3 ms·

> Sure, I could choose to run my laundry cycle at 8pm rather than 5:30pm, but the convenience factor of doing it when I want to do it is going to trump the penn

> Sure, I could choose to run my laundry cycle at 8pm rather than 5:30pm, but the convenience factor of doing it when I want to do it is going to trump the pennies they'd give me to wait, every single time. However, the heating element in your dryer doesn't have to be run like that. You start the dryer, and it starts tumbling your clothers with the motor, and blowing some air with the fan, but the heating element can turn on and off in coordination with the rest of your house, and you wouldn't even notice. Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Do you care if the washer takes a little while before starting up while you're sleeping? I sure don't.

settsu 9y ago
> Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Not if you care about the longevity of your clothing and mildew in your washer. I don't know anyone who does this routinely on purpose.
- wernercd 9y ago
  How much mildew is going to build up if it starts an hour or two later? Or sits in washer for a few hours after finish? Waiting days? Sure... random-internet-answer(s) seem to hover around 24-48 hours before mildew becomes an issue... So, sitting over night and then maybe a few hours before the dryer starts (Assuming that, it too, would be on a timer) shouldn't be a major issue.
  - smallnamespace 9y ago
    In my personal experience, clothes start smelling funky and 'off' after about 3 hours wet after a wash, and the smell persists even after drying. Only solution is to rewash the entire load. Also, if you have a front loader, they are extremely prone to growing mildew in the bottom of the rubber gasket. Leaving wet clothes inside makes that much more likely.
    - hinkley 9y ago
      White vinegar in the prewash will kill the mildew smell.
      - Pamar 9y ago
        White vinegar can also help when washing clothes that tend to bleed color (e.g. Just-bought dark blue jeans). Wash these once with white vinegar and the color should "stabilize".
        hinkley 9y ago
        I buy that stuff by the gallon. If you live in a high humidity area it has so many uses.
    - stevep98 9y ago
      I find this depends a lot on where you are. In my house in California, I can leave the clothes in the washer a lot longer. In florida, the washer is already stinking most of the time. Even if I disinfect the washer occasionally with bleach, it still ends up stinking again. I put this down to the general humid environment.
      - jacquesm 9y ago
        Could be the water quality as well.
        ams6110 9y ago
        Florida water stinks like a swamp right out of the tap.
      - yardie 9y ago
        Do you close the door on the washer? We have front loading washer and leave the door slightly ajar. When it's completely sealed the darkness and humidity are a breeding ground for mold.
    - 9y ago
- EGreg 9y ago
  The solution is straightforward: Automate the washing, drying and folding of clothing. Automate cooking. And shopping. And so on. Like self-driving cars. Then it can be done while you sleep :)
  - erikpukinskis 9y ago
    Cooking and folding clothes aren't going to be automated for a long time. Fine motor control is a hard problem that has resisted automation for decades. GPUs and RNNs don't help. You need fingertips with lots of nerves, and probably thousands of very nuanced motor control paradigms.
    - vinceguidry 9y ago
      I'd be happy with just laying the clothes flat so they don't wrinkle. That way I can get to it whenever. Especially if they're pressed first.
      - vezycash 9y ago
        Buy wrinkle resistant clothes - they can be washed without needing pressing.
        vinceguidry 9y ago
        No thanks, my current workflow works just fine.
    - Retric 9y ago
      There are demos of robots folding random laundry. They are slow and expensive, but that's the stuff that improves over time.
