Exactly HOW does one LINE-DRY one's clothes?

[Heather in Neverland]

So, the very first thing I bought when I moved here is a dryer. The locals all line dry their clothes but I was not prepared to do that just yet.

 

Flash forward three years... Our electric bill is RIDICULOUS so I am trying to cut back somewhere. So I thought, OK, what if I only dried our clothes in the dryer but I line dry all our towels. That will cut back a little. So this weekend I put my towels on the line to dry for the first time in my life.

 

THEY DRIED STIFF AS A BOARD.

 

How are we supposed to use them like that? A lady at work said to put them in the drier to fluff them out. :001_huh: I thought the point was to not use the dryer.

 

So all you line-dryers out there, I need some tips!! But go easy on this city girl.

 

.

[KungFuPanda]

So, the very first thing I bought when I moved here is a dryer. The locals all line dry their clothes but I was not prepared to do that just yet.

 

Flash forward three years... Our electric bill is RIDICULOUS so I am trying to cut back somewhere. So I thought, OK, what if I only dried our clothes in the dryer but I line dry all our towels. That will cut back a little. So this weekend I put my towels on the line to dry for the first time in my life.

 

THEY DRIED STIFF AS A BOARD.

 

How are we supposed to use them like that? A lady at work said to put them in the drier to fluff them out. :001_huh: I thought the point was to not use the dryer.

 

So all you line-dryers out there, I need some tips!! But go easy on this city girl.

 

.

 

You did it backwards! Line dry the clothes and put the towels in the dryer. :-)

[lmrich]

Just to fluff them up takes a fraction of the time - 10 minutes max. I am not an expert - just lived without a dryer for a month. I don't know how you line dry where it so humid.

[delaney]

white vinegar in the rinse and the towels will be soft. You can also line dry 75% of the way and then fluff. I fluff all of my clothes with a dryer sheet to make them softer.

[Heather in Neverland]

You did it backwards! Line dry the clothes and put the towels in the dryer. :-)

 

Ohhhhh.....

 

Ok, so how do you keep your clothes from getting all misshapen when you line dry them? Don't they turn out stiff as well? Are there some items or fabrics that line dry better than others?

 

I am such a newbie at this. :tongue_smilie:

[Amira]

It can help a little to have a fan blowing on the towels while they're drying.

 

We've gotten used to the stiffness. There haven't been dryers in some of the places we've lived, and now I never use one in the US. Stiff towels feel clean to me and soft ones feel dirty. :)

[NatashainDFW]

Yep you did do it backwards! Although we do line dry towels sometimes. I was the laundry and use a fabric softner and then seperate out the wet underwear and socks. I throw those items into the dryer to wait on my second load (we only have two loads a week) and hang out the rest of the clothes. Once the second load is done my first load is typically dry so I separate the socks and undies out of the second load throw those in with the wet from the first load and start the dryer, take two baskets outside, pull all the dry clothes off the line, put the wet clothes up and come inside for about an hour to get everything that is dry folded and put away.

 

It is really hot so there have been times I have intentionally waited for a rain day to do laundry that way I have an excuse to use the dryer lol.

[Heather in Neverland]

Just to fluff them up takes a fraction of the time - 10 minutes max. I am not an expert - just lived without a dryer for a month. I don't know how you line dry where it so humid.

 

Yeah the humidity makes the process a lot longer. Then we are about to hit rainy season which means random monsoons almost daily and you have to run out and grab the laundry off the line...

 

Can you tell I am trying to talk myself out of it. :D

 

I want to do it to save money but I did not realize it was this complicated!

[Susan in KY]

It can help a little to have a fan blowing on the towels while they're drying.

 

We've gotten used to the stiffness. There haven't been dryers in some of the places we've lived, and now I never use one in the US. Stiff towels feel clean to me and soft ones feel dirty. :)

:iagree: Love me a good, stiff towel! :)

[Heather in Neverland]

It can help a little to have a fan blowing on the towels while they're drying.

 

We've gotten used to the stiffness. There haven't been dryers in some of the places we've lived, and now I never use one in the US. Stiff towels feel clean to me and soft ones feel dirty. :)

 

Completely off topic... How did I miss that you moved back to the states??? Do you plan to stay for a while or will you be going back to Asia. Any desire to come out our way? :D

[AdventureMoms]

Some stiffness is normal and just a part of the package, IME. Everything feels fine about 30 seconds after you put it on, or after the first dry for towels. However, some things do help.

