broken down.
Washed clothing in the washer, then hung on hangars and a clothes line in basement with a fan and wood stove running.   Clothes got clean but they were stiff as a board, sometime wrinkled and smelled a bit funky at times.   I suppose we could hang stuff out on a clothes line during nice weather, but it's just too easy to throw things in the dryer right beside the washer and they come out smelling good and unwrinkled.

This is one of life's simple conveniences I don't mind paying for like heating and air conditioning our house to a comfortable temperature.  There are better places to save $$.

GuitarStv

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #23 on: September 26, 2016, 07:52:55 AM »
I'm curious...those of you who don't use a dryer, how wrinkly are  your clothes? (I'm highly allergic to ironing.)

Not wrinkly at all.  Give them a shake when you take them off the rack and either fold them flat or put them on a hanger and they're fine.

Le Poisson

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #24 on: September 26, 2016, 08:06:58 AM »
Trying to see if we can get the "Overheard at Work" thread back on topic. Aaaand..... go!

Has the Overheard at work thread ever been on topic?

Half-Borg

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #25 on: September 26, 2016, 10:57:39 AM »
Nature provides a proven and easy way to do things. It's better for the environment. You don't need to own and maintain an expensive machine. It takes you like a minute to do. You also reduce wear and tear on your clothes.
"Just 25$" is almost a months energy bill for me.

For me the whole thing is not about "What can I afford?" but "How much do I have to spend?"

Zikoris

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #26 on: September 26, 2016, 11:19:19 AM »
I'm curious...those of you who don't use a dryer, how wrinkly are  your clothes? (I'm highly allergic to ironing.)

I don't buy clothes made of materials that wrinkle.

MilesTeg

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #27 on: September 26, 2016, 12:12:16 PM »
Dryers are an investment. Moisture content
The True Believer (TM) zealotry about driers is one of those things that is absurd.

It costs about $25 a YEAR to run one if you do 1 load a week. (and another $25 for each additional load). If you are being careful with your clothes and running on low heat settings, it will cost even less than that. Spinning the drum doesn't cost much, it's the heating that uses the most energy. Conveniently, using low heat settings and longer run times also lessens the wear and tear on your clothes -- particularly shrinking.

They are certainly not essential, but not using one isn't going to make you FIRE earlier.

Don't reject the MustacheMath. Over ten years, that 25 dollars, plus 750 dollar purchase price, add up to over a 1000 dollars, plus interest, in the stache.

Assuming a $50k family income, that's 2 10ths of one percent of earnings over that time. In other words, a rounding error.

Half-Borg

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #28 on: September 26, 2016, 12:57:43 PM »
Assuming a $50k family income, that's 2 10ths of one percent of earnings over that time. In other words, a rounding error.
So is going to the library for a book, using the bike to get to work and saving 5 bucks on groceries by buying seasonal veggies.

Metric Mouse

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #29 on: October 04, 2016, 01:40:54 AM »
Assuming a $50k family income, that's 2 10ths of one percent of earnings over that time. In other words, a rounding error.
So is going to the library for a book, using the bike to get to work and saving 5 bucks on groceries by buying seasonal veggies.

Correct - which is why many people don't bother to do some of these things. Buying in-season veggies vs. out-of-season veggies probably has zero effect on FIRE or NW math.  But dropping the $40 a day eating out habit and replacing it with grocery shopping for veggies - this would add up over time.  Choose to invest your time wisely.

MgoSam

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #30 on: October 04, 2016, 08:46:53 AM »
Assuming a $50k family income, that's 2 10ths of one percent of earnings over that time. In other words, a rounding error.
So is going to the library for a book, using the bike to get to work and saving 5 bucks on groceries by buying seasonal veggies.

Correct - which is why many people don't bother to do some of these things. Buying in-season veggies vs. out-of-season veggies probably has zero effect on FIRE or NW math.  But dropping the $40 a day eating out habit and replacing it with grocery shopping for veggies - this would add up over time.  Choose to invest your time wisely.

Great point.

SnackDog

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #31 on: October 04, 2016, 09:04:21 AM »
Nobody needs a dryer and most people should not be using one.  If you have not tried an alternative, you should.

We have not used a clothes dryer since 2008, although we have owned one the whole time.  It is nearly as easy to just hang things up to dry and they don't get ruined by the dryer.  We save on dryer operating costs and never have an issue with shrunken clothes.  I do miss fluffy bathroom towels sometimes, but ours are satisfactory.

vhalros

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #32 on: October 04, 2016, 10:50:05 AM »
I have one, but it is seldom used. There seem to be a couple of days in the summer when it is so humid things do not dry quickly enough, or the occasional time I need something dry quickly. Other than that, I hang dry things. I live in Massachusetts, so electricity is very expensive; it costs something like $1 to run it for an hour.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #33 on: October 04, 2016, 03:36:51 PM »
Living in a family of 8 in a single-family home in the suburbs, the idea of either A) line-drying clothes, or B) going to a laundromat makes me shudder.  Without a dryer, it's likely the wet clothes would sit until they start molding...