    - tonyedgecombe 9y ago
      Cooking has been automated for many people for a long time, all they need to do is open the microwave door.
    - 9y ago
- rbanffy 9y ago
  Or one could just get a combo washer-dryer that washes and dries your clothes without any intervention. Considering this sophistication will probably not be easy to retrofit onto current devices, a combined, space/energy saving device is a given. As long as the clothes are dry and clean when I need them, I don't care at what time during the night the machine did its job. With some extra cleverness, it could even negotiate very-short-term (hours) futures on energy prices based on current tendencies and knowledge of future house demand.
  - londons_explore 9y ago
    Energy futures on a "by the minute" basis are great in principle, but they are hampered for consumers by the fact that current billing is flat rate. Why participate in the future market if one can simply choose to not partipate and get to consume any amount of energy you like at a constant price? Effectively you'd have built a market with an unlimited option to buy at the monthly-average price. A market like that can't work...
    - rbanffy 9y ago
      If you embark in the floating price, you'll probably get better rates. The downside, you having to worry about it, is offset by the machines planning their own consumption within the criteria ("I want this dry in the morning") you set.
  - londons_explore 9y ago
    Energy futures on a "by the minute" basis are great in principle, but they are hampered for consumers by the fact that current billing is flat rate. Why participate in the future market if one can simply choose to not partipate and get to consume any amount of energy you like at a constant price? Effectively you'd have built a market with an unlimited option to buy at the monthly-average price. A market like that can't work...
Nadya 9y ago
>Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. I've never met anyone who does this and the only times it happens is on accident. I live with hard water, so if I did this my clothes would be starchy and uncomfortable to wear. They have to immediately hit the dryer once the wash cycle finishes. Then - unless I want to wear crinkly clothes - straight to the hangers once the dryer finishes.
- csours 9y ago
  I routinely do this.
- imron 9y ago
  Not to mention the sour smell that clothes get when left wet for too long in the washing machine.
eveningcoffee 9y ago
>Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Have people told you that you smell funny or just acted weird when you are around? Of course if washing, trying and ironing would be all integrated and automated then one could do that.
hinkley 9y ago
Most of us put the last load in the dryer before going to bed, but that load has 6+ hours to dry before anyone notices, so your basic point, for dryers, is still reasonable.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
blazespin 9y ago
This is a great example of how you should always understand your customer when creating product features.
interfixus 9y ago
Knowing the kind of fire a malfunctioning dryer - and washing machine, though less likely - can cause, there is no way I leave either running without someone about and awake in the house.
mellow_ 9y ago
so you don't iron or fold your clothing? you don't mind it smelling like mildew? my goodness...
rflrob 9y ago
>Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed I don't do this, but perhaps more relevant, I have never discussed laundry habits with friends, so either a) I am unusually tight lipped about laundry, or b) I have no way to know what "most of us" do, though this seems not to be the norm in apartments I have lived in with shared laundry facilities.
DanBC 9y ago
> Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Current safety advice is to not run washing machines when you're asleep. I guess it's okay if you have very good, loud, fire alarms.