 

Make sure your detergent is really rinsing clean. Use vinegar in the rinse, or an extra rinse, or a clean-rinsing detergent.

Make sure that there is air movement while the clothes dry. Wind if you dry outdoors or a fan if you dry indoors. This will also reduce dry time a LOT.

Give each item a good shake before you hang it. No idea why this works but it does.

Give it another shake while you take it down.

 

Good luck.

[Mimm]

It can help a little to have a fan blowing on the towels while they're drying.

 

We've gotten used to the stiffness. There haven't been dryers in some of the places we've lived, and now I never use one in the US. Stiff towels feel clean to me and soft ones feel dirty. :)

 

A fan would also use electricity. :p

 

We line dried everything for a while when I was a child. You will get used to certain things being a bit stiffer than they would be if they were dried in the dryer. You can fluff, or just deal with it. Towels are probably the last thing I would start to line dry. Sheets and thin fabrics like that are easier to line dry if I remember correctly. Jeans can be really tough to get into. When hanging pants and shirts, just try to make sure they are hung in such a way that they will be as normally-shaped as possible. :)

[mom2jjka]

We've gotten used to the stiffness. There haven't been dryers in some of the places we've lived, and now I never use one in the US. Stiff towels feel clean to me and soft ones feel dirty. :)

 

Oooh - I love crunchy line-dried clothes and towels! They smell so good, and feel so fresh. I hate when winter hits and we have to start using our dryer again.

 

(One word of caution...just make sure you don't have a lot of birds nearby - had to rewash a few loads at our old house :glare:)

[kb44]

Line dried equals stiff, no way around it. Plus the allergens in the clothes, are another reason why I don't line dry. Now, my MIL loves the feel of line dried and has no allergies. I have a friend who hangs all her clothes on hangers to dry, inside and then irons EVERYTHING. I'm sticking with the dryer, LOL!

[Retired]

well I live in Alabama with the high humidity but no monsoons:tongue_smilie:

 

hanging laundry for those without dryers.

 

I hang out everything under clothes, towels etc.

 

liquid Fabric softener for the wash (if you can get it in Malaysia)

hang clothes inside out to prevent fading and to make sure you don't bring biting insects in (my mom did this with yellow jackets when I was young, my sister was stung several times) My mom came from the city to the poor country so she made all kinds of mistakes.

 

hang shirts upside down from the tales (you will get smooth, wrinkle free and soft clothes

 

hang pants right side up at the waist or upside down doesn't matter

 

if you live in a high humidly the clothes line must be in full sun. My clothes dry in about 1 hour on less humid days but can take 4 hours on moist days.

 

Once you get use to your weather and stuff you will know exactly when to hang and get clothes off the line (and miss the rain)

 

My mom was the type that hung the clothes on the line and left them out all day. She was a SHAM and hated her life in the country

 

My MIL did the same (she would run the wash before bed) and get up at 4:30 and hang out clothes before leaving for work.

 

I grew up without washer and dryer. We would go to the laundry mat and then bring the wet stuff home and hang.

 

I can tell you my MIL has never used any type of fabric softer nor my mom but my dh and I are spoiled and like soft clothes:D

Edited August 13, 2012 by Cafelattee

[stripe]

Ok, so how do you keep your clothes from getting all misshapen when you line dry them?

My sisters in law very carefully arrange them on the line so they dry nicely. In other words, pay attention to how you put them there, because that's how they'll dry.

 

I hate air dried towels too. But maybe buy some cheap, thin local towels and then you won't have that problem! ;) heh

 

I like air drying thin cotton. Stretchy knits eventually stretch out, and you need to dry them in the dryer to get them to snap back again.

 

A fan would also use electricity. :p

But a clothes dryer is one of the biggest energy hogs in the house, so a fan would still yield a net savings!

[Cinder]

Ok, so how do you keep your clothes from getting all misshapen when you line dry them?

