to ask your clothes drying arrangements ... and what I should do

[Dieu]

Sorry, a ridiculous topic for AIBU I know, but I find the replies on here very helpful and speedy.
We moved into our flat a couple of months ago, a Georgian basement. It's all very nice but the Edinburgh summer seems to be coming to an end, and I'm eyeing my 2 baskets of wet washing rather nervously.
I thought today would be glorious like the last few days, and that I'd be able to get it out on the line. Wrong, as it's pissing down.
Now that winter is approaching, I need to have a think about the best clothes drying option for us, and was hoping you nice folks might have some suggestions.
Points to consider:

• there are 4 of us, myself and my 3 children.
• unlike my neighbours above, we don't have the ceiling height for a pulley ... much as I'd love one.
• the flat has had damp in the past, so I'd rather avoid draping clothes all over the radiators. Heating is on the blink right now anyway! Aah, the joys of the older property ...
• we have a drylined outdoors utility cellar, which is where our washing machine lives. There is space for a tumble dryer but when we had viewings here with the previous owners, who had a tumble dryer in there, it smelt of damp. It no longer does. I've never had a tumble dryer, so want to do without one if possible. I guess I don't miss what I've never had. Our bikes and scooters are also in there, so there wouldn't be much space for anything else.
• I have a standard sized clothes airer, but it's too small and the clothes take ages to dry in here. We're in a conservation area with single glazing, so the condensation probably doesn't help.

My thought is that it might be best to get Lakeland's heated clothes airer. Plenty of space for all our clothes and it dries the clothes fully as heated, albeit over a longer period than a tumbler. It can't take as long as a standard clothes airer though. Reviews are good on the whole, some mixed and not brilliant. Does anyone here have one and would you recommend? Or should I just bite the bullet and go for a tumble dryer? Any info or recommendations would be appreciated as, like I said, I've never actually owned one (previous house was a new build with loads of indoor (dry!) space to hang up washing.

Many thanks in advance.

I only use my dehumidifier today clothes so only switch it on overnight. Mine has a 'clothes drying' option. I guess if you were wanting to get rid of damp you can leave it on most of the time but it does really 'dry' the air.

I just got a Lakeland dryer on gumtree and love it! The washing finally smells clean!

We are currently drying by keeping our Windows open and it takes ages.... would a dehumidifier dry quicker than windows open, or would it be the same?

I have all three of the above options and my favourite is definitely the heated airer which dries much faster than the dehumidifier.

The condensing tumble dryer is the fastest, but also the most expensive to run.

The dehumidifier and heated airer both cost around 5 pence per hour.

I would definitely agree with many other posters re draping a towel or a large sheet over the top to speed drying up.

"Tumble dryers are great but what do you do with clothes that have the no tumble dry label on them..."
I tumble them on low heat. They've all been fine so far.

Heated airers are good and a dehumidifier running next to it for while is awesome. Though I'd personally go for a tumble dryer, maybe they didn't have the hose out of the room when they used it so the damp air filled the room?

the Dr Buddi heated airer thingy is reduced at the mo to £40

They are pretty good if you keep on top of your washing and do some everyday basically. I put mine in a lean-to type thing where I can leave the window or door open.

Another vote for the Lakeland dryer, even better to put a large fitted sheet over it and things dry really quickly.

Dehumidifier too! Mine also has the automatic switch, it turns its self off when humidity is down to the level you want.
I live in the SE but have used it all summer as it's so easy! Is dry by the morning, we also used it to sort out damp in one bedroom, the car in the garage when the aircon leaked and in the same room as the painted furniture as it dried quickly!

If you look online there will be ideas on how to place them to keep the house dry, they aren't cheap but are less money than a tumble dryer per hour and for outlay.

Only downside is that you have to iron stuff if it's on an airer not a hanger, tumble dryer you don't always need to!

We also use the water holder to 'flush' the toilet...water meter here...

I've also heard hiimangelafernandez, that the water collected is good for ironing, as it's so pure. Have ordered a dehumidifier, which I'm (very sadly) rather excited about. No more sour smelling, dampish clothes! Would love the Lakeland heated airer but may plump for a normal one, as it's a bit expensive all in. Unless someone happens to have a Lakeland discount code?? Someone wrote in their review that they bought it with a 20% discount code, but an online search hasn't brought up anything valid. It would be brilliant though! Thanks.

We have the Lakeland heated airer. As soon as we started using it, the damp around the windows stopped. It is brilliant.

I cover it with a sheet to make it like a mini airing cupboard, and the clothes dry in a few hours.

Oops - just saw that Cerealqueen already posted about covering it with a sheet.

I have a White Knight spin dryer which can extract almost a pint of water from one load of washing. It cuts down the drying time by half and I wouldn't be without it now. It's the size of a kitchen bin and very economical to run.

We are currently drying by keeping our Windows open and it takes ages.... would a dehumidifier dry quicker than windows open, or would it be the same?

if you can keep the window open, get a fan. A fan will speed up drying time enormously, and are cheap to buy and run (and can be used in the summer!).

dehumidifiers are great, especially in this country. However, if you don't have a damp problem you are getting a tool you don't really need.

when I say cheap to run a fan, our old fan was about 10-50W (slow to fast), so we are talking about the same power as light bulb. Compared to a clothes dryer (about 2000W) or a dehumidifier (700W?) it's almost free to run a fan. You can probably buy one for 10 quid. And they don't break easily.

Love, love, love our dehumidifier. In the winter it's a godsend.

We bought it for a damp problem (Victorian mid-terrace) and it sorted that out. The clothes-drying is just a fabulous added extra.

Am amazed by the difference it makes - and its also fun to empty it out and gape at just how many litres of water have been plucked out of the air.

I managed to dry things on radiators indoors + an airer when I was in Edinburgh, but then that wasn't a basement and there were damp problems anyway (council house). Now in Wales so have had to buy a tumble dryer- condenser one doesn't seem to make any difference to the damp level in the (old, slate quarriers cottage with top side built into hill, so prone to damp) house. Honestly I was worried about environmental effects but got the most efficient one I could afford (and presumably if you're living in an Edin basement you can afford a more efficient one that that even , think mine is B rating), and I think the energy it saves by not needing heating on to dry out house is probably worth it from an eco perspective.

Hiddenhome is it really just you and I that have spin driers?
I don't understand why they're not more popular they get so much more water out of the washing compared to even a 1400 spin speed machine!

Well, Suzanne I used to think they were a bit old fashioned and perhaps a bit silly, but it's bloomin' fab

I haven't managed to get the others interested though everyone seems fixated on Lakeland dryers and tumble dryers.

We must be reet common 'n' workin' class lass!

No one seems interested in them, years ago when I was impoverished, did the washing by hand because I couldn't afford a washing machine I always had a spin dryer because it made washing by hand easier. Back then I always bought them second hand for a few quid.

I bought a brand new one for the first time a while ago, there are only one or two makes available.
Mine is also a white knight :o

We have the same problem as you - a small flat which is in the basement and gets insanely damp.

Last winter I just dried everything on the radiators and the whole place just got covered in mould, we had to repaint.

We're both out at work full time so can't leave the windows open, especially as it's on the ground floor.

Luckily my parents downsized this year and have given us their condensor drier. We have to have it in the living room as there's no where else to put it, but it's been a god send, especially for stuff like bedding that takes an age to dry indoors.

I can really recommend it.

We're in an old house and have a smell of damp etc plus the same problem with the washing... we bought a £140 dehumidifier and I'd never look back! It's constantly on, dries the washing over night as others have mentioned and will sort out any damp issues you have. It's a Meaco I think.