November 8th, 2021 by
Winter weather brings a number of challenges but one of the most inconvenient is having to find alternative ways to get your washing dry now that outdoor line-drying conditions are over for several months. We take a look at the different options you have and weigh up the pros and cons of each.
Tumble Dryer
This is one of the most popular ways to get your washing dry, but is it a good idea?
Pros of tumble dryers
Convenience
Simply throw the clothes straight from the washer into the dryer and they’re usually dry within an hour or two, depending on the model
Can be energy efficient
Obviously, a tumble dryer is an electrical appliance, so you have to consider running costs and environmental impact. If you choose an ‘A’ rated model it should be energy efficient, though you may have to pay a little more for it. It’s worth doing some research
Can leave clothes soft
Tumble drying can often leave clothes and textiles, such as towels and bedding, nice and soft. Just be careful not to over-dry.
Glamhaus 3 Tier Heated Clothes Airer with Cover
Price: £134.99
Buy NowCons of tumble dryers
Can damage clothes
It’s not appropriate to dry all types of clothes in a dryer as they can easily shrink or damage items that are delicate or not appropriate for drying in this way. Equally, over-drying can damage even robust materials such as cotton and polyester.
Can potentially overheat
While the majority of dryers are perfectly safe to use, a number of manufacturers have had to recall certain models due to issues with overheating and even igniting. Poor maintenance, such as not clearing out filters regularly can also pose a risk. To be on the safe side, it is recommended that you only have your dryer on when you are in the house and not at night when in bed, just so you can react quickly to any problems.
Radiators
As a source of heat, radiators can seem like a great place to dry washing, especially for delicate clothes that can’t go in a dryer.
Pros of drying on the radiators:
Quick-drying
Especially for items placed directly on the radiators
Safe for clothes
Radiator drying won’t shrink or damage clothes (as long as they’re not left on for too long)
Cons of drying on the radiators:
Lack of space
Even with large radiators, space is limited so you wouldn’t be able to dry a full load at the same time in this way.
Can be slow
Due to the limited space, it can take a while to get everything dry as only those items placed directly on the radiators would dry quickly.
Block the heat
Unfortunately, cluttering up the radiators with wet clothes effectively blocks much of the heat, meaning your room’s warmth will be compromised.
Expensive
You may not think it’s expensive to use a heat source that’s already in use but when you consider that much of the heat won’t make it into the room you’re not going to feel the benefit you’re paying for, especially if you are putting the heating on for longer in order to get the washing dry. As most heaters and radiators work using a thermostat, being covered in wet clothes will mean they’ll struggle to reach the thermostat’s target temperature. This means they’ll work at full power to try and warm up your room, so they’ll use a lot more energy than they normally would.
Can create damp conditions
Draping wet clothes over a radiator can potentially cause damp conditions on the walls behind them.
Clothes airer
A clothes airer can seem like an old fashioned solution but there are plenty of advantages:
Homefront Electric Heated Clothes Horse Airer Dryer Rack with FREE Cover
Price: £160.00
Buy NowPros of a clothes airer
Zero running costs
Clearly, a standard airer has no running costs whatsoever as it doesn’t use any energy.
Zero risk
Placing clothes on an airer has none of the risks (overheating/causing damp etc) associated with the other methods listed.
Kind to clothes
With no heat applied, there’s no risk of damage to clothes at all.
Space for large loads
Depending on the model you buy, you can fit large numbers of items on an airer, especially ones that have a folding design with multiple tiers.
Cons of a clothes airer
Slow
With no addition of heat, clothes on an airer will take a long time to dry. This could be sped up by placing it in front of a radiator, but that may also block some of the heat circulating into the room.
Requires space
You require a bit of space to stand an airer in a room. While most modern ones can fold away to storage, when fully unfolded they can be quite wide.
Heated clothes airer
A heated clothes airer can offer many advantages over a standard airer.
Pros of a heated airer
Low running costs
A heated airer does use energy but they are extremely efficient so use much less than a tumble dryer or a radiator.
Same advantages as a standard airer but faster drying
A heated airer has all the advantages of a standard airer (no risk, kind to clothes, plenty of space etc) but the addition of heat means that clothes dry much faster. You can speed this up even further with a model that includes a zip cover, such as this Glamhaus heated airer, as it augments the circulation of warm air.
Cons of a heated airer
Requires space
As with a standard airer, you do need space to stand one in a room although they tend to be vertical
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