23 replies to this topic

[Sarah C.]

I live in Central Florida, and we have a lot of warm weather and sunny days throughout the entire year. I am thinking I need to install a clothes line and start hanging out my clothes to dry. Does anyone already do this? Any tips?

[Hayden]

Hi Sarah, thanks for taking the time out to post this suggestion and request for tips here. Living in Florida is great for drying clothes on a line!

We do this here in Henderson, Nevada where its also great for line drying both indoors and out. Just be sure to keep clothes away from direct sunlight or only in the early morning or late evening sun as it can fade your colors.

Also, don't over-dry. As in, when they are dry don't forget them for hours on the line or they will get hard and damage clothes over time.

Also check out this related topic:
http://www.altenergy...hout-a-machine/

[Hysssss-teria]

Sarah, I am native to the Great State of Florida and lived there for my first 43 years. Growing up and as an adult on my own, there was ALWAYS a clothesline. It just makes good sense to dry your clothes for free.

A couple of suggestions:

Watch for the rains -- be ready to spring up, dash out and pull everything off the line at a moment’s notice during the rainy season.

If you live near a sugar mill, you probably won’t want to hang clothes outside during the burning and milling season.

You might find it a pain to hang clothes out when the love bugs are flying -- May and August.

Old Florida joke: If you WANT it to rain, hang clothes outside or wash your car.

[Sandra Piddock]

As far as I am concerned, the only way to dry clothes is on a line - or an airer, or whatever. The main thing is, you dry them naturally. I had a tumble dryer once - I used it very occasionally, then it broke down, and I never replaced it. Clothes dried in fresh air will last longer than clothes dried artificially, so you're saving yourself money, and saving the planet landfill.

[tri-n-b-helpful]

Yes. I've done this all my life down here, wherever I have lived. It saves a lot of money and I don't need to buy a clothes dryer. It pays to shop around for clotheslines these days. If you can find one to install yourself it would be better too. There are pegless clotheslines around these days too. Not only do they save you buying pegs, but also the "hanging time" is very much reduced, as is the time spent on taking clothes down again. Are you looking at having a permanent installation outdoors or a temporary one that can be taken down and packed away out of the weather (most clotheslines tend to rust and deteriorate due to being out in the weather over time), and moved around to wherever it is more convenient or you get the best sun and wind combination?

[mariaandrea]

When I lived in Georgia for a decade I always line dried my clothes. I had a washer but no dryer. Loved it. I also had a drying rack for rainy days. These days I have a nifty system in my bathroom that attaches to the wall over the tub, like this one http://www.amazon.co...e/dp/B001DKQ3HA because we don't get enough sun in Seattle during a lot of the year.

I loved hanging whites out in the midday sun because it helped them stay really white without using bleach.

[tri-n-b-helpful]

Wow! Yes, good point. I guess I haven't really appreciated the natural bleaching effect of the sun here. Thanks for that.

[artistry]

My mom used to use a clothesline, when she washed our clothes, as we had a backyard. Once I moved to my own apartment, I always had a clothes dryer.
Very interesting posts. one in particular, I would like more information on. Tri-n--b-helpful, would you describe a pegless clothesline, how does it work? Thank you very much.

[tri-n-b-helpful]

Sure! It's about this long by this long, weighs only so much and... oh, just run a search for "ezyline" under Australian websites.

I saw the ad for it on the telly the other day and it looks very quick and easy to use. It's so quick that they had to get a young Indian woman to demonstrate it - apparently our sheila's weren't quick enough!

It's UV resistant - guaranteed to outlive me, easily adjustable to any length, environmentally friendly, made in Oz (so they say)...

[Shortpoet-GTD]

Inside out-reduces fading.
Upside down-you won't get pin marks on the shoulders of shirts, for instance.

If you hang the line from a tree trunk, make sure it's sturdy enough so it won't damage the tree once
it's loaded with wet (heavier) clothes.

I've tried various lines, but cotton clothes line, imo works better
and lasts longer than plastic wire, which can stretch out or break from the sun's rays over time.

Run a rag along the lines before you start hanging them to remove dirt, bird droppings, etc.

If you don't use fabric softener (most of us here don't, because of the chemicals) add about 1/4 cup of
vinegar to final rinse to help reduce soap buildup; and clothes will be softer.

Once they're dry and ready to be folded, take clothes hangers with you, so you won't have to re-sort a second time.

If you're pressed for space, hang towels or wash cloth's close enough together to "share" one pin.
(If you do hang delicate items you don't want neighbors to see, place them in a mesh bag) to dry in privacy.

Edit-text added

[Sarah C.]

Thanks everyone! You have all given a lot of good advice, and I really appreciate it. Sandra, what is an airer?

[mariaandrea]

Oh, one other thing I did and still do to save space and reduce wrinkles - for button up shirts I put them on a clothes hanger and hang them on the line to dry like that. The bonus is that when they're dry you just hang them in the closet and you're done.

[artistry]

Tri-n-b-helpful, thanks very much. Will check it out.

[Sandra Piddock]

Sarah C., on 10 March 2012 - 04:41 AM, said:

Thanks everyone! You have all given a lot of good advice, and I really appreciate it. Sandra, what is an airer?

Just one of those free standing things with bars on for you to hang the clothes on. They're ideal in places where washing lines are not allowed, and they also work well where space is limited. If the weather is a bit unpredictable, it's better to use an airer, because you can whip the whole thing indoors if it starts to rain, so neither you nor the clothes will get wet again. There are a variety of different airers here.

[zararina]

I live in a tropical country and I prefer to mostly hang my clothes to dry under the sun and just use the dryer if its rainy season. Just put all clothes in a hanger and hang outside.  ;)
It can really save a lot of energy and money.

[Sarah C.]

Sandra Piddock, on 10 March 2012 - 11:44 AM, said:

Just one of those free standing things with bars on for you to hang the clothes on. They're ideal in places where washing lines are not allowed, and they also work well where space is limited. If the weather is a bit unpredictable, it's better to use an airer, because you can whip the whole thing indoors if it starts to rain, so neither you nor the clothes will get wet again. There are a variety of different airers here.

Ahh - ok - thank you for the information. I would like to have one of those in addition to the clothesline. In the event of rain, which we do get, especially in the summer, an airer would definitely come in handy.

[bryce12]

I used to do it when I was in Asia for few months. It is definitely environment friendly and easy on the pocket. You need some space for installing the cloth line though. The only drawback is that your clothes may fade and lose their color if you dry them in strong sunlight.

[rbaker_59]

As far as I'm concerned, the best time to do laundry is on a day when you have breezes.  The breezes whips them dry without having to leave them a long time.  It can take the same amount of time is does in a dryer when there is a breeze.

[Jessi]

I don't any more, but we did a lot when I was a kid. We had a couple different lines, including a specific rack we installed in the backyard that had clothes pins already installed on metal rods so there was no sagging, no dropping clips, etc. I kind of hating having to do it when I was younger, but I wouldn't mind it so much nowadays.

[visionrafael84]

My family used to do this I haven't done this myself, please let us know how that goes.