New to line drying. How?

[Miss Peregrine]

Not really a line but a rack sort of thing I got from Costco. Do I turn things inside out to prevent fading?

 

 

[Chris in VA]

I do, if things are in the sun, and hang shirts upside-down so they don't stretch.

We line-dried almost everything we washed when we visited Israel for the summer last year!

 

We found we could use the dryer (had thought it off limits, but really, they just wanted to keep costs down), so we ended up line drying to the point of almost-dry, then tumbling for 5-10 minutes. Good combo for us, as it softened towels and de-wrinkled.

[Amira]

I have three racks that I've been using for 10 years. I need one rack for a small washer, two for an average one, and three for a large washer. I've never worried about turning things inside out, but I usually don't dry in direct sunlight. If you're in a damp, cold climate, a fan helps a lot to make sure the clothes dry. If you're short on space on the rack, try hanging shirts on hangers and hanging the hangers on the racks. Racks are nice because you can easily move the clothes inside if it starts to rain and they fit almost anywhere. I've also noticed that they're often less offensive to people who think clothes lines are tacky.

 

Like Chris mentioned, your clothes and towels will be crunchy. It doesn't bother us, but other people hate it. It helps to hang them on a windy day, but you can't exactly control the weather. :)

[ezrabean2005]

We use two dryer racks on any given day.  The dryer racks are in DH and my bedroom (not really too much sunlight).  We live in an apartment and even though we have a balcony, line drying is frowned upon.  I just remind the kids that when they lay things out, the fewer bumps the faster the clothes will dry.  We don't hang shirts or pants on the dryer racks.  Those we put on hangers and hang in the proper person's closet (with space between the hangers).  The jeans will still dry in a day or two even in a dark closet.  Even in a dark closet the clothes dry very nicely.

 

The kids have each learned the hard way why we don't cram our clothes together in the closets (their FAVORITE shirt / pants are still wet after two days).  :)

 

ETA: Crunchy towels are more absorbent in our experience.  :)

[Angie in VA]

For everyday clothes I just peg them out in the sun. The sun is awesome for drying clothes, lol. We have some serious sun here and I don't notice a fading issue.

 

Delicates or woollens I dry by laying the clothing over the clothes rack. I will sometimes move that out of the midday sun.

 

But seriously, if you are line drying, the sun is your friend. In summer, I can have clothes washed, line dried and ready to wear in a couple of sunny hours.

 

This!

 

I love my clothesline. It's the ultimate symbol of freedom in the US, lol. We also have (and use!) several drying racks. We use our dryer, but not much. 

 

I find that drying towels or jeans for 5-10 minutes before hanging them to dry speeds up the air and/or sun drying process and prevents them from being stiff.

[bettyandbob]

I line dry in summer. HOA doesn't allow lines, but I strung one up on my deck at railing height. This summer I got a rack in anticipation of dd attending a two week dance intensive (so she could sink wash some other dance stuff and hang it in her room). I used the rack for the last month and now it's away with her.

 

Anyway, I haven't had a problem with fading. I leave the clothes out until they are just dry. I usually do all my laundry over two days. So, as soon as one load comes out of the washer to be hung, the load that's outside is usually dry. They aren't hanging outside for hours already dry. My grandma used to hang stuff in the morning and leave it in the sun all day, long past when it got dry.

[LMD]

For everyday clothes I just peg them out in the sun. The sun is awesome for drying clothes, lol. We have some serious sun here and I don't notice a fading issue.

 

Delicates or woollens I dry by laying the clothing over the clothes rack. I will sometimes move that out of the midday sun.

 

But seriously, if you are line drying, the sun is your friend. In summer, I can have clothes washed, line dried and ready to wear in a couple of sunny hours.

 

Indoors takes longer and the clothes can get kind of musty.

 

Seriously, anyone who thinks clothes lines are tacky can get lost, as far as I'm concerned. Solar drying power beats idiot neighbours any day.

 

Not to mention, UV is a disinfectant and also helps remove organic stains (like tomato sauce!).

 

Off to do some laundry...

