How to save money drying clothes
The cost of living just seems to keep on creeping (or even leaping) up at the moment. As of 1st April 2022, the cost of energy to our homes in the United Kingdom has jumped up a massive 54%. For many families, this increase is crippling to their finances. Wages aren’t going up, yet the price of all of our essentials just keeps on rising.
As a Mum of three and wife to a mechanic, it sometimes feels as though our washing machine is always running. The laundry basket is rarely completely empty, yet the washing machine is usually on twice a day. I can’t really get away from having to use the washing machine, although I am encouraging the children to make sure their clothes really do need washing before they throw them into the laundry basket. But I can try to cut back on how much we use the tumble dryer by finding more economical ways to dry our washing.
If you’re struggling with the rising costs or worried that you might be hit hard, then I really hope these tips help you to cut down on how much money you spend on energy when you’re tackling the laundry.
How to save money drying clothes
One of the biggest drains on our energy consumption in many households is the tumble dryer. You can save money drying clothes by trying out some alternative ways to dry your laundry, or even just being a little more savvy about how you use your tumble dryer.
- Hang the washing out to dry
- Use a clothes airer
- Use the washing machine spin cycle twice
- Use dryer balls
- Don’t overload your tumble dryer
- Add a dry towel in with your load
- Regularly clean out the lint filter
Hang the washing out to dry
This is pretty obvious, but on days when the weather allows, the very best way to save money drying clothes is to hang them outside on the washing line. The sun and/or the breeze will have your washing dried in no time and it doesn’t cost a penny.
It may sound silly, but I finally got my washing line in March in our new home and seeing the washing hanging out to dry makes me irrationally happy. It’s a sure sign I’m getting old!
Our garden is a bit of an odd shape, and there isn’t really room for a straight line to hang up the washing, so we’ve opted for a rotary washing line instead. I’ve always thought that washing just wouldn’t dry the same on a rotary line as I didn’t think there was enough room for it to all blow about and dry properly. But, we’ve got a large 60 metre rotary and it really does do the trick. I’m also able to hang out far more washing on it than I would have done if we just had one line across the garden.
Dry your washing with a clothes airer
Clothes airers are one of the best ways to dry your clothes indoors on a wet or cold day when the washing just won’t dry on the line outside.
Apparently, if you put your clothes airer upstairs, then the washing will dry faster. I suppose this does make sense as heat rises! I’m going to give this a try on the next rainy day and see how true it is.
Do an extra spin in the washing machine
The wetter your clothes are, the longer they will take to dry. Give your washing an extra spin in the washing machine so that the load is as dry as possible before you try to get it all dried. As an additional tip, using a front loader washing machine is better as it is more energy efficient.
Use dryer balls
A friend of mine absolutely swears by using dryer balls in her tumble dryer. She says they definitely make the washing dry faster which means you’re using less electricity to get your laundry dry.
You can also get dryer eggs which do the same job and promise to cut dryer time by up to 28%. It’s amazing how simple things like this can really help to save money drying clothes.
Don’t overload your tumble dryer
It can be very tempting to throw as much laundry into the tumble dryer as possible, but this will mean that the load takes longer and costs more money to get everything dry.
Add a dry towel in with your load
This is a strange one, but it really works! If there’s room with the laundry, then add a dry towel into the drum of your tumble dryer and you’ll find that this helps to get everything dry much more quickly.
Regularly clean out the lint filter
This one is not only important if you’re watching your finances, but it’s also really important from a safety point of view. You should empty the lint filter after every single load. Your tumble dryer won’t work as effectively if the filter is clogged up, and it’s also a fire risk too, so make sure you do this regularly.
These are just a few simple things you can do to help to cut back on your electricity bills and save money drying clothes.