Metric Mouse

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #34 on: October 05, 2016, 12:30:08 AM »
Living in a family of 8 in a single-family home in the suburbs, the idea of either A) line-drying clothes, or B) going to a laundromat makes me shudder.  Without a dryer, it's likely the wet clothes would sit until they start molding...

Well would you rather wear moldy clothes or those ruined by the dyer? It seems in this thread there is no alternative...

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #35 on: October 05, 2016, 07:48:21 AM »
Living in a family of 8 in a single-family home in the suburbs, the idea of either A) line-drying clothes, or B) going to a laundromat makes me shudder.  Without a dryer, it's likely the wet clothes would sit until they start molding...

Well would you rather wear moldy clothes or those ruined by the dyer? It seems in this thread there is no alternative...
I dunno.  The only clothes I've seen ruined are either A) not supposed to go through the dryer anyway, or B) had elastic that eventually dried out.

GuitarStv

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #36 on: October 05, 2016, 07:56:22 AM »
Living in a family of 8 in a single-family home in the suburbs, the idea of either A) line-drying clothes, or B) going to a laundromat makes me shudder.  Without a dryer, it's likely the wet clothes would sit until they start molding...

The effectiveness of line drying outside is highly dependent upon geographic location, not quantity of clothing to be dried.  Where do you live?

Felicity

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #37 on: October 05, 2016, 08:07:45 AM »
The True Believer (TM) zealotry about driers is one of those things that is absurd.

It costs about $25 a YEAR to run one if you do 1 load a week. (and another $25 for each additional load). If you are being careful with your clothes and running on low heat settings, it will cost even less than that. Spinning the drum doesn't cost much, it's the heating that uses the most energy. Conveniently, using low heat settings and longer run times also lessens the wear and tear on your clothes -- particularly shrinking.

They are certainly not essential, but not using one isn't going to make you FIRE earlier.

I feel like wear and tear on clothes would be the more significant (yet much harder to calculate) cost. Hmmm...sounds like an experiment...

I personally air clothes that would benefit more from it - clothes prone to pilling, etc, and run the dryer with the sturdier materials.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #38 on: October 05, 2016, 09:14:50 AM »
Living in a family of 8 in a single-family home in the suburbs, the idea of either A) line-drying clothes, or B) going to a laundromat makes me shudder.  Without a dryer, it's likely the wet clothes would sit until they start molding...

The effectiveness of line drying outside is highly dependent upon geographic location, not quantity of clothing to be dried.  Where do you live?
Chicago area, so line drying wouldn't be an option for at least 4 months out of the year anyway.  My comment about clothes going moldy had nothing to do with line-drying per se, and more to do with procrastination. Our kids move the laundry across, which only takes a couple minutes.  If we did line-drying, the task would fall to DW, who has little enough free time as it is.

GuitarStv

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #39 on: October 05, 2016, 09:25:51 AM »
Living in a family of 8 in a single-family home in the suburbs, the idea of either A) line-drying clothes, or B) going to a laundromat makes me shudder.  Without a dryer, it's likely the wet clothes would sit until they start molding...

The effectiveness of line drying outside is highly dependent upon geographic location, not quantity of clothing to be dried.  Where do you live?
Chicago area, so line drying wouldn't be an option for at least 4 months out of the year anyway.  My comment about clothes going moldy had nothing to do with line-drying per se, and more to do with procrastination. Our kids move the laundry across, which only takes a couple minutes.  If we did line-drying, the task would fall to DW, who has little enough free time as it is.

Line drying still works great when it's below freezing (although I'll admit that it can be pretty miserable hanging the stuff up).  My mom used to dry all of our clothes on a line even at -40 when I was a kid living in Northern Ontario.  (It does take longer to dry them when it's below freezing.)

The internet seems to back mom up on this:  http://grist.org/living/ask-umbra-can-i-line-dry-my-clothes-in-the-winter-too/

Papa Mustache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #40 on: October 05, 2016, 01:34:02 PM »
Do they dry or freeze? ;)

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #41 on: October 05, 2016, 02:29:57 PM »
Line drying still works great when it's below freezing (although I'll admit that it can be pretty miserable hanging the stuff up).  My mom used to dry all of our clothes on a line even at -40 when I was a kid living in Northern Ontario.  (It does take longer to dry them when it's below freezing.)

The internet seems to back mom up on this:  http://grist.org/living/ask-umbra-can-i-line-dry-my-clothes-in-the-winter-too/
Oh, I'm not arguing whether it works.  My point is that there's often a significant lag somewhere (in several places) in the laundry process.

Also, I don't think I could convince DW to line-dry a load of laundry every day in the winter in order to save $0.15 :)

Chris22

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #42 on: October 05, 2016, 02:58:51 PM »
Nobody needs a dryer and most people should not be using one.  If you have not tried an alternative, you should.

