To want a tumble drier again [its the autumn]

[pushchair]

I know I felt like this last year. Its the thought of months of that merry go round of hanging on racks or the radiator, turning it all over to dry the damper side the next day, taking most off but not all the day after that because some still isnt dry and the laundry pile meanwhile growing higher and higher.
My house is small.
It would not fit in the kitchen.
DP is against the idea.
I cant really afford it.
BUT I want one. I have read other threads on the eternal laundry conundrum but basically I want you all to say yes go and get one.

Message withdrawn

space/energy bills/carbon footprint ... the reasons against are various.

I'm trying to use mine less. This summer hasnt exactly helped. Trying out partial rack drying and then finishing off in dryer, seems to work well for polycotton sheets. But what about things like towels and cotton PJs which go crunchy if get too dry on rack? Does TD for 20 mins followed by air dry help this?

Tackled DP again and he was strangely responsive. Could he too be sick of working his way round racks of washing? so have spent am researching prices and energy ratings. Yipee

I have a condensing one in the laundry room and use it all year round.
Would never have clothes draped all over the radiators and don't have a clothes line (obsessive gardener dh - wouldn't like it to spoil his "vistas").

I only have a small 2 bedroomed flat, and i only got a tumble dryer last month. It is great! I don't know how i coped without it.
I still have clothes on radiators when they are on though. but yeh thank you mum
You should try freecycle for sure, they are often on there.

Recommended brand say £300 or under?

I don't have one, and I'm basically prejudiced against having one because of the energy use. But I must admit I have been tempted this week (althoughnowhere to put it) because going on holiday at the end of the week, loads of washing building up and not enough dry days coming up.

Lakeland do a heated airer thingy. Didn't look carefully but looks like you can fold it up when not using. Says it costs 3.something p an hour to run. What does a TD cost per hour to run?

YANBU. I have a dryer, and use it all the time. It rains too much in this country to put things on a line (which we don't have!) and then have to rush out to get it in when it starts to rain, and it's not even dry!

Before DS1 was born, we just hung things in our flat, but would find it really hard now there's 4 of us!

I know it's not environmentally friendly, and that it wrecks clothes, blah, blah, blah, it's not going to change my mind, till I live in a better climate!

I seriously couldn't cope wihout my tumbler. 5 of us in the family, DH has oily overalls to wash, now 2 lots of school uniform, incontinent 4 year old so lots of bedding to wash, 2 mucky small ones who still wear more dinner than they eat.... I have so much washing, and I will not live with damp laundry draped all over the house.

I use the clothes line as much as possible, but if needed will use my tumbler. It has done nothing but rain here for the last week so I would have had about 8 loads of washing to dry indoors. Not fun.

(Recommended brands - don't buy a Hotpoint condensor, the thermostats keep going).

We got a one year old condenser tumble drier from ebay. It's been fine and it only cost £55. You don't have to get a brand new one.

Just found this energy calculator online.

It says that if you use a tumbler for 12 hours a month it will cost about £2.88 per month to run.

Bargain IMO!

A reliable washing machine rpeair man just told me to get a cheap white Knight dryer. He said it wasn't worth buying a more expensive one:
[[http://www.qed-uk.com/electricals/product/white-knight/wk37aw/white/3kg-vented.html?&ird=111 7 here-for example)

sorry will do link again:
here

I don't have one because at the moment we have a kitchen large enough to put a maiden, a drying rack suspended in the high ceiling bit above the stairs, and a yard with 3 washing lines in for better weather. I've done 3.5 years of washing nappies for two children and all the wet beds we had recently. All the drying space meant we didn't need a tumble dryer.

BUT

Next month we are moving to a smaller house with much smaller kitchen, lower ceilings and no stair place to put the rack, and it will be winter so no point putting washing outside for a few months.
I will have to have a maiden permenantly up in our bedroom and that won't be enough for the washing that us 4 create.

Am I getting a tumble dryer? HELL YES!!!!

just pulled a load out of the dryer.

it's chucking the rain here again.

It is great when you have to do a week's washing in one day. Doesn't do clothes much good. On the expense side - when we had the very hot summer back in 2003, I heard on the TV (so it must be true ) that the best way to cool down a room was to hang up a wet towel in it - was recommended for people who couldn't get to sleep in the hot nights. So perhaps by not having a TD you end up paying more on heating or just feeling colder. I've noticed that our smalls (which I always do on the airer) are taking 3 days to dry properly.

And I always finish towels off in the dryer. SO shoot me.

I do have an airing cupboard tho'. Not sure I could live without that - I do put s l i g h t l y damp stuff in there, which helps with the old rotation system.

And have got stinky towels at the moment, cos last time they were washed it was wet weather so dried towels (I thought) inside. Yugh. I don't have high standards (can you tell!) but I hate stinky towels. Am using dd's because they are a recent handmedown from grandma and still smell of fabric conditioner.

I have just been to the 2nd hand shop and asked them to come and give me a price on a small whiteknight dryer, we have had it a year and used it twice, bil had it before us and used it once. I think its a 3kg one, very small, if anyone wanted to buy it and could collect from walsall area of west mids i would be happy to cancel with 2nd hand shop, just let me know your e-mail address.

Verra helpful. Am in the south east so ilovetochat's offer no good to me thank you though. White knight temptingly cheap even in large condenser type.

no probs pushchair, white knight ones are good for the money.