[HRAAB]

I always line dry my clothes during the summer, and I've never had trouble with fading.  I always make sure to get the clothes within a few hours.  Sometimes if it's really hot, the first items are dry by the time I've got the whole load on the line.  I would think the clothes would have to be outside all day or more than a day for them to fade?

[KatieJ]

I had clotheslines for the first 20 some years we were married.  Inside and outside.  I also had suds saver washing machines, so I had a "laundry" day to keep it all going.

 

When I would take the clothes out of the washing machine, anything small ( undies, socks, washclothes, etc.) was thrown into a pile.  That usually would end up being just one load of dryer time. 

Everything else would be hung outside.  Winter times, I hung up less, and used the dryer more, as I had a smaller area for drying.

 

I don't recall every having a problem with sun fading, altho I may have happened and I was way to busy to notice!

 

To minimize wrinkling, shake those clothes hard before hanging them up.  Some one on these boards described it as "snap shaking" and that is what you need to do. Shake, snap them hard.  Tshirts were pegged from the bottom, not the shoulders.

Jeans were much happier in the dryer for a few minutes before hanging them up.  Alternatively I would hang them to dry first and then a few minutes in the dryer to soften them up.  No one really minded towels that were all hung outside.  The smell was worth it.

 

 

[Miss Peregrine]

Thanks for all the

input. I am going to give it a try tomorrow.

[Melissa in Australia]

I line dry year round. in the winter I Hang the clothes on ropes under the veranda roof, and finish off on a clothes airier in front of the wood heater. in summer everything is in the sum.

 

Scratchy towels are the only way. I HATE those awful soft ones. they don't give you a back scratch or leave your skin feeling tingly dry.

[TeacherZee]

I "fluff dry" my cotton dresses and shirts for 5-10 minutes in the dryer before hanging them up to dry. No ironing or only minimal ironing needed. Awesome!

[Joyofsixreboot]

We line or rack dry most everything. My living room looks like a laundry. I don't usually turn stuff wrong side out. If it's especially nice I dry it inside. I hang pants and shirts on the line by the hem. On a rack I just lie them over the bar. Dress shirts go on a hanger. I "snap" them with a good shake when I take them off the rack or line. Dh likes me to quick tumble his things for about 5 minutes to soften them. The rest of us don't care.

[TammyS]

I've been line drying all my life, so here's my take on fading.

 

The sun DOES fade clothes, however, if you hang them from their ends, it fades them evenly so that you don't notice (the rule is: tops from their bottoms and bottoms from their tops).  My husband is very tall backed and so his shirts are large and heavy when wet.  If I hang them from the bottom, then tend to sag on the sides and make his shirts pull out of shape.  Those I drape over the line.  Because they drape over, they do not fade evenly and will get a fade mark across where they were draped on the line (the part that faces directly up to the sun).  Those I do turn inside out, so that the inside of the shirt is what gets faded.  This is also more of an issue with cheaper shirts than better one (the cheap T's from Target).  Most of other things I do not turn inside out, unless it's something expensive and precious that I want to preserve as long as possible (not much of that here, we just don't care that much about clothes).

 

Yes, clothes on the line come off stiffer.  I don't diddle around with tumbling them in dryer to soften them.  After decades of line drying, you just get used to it.  It's the way that clean clothes feel.  When a piece of laundry accidentally ends up in the dryer (I do use it for wash clothes and underwear/socks...I just refuse to stand at the clothes line forever pinning them), to us it doesn't feel "soft" it feels "dirty" like clothes that have already been worn.  Just weird.

 

I used to use racks inside in the winter.  Our old place had forced air heat and I could dry a heavy load of clothes by racking them at bedtime and they'd be dry in the morning.  We moved last summer and our new place has electric heat.  I found that drying indoors created a lot of indoor humidity.  Not sure what I'm going to do this year, but I definitely need a new plan of some kind.

[LostSurprise]

*I find pants and other things with waistbands (which take longer to dry) are better clipped up at the ankle end so the waistband is free to dry in the wind. 

 

*Tshirts are better pinned at the bottom (not the shoulders).

 

*Nicer shirts dry better on a hanger. 

