Indoor clothes drying rack----need ideas here to make this work

[Ottakee]

I am interested in hanging at least some of our clothes to dry instead of using the dryer for everything as I think we could save quite a bit on electricity.

 

That said, our laundry room has JUST enough room in it for the washer and dryer, a walkway and the 2 baskets.  There is no room for a drying rack at all.  I was thinking about possibly putting up a hanging rack above the washer for shirts, etc. that go on hangers.  I could (but don't really want to) put a drying rack in the basement but the laundry is on the main floor which means hauling it back and forth.

 

I also wondered about just taking the laundry out of the washer and somehow letting it air dry for an hour or so and then putting it in the dryer.  Would that cut down my drying time at all?  

 

We live in the woods so hanging clothes outside is not the easiest as they get "stuff" all over them but that might work.  I have before hung stuff on my deck rails.

[Annie G]

Does your bathroom use a shower curtain rod? I pull my shower curtain back and hang clothes on hangers on my shower curtain. 

[MEmama]

Our drying rack is in our bedroom.

 

I line dry some stuff in the summer, but year round I use the rack for a lot of our clothes, especially athletic gear. Our washer/dryer are upstairs near the bedrooms so using the rack doesn't make for extra trips around the house for me, but it would be worthwhile regardless.

 

The rack is easy to move around. Sometimes in winter I'll move it downstairs in front of the stove. Really anywhere you have a couple extra square feet will work.

 

I like the idea of a wall rack too, if you have that space available.

[regentrude]

We are not exactly in the woods, but have a yard full of mature trees. During the few hours it takes laundry to dry, I have not had any problem with "stuff" getting on clothes. If I hang before work in the morning, clothes are dry by noon. If I hang on a dry day midday, it may only take two hours.

 

I use a foldable drying rack and hang my clothes outside on a patio on the south side of the house. This means I have to carry them in the basket from the washer to the basement and step outside on the patio, but the benefit is that I do not need to use the dryer at all, except during prolonged rainy periods. I try to wait doing laundry until the day is conducive to rack drying outside. In case of rain, the portable rack allows me to take the full laundry rack inside within 30 seconds, and it will then dry in the basement.

 

I do not think that short rack drying inside and then using the dryer gives any energy savings worth the extra effort.

 

 

[sarasue7272]

I have used a drying rack in the playroom overnight. I am not convinced it saves that much energy/money though.

[Ethel Mertz]

We just put our drying racks wherever we have some floor space. I've also been known to put the entire rack outside on our deck. In the winter, we put the drying rack near our fireplace.

[regentrude]

I have used a drying rack in the playroom overnight. I am not convinced it saves that much energy/money though.

 

You can easily find out how much energy you save.

A typical clothes dryer has around 3,000W.

A kWh of electricity costs $0.10 in my town (yours may be different).

Thus, running a 3kW dryer for one hour will need 3kWh and thus cost 30 cents.

 

How much energy you use total depends on how often and how long you would use the dryer.

 

For the dryer users: what are your averages? An hour per day?

[Desert Strawberry]

If it's chilly or damp in the house, you will need to have the racks near a fan, heater, fire, etc. In Louisiana, I put the racks in our room near a fan or heater depending on the season. Otherwise, they would not dry. 

I would hang outside and just shake everything out when you pull it off the line. Even if you get critters in the clothes, a good shaking will knock them out. Try not to leave them out overnight if you can. 

We saved $60 a month on electricity when we stopped using the dryer. Definitely worth it to us. 

[StephanieZ]

Seems like a drying rack in the master bedroom makes the most sense, assuming most of the laundry is from the master bedroom and/or the kids' rooms are nearby. That way you aren't making an extra trip somewhere. 

 

I have a 3ft hanging rod above my washer and dryer (cabinets on either side) that is super handy for hanging things, but I only hang dry delicates (which we do produce a lot of due to work out clothes), but anyway, if you have room to put up a closet-style hanging rod above the washer/dryer, that would give you loads of space. 

 

A nifty device I have that I got from my mom is a hanging thingy with a square, about 12 inches square, of clips to hang stuff off of. It's super handy for hang drying things that don't fit on hangars well and it is also very compact. I use it for running socks, swim skirts, running shorts or swim trunks, and even the occasional bra that I don't want to bother hanging on a hangar. 

 

Mine is pretty much like this one but mine only has clips around the perimeter (which is plenty unless you are drying socks or very small things). Mine isn't this exact one, though, and I have no idea where it came from, so do your own research for a good brand. 

 

http://www.amazon.com/Aojia-Hanger-Clothes-Drying-45x32x45cm/dp/B00SE0TPZ4/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1446945073&sr=8-15&keywords=drying+rack+clips

 

 

[Veritaserum]

I have two of these mounted on the wall of the laundry room (one above the other): http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90219297/

 

On the lower one, I hang hangers for drying shirts. On the upper one, I drape delicates or non-hanger items. I use the dryer for everything except for delicates, random items that can't go in the dryer, and dh's shirts (they shrink and don't fit anymore if they're dried given how tall he is). It's very dry where we are, so most things dry within 2-3 hours even indoors. If it's more humid where you are, I'm not sure hang drying would be worth the time and effort.