We have not used a clothes dryer since 2008, although we have owned one the whole time.  It is nearly as easy to just hang things up to dry and they don't get ruined by the dryer.  We save on dryer operating costs and never have an issue with shrunken clothes.  I do miss fluffy bathroom towels sometimes, but ours are satisfactory.

In what world is line drying everything "just as easy"?  You need to touch everything basically three times (hang it up, pull it down, put it away) versus just once (put it away; I don't count "scoop giant handful or wet stuff from washer to dryer" as a real touch) with machine drying. Just the idea of individually hanging a dozen socks on a line alone seems tedious and annoying.

MayDay

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #43 on: October 05, 2016, 07:20:27 PM »
I hang a load 3 times a week (family of 4) when the weather is appropriate.

Yes it's "only" 15 minutes to hang a load, but if you've got two working parents, it can be pretty tough to find an extra 15 minutes in the morning routine. I've been a sahm and now work half time, so I can manage it.

I find our lives e dried clothes to be wrinkly. Doesn't bother us except for work clothes. So we run one small dryer load on low once a week to fluff work clothes and dryer a myriad of tiny socks that take forever to hang. And we use it a lot when it's humid.

Used, the dryer cost 100$. One bout of stomach flu and it's worth every penny.

Papa Mustache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #44 on: October 06, 2016, 01:24:36 PM »
Do they dry or freeze? ;)

probably freeze then sublime... Am I right?

Yep. I went back and studied. Sublime was a new idea for me.

i figure hanging laundry has to be one of those tasks that you make peace with. Like mowing the grass or washing the car. I like cutting the grass or washing the car as long as I have the time.
« Last Edit: October 06, 2016, 01:27:23 PM by Joe Lucky »

La Bibliotecaria Feroz

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #45 on: October 06, 2016, 02:46:54 PM »
I have always used a dryer but I am about to live in an apartment complex with no in-unit laundry... the dryer costs $1.50. Considering I am so poor that my children are on reduced lunch at school, I may need to consider alternatives!

Papa Mustache

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #46 on: October 07, 2016, 08:01:05 AM »
http://www.dunelm.com/category/home-and-furniture/utility-and-laundry/washing-and-laundry/outdoor-airers-and-clothes-lines

Would something like that be an option? Got a small patio/grassy area of your own?

Gin1984

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #47 on: October 07, 2016, 08:05:50 AM »
I have always used a dryer but I am about to live in an apartment complex with no in-unit laundry... the dryer costs $1.50. Considering I am so poor that my children are on reduced lunch at school, I may need to consider alternatives!
That is why we line dry.  Check freecycle for a indoor drying clothes rack. It has saved me $100s.

La Bibliotecaria Feroz

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #48 on: October 07, 2016, 09:18:15 AM »
http://www.dunelm.com/category/home-and-furniture/utility-and-laundry/washing-and-laundry/outdoor-airers-and-clothes-lines

Would something like that be an option? Got a small patio/grassy area of your own?

I have a small balcony. I wouldn't want to devote it permanently to clothes drying, but putting up a clothes line seems like a good option for sheets. I only have 1 set per bed so they have to dry the same day. (Well, mine do. The boys', I could wash when they are at their dad's.)

I have always used a dryer but I am about to live in an apartment complex with no in-unit laundry... the dryer costs $1.50. Considering I am so poor that my children are on reduced lunch at school, I may need to consider alternatives!
That is why we line dry.  Check freecycle for a indoor drying clothes rack. It has saved me $100s.

I have one! It is not big enough for a whole load, but is a good start. It's not one of the fancy ones with folding up arms, just the basic chrome. I use it for my delicates and whatnot. Will keep eyes peeled for a bigger one.

Gin1984

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Re: Why dryers are (or are not) a waste of space and money
« Reply #49 on: October 07, 2016, 09:19:47 AM »
http://www.dunelm.com/category/home-and-furniture/utility-and-laundry/washing-and-laundry/outdoor-airers-and-clothes-lines

Would something like that be an option? Got a small patio/grassy area of your own?

I have a small balcony. I wouldn't want to devote it permanently to clothes drying, but putting up a clothes line seems like a good option for sheets. I only have 1 set per bed so they have to dry the same day. (Well, mine do. The boys', I could wash when they are at their dad's.)

I have always used a dryer but I am about to live in an apartment complex with no in-unit laundry... the dryer costs $1.50. Considering I am so poor that my children are on reduced lunch at school, I may need to consider alternatives!
That is why we line dry.  Check freecycle for a indoor drying clothes rack. It has saved me $100s.

I have one! It is not big enough for a whole load, but is a good start. It's not one of the fancy ones with folding up arms, just the basic chrome. I use it for my delicates and whatnot. Will keep eyes peeled for a bigger one.
I had a small one prior to moving into our apartment (for cloth diapers, lol) and now we use both the old one we got from freecycle and the small one.