settsu 9y ago

> Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Not if you care about the longevity of your clothing and mildew in your washer. I don't know anyone who does this routinely on purpose.

wernercd 9y ago
How much mildew is going to build up if it starts an hour or two later? Or sits in washer for a few hours after finish? Waiting days? Sure... random-internet-answer(s) seem to hover around 24-48 hours before mildew becomes an issue... So, sitting over night and then maybe a few hours before the dryer starts (Assuming that, it too, would be on a timer) shouldn't be a major issue.
- smallnamespace 9y ago
  In my personal experience, clothes start smelling funky and 'off' after about 3 hours wet after a wash, and the smell persists even after drying. Only solution is to rewash the entire load. Also, if you have a front loader, they are extremely prone to growing mildew in the bottom of the rubber gasket. Leaving wet clothes inside makes that much more likely.
  - hinkley 9y ago
    White vinegar in the prewash will kill the mildew smell.
    - Pamar 9y ago
      White vinegar can also help when washing clothes that tend to bleed color (e.g. Just-bought dark blue jeans). Wash these once with white vinegar and the color should "stabilize".
      - hinkley 9y ago
        I buy that stuff by the gallon. If you live in a high humidity area it has so many uses.
  - stevep98 9y ago
    I find this depends a lot on where you are. In my house in California, I can leave the clothes in the washer a lot longer. In florida, the washer is already stinking most of the time. Even if I disinfect the washer occasionally with bleach, it still ends up stinking again. I put this down to the general humid environment.
    - jacquesm 9y ago
      Could be the water quality as well.
      - ams6110 9y ago
        Florida water stinks like a swamp right out of the tap.
    - yardie 9y ago
      Do you close the door on the washer? We have front loading washer and leave the door slightly ajar. When it's completely sealed the darkness and humidity are a breeding ground for mold.
  - 9y ago
EGreg 9y ago
The solution is straightforward: Automate the washing, drying and folding of clothing. Automate cooking. And shopping. And so on. Like self-driving cars. Then it can be done while you sleep :)
- erikpukinskis 9y ago
  Cooking and folding clothes aren't going to be automated for a long time. Fine motor control is a hard problem that has resisted automation for decades. GPUs and RNNs don't help. You need fingertips with lots of nerves, and probably thousands of very nuanced motor control paradigms.
  - vinceguidry 9y ago
    I'd be happy with just laying the clothes flat so they don't wrinkle. That way I can get to it whenever. Especially if they're pressed first.
    - vezycash 9y ago
      Buy wrinkle resistant clothes - they can be washed without needing pressing.
      - vinceguidry 9y ago
        No thanks, my current workflow works just fine.
  - Retric 9y ago
    There are demos of robots folding random laundry. They are slow and expensive, but that's the stuff that improves over time.
  - tonyedgecombe 9y ago
    Cooking has been automated for many people for a long time, all they need to do is open the microwave door.
  - 9y ago
rbanffy 9y ago
Or one could just get a combo washer-dryer that washes and dries your clothes without any intervention. Considering this sophistication will probably not be easy to retrofit onto current devices, a combined, space/energy saving device is a given. As long as the clothes are dry and clean when I need them, I don't care at what time during the night the machine did its job. With some extra cleverness, it could even negotiate very-short-term (hours) futures on energy prices based on current tendencies and knowledge of future house demand.
- londons_explore 9y ago
  Energy futures on a "by the minute" basis are great in principle, but they are hampered for consumers by the fact that current billing is flat rate. Why participate in the future market if one can simply choose to not partipate and get to consume any amount of energy you like at a constant price? Effectively you'd have built a market with an unlimited option to buy at the monthly-average price. A market like that can't work...
  - rbanffy 9y ago
    If you embark in the floating price, you'll probably get better rates. The downside, you having to worry about it, is offset by the machines planning their own consumption within the criteria ("I want this dry in the morning") you set.
- londons_explore 9y ago
  Energy futures on a "by the minute" basis are great in principle, but they are hampered for consumers by the fact that current billing is flat rate. Why participate in the future market if one can simply choose to not partipate and get to consume any amount of energy you like at a constant price? Effectively you'd have built a market with an unlimited option to buy at the monthly-average price. A market like that can't work...

Nadya 9y ago

>Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. I've never met anyone who does this and the only times it happens is on accident. I live with hard water, so if I did this my clothes would be starchy and uncomfortable to wear. They have to immediately hit the dryer once the wash cycle finishes. Then - unless I want to wear crinkly clothes - straight to the hangers once the dryer finishes.

csours 9y ago
I routinely do this.
imron 9y ago
Not to mention the sour smell that clothes get when left wet for too long in the washing machine.

eveningcoffee 9y ago

>Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Have people told you that you smell funny or just acted weird when you are around? Of course if washing, trying and ironing would be all integrated and automated then one could do that.

hinkley 9y ago

Most of us put the last load in the dryer before going to bed, but that load has 6+ hours to dry before anyone notices, so your basic point, for dryers, is still reasonable.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

blazespin 9y ago

This is a great example of how you should always understand your customer when creating product features.

interfixus 9y ago

Knowing the kind of fire a malfunctioning dryer - and washing machine, though less likely - can cause, there is no way I leave either running without someone about and awake in the house.

mellow_ 9y ago

so you don't iron or fold your clothing? you don't mind it smelling like mildew? my goodness...

rflrob 9y ago

>Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed I don't do this, but perhaps more relevant, I have never discussed laundry habits with friends, so either a) I am unusually tight lipped about laundry, or b) I have no way to know what "most of us" do, though this seems not to be the norm in apartments I have lived in with shared laundry facilities.

DanBC 9y ago

> Also, most of us run a load just before going to bed, and shuffle it to the dryer in the morning. Current safety advice is to not run washing machines when you're asleep. I guess it's okay if you have very good, loud, fire alarms.