To think this is unacceptable conditions for a tenant?

[FedUpTenant]

I've been living in a rented flat now for 5 months. It is very cold in the building, confirmed by other tenants who live in the above/adjacent flats. You can put the electric heaters on but it costs a lot of money, I averaged £500 over the last 4 months before I realised! I am willing to put up with the cold in the flat and wear a furry onesie 24/7, but my AIBU is this:

It is virtually impossible to dry clothing in the flat. It takes upwards of 3-4 days to dry one load. Even with the heating on during the evenings it will still take 2-3 days to dry one load of clothing on a clothing horse. As there is wet clothes hanging for days upon end it causes the walls to be damp and paint to rub off.

Living in a two bedroom flat with a toddler, I need to be able to wash clothing more than every 4 days. It's really stressful to have mountains of clothing piling up because it is impossible to dry.

I have resorted to buying a tent like device in order to dry the clothing in a reasonable amount of time: tinyurl.com/ycvu9z8n
As you can imagine this is again impracticable as I have a massive tent in my living room and I also work from home so it doesn't look particularly professional.

I was reasonably happy with this solution until a friend visited today and said that this situation is ridiculous and she believes I have grounds to ask the landlord to buy a washer-dryer. She also thinks I could go to environmental health for the cold and unacceptable drying conditions.

Do I have the right to argue this with the landlord? Is there anything in law that says that this is unacceptable?

If you can afford it then get a Dri-Buddi:

www.jmldirect.com/cleaning/clothescare/dribuddi-air-large-capacity-line-dried-indoor-clothes-dryer/

It's cheaper than buying a tumble drier and supposedly less costly to run, but i find it dries a load of washing in a couple of hours. Just put it in a room where you can have a window open to let out the condensation. I wouldn't be without it now.

Why don't you take it to the laundrette??

We rented a house like this - 18 degrees felt bloody freezing - spent a fortune heating.

We finally got a dehumidifier - the damp was making the cold feel much worse.

Dehumidifier. They are absolutely brilliant and as a bonus blow out slightly warm air. Unlike a tumble dryer they also suck up moisture from cooking and showering.

Before we had one it would take a week for socks to dry and mold was beginning to grow round windows from the condensation. Afterwards clothes would dry in a day. You can get tents to put over your clothes horse, stick the dehumidifier under there as well and the heat from it will help dry your clothes faster. They're cheaper to run than a tumble dryer and if you reduce the damp in your flat you may find it's easier to heat.

YY Brazzle. That's the one my Mum has. Swears by it!

Get a dehumidifier. I have one and the advantage is they are easy to move house with you.

Depending on the type they can work to temperatures of 5 degrees Celsius. Also don't buy a second hand one as there is a batch from Homebase & B&Q that were recalled that are being sold on eBay.

As a LL we had a long running issue with condensation and finally installed a positive pressure ventilation system. A bit like a super strength dehumidifier running all the time. I very much doubt your LL is going to do the same though.

In your shoes I’d consider using a launderette service wash and looking for somewhere nicer to rent.

We do also have a WD in our flat but the tenants never seem that keen on using it although it’s almost new. They only have a smallish capacity for drying so not a magic wand style answer unfortunately.

Do you understand how to use the storage heaters properly?

I would get a dehumidifier and a heated drying rack. Failing that you may need to take your laundry to a laundrette. You find portable radiators a fairly cheap way of heating your flat, we have used them in the past.

You are within your rights as a tenant to get your energy company to install insulation (with your landlords permission). This is usually done for free.

You could also point out to the landlord that they will get discounts if they install energy saving measures such as double glazing, a new boiler, insulation etc.

There are measures proposed to insist on rentals having a certain energy performance rating to ensure tenants have a comfortable home. You could ask for your home to checked

www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-private-rented-property-minimum-standard-landlord-guidance-documents

While this does not apply for currently rented homes until 2020, you could tell your landlord about it and point out that it's a good idea to get ahead of the curve on this one. even sending these details to him might just push him along.