[sarasue7272]

Maybe I need to figure out how much laundry I actually do. My clothes dry in 30 min. But my dryer is 5400w. One load a day is only $8.10 per month. of course air drying is better for the clothes and the environment.

[Wabi Sabi]

Our dryer broke a few years ago over the winter and we had to wait until spring before we could get a new dryer moved into our basement due to snow/ice. I hung our clothes to dry during that time and did not experience a notable drop in our electric bill. For some reason, it even ruined some of our clothes. Despite being very careful with how they were hung to dry we found that the necks to our t-shirts got all funky and lost their shape. 

[bettyandbob]

I only stop using the dryer in summer. I put indoor drying racks on deck and a load of clothing frequently dries faster on the deck in summer than the dryer.

 

If you really want to dry things indoors, I'd set the racks up in the bathroom.

 

I have mine racks set up in my living room right now because five days a week I teach swimming and I need towels, bathing suits, wetsuits and rash guards to dry and be ready for the next day. No one really wants that in the living room. I will remove items, fold and store the rack when we have company. So, if you could put the racks in a public space and just fold and store them when you entertain.

[JFSinIL]

I dry stuff on hangers on the shower curtain rod in the bathroom, and a drying rack to lay sweaters on fits in a bedroom.  We also have wire shelves over the washer that can hold some hangers, too.

[KatieJ]

i have several wall mounted clothes racks I got on Amazon. Search for the Spectrum 35000 . It s cheap and holds lots of clothes. I have one over the washer and one over the dryer.

Others in,our neighborhood with the same laundry / half bath hung shower curtain rods across the width of the room from the soffit over the machines to the wall over the toilet. It works.

[Lucy the Valiant]

Just a tip, if you are calculating cost-benefit; you can also borrow / buy / (our library checks them out) a Kill-A-Watt. It's a device that plugs into your wall, and then your device (dryer / TV / whatever) plugs into the front of *it.* It measures precisely how much energy is being consumed by that exact machine for that exact period of time. 

 

It was both entertaining and very eye-opening to me.

[Ottakee]

I had not thought of the drying rack on the deck.  We have a nice large deck that might work.............as long as the chickens aren't loose :-)

 

[Amira]

An hour wouldn't make a difference unless it is reasonably hot and dry.

 

If I have any outside space at all, I put the racks outside and move them inside if it's soggy or at night.  If there's no room outside, hanging a load to dry overnight will keep the racks out of your way in the day.  I've exclusively line dried (as in we didn't own a dryer) in places like Seattle without too much trouble.

 

Line drying always saves us a lot of money no matter where we've lived.  It's a noticeable difference.

[kiwik]

We always put them in the living room overnight as it was the only room that was heated.

[Carrie12345]

Before we replaced our broken dryer, I hung a lot on the shower curtains and put the drying rack in the living room as-needed.

If I were to use the dryer but wanted to cut down, I'd tumble first then finish with air drying.

But we didn't really save any noticeable money on our electric bill.  Not enough to stick to hanging once we were able to afford a new dryer!

[kewb]

I find it interesting that some of you experienced no noticeable utility savings. My bill dropped about $20 per month when I switched to mostly line drying.

To the op, I use a couple of rolling garment racks to dry clothes. Wheel them where it is sunny outside and inside where ever I have space at the time.

I do miss the kids swing set. I used to use the monkey bars to hang all the clothes.

[Carrie12345]

I find it interesting that some of you experienced no noticeable utility savings. My bill dropped about $20 per month when I switched to mostly line drying.

To the op, I use a couple of rolling garment racks to dry clothes. Wheel them where it is sunny outside and inside where ever I have space at the time.

I do miss the kids swing set. I used to use the monkey bars to hang all the clothes.

 

For me, it may have just been a matter of scale.  We're on a budgeted bill, so we don't notice small month to month changes.  With our bills coming in between $275 and $350 (adjusted quarterly,) $20 wouldn't jump out at me.

IIRC, it was also around the time PA deregulated energy, so it's entirely possible rate changes absorbed any small difference.

[Nan in Mass]

I have wooden folding drying racks that I move in and out, depending on the weather. I live in the woods and yes, stuff gets on the clothes, but a quick shake when I fold them solves that problem. I put the racks on the deck or wherever inside is convenient, depending on who is sleeping at home. (We put a bunk and desk in the corner of the sunporch where my drying racks and launldry baskets used to live.) i use the drier for my husband,s underwear and socks because he complained that it didn,t shrink back to its original shape when I line dried it. Since we started homeschooling, it has lived in its own laundry basket when it is clean and my husband fishes for what he wants. The rest of our stuff I dry on racks, or on the laundry line, if I am going to be home in midafternoon to get it off before it gets damp again. I drape sheets over the wrack of clothes. Amazingly, everything dries that way. It just takes more like 24 hrs. rather than the 8 or 12 a normal indoor drying takes. Unless I put the rack in front of the stove in the winter. After a little while, you get used to how everything fits on the rack and it doesn,t feel like it takes any longer to use a rack than it does to throw everything in the drier.