 

*We have a lot of laundry--and limited room--so I usually do one load of white socks and underwear in the dryer. It's not worth the time (and space) pinning and unpinning most laundry days. I will pin random colored ones if they're in a load. 

 

*No problems with fading, but we live in a northern climate, so YMMV. 

 

*A snap before hanging (just like a snap before folding), helps with wrinkles, but does not eliminate them. 

 

*I like a 2 minute dryer fluff at the end, mostly to make sure no bugs were brought in. No one here likes crunchy towels though, so I do those a bit longer (5-10m). 

[Rosie_0801]

I've had some trouble with black fading, but I've had that trouble when I was *wearing* them too!

In the strongest part of summer I dry linen and whites during the day and dark colours over night.

[nd293]

I line dry everything outside, summer and winter. It gets really hot here - the sun is vicious - but I have never had problems with noticeable fading. I do try to hang early or late, just so that I don't roast in the time it takes to hang the washing, and if I'm organised I take it in as soon as it's dry. I usually hang clothes by the hems so that any peg marks are not too visible.

[elfgivas]

I've had some trouble with black fading, but I've had that trouble when I was *wearing* them too!

 

In the strongest part of summer I dry linen and whites during the day and dark colours over night.

 

that's how i do it here in the mojave desert, too!

 

and i hang t-shirts, blouses, work shirts etc. on plastic hangers and hang them from door frames/shower curtain rods, etc... that way, when they are dry, they just go straight into the closet.

 

i hang black inside out if i need to dry it in the daytime.  

 

small things go on a drying rack.  

 

hth,

ann

[Lady Marmalade]

I use white vinegar as my fabric softener when I am line drying.  If you have a softener dispenser, you can add it to that- I use a downy ball. Add 1/4 cup of vinegar and toss it in.  Helps reduce the scratchiness of the towels, and also acts as a rinse aid to get all the detergent out of the clothes.  

 

The clothes do NOT smell like vinegar in the least when they come out of the washer.  Just clean and fresh.  

[gardenmom5]

how you hang things affects drying time too.

 

hang them so they'll "open".  pants by rear waistband.  shirts from back bottom hem.  the wind will blow them open.

 

my grandmother & great-aunt (with whom I spent a good deal of time) hung items in the basement. (outside was very seasonal, and iffy) so did my mother until our basement was finished, and she never hung items up again.

 

I got a gas dryer. (I don't want the moisture in my house.)

[Miss Peregrine]

I've got my second load drying. I found the perfect spot on one of our decks!  I feel like I am wasting a lot of time but probably because I don't have it down yet. Need to find my rhythm. 

[freesia]

I've got my second load drying. I found the perfect spot on one of our decks!  I feel like I am wasting a lot of time but probably because I don't have it down yet. Need to find my rhythm.

You will find a rhythm. I actually find the rhythm soothing. It doesn't take me long to hang a load and boy can I get it down fast when a storm is coming! We love the smell and the positive impact on the environment.

[Miss Peregrine]

I wish I could line dry, but it's just a magnet for pollen. 

I'm trying it out but yeah, I live in a national forest. I think I found a good spot but we shall see. 

[Amira]

How does someone handle line drying in a damp, wet, or freezing climate? I tend to hang up some of my garments on a rack in our bathroom, but it seems like with cold, moist, and inclement weather that line during isn't possible. Is this just my misconception and I'm missing something basic about it?

I've line dried in pretty much every climate imaginable. I figure that people dried clothes everywhere before dryers existed, so it must always be possible. I did cheat sometimes and use a fan in Seattle in the winter (cold, damp climates are the worst).

[Amira]

Is running the fan still cheaper than just tossing things in a cool dryer? When I hang my shirts out in winter indoors they're wet two days later, and with 2-4 loads of laundry per day here I just couldn't figure out if I was doing something wrong or this was something done primarily in drier, warmer climates than my own.

 

I know a lot of folks off the grid here wear many less clothes and specifically avoid washing them in winter. Maybe the drying issues are the reason?

I'm pretty sure that running a fan is cheaper than a cool dryer, unless the dryer isn't heating at all. Even then, it would be using energy to tumble the clothes.

