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Original poster

What's best - heat pump or condenser tumble dryer?

45 replies

TotalOverhaul · 08/11/2023 09:33

Would love to hear people's experiences of whether a heat pump or condenser dryer is better. Can't plumb one in. Always had a condenser dryer which is very good at drying clothes completely and very easy to clean but have heard that heat pump ones are more eco and quieter. But do clothes get bone dry?

I'd love recommendations on brands or where to buy from. I'd planned on going to John Lewis but some recent threads on here about how rubbish their customer service is now have put me off.

-

If you’re short on time, here’s a summary of the best tumble dryers Mumsnetters are recommending on this thread:

Best budget tumble dryer brand: Beko
Beko B5T4923IW 9KG Heat Pump Tumble Dryer, £469
Beko DTLCE70051W 7kg Freestanding Condenser Tumble Dryer, £239

Best tumble dryer brand overall: Bosch
Bosch Series 6 WQG24509GB Heat Pump Tumble Dryer, £699
Bosch WPG23108GB Series 6 Condenser Tumble Dryer, £599

Best premium tumble dryer brand: Miele
Miele TEF765WP Freestanding Heat Pump Tumble Dryer, £1,099

For a deeper dive into the top tumble dryers for all budgets, take a look at our round-ups of the best tumble dryers, the best heat pump tumble dryers, the best condenser tumble dryers and the best vented tumble dryers.

OP posts:
Original poster
TotalOverhaul · 08/11/2023 10:09

Anyone?

Is chat the wrong place for this?

OP posts:
Frosty1000 · 08/11/2023 10:16

We have a candy heat pump - bought it as it was economical to run and kinder to clothes. No shrinkage etc.

Happy with it.

dylanschicken · 08/11/2023 10:19

I considered heat pump when ours needed replacing but was put off by so many reports of them taking ages to dry a load of washing. I went for another condenser.

lovetosup · 08/11/2023 10:20

I got a heat pump one and returned it as it was too slow at drying things

Tittyfilarious81 · 08/11/2023 10:22

I think it depends where it's going to be , I have a condenser and it's in the garage, I think I read that heat pump dryers should not be outside .

user1471505356 · 08/11/2023 10:43

Mine is in an outside heat free utility appears to work OK but have it only a few weeks.

Kpo58 · 08/11/2023 11:09

I bought a vented tumble dryer as I needed it to go in the garage without having to connect it to a pipe to drain the water from.

Condenser dryers apparently have to be in a room no colder than 5°C and Heat pumps can't be in a room colder than 10°C.

RustyBear · 08/11/2023 11:25

Heat pump dryers may take a bit longer to dry, but they use so much less electricity per hour that it means they can save up to £100 a year on electricity.
We have an LG heat pump, and though the standard cotton programme always says 2 ½ hours when it starts, the sensors adjust as it dries and never actually takes that long - generally it’s about 90-100 minutes.

hopeishere · 08/11/2023 11:26

We got a condenser as a friend said trying to get spares to repair it was hard.

Original poster
TotalOverhaul · 08/11/2023 12:35

This is so helpful, everyone. Thank you so much. It will be in a kitchen, open plan to the living room, but tbh the whole flat is SO bloody noisy with extractor fans that growl for bloody hours if you so much as open the bathroom door.

The most important thing is that it dries clothes properly and reasonably quickly. Think, from what you have all said, that I'll go for another condenser.

Really helpful replies. Thank you all!

OP posts:
Original poster
TotalOverhaul · 08/11/2023 12:36

lovetosup · 08/11/2023 10:20

I got a heat pump one and returned it as it was too slow at drying things

which brand was this?

OP posts:
Original poster
TotalOverhaul · 08/11/2023 12:37

RustyBear · 08/11/2023 11:25

Heat pump dryers may take a bit longer to dry, but they use so much less electricity per hour that it means they can save up to £100 a year on electricity.
We have an LG heat pump, and though the standard cotton programme always says 2 ½ hours when it starts, the sensors adjust as it dries and never actually takes that long - generally it’s about 90-100 minutes.

Ooh, now I'm dithering. That's quite a saving. And 90 mins is not so long. Condensers take that long too. Which LG model did you go for? I like the sound of that one.