 

Nan

[mumto2]

I prefer to line dry but when the weather is bad (or things aren't completely dry) I use several drying racks. I set up in the living room at bedtime with a dehumidifier and fan. The majority of the laundry is dry in the morning. I keep an IKEA tower type rack in the corner of our bedroom for anything that is still damp the next day. In an emergency I have a rack that fits in our bathtub.....also use this rack for hand laundry.

[happi duck]

Maybe those drying racks that use a pulley and hang near the ceiling would work in your laundry room.

[prairiewindmomma]

I'd look at these designs and see if any would work:

 

english style airers

wall-mounted racks that fold back into place

retractable indoor lines

hangers on the shower rod (if it's braced to hold the weight)

 

 

For the amount of laundry we do, we go through an inordinate amount of wooden drying racks to keep everything going.  I have pegged out clothes, but given our allergies and the time suck hanging out laundry is, I generally just use our electric dryer.

 

 

 

[Prairie~Phlox]

I have hung stuff in the winter as well, and my bill didn't change that significant of an amount to make it worth it to me.

 

[Susan C.]

I have open shelving in my laundry room/pantry that I can get a load of hanging clothes drying on. One shelf runs the length of the closet about a foot from the ceiling so it can accommodate jeans/pants, the other is above the washer and dryer, high enough that shirts can hang from. I dry clothes first, then remove hot and wet.  I am the great escape artist of ironing. If I run out of room, I put hangers on door frames all throughout the house, clear space in closets to finish drying, put drying racks in living area along walls, or all of the above.

[SporkUK]

We have a tall, thin drying rack. My partner made it after we got fed up of the space and lack of sturdiness of typical drying racks.

 

He took the shelves off of our old one and with fixed them to two long bits of wood going up. It's designed in such a way that during the winter we can fit a convection heater underneath the shelves. 

[TammyS]

My first question is....what kind of heat do you have?  I have been drying clothes (indoors and out) for 20 years, and I can tell you this makes a difference.  If your heat is a "dry" type of heat, then this is easy.  Wash a load (or two if you have enough racks, 1 large load needs 2 good sized racks to dry properly) before you go to bed.  Set up the racks over/near your heater vents and hang the clothes.  They will be dry when you get up in the morning (bonus: you will get some much needed humidity in your dry heat house).  You can immediately fold them and put them away.  Get into the habit of a load every night and you'll never get behind. 

 

If you have non-dry heat: reconsider drying on racks.  You are going to add a LOT of humidity to your house.  Maybe too much (and end up with mold).  When we moved 2 years ago I went from dry (oil burning furnace) to non-dry (electric base board).  I now hang my clothes outside, even in winter (mid-atlantic, fairly mild winters with highs often in the 40s-50s), because drying them indoors just caused there to be too much moisture in my house. 

 

If you have non-dry heat and can't hang outdoors, using the dryer may be money well spent to keep your home from becoming too humid.  DO feel free to experiment.  A short period of excess humidity isn't going to do any harm while you are figuring it out.

[Veritaserum]

I find it interesting that some of you experienced no noticeable utility savings. My bill dropped about $20 per month when I switched to mostly line drying.

To the op, I use a couple of rolling garment racks to dry clothes. Wheel them where it is sunny outside and inside where ever I have space at the time.

I do miss the kids swing set. I used to use the monkey bars to hang all the clothes.

 

I have a natural gas dryer. If it were electric, we'd probably see more of a difference.

[Liz CA]

http://non-electric.lehmans.com/hardware/Wooden-Clothes-Drying-Rack

 

Here are a variety of sizes and configurations. I had the wooden one for year until I left in on a "covered" patio that leaked heavily over a weekend storm while we were gone. Right after that ds let a chicken roost on one of the rungs and you may know what chickens do when they roost. It dripped all the way to the bottom rung. After that ds disassembled it and used the wooden dowels to carve little slits into the end and use it for a bow and arrow.

 

You can see they are well worth the money for versatile use! :laugh: :laugh:

[lllll]

nm

Edited December 2, 2015 by ^ 022

[matrips]

Is it possible to string up a clothesline in the laundry room? Have a hook at either end on the wall or from the ceiling, and just loop the rope up when you need it? And then take the line down from one end when you don't? It's what I plan to do with our laundry room.

[Holly]

Our previous house had clotheslines running across the basement, but that meant hauling clothes downstairs, so I never used it...not to mention my dust allergies that flared up when I set foot in the basement.   We had a railing that went across our upstairs hallway (the stairs were open) and I often hung clothes or blankets there to dry.

 

We have a collapsible drying rack, and empty closet, and I often hang things from the shower.  I don't hang everything though...mostly DH's shirts since he's afraid of them shrinking.   ;)

[Bluegoat]

I no longer have a drier.  I dry outside, or inside on some lines and a rack.  My dh put the lines up in my laundry room, but you can also get racks.

 

After I got rid of the drier, it saved us about $30 a power bill.

 

How long it takes indoors depends on the time of year.  It's pretty quick in winter, less than an hour.  Spring is the worst, lots of rain but the furnace isn't on - jeans and towels take forever.