The Cost Benefits of Clothesline Drying

Summer’s in full swing with sunny days and cooling breezes. I take every opportunity to get outside. Did you know that my favorite way to sneak extra outdoor time into my day is by hanging my freshly washed clothes outside on the clothesline? Thankfully, many reasons exist for the re-introduction of a great idea from the past, that still offers wonderful benefits today. You might be surprised at the variety of positive reasons for drying your laundry on a clothesline instead of in an electric clothes dryer. Here at Great Decor Ideas we hope you find one or two that motivate you to give line drying a try.

Geo-Political Benefit

You might think I’m over-exaggerating the impact of drying some wet clothing on a line; however, I propose that the importance of small steps can not be overstated. By using the free, natural power of the sun and wind instead of energy, every line-full strengthens America’s self-reliance. One political point of view poses that a great deal of our national defense budget is utilized maintaining our access to foreign oil. So, following that logic, if each of us lessens our oil dependence, then together we make our nation more secure. Saving soldiers’ lives is the maximum benefit of line drying, followed
closely by economic and ecologic benefits.

Economic Benefit

Clothes dryers use energy in two ways: 1) heat to dry clothes and 2) to spin the internal drum. In the pie chart (left) from the US EPA, a clothes dryer uses about 1/3 of household appliance energy use.

According to Trent Hamm in The Simple Dollar, “The average dryer uses 3.3 kilowatt hours of energy and estimates an average of 11 cents per kilowatt hour.” Roll those figures out for a week, month, year and a larger family and you can see how the savings multiply. If you want to run your
own calculation, here is the formula:
(3.3 kwh per load × # loads of laundry) x $0.11 = $ Savings

A hidden source of savings generated by line drying can be found in products you no longer need to buy. You will find your whites are whiter even without bleach and obviously, dryer sheets will be off your shopping list. Fragrance extenders won’t be needed either.

Some people have played around with trying to summarize all the savings into a ballpark hourly rate of $10 per hour for switch from machine to line (Hamm). Invisible savings that would be hard to put a number to include spending on national defense and oil spill recovery expenses.

Ecologic Benefit

Letting the sun and wind dry your laundry burns no fossil fuels. There are so many
complex implications that only an ecologist could list the benefits of less energy usage.
Consider that there are more than 90 million clothes dryers in the United States,
according to the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers. They say that air-drying
clothes can reduce the average household’s carbon footprint by 2,400 pounds a year.
Suffice it to say that you make a difference when you choose to hang your wet loads out
to dry.

Improved Clothing Appearance Benefit

If you were tumbled and tossed, overheated and over-processed, would you look your best? The same holds true for your apparel and home linens. Say good-bye to stress on seams and snags from buttons and zippers. High heat in the dryer can permanently damage some fabrics and poses a real threat to your wardrobe.

The sun’s ultra-violet rays naturally bleach and disinfect laundry. I’ve experienced the “whiter whites” effect white tea towels, canvas tennis shoes and football uniform pants.  Plus, once baseball and football uniform pants hit the dryer, those stains are set and are not ever coming out. Some people claim that the sun can fade dark clothes. My solution is to simply bring in the clothes as soon as they are dry and it will be less damaging to your garments than machine drying them. This means you make things last longer and save by replacing them less frequently! Fibers stay intact so there is much less lint on your clothes and in your house. Line drying also eliminates static cling so fabrics drape and flow beautifully.

How would you like to nearly eliminate ironing? It’s easy! If you give each laundry item a shake before you hang it on the line, then it’s quite unlikely that you will see a single wrinkle when it is dry. This proves especially true on a breezy day. No ironing means you saved time, money, energy and helped save the environment. Hooray for you!

Improved Clothing Scent

Is there anything more wonderful than falling into a freshly made bed with line-dried sheets? Laying your head upon a fresh pillowcase is one of life’s little pleasures. Clothes smell better without adding expense and possibly harmful chemicals to your laundry routine. Major manufacturers think so, too. Why else would there be air fresheners and candles named “fresh linen” or “crisp cotton”? For individuals with sensitive skin or those sensitive to perfumes and dyes used in detergents and dryer products, clothes line drying provides a safer alternative. Say, “Hello” to even more savings from not purchasing as many air fresheners, laundry softener, and fragrance extenders.

Umbrella Rotary Top Style Clothesline

Now that you’ve read the benefits, you might be ready to give air drying a whirl. Recently, the product offering and variety of clothesline styles has expanded. You might be delighted by modern options. Most fall into one of four categories: 1) Permanent mount, 2) Retractable line, 3) Umbrella rotary top and 4) Rack. Perhaps I could write you a blog entry that would help you learn more about the types of clotheslines and in which situations each works best. Let me know if you would be interested in that.

Line drying laundry conserves energy and helps to protect the environment by saving precious fossil fuels. Line drying is gentle on clothing so garments last longer. You can save money with less laundry additives like dryer sheets, laundry softener and bleach as well as fewer scent-oriented home chemical products. There are so many other benefits to drying laundry on a line, that I hope to follow-up with another blog post so that you can become a bona-fide clothesline enthusiast with me!

Until Next Time,
Kay
Email: GreatDecorIdeas@gmail.com
Website: www.GreatDecorIdeas.com