Why do you hang your washing outside when it always ends up smelling like damp?

[lilybit2025]

Apart from the obvious cost savings compared to using a tumble dryer, I don’t understand why people hang their washing outside because no matter what I do, mine always ends up smelling damp and completely unpleasant!

Oh god please don’t do this!!! 😩

If there’s anything worse than honking vile fabric conditioner stench, it’s honking fabric conditioner being used to to mask minging poorly washed clothes.

Op - line dried clothes shouldn't smell, but you have to wash and spin them properly in the first place. Bio powder and at proper temperature.

I'm in Wales, it's always damp here, and I don't have this problem with washing I've hung out.

I don’t love the smell of outside drying, but it doesn’t smell damp.

I’m so glad to see others who dislike the smell of washing dried outdoors. I’ve always disliked it and everyone always raves about it. We live on the coast so it’s not air pollution, it’s just not pleasant to me

I love the perfumed fragrance of lillies and my friend thinks they smell like cats pee! Sounds like a similar situation

You nees to finish off in dryer

My outdoor dried laundry smells faintly of the washing products. If it has been rained on or left overnight though it does have a slightly almost metallic smell. We live in the countryside so i would have thought the air quality is quite decent.

Because it doesn’t. Line dried washing smells far nicer than indoor washing.
if you prefer the smell of drying is doors just stick with that.
I detest having washing hanging up inside. I dry outside at every opportunity. If the ground is dry my washing is out even throughout winter

Sounds like you like the artificial smell of washing powder/fabric conditioner rather than the more natural smell of fresh air? We live in a very over scented world now!

I only hang washing up when it’s very warm outside otherwise it doesn’t dry properly.

DH and dd3 don’t like it either. Dd3 says it smells like ds1 when he’s been playing football. I know the smell she means, damp sweaty boy mixed with outside but to me the washing smells nothing like that! Fortunately neither of them can smell it after a while, only when the clothes have recently been brought inside.
I do sometimes get the metallic smell when it’s too damp outside to dry it properly but again that doesn’t last once it is properly dry.

Even if our washer is smelling a bit funky, line drying improves it. But we do live well away from main roads.

I live in a small housing estate and if I line dry on a sunny day the clothes come back in smelling of dirt, metal, exhaust, food, moss, soil, it's absolutely an assault on my nose. The only reprieve is if it's really windy and sunny, they are out for far less time absorbing smells.
I have particularly pungent neighbours and my laundry sometimes will have a hint of their bin odour. It's actually quite depressing. I love to hang the washing out on a sunny day, but most of the time it isn't worth it.
Nothing to do with my machine. It happened when it was brand new.
So, I feel your pain OP.

Wind will dry washing, even if it's cold. We often get 30+ mph winds here on the NW coast. Ideal for drying.

Agreed. I don't like it either. It seems to kill the nice fresh laundry smell you get from the tumble drier or indoor drying. We're by the sea - maybe that?

It's funny how different experiences are perceived so differently!

We have a tumble dryer but I only use it when I absolutely can't dry outside.

I hate the smell of tumble dried clothes! I don’t think it smells of clean laundry at all. It doesn't smell of anything really. Stuff dried on radiators or the airer doesn't smell bad but it doesn't smell nice.

When I walk past the washing line, I always stop to smell the washing because I love the smell of it so much (sad, I know!)

Washing products have change alot over the year, many contain synthetic ingredients, especially conditioners and the little pellet things, when you put washing in a tumble dryer the washing product "melts" into the fabric leaving a stronger scent. This doesn't happen when drying on the line as it doesn't reach a high temp in a short space of time.
I love drying on the line but it always smells "off" if I have used conditioners..or strong scented products.

I totally agree with you!

I have never, ever noticed line-dried washing to smell anything other than fresh and lovely. I do live rurally so the air is clean and fresh, barring fumes from the odd tractor and milk lorry.

I do make sure things are properly aired afterwards, either by ironing or hanging them over the Aga.

Mine never smells damp in can really smell the fabric softener when line dried . If it smells damp maybe your washing machine needs a deep clean ?

I also agree while tumble dried clothes still smell nice its alot more concentrated when line dried .

Check your washing machine settings! Ours always smelled as well, but I realised that the “eco” settings meant you weren’t meant to be filling the machine beyond half the normal weight, because it uses half the water. It would come out smelling musty, like it hadn’t been washed, although they’d be cleaner than they were! But as soon as we switched to just normal non-eco settings they came out clean and smelling great 👍🏻

I think it's just the fact I don't like the smell of anything dried outside. We clean our washing machine regularly. Like other posters have said I really don't like the smell of it outside at all. I much prefer the smell when it's been dried in a tumble dryer.

And lilke 99.9% of the line-dryers have said on your thread, it doesn't have a smell if it is dried outside - unless you live next to a margarine factory, a rubbish dump, or pot smokers, etc.

My washer broke and got the new one on Saturday with 11 days of washing built up to do. It's obviously rained all weekend so I've had to dry everything on radiators indoors. Today I got the first load on the line, was nearly dry by the time I went to work, went to work, massive hailstone shower, washing absolutely dripping when I got home! Typical!