Mrs

[cillakat]

ETA: I forgot to finish typing in the subject line!!!

 

So I reposted the poll and thread under the correct subject line.

Edited July 19, 2009 by cillakat

[Rebecca VA]

I've been shocked to read that many of the same legislators who push the "green" agenda frown on line-drying. Machine-drying uses massive amounts of energy. I don't line-dry myself, because I think clothes would end up getting dirty from air pollution and pollen in our yard, but I support that right for other families.

[mrsrevmeg]

We live out in the boonies, so no neighborhood rules. We have a lot of allergies in our home, however, and so line drying would just bring in more pollen/ mold spores, etc that we don't need. Plus, every time I have every hung something out to dry, a bird has pooped on it. That has done it for me. I would NEVER line dry our clothes unless our dryer died and we and we had things washed that could not wait and just be re-washed after getting a new dryer.

[creekland]

We line dry whenever it's weather permitting - and I can't imagine doing otherwise. I love the savings, both of money and for our planet. The only things I won't line dry are 'whites.'

 

I certainly wouldn't live anywhere that line drying was forbidden. That would be a deal breaker for me.

[keptwoman]

I can't imaging line drying being not allowed! I know it happens in the US because I have friends who live in neighbourhoods where it is not allowed but boy is it a paradigm shift for me!

I don't own a dryer because they are appalling for the environment... and my power bill LOL. I have a line outside under cover which I use in winter and summer. I also use drying racks inside in the winter.

[Mrs. Frankweiler]

I used to hang all the kids colored clothes inside. If I ever hung them outside, they came back very stiff and smelling "funny" (maybe the humidity?) I hung them inside because throwing them in the dryer seems to age clothes prematurely, and I knew I'd be using a lot of things for hand-me-downs. And it worked! A lot of those things looked great even after the 2nd or 3rd kid used them.

 

But....the more kids I had, the more I used the dryer. It takes too long for clothes to line-dry, and it adds the extra (lengthy) step of hanging each item. I barely stay on top of laundry as it is, so in order to keep my kids from looking like Pigpen, I've had to say goodbye to line drying. I agree that it is healthier for the environment and certainly more cost-effective than the drier. I do try to line dry "nice" clothes.

[Matryoshka]

It's true I don't line-dry much of our clothing, but I can't imagine it being banned, and I know it is many places. I do have an outdoor clothes line, but it's mostly used for wet towels coming home from the beach.

 

We are spoiled by dryers. I know I am. It really does save gobs of energy. When I traveled in Germany a couple of years ago, only two families I visited (out of 8) even owned dryers. Only one of those used them to dry clothes regularly - the other just used them to dry towels, and then not even all the way - she'd switch to line-drying when they were no longer dripping. I did miss the fluffy towels - I think the latter person had a good mix to solve that problem.

 

These were not poor people. In fact, many of them were very wealthy - one of my cousins has a heated indoor pool - but no dryer. Of course, I'm sure the heated pool also used gobs of energy. I'm guessing my cousin's rationale is that the pool came with the house? But I guess the point is that she's so used to hanging the clothes she doesn't really see it as a lot of extra work.

 

Anyway, I wouldn't want to be forced to give up my dryer, but I think it's equally ludicrous to force people to have one, or use one, if they don't want to. Really, clothes hung out is not a blight.

 

Of course, I feel the same way about the similarly esthetically-driven peer pressure for chem-treated "golf-fields" for lawns. I could never live in a subdivision. I like the dandelion and clover in my lawn. :D

[Tammyla]

Not many families around here have a line outside, but they are permitted in most neighborhoods. I line dry indoors because of the humidity, bugs and pollen in the summer and the winter here would simply freeze the stuff.

[Orthodox6]

I have to vote "Other" -- because I have NO idea !

 

Nobody around here has a closeline (most houses are nearly zero-lot-lines). Whether there is a city ordinance, however, who knows ?!

 

I would use a clothes line if I had one. I have wanted one for years. Our fence is so rickety, I don't trust its structural integrity for installing a line. As for a pole, I'm less drawn to one of those, simply because of the height. (Not particularly interested in neighbours seeing what we wear.)

 

I dry clothing inside on racks as much as possible. My primary motive is to protect garments against shrinking. I get more years' worth of wear from them.

 

DRYER: jeans, sheets, towels, men's "private wear"

RACKS OR HANGING IN THE SHOWER STALL: everything else

[cillakat]

I could never live in a subdivision. I like the dandelion and clover in my lawn. :D

 

I will never live in one with restrictive rules again. It's ridiculous.

 

k

[mommaduck]

Line drying is very common here. In the country, more than half the people line dry. Here in the city, quite a few of us have lines, but may use them off and on. I love line drying, but I've had a severe lint issue lately and have been using my dryer.

[Shelly in the Country]

We live out in the boonies, so no neighborhood rules. We have a lot of allergies in our home, however, and so line drying would just bring in more pollen/ mold spores, etc that we don't need.

 

:iagree:

 

Same situation here. I grew up with my clothes being line dried when the weather permitted so I assumed I'd do the same when married, but my dh has horrendous allergies. My eldest dd has inherited the same problem. Dh's allergist recommended not line drying clothes to help keep his allergies under control. I tried hanging indoors for awhile, but we just don't have the space for the drying racks. I have one small, wall-mounted indoor drying rack for things that cannot be machine dried, but everything else goes in the dryer.

[HRAAB]

The first time I heard that line drying was prohibited by neighborhood covenants, I didn't believe it. What? You can't dry your clothes outside. Insanity! It seems to be more and more common in new neighborhoods. Our neighborhood is old, everybody has at least an acre. I line dry all the time. I would not live in a subdivision that so severely restricted my housekeeping methods.

 

Janet

[AuntieM]

We have pollen allergies, so hanging outdoors isn't the best option even if my property covenants would allow it. DH strung a retractable laundry line across our (daylight and very clean) basement. I hang dry whenever I can, but sometimes if I get behind on the wash it just takes too long and I fall back on the dryer.

 

I still use the dryer for jeans, sheets and towels, I don't like them to have to hang for more than a day to fully dry.

Edited July 19, 2009 by AuntieM

[Tap]

Other, I don't know if you can but since we are county, I can't imagine it would be a problem.

[Mommyof4ks]

We are not allowed to line dry here, but I am ok with that because at our old house I did not like to walk out my back door and see the neighbor's leopard undies hanging from the line lol.

[momtotkbb]

I didn't vote --bec one didn't actually fit. Line Drying is not allowed in our sub-division ----neighbor's even frowned when new people moved in a hung their pool towels out over the deck. I don't line dry bec we have allergies and asthma in our house. I do hang some items or hang to dry only items up to line dry in our laundry room, but I like the way things feel when they come out of the dryer.