My experiences with backyard clothes drying
As anyone knows who has read my posts here at GreenDaily, I like to try things out for myself whenever I can, in an on-going effort to green-up my own life. I whole-heartily agree with the idea of practicing what I preach. So to go along with this, one of the simple projects I finally got around to trying this last week was using good old Mother Nature to dry my clothes, instead of my dryer.I stopped by the hardware store, grabbed some $3 clothes line (it won't stretch like normal rope or string), a $2 package of clothespins and I was all set. Luckily, I have enough trees in my yard where I could just tie the line between a tree and my deck, and still keep it above my head height. The weather cooperated nicely and I ended up drying 2 loads throughout the day. Not only did I save energy and money, but I swear those clothes smell just like a summer breeze. It's amazing! I think the detergent companies have been trying to capture that smell in a bottle for years now, and to think it's right there in your backyard.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-24-2008 @ 6:16PM
the goddess anna said...
I would love to have an outdoor clothesline. But if you suffer from allergies, like I do, it's not a smart thing to do.
But I agree, the scent of a summer breeze is intoxicating, and cannot be commercially replicated.
Reply
5-25-2008 @ 5:43AM
Martha said...
I guess I've been"green"since I was old enough to help my mom hang laundry on the"lines"and I'm considered a senior citizen now,married 45 yrs.She hung out wet clothes all 4 seasons(weather providing)here in Northern NY state(yes,winter too).Until I was tall enough to reach the lines,I would help by handing her the clothes pins(not nice in cold weather).So it seemed natural for me to line-dry my clothes,eventho
I've had a dryer since I was married.I must admit that
there are lots of things that don't go in the dryer,
even in bad weather-they hang on a set of clothes
bars.This also cuts down on static electricity during
the colder months so it works out both ways. I also
find if something needs ironing,it goes a lot easier and
faster if line-dried vs machine-dried.You won't have to
deal with areas all puckered up from dryer heat.As
you can see,I'm not big on dryers,maybe because of
not growing up with one in the house.I'll take a nice
day,getting outside,hanging my clothes,breathing in
the fresh air anyday vs loading & unloading a dryer!!
I'm sure some would say they would like to hangout
their wash,but they work everyday & it's alot easier to
transfer them right into the dryer from the washer. I
can certainly understand that.I've been fortunate not
having to work outside the home & I like being out-
side in good weather as much as possible so I feel
very lucky!!!
Reply
5-25-2008 @ 7:43AM
Deborah said...
But if you live in places like Memphis, some days can leave your "clean" clothes even dirtier as your laundry attracts just about every dang bit of pollen in the neighborhood!
Maybe drying a load should include a daily check of the expected pollen count, huh? ;-)
Reply
5-25-2008 @ 10:37AM
Andrew W. said...
I wish I could give this a go, but I live in an apartment complex and I don't have a balcony or anywhere else I'm allowed to do this.
Reply
5-25-2008 @ 11:32PM
Joe said...
A note to Andrew W,
There are still options to line dry indoors.
You can get a free-standing rack which can fold down when not in use.
Or, if you are able to attach things to the walls, you can install a retracting line.
Reply
5-27-2008 @ 10:08AM
Alex said...
Andrew,
I live in an apartment, too. I hang my shirts and pants on hangers and leave them in the laundry room or shower to dry. The rest goes in the dryer. Socks and underwear dry a lot faster in the dryer than a full load, so it cuts way back on my dryer time. Plus, it makes putting clothes away very easy. I just move the hangers into the closet.
Reply