Boring! Is it cheaper to dry at home or laundrette?

[Mybloodycat]

Boring I know, but I have an enormous load of towels/bedding I need to wash and dry. It can’t go outside due to the weather and I can’t dry it indoors as it’s averaging about 3 days to do normal drying and this will be quite a lot so I haven’t even got the space for it. The bedding is fleece so it’s thick.

I do have a tumble dryer, but it’s in the freezing lean-to, so virtually outdoors, it’s a heat pump one and they do not cope well with outbuildings at all, but likewise it can’t fit in the house (bought when I had a different house) so I imagine it won’t work as well as it should although they are cheaper to run.

Launderette is £1 for 7 minutes, but I’m assuming I can literally take everything and shove it in there and I figure they are quite a bit hotter so maybe 30 mins or so, so about £5?

Is it worth the arse ache/cost to do it that way? I always remember going with my mum to the launderette when the machine would break and it was just hours and miserable.

Also, if I do go am I better off just washing it all there as well? It’s going to be a good two or 3 large (8kg) loads.

Will their dryer shrink all the clothes? I know they are considerably hotter???

Hi I have been doing this. We don’t have a dryer but due to wanting to do a couple of big loads inc sheets and towels I took everything to the launderette where they have a giant washer. It cost about £8. The dryer for 24 mins was £3. Again chucked everything in. Everything came out dry and soft. And it was nice and warm in there too so I took my laptop and worked for a couple of hours. No brainer

Stupid question, but if I wash it there do I take my washing liquid and fabric conditioner or are they funny about all that?

£1 for 7 mins!!! My tumble drier is 55p an hour. It dries a full load in 40mins

they are expensive but use big drums and are a lot more powerful than home dryers.

the washers are expensive as well. last time I paid 7£ for one load.

usually you take your own detergent. there might be instructions like only putting powder into the drum and not the dispenser.

I think £1 for 7 mins is pretty standard for a laundrette tumble. Bear in mind they dry much quicker than a domestic tumble and fit a lot more in.

I took some stuff to the laundrette near us recently as we have had plumbing issues - £4 for a normal washer and £5 for the big one. Although bear in mind the smaller washer fit twice as many towels in as my washer at home and the bigger one easily 3-4 times as big. Then the spinner was 20p per cycle.
Tumble was as above.

I did one £5 wash, two £4 washes, three spin cycles and probably spent about another £5 on the tumble dryers. Took me about 2 hrs on a Saturday morning which was much preferable to a whole weekend getting it all washed and dried at home especially with the price of heating at the moment (we don't have a tumble dryer at home just dehumidifier).

Bear in mind though they usually say people who are washing as well get first dibs on dryers when it's busy so you may have to queue.

Oh and if you want to you can select a lower heat on tumble dryer - I didn't as mine was all bedsheets and towels. It's not cheaper for the lower heat! But wouldn't put my clothes in that hot apart from maybe socks!

I take my bedding to the launderette quite often. It’s cheaper and saves time. Mine takes about 15-20 mins in their dryer for two sets of king size bedding (sheets, duvet covers and pillowcases) and a couple of towels. I find it quite soothing sitting there with a book and a brew while it dries.

Yeah, I’m debating the fact I have 3 8kg loads in total, but I could take all the clothes out and wash them here then do one big wash of towels and bedding, so one machine to wash and one to dry it all.

My heat pump dryer usually takes 3 hours for a load as they dry on a lower heat for longer, but in this weather it will struggle to dry it properly, it has, in the past taken hours to get two heavy loads dry.

I’m just sold one the idea of one giant machine of washing followed by one giant machine of drying, but on the same token I’m not so sold on getting there and nothing being free, or doing the washing and no dryers being free and two hours becoming four etc.

I’m probably overthinking it, but often I do things to make my life easier and then it’s actually harder and longer than I expected

I’ve never had a problem with having to wait, although it has been busier lately. Apparently lots of people have cottoned on to it being cheaper!
All you can do is try, otherwise you’ll forever be wondering…

I combine it with other errands too but that depends on what else is nearby. For me:
Pop wash in, nip to post office, pop back and put it in the dryer, nip to shop for bread milk and a magazine etc..

Yeah I can time it with doing my food shop.

Is it really expensive to leave it with them to do? I am just thinking how this will go with the kids in tow (single parent) and how to just make this easier as I’m not going to lie, it’s all hard going at the moment and 60 billion tons of washing isn’t helping