5 ms·

So long as those of us in the northern climes' buy a few extra months worth of outfits to run through while we wait for the ice to sublimate out of the last bat

So long as those of us in the northern climes' buy a few extra months worth of outfits to run through while we wait for the ice to sublimate out of the last batch during winter. What's crazy is that there are cities that outright ban outdoor (line) air drying. In my city, they don't actually mention clotheslines, but a former neighbor of mine was given a fine for erecting a 'structure' without a permit, in the form of a single line (on which she hung her laundry) running from the house to the detached garage.

Scoundreller 5y ago
Uhhh, dry indoors over winter? It’s really fast since the air usually has very low humidity. It’s really efficient since you’re not actively pumping warm air outside, and your furnace is driving the evaporation process (which is likely “high” efficiency). Drying in humid weather is what can take a while.
- stevesimmons 5y ago
  Agree 100%. I don't understand the need for dryers. The houses I've lived in have always had drying racks in the laundry, next to the washing machine and central heating boiler. Clothes get taken out of the washing machine, hung on the drying rack, and 6-24 hours later they are dry. Works 365 days a year, regardless of weather. Free. In my current place, the drying racks are wall-mounted and foldable, and push back against the wall when not in use. Previously I've had ceiling mounted ones.
- brnt 5y ago
  Indoor heating is often gas fired, or worse. This means that any heater that uses a heatpump, which is every dryer nowadays, is going to beat your house heater in terms of efficiency by a factor of 5 or so. Plus, your house would get humid fast with indoor drying. Around here people don't often have aircos that can dehumidify, so opening the windows is the only solution, reducing efficiency even further. And keeping the moist inside also causes heating costs to go up, since you've just increased the thermal mass of your air. Plus, moist indoor air has adverse health effects of its own. Plus: I'd basically need to reserve a room just for drying. No, a dryer is on all accounts the better solution.
  - selfhoster11 5y ago
    A dehumidifier can run as a standalone device. An AC system is not needed for that.
    - brnt 5y ago
      Sure, but in any case, you're going to need to expend energy to undo the effect of indoor drying somehow.
      - selfhoster11 5y ago
        I agree. I just wanted to mention that expensive air conditioning systems are not needed to make this work. A standalone dehumidifier unit that can cover an entire flat starts at about $170 for the cheaper units, and doesn't require any installation beyond plugging it into a socket. In contrast, AC is usually more involved and expensive.
- selfhoster11 5y ago
  Indoor drying is not an option in some climates without a dehumidifier. In Scotland, you would get mold growing straight away.
  - leoedin 5y ago
    Literally everyone I knew growing up in Edinburgh dried their clothes indoors. I didn't know anyone with a tumble dryer. Everyone had ceiling mounted clothes drying rails. Nobody had dehumidifiers. I imagine it would be a bigger problem in a well sealed building. Fortunately most of the houses in Edinburgh are very leaky.
    - selfhoster11 5y ago
      I'm talking about modern, sealed, double-glazed housing. Older housing was much more permeable, so moisture (and unfortunately heat) could escape to the outside air at will. I'm sure that the cost of running a dehumidifier is at least as low as the cost of running your heating more frequently because of heat loss.
- sudosysgen 5y ago
  It gets really humid and can even get uncomfortable, while at the same time using more energy than a drier as you fight evaporative cooling.
dzhiurgis 5y ago
WTF - who the hell monitors and bothers with these things
- yetihehe 5y ago
  "Friendly" neighbours typically.

Scoundreller 5y ago

Uhhh, dry indoors over winter? It’s really fast since the air usually has very low humidity. It’s really efficient since you’re not actively pumping warm air outside, and your furnace is driving the evaporation process (which is likely “high” efficiency). Drying in humid weather is what can take a while.

stevesimmons 5y ago
Agree 100%. I don't understand the need for dryers. The houses I've lived in have always had drying racks in the laundry, next to the washing machine and central heating boiler. Clothes get taken out of the washing machine, hung on the drying rack, and 6-24 hours later they are dry. Works 365 days a year, regardless of weather. Free. In my current place, the drying racks are wall-mounted and foldable, and push back against the wall when not in use. Previously I've had ceiling mounted ones.
brnt 5y ago
Indoor heating is often gas fired, or worse. This means that any heater that uses a heatpump, which is every dryer nowadays, is going to beat your house heater in terms of efficiency by a factor of 5 or so. Plus, your house would get humid fast with indoor drying. Around here people don't often have aircos that can dehumidify, so opening the windows is the only solution, reducing efficiency even further. And keeping the moist inside also causes heating costs to go up, since you've just increased the thermal mass of your air. Plus, moist indoor air has adverse health effects of its own. Plus: I'd basically need to reserve a room just for drying. No, a dryer is on all accounts the better solution.
- selfhoster11 5y ago
  A dehumidifier can run as a standalone device. An AC system is not needed for that.
  - brnt 5y ago
    Sure, but in any case, you're going to need to expend energy to undo the effect of indoor drying somehow.
    - selfhoster11 5y ago
      I agree. I just wanted to mention that expensive air conditioning systems are not needed to make this work. A standalone dehumidifier unit that can cover an entire flat starts at about $170 for the cheaper units, and doesn't require any installation beyond plugging it into a socket. In contrast, AC is usually more involved and expensive.
selfhoster11 5y ago
Indoor drying is not an option in some climates without a dehumidifier. In Scotland, you would get mold growing straight away.
- leoedin 5y ago
  Literally everyone I knew growing up in Edinburgh dried their clothes indoors. I didn't know anyone with a tumble dryer. Everyone had ceiling mounted clothes drying rails. Nobody had dehumidifiers. I imagine it would be a bigger problem in a well sealed building. Fortunately most of the houses in Edinburgh are very leaky.
  - selfhoster11 5y ago
    I'm talking about modern, sealed, double-glazed housing. Older housing was much more permeable, so moisture (and unfortunately heat) could escape to the outside air at will. I'm sure that the cost of running a dehumidifier is at least as low as the cost of running your heating more frequently because of heat loss.
sudosysgen 5y ago
It gets really humid and can even get uncomfortable, while at the same time using more energy than a drier as you fight evaporative cooling.

dzhiurgis 5y ago

WTF - who the hell monitors and bothers with these things

yetihehe 5y ago
"Friendly" neighbours typically.