OP posts:
TammyJones · 08/11/2023 12:38

Love our Bosch condenser

yummyscummymummy01 · 08/11/2023 12:39

We have a Miele heat pump. It's not quick but we've never noticed it make a big impact on our electric bills and the clothes come out beautifully. It's also 5 years old and we've had no issues.

Geneticsbunny · 08/11/2023 12:59

We got a heat pump earlier this year because I worked out that each load would cost half as much as a condenser dryer. It does take longer but we use it a lot so it will have paid for itself within about 3 years.

Caspianberg · 08/11/2023 13:09

We have an AEG heat pump.
Its excellent. We have a holiday let and if I’m washing laundry from it I can do four full single beds (or 2 super king), plus 8 towels in an afternoon. Like someone else said if I just put say towels in it might say 2.5 hours, but then it’s done after about 50 mins.
Doesn’t seem to add much to electricity bill either

246810k · 08/11/2023 13:21

We got rid of our condenser dryer several weeks ago and replaced with heat pump and so far we're delighted. Yes it takes longer to heat but the energy usage difference is massive and much much cheaper to run the heat pump one. Ours is in kitchen so the house is warm and in turn means it works well. It's also much quieter

stripesfarm · 08/11/2023 13:50

We had a heat pump one for a while. Cycles were very long, and would often stall part way through. I lost patience with it. Last straw was when it needed a repair after only a couple of years, and the part would take 6 months to arrive! It was replaced with a normal condenser type, recommended by my trusted repair chap as easy and quick to fix if necessary. It's quick and reliable, we had the water tank bypassed, so the water goes directly into the drain.

stripesfarm · 08/11/2023 13:52

PS ours was LG brand (6 months to send part by ship from Korea!!)

Kryten1958 · 08/11/2023 13:58

We just bought an own brand heat pump tumble dryer from JL (awaiting delivery) As I understand it condenser dryers dry normally but hold the water in a reservoir, heat pump dryers use a heat pump to reduce power consumption but they still condense the water into a reservoir. We bought the heat pump one because it brought the cost per cycle below £1.

RustyBear · 08/11/2023 14:11

TotalOverhaul · 08/11/2023 12:37

Ooh, now I'm dithering. That's quite a saving. And 90 mins is not so long. Condensers take that long too. Which LG model did you go for? I like the sound of that one.

Edited
Show quote history

Ours is an LG WiFi enabled (it tells a phone app how long is left and sends a message when it’s done or if the tank needs emptying) and it has a drying rack to dry shoes or jumpers flat which is really useful for me. I’m not sure of the exact
model offhand & I’m not at home, but it’s one of the Thinq models
If you don’t want the wifi etc, DD has this Beko, which is seems to be just as good at drying and quite a bit cheaper https://www.johnlewis.com/beko-b3t4911dw-freestanding-condenser-tumble-dryer-9kg-load-white/p6218958

EddieBlackadder · 08/11/2023 14:18

SellFridges · 08/11/2023 13:03

The reviews of that Bosch are terrible.

Nightmanagerfan · 08/11/2023 14:27

Look at AO they have a calculator that works out how many loads you do a week and the annual electricity saving.

We just got a 10kg Beko heat pump tumble drier and it dries a full load in 2hrs. Bone dry. I have no complaints at all and it works out about 35p a load.

BertieBotts · 08/11/2023 14:31

I bought one recently and it seems the consensus is heat pump is better unless you have it in an unheated building like an outhouse.

Can't compare to others because I've never had a different dryer, but mine doesn't take ages (about 90 mins) and it gets things dry. I do have to put it on cupboard dry and press the + button. The normal or eco mode don't get it as dry as I'd like. Sometimes if there is a load with mixed fabrics it also gets a bit confused but I can just put it on either again for the sensor feature or on a timed dry for however many minutes. Sometimes waistbands are left a bit damp. I just put that one thing back in with the next load or lie it over a chair.

I'm really happy with it in general. Because it runs at a lower temp than standard dryers (I think?) it seems to be gentler on clothes. I've found that I can get away with tumbling all sorts that say not to on the label, over a year or so, so not just a couple of times and then they get ruined later.