Washing line in shared backyard, AIBU?

[Beeloux]

Hi all,

Moved into a rented upper floor flat recently with a yard shared with downstairs flat who also
rent.
I put up a washing line when I moved in and neighbours commented how they never got around to putting one up (they’ve been living there almost 2 years). They started hanging their washing on the line using my pegs which I didn’t mind at first. However they’ve started leaving the washing on for days at a time.

Weather has been good this weekend and they’ve had their washing hanging bone dry on the line since Friday morning. I’ve been waiting all weekend to hang my washing out (I have a baby and toddler who are both ill at the moment so have a large mount of washing. I ended up having to squash all of my washing onto my drying rack and leave it outside in the yard. I just checked before and they’ve removed all of their dry clothes and replaced it with another set of washing hogging the whole line!

AIBU to be pissed off about this? Forecast shows it’s raining the majority of next week. I have no space for a tumble dryer in the kitchen and there isn’t any other nails where I could erect another clothes line in the backyard (tenancy contract states I can’t drill any into exterior walls).

Definitely take your pegs in.
Take your line in if practical too.

There's no way in hell I would have waited all weekend for them to take their washing in.
Knock at the door and ask them to take the washing in. If they don't, put it in a bag and leave it on the doorstep.
Also like many others have said, take your pegs in every time.

i don’t know why you want to stare into other people’s gardens!?

Personally i find it weird when it’s a beautiful sunny day and I can see my neighbours clothes drying by their window on a clothes horse, but each to their own.

@Beeloux I never had to share washing lines but the people who did, always took their line off the poles and back into their homes along with their clothes pegs!! get your line back the minute they get their washing off it and dont leave it out again. that will stop them using your line and pegs!

U should have just taken it off the line and put yrs up.

If you now have a monopoly on the only spot to hang a line, it does seem like that line has to be shared. You are going to have to talk to them about ways to make that feasible.

or take the suggestion to get something you set up and take down. A bigger investment, but it would be solely yours.

Is it a removable washing line? I’d be taking it in with me after removing the washing, remove any way of them using it. It’s rude.
You shouldn’t have to take down their washing

What's wrong with seeing washing on a line? To be fair, underwear goes on an airer, outside if good weather so not visible from next door, but sheets, tops, trousers, dresses etc, why not?

U really need to speak F2F with your neighbours OP, in the interest of neighbourly relations

@Bellatrixpure I want to stare at whatever is in my line of vision. Ideally just plants and flowers. Not washing. In a communal garden, not someone elses.
And I think you've got the same phobia as me just the other way round?
I actually dry my clothes in a room where nobody could see inside from the window! 🤣

Definitely take your line down after you're done with it and put it back up next time you need to use. That's what I had to do when I had a communal garden

YANBU at all! I wouldn't mind them using the line, but to keep their washing on it for so long is taking the piss.

The whole taking your line in thing doesn't really help if the neighbours get their own line and pegs and still leave their stuff drying forever and a day, preventing you from putting your stuff out. Is it a single line or a rotary line dryer (whirlygig type thing)?

I think I would have removed it for them in this instance and asked them to do it more promptly next time.

I don’t have a phobia regarding laundry. Perhaps if you do you should move away from communal garden living 🤷‍♀️

@Bellatrixpure I was just trying to make a joke. It sounds like you're a bit offended. If so then I'm sorry.

We sometimes cannot use the line on good drying days because the slurry smell outside is so bad. 💩💩💩

I can confirm that this is not the case where I am.

Don’t leave your pegs out.

Bag up their washing if you want to use the line. Maybe consider a rotary line you can take in.

@Beeloux

1. Just get a cardboard box and put their laundry in it if it's dry.

2. don't leave your pegs out

3. if possible, use one of those retractable lines. You can then just mount the bracket on the wall and a hook at the other end, then bring the washing line in when you've done with it.

Take your pegs in .
Bag their stuff up if dry and put yours out.
Is it just a line strung between posts? Can you put another line out? Maybe get a retractable one and take it down after you've used it?

Thanks all for your advice, I can see I’ve been a wet wipe up until now, I’ll put their washing in a bag from now on if it happens again. It did piss down when they had their washing on it yesterday evening which made me feel a bit better haha.
The line is just connected by two rods in the exterior wall and backyard wall. There isn’t any other rods in the yard to put another line up and my tenancy contract says I can’t drill into any exterior walls. Regarding a retractable washing line, does anyone know if you can you get ones which don’t require any drilling? 😊

Not sure if someone has said this but put your pegs in a box and bring them in. They might not have pegs so would stop them for a while 😂

The cat fleas won't contaminate your washing. But if you want to be certain you could always wipe the line down with an antibac cloth - a good idea to clean the line anyway as it can get mucky & stain your clothes. I'd also bring my pegs in - let them get their own.

Re retractable washing line, you need to drill for those. It wouldn't stop your CF neighbour anyway, they'll just 'unretract' it to use.