 

When I was a kid it was one of my jobs to hang the laundry out. Shorts & pants were hung by the waist--one pin each side, sometimes an extra one in the middle for jeans. Pin only the back side of the waist so the front half is loose for better air circulation. Tshirts were hung by the waist with an inch or two of the bottom flipped over the line--one pin each side. Button-down shirts were hung similarly with the two fronts together and pinned to the line. Towels were hung with a pin at each end and usually overlapped with the next towel to save pins and space. Underwear was hung out like shorts--one pin each side. Yeah, the stiffness goes away pretty quickly. I wish we could hang out laundry here. Not allowed; HOA rules. :glare: Enjoy your new adventure!

[Carol in Cal.]

I really like the stiffness of line dried towels. And the crispness of line dried sheets, along with the smell of fresh air, is lovely.

 

There are a few other tricks with line drying.

 

For t shirts, spread them out and use two pins per shoulder to have them dry unwrinkled.

 

For jeans, spread the legs out so that they don't take forever to dry from having so many layers touching.

 

You have to finish perma pressed shirts and blouses in the drier. There is no way around this. (Or iron them. Horrors.)

[TammyinTN]

When we lived in Germany we had several of these to dry our clothes on. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/images/products/frost-drying-rack__56894_PE162330_S4.jpg I would wash my clothing and add a little downy to make them soft and then hang them. Shirts were on racks and pants over the rack. Sheets I did dry in my drier and towels went on the rack. I usually keep laundry done each day and that made it easy space wise.

 

Also a fan going on low helps to speed things along. :)

[Amira]

Completely off topic... How did I miss that you moved back to the states??? Do you plan to stay for a while or will you be going back to Asia. Any desire to come out our way? :D

 

I wish we had definite plans to go back to Asia, any part of it. But we'll be in the US for at least a year. After that, I hope we're overseas again as soon as possible.

[Jpoy85]

and dont forget to add Lemon Juice on any stains! The sun and lemon will help get the stains out!

[Lara in Colo]

Leave socks and underware in the dryer (do not dry yet)

 

Line dry the clothes to mostly dry (90-95%)

 

put in dryer with others.

 

Will take about 1/3 normal time (2/3 savings!!)

 

Lara

[LarlaB]

You did it backwards! Line dry the clothes and put the towels in the dryer. :-)

 

:iagree:

 

Line dry all clothes, and either partially dry towels on line/rack, then finish/fluff in dryer (you can fluff w/ low or no heat and it does a great job)

 

I use a dryer rack - otherwise, would simply fold clothes over the line....

[Baseball mom]

I love clothes and towels hung out. I have a line and try to use it alot but this summer I didn't get to. (to much pollen & dust). And durning the winter and this summer I used indoor racks. Still had to use the dryer but not as much as I would.

 

Wooden drying rack

 

Hanging rack

 

Both of these are super simple to set up and take down.

 

With the hanging rack I use regular hangers and those clip hangers that pants come on at the store. I clip pants and some shirts to them and hang.

 

Towels can be hung over or clipped (using clip hangers or clothes pins) to hangers and hung to dry.

 

Alot of my kids shorts and shirts are those dri weave or polyester and they will dry in a few hours in the house on the drying rack.

[Colleen in NS]

So this weekend I put my towels on the line to dry for the first time in my life.

 

THEY DRIED STIFF AS A BOARD.

 

How are we supposed to use them like that?

 

If you are a multiple-use-of-towel-before-washing kind of family, the towel will unstiffen after the first use. Besides, the stiff towels do a better job of absorbing water after a shower, esp. if you *don't* use fabric softener.

 

But a clothes dryer is one of the biggest energy hogs in the house, so a fan would still yield a net savings!

 

:iagree: and I'm glad Amira mentioned that. I used to rack-dry my laundry in the winter, by putting the gull-wing rack over a forced hot air duct. But we don't have forced air heating in this house. I've tried rack-drying in our warm living room, but it took too long and the clothes would start to stink. But a fan would work and still save money over the winter! Thanks, Amira!

[Unicorn.]

You did it backwards! Line dry the clothes and put the towels in the dryer. :-)

 

:iagree: Using a fabric softener can help, but really, don't line dry towels all the way.

[littlebug42]

I am no help. I really hate line dried clothes and towels. Now, I can't do it anyway because when I have tried to dry comforters, etc outside, dd8 has serious allergic issues. So, hooray for me, no line drying.