Those halogen heaters around £15-20 are brilliant, my ExP had a flat with only a blown air heater in the living room, he got a couple of those, they were cheap to run, really warm & cheap to run. If you are on some benefits you can apply for a warm homes grant & with the landlord's permission have central heating installed for free.

I think in this case you should probably use a launderette.... although easier said than done and I haven't done that since being a student

I lived somewhere a couple of years ago which had no washer/dryer and no room for one - so I went to the laundrette. Total time consuming pain in the arse, but tons of people use it because they have no clothing washing facilities at home. If there were some law that said landlords had to provide tumble dryers it would put a lot of laundrettes out of business. Sounds shit but sadly I don't think you have a leg to stand on!

Heated clothes aired won't work- the water still needs to go somewhere and will make the flat damp

I bought my tenant a dehumidifier as he said there was a condensation build up. He now uses it to dry clothes in the small bedroom.
I go to the laundrette.
Take a a book and have a bit of quiet time.
Also don't need to iron it if you fold it neatly.

Why don't you ask the landlord to take away the washer, you replace it with a washer dryer on the understanding that you are responsible for it and will take it with you when you leave?

Also please open the windows if you are drying clothes indoors, your landlord will not be impressed when you create a massive damp problem.

OP I have the same heated airer that you have posted a picture of. It takes 3-4 hours to dry a big load of clothes or full king bedding set + sheets.

If it is only you and a toddler then I son't see how you are doing more than max 4 loads of washing a week. With the heated airer I could do this in a day.

Are you using it effectively?

I have used a 3000kw oil filled Delonghi plug in radiator and it produces vast amounts of heat, and unless you have open fireplaces or something it would probably make your flat toasty. You can put one under the clothes as long as they are high enough above and away from it and the clothes would dry in no time. If you buy one with a thermostat it turns off when it gets to the right temp. You can also get them with timers. As far as I know these oil filled radiators produce more heat and are cheaper to run than the electric fan heaters or the storage heaters. I have found them more efficient and effective even in houses with central heating. Have you checked your windows and doors to see if draft excluder strips are needed?

Don't get your ll to pay for the new machine, he'll only add the cost on to your rent at some point.. & you'll be paying that for longer.

Who provided the washing machine? If your LL provided it then you could ask for it be replaced with a washer dryer but there is no obligation for them to provide a washer let alone a dryer.

Actually I'd say you need to make sure you are drying laundry in a way that would not cause damp and mould in your LL's property - go to the laundrette to dry your clothes?

Buy your own dryer! Tight arse

I'm a landlord and I wouldn't have any problem at all providing you with a washer dryer. I do in my properties because the headleases forbids hanging washing outside on the balconies or in any of the communal areas, or outside the flat. Have a chat with your landlord and point out to them that there are condensation problems caused by drying the washing indoors but that there is no alternative. They might be reluctant, but dealing with mould is a worse option!

Actually have you thought about using the launderette? That's what I used to do when I lived in a flat with no dryer.

If you're home is cold and washing takes ages to dry a dehumidifier will help in so many different ways. It will dry your washing, but it will also dry the air (you can set the humidity on some and it will turn off and on automatically). Dry air is easier to keep warm than wet air. So a dehumidifier will equal dry washing quicker, generate a bit of heat itself AND dry the air so that it's easier to warm up your home. When we first got one in our flat it ran constantly for about two days before the air dried out. The flat was noticeably warmer. Showering, boiling the kettle, cooking all send moisture into the air. The dehumidifier will help with that. Our one only cost 2p per hour to run.

Don't you just hate it when you notice a typo AFTER you've hit post? 🤦🏼‍♀️

DH used a launderette when he rented a flat with no drying space it was a good option for him near enough to carry clothes to and fro.

However everywhere we've lived together and needed one - mainly as washing machine broke or drying issues - and gone looking there were none in any kind of distance we could get to with no car, as don't drive, or accessible via bus or within reasonable taxi fare - I was starting to wonder if they were a dying business model.