 

I think clothes dry better outside in damp climates than inside. In winter it can be nice to take advantage of the heating system inside the house. I've set racks over forced air vents and draped clothes on radiators.

 

A washer with a good spin cycle makes a huge difference.

[Luckymama]

With 2-4 loads of laundry per day, I'd use the dryer!

 

Our winters are drier (mid-Atlantic) than the Pacific Northwest. I machine-dry the heavier items (jeans, socks 'cause they're a pain, towels, flannel shirts) and the large items (sheets), but I hang regular-weight shirts in our basement and use the drying rack for the other items. Everything dries by the next day, even sweaters.

 

I think my kids are acclimated to line drying---I even line dried their diapers in the warmer weather :lol:

[MiMi 4under3]

Scratchy towels are the only way. I HATE those awful soft ones. they don't give you a back scratch or leave your skin feeling tingly dry.

 

   :iagree:

 

And I never, ever use fabric softener for towels either.  :lol:

[Melissa in Australia]

How does someone handle line drying in a damp, wet, or freezing climate? I tend to hang up some of my garments on a rack in our bathroom, but it seems like with cold, moist, and inclement weather that line during isn't possible. Is this just my misconception and I'm missing something basic about it?

 

The winter here is damp, and wet. I hang clothes under the veranda roof and finish off on a clothes airer in front o f the fire at night.

My grandmother  uses the airer  in winter and just places it over her central heating. she gets clothes dry very quickly this way

 

 My MIL lives in Canada, a place with freezing winters. she has told me that when she was younger she use to hang the wash out and it would freeze dry, now she is in her 90s and afraid of falling, she hangs it up in her basement

[TammyS]

Cold (but above freezing) isn't a problem, it's just slower.  But if it's dry out and there's a breeze, it will dry.  If it's damp, it'll take days.  Not worth it to me. 

 

Whatever you do, you don't hang clothes when they will freeze.  It's very hard on the fabric.  If your indoors heat is dry (like mine used to be) then use drying racks and consider it a free humidifier.  If it's not dry (like mine is now, with electric base boards), it's probably best to use the dryer.  I think I'm going to have to this winter, because there was just too much moisture in the house last winter.  Bummer.

[Chris in VA]

I wish I could line dry, but it's just a magnet for pollen. 

 

OH good point--I couldn't line dry when it's pollen season--everything would be yellow and stringy with oak pollen :ack2: .

 

[Baseball mom]

I can't line dry outside when the pollen is high but love to otherwise.  My poor traditional clothesline has met with some issues (a huge tree limb took out a couple lines, boys and an accident with the pole has left the pole bent).  My small line (single pole with square top & lots of lines) is really old and breaking but I still keep using both :laugh:. Trying to see about getting a new small line and somehow fixing the bent pole.  Once the bent pole is fixed I can add more lines again.  I only have 1 now.

 

I have 3 of the folding racks that I use inside most all the time.  Because of the lack of space on my clotheslines I have been drying towels but I love scratchy towels.    

 

Sometimes I put the shirts on hangers then hang them upside down on the clothes lines (pin at the bottom of the shirt),  Then when I send ds out to get stuff of the line the shirts are already on hangers.  Easy to put away quickly.

[gardenmom5]

How does someone handle line drying in a damp, wet, or freezing climate?

 

basement.  my grandmother and great-aunt always hung their wash in their basements. (occasionally , at the height of summer, they might have hung it outside.) there might have been a few items them used a drier for - as they had one.  my mother hung wash in our basement.

[Colleen]

How does someone handle line drying in a damp, wet, or freezing climate? 

 

I'm in Western Washington, where damp & wet is commonplace through much of the year.  It's still very possible to line dry outside, even in the winter; one has to be attuned to the weather & take advantage of drier, windy days.  But more often than not when it's damp I dry things around the wood stove.

[Miss Peregrine]

So far everything is going well. The clothes smell sooooo good. No one has complained about the towels yet. 

[fdrinca]

Our line is against our house, and for the first 6 months or so we hung clothes exactly the way you would expect, which is fronts facing out. 

 

Some clothes faded, made noticeable because it was only the front half of clothes. 

 

We rotate our clothes now - a few months backward, a few months inside-out, etc.