[2_girls_mommy]

In the old days, they may have ironed all of their towels and clothes before putting them away. For me, we have adjusted to stiff towels and jeans. Like others said they feel clean.

 

My grandmother always told me to put them in the dryer for a few minutes to fluff them, but I have never bothered. I have gotten used to them that way.

 

I do hang all shirts upside down (not by the shoulders) so that you don't get the stretched out shoulders.

 

I did find that I saved close to $50 a month on my elec. bill when I did all line drying one month. Now I hang dry a lot, but not all to cut back.

[2_girls_mommy]

For the allergy people: I have 2 in the family with allergies. I hang their clothes inside the house. I have had dh hang a line (using zip cords) over my washer and dryer and I hang theirs in doors and my clothes and one dd's (the one without allergies) outdoors. I can do her sheets out doors and her beach towel, etc. The rest go in the dryer or hang indoors.

[Amira]

:iagree: and I'm glad Amira mentioned that. I used to rack-dry my laundry in the winter, by putting the gull-wing rack over a forced hot air duct. But we don't have forced air heating in this house. I've tried rack-drying in our warm living room, but it took too long and the clothes would start to stink. But a fan would work and still save money over the winter! Thanks, Amira!

 

You're welcome. :001_smile: That was a life saver when we were living in Seattle and our ducts were in the ceiling.

[KatieJ]

I haven't read the other posts so forgive me if this is repetitous.

 

For almost 20 years I hung my clothes to dry.

I would usually do a big wash day,often even in the evening. I would pull small things out of each load (Wash clothes, socks, underwear maybe) and dry all those in one load.

 

When hanging up clothes, be sure to shake them hard to help with the wrinkles. I didn't mind towels on the clothes line, however, just a couple minutes in the dryer softens pretty much anything after it's been dried on the line.

 

I would hang like things together and fold as I took it off the line.

Example, DD#1's clothes would get hung together, bath towels together, kitchen towels together. Simplifies the putting it all away process afterwards.

 

I miss my clothes lines.

[Mandy in TN]

I dry towels, jeans, socks, and male undies in the drier. The rest I hang on hangers and dry them inside. I don't think that they feel stiff, but they are not squishy like they would be if they had been in the drier.

 

Sometimes in winter I use a little fabric softner to eliminate static, but I don't use it regularly and never on towels. Towels just are not absorbant how I like them if they are slimey with fabric softner.

 

Mandy

[Laura Corin]

Ohhhhh.....

 

Ok, so how do you keep your clothes from getting all misshapen when you line dry them? Don't they turn out stiff as well? Are there some items or fabrics that line dry better than others?

 

I am such a newbie at this. :tongue_smilie:

 

Just shake them out. I agree though: towels are much nicer if they go in the dryer for a bit. I grew up with stiff towels (no tumble drier) and I don't have any nostalgia for them.

 

Laura

[Heather in Neverland]

Thanks for all the great tips! I am not sure the rainy season was the best time to take this on but I will give it a shot! :D

[Susan C.]

I don't know your house set up, but I had dh put shelves in the laundry room/pantry that clothes could be hung from. I dry for about 5 minutes, then pull everything (except jeans, socks and towels) out and hang them "hot and wet."

[HappyCrazyMama]

Oooh - I love crunchy line-dried clothes and towels! They smell so good, and feel so fresh. I hate when winter hits and we have to start using our dryer again.

 

(One word of caution...just make sure you don't have a lot of birds nearby - had to rewash a few loads at our old house :glare:)

:iagree: I have itchy skin and I love a good stiff towel. I'm so used to it that I don't like soft fluffy towels anymore, they don't feel near as absorbent and almost slimy, lol.

[CheerioKid]

Crunchy towels! I love crunchy towels and blue jeans.

 

:iagree: Love me a good, stiff towel! :)

[Farrar]

Heather, when I lived in southern China, the clothes washer wrung the bejeezus out of the clothes. They came out much dryer than my washer here in the states. It made them easier to deal with - even in the rainy season. Actually, what am I talking about, even the dry season was 99% humidity all the time, just without the relief of rain.

[finlee@home]

We've been married 25 years and this is EXACTLY how I do it. Winter and summer!! I never use the drier, unless it is an emergency!!

 

Always hang "bottoms" (shorts, pants, undies) by the top and 'tops" by the bottom. :D

 

When I was a kid it was one of my jobs to hang the laundry out. Shorts & pants were hung by the waist--one pin each side, sometimes an extra one in the middle for jeans. Pin only the back side of the waist so the front half is loose for better air circulation. Tshirts were hung by the waist with an inch or two of the bottom flipped over the line--one pin each side. Button-down shirts were hung similarly with the two fronts together and pinned to the line. Towels were hung with a pin at each end and usually overlapped with the next towel to save pins and space. Underwear was hung out like shorts--one pin each side. Yeah, the stiffness goes away pretty quickly. I wish we could hang out laundry here. Not allowed; HOA rules. :glare: Enjoy your new adventure!

[NittanyJen]

I line dry as much as humanly possible. We all have severe pollen allergies, but line-dried clothes smell soooooo good! I never use fabric softener; 1 heaping tablespoon of baking soda in the tub before adding the laundry will soften those clothes, and as others have mentioned, just put them on and they cease to feel stiff. You can shake out the pollen if you must with 5 min air fluff in the dryer.

 

Just fold & hang as you take them off the line and generally no ironing is necessary for most clothes.

 

It has been over 100 here several times this summer, and I cannot imagine wasting all that sun and taxing my A/C unnecessarily by running the dryer in his weather!

[annandatje]

So, the very first thing I bought when I moved here is a dryer. The locals all line dry their clothes but I was not prepared to do that just yet.

 

Flash forward three years... Our electric bill is RIDICULOUS so I am trying to cut back somewhere. So I thought, OK, what if I only dried our clothes in the dryer but I line dry all our towels. That will cut back a little. So this weekend I put my towels on the line to dry for the first time in my life.

 

THEY DRIED STIFF AS A BOARD.

 

How are we supposed to use them like that? A lady at work said to put them in the drier to fluff them out. :001_huh: I thought the point was to not use the dryer.

 

So all you line-dryers out there, I need some tips!! But go easy on this city girl.

 

.

 

We are accustomed to the stiff linens. They soften up after you use them.

[krisperry]

Clothespin holder (free, made from gallon milk jug). I have a ton of laundry so I tend to want multiple holders. I like these ones the best out of all that I have tried. My grandmother lined hers with fabric and hot glue and has had them for a LONG time.

 

http://thehappyhousewife.com/home-management/diy-clothes-pin-holder/

[momacacia]

I use these puppies here: http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=17244361

after line drying. 10-15 min in dryer, everything gets steamed and if I hang shirts (not dress, but casual things) right away, they look good. Love it!

[elfgivas]

 

hanging laundry for those without dryers.

 

I hang out everything under clothes, towels etc.

 

liquid Fabric softener for the wash

hang clothes inside out to prevent fading and to make sure you don't bring biting insects in (my mom did this with yellow jackets when I was young, my sister was stung several times)

 

hang shirts upside down from the tales (you will get smooth, wrinkle free and soft clothes

 

hang pants right side up at the waist or upside down doesn't matter

 

if you live in a high humidly the clothes line must be in full sun. My clothes dry in about 1 hour on less humid days but can take 4 hours on moist days.

 

Once you get use to your weather and stuff you will know exactly when to hang and get clothes off the line (and miss the rain)

 

 

:iagree: these are all things we do here in SoCal, and did in Ontario, Canada, and Lahr, Germany, and Shrivenham, England.

 

i hang tshirts and dresses on plastic hangers, and they go straight from hanging on a door frame (where there is air movement) to the closet. sweaters get shaped correctly, and laid on the top of the indoor drying rack. undies and socks go on the indoor rack, as its faster and easier.

 

the fabric softener in the wash water is crucial.... as is not using too much detergent.

 

after a few weeks, your expectations will have shifted, and you'll come to like it. :001_smile:. our clothes last longer this way, too, so it is a double win: a lower electricity bill and fewer new jeans etc to buy.

 

have fun!

ann

[Kelly1730]

You did it backwards! Line dry the clothes and put the towels in the dryer. :-)

 

:iagree: I don't line dry our clothing anymore but when I did, I always did the towels and whites (who has the time or inclination to hang up 9,000 white socks on a line? Not me.) in the dryer and most of the rest on the line. I still put some of my tops on a hanger and let them air dry but that's all.