Those with 3 or more children, is it possible to...

[perceptionreality]

...get all the washing done and dried without use of the tumble drier (in winter)?

I think not but if anyone has any tips that would help me avoid using it I'd be glad to hear them!

Yes I have 3 ds and I haven't had a tumble dryer for 2 years now and I manage fine.

I've got 2 airers on the landing and I use radiators in evenings....no problems!!

Northernlurker, we do have one parent at home pretty much all the time so yes that does help!! We also have a spare room so the airers are not in the way iyswim?

Both me & my DH work full time & haven't had a drier since we've lived in this house 4 1/2 years. Put washing on in evening and generally dries mainly overnight and take it down/do a fresh load the next evening.

4 dc, always in cloth nappies, no TD ever, we manage. I don't think working FT would make it any trickier.

we have 8 and have no drier use a pulley washing line and the airing cupboard . we had a tumble drier on holiday and it caused so much extra work in that everything needed twice as much ironing i'd never go back to using a drier

I struggle with three children including a baby in cloth nappies and a little boy who is a dirt magnet.

I still try to avoid the drier (at 50p a load !) as much as possible.

We have several free standing airers which I can pull outside for a short time and drag inside when it rains. Including a massive one from IKEA which will carry about 4 loads of washing. We try and use the outside rotary drier when the weather permits.

I dry towels, bedding etc on a ceiling rack which is located above the upstairs landing.. The ceiling heigh perfect for longer items.

Lastly when we sort out the semi-outside storeroom (currently leaking). I am going to have a long broom handle tied to the ceiling and start hanging clothes on hangers out there and keep my airers for small stuff only.

But it is hard to keep on top of it in winter, so much easier when it is spring/summer and practically as soon as you have finished hanging clothes out, they are dry enough to start collecting in again ;)

I love, love. love my TD & don't understand how it can have caused you extra work Hugsmummy? You can't have been using it right - maybe overfilling it? I find it makes a massive difference to the amount of ironing in that it reduces my ironing to almost nothing. I never need to iron anything that comes out of my TD - a quick shake and careful folding is all it needs.

Having said that due to unexpected & enforced redundancy so massive drop in family income I've not been using it since about September. DH recently invested in a ceiling airer at my request and this, plus a couple of ikea sock/knicker hangers makes it entirely possible to wash & dry one or two washes a day for us and our 4 DC (2 teens). All entirely doable, and yes to whoever it was who asked, we both work FT.

Hating the extra ironing though :(

Everything is possible - but some things are rather painful.

Its certainly cut down my ironing!

I have 4dcs still at home, I use a tumble drier, bung everything in it then after half an hour take out anything that would need ironing, give it a bloody good shake and hang or put on the airer to finish drying so very little if anything gets ironed. I leave the rest in until it's finished, mine's got a sensor setting thingy so switches off when the clothes are dry. My neighbour has one of those lakeland heated airers and says it's much cheaper to run than a tumble drier, she loves it.

I couldn't manage without with 5DC. The bedding is the main thing that would be hard. LOVE my drier!

I only have one DS and I have no idea how I would cope without my drier, it means I don't have to iron anything and the damp clothes would play havoc with his chest - I also wonder about the cost etc, just from personal experience, do you tend to leave the heating on for longer/higher if your drying washing? The 3 people I know who won't use driers say its due to cost then bump up their heating just to dry clothes, just doesn't make sense as they then have to iron the clothes too - just wondering if everyone is like that or whether my friends are a bit thick weird?

I have a heated airer from lakeland which is divine and on constantly. We dnt have a tumble drier and only 2 kids though.

4 kids and would really struggle without my tumbler. However all of my dcs play a lot of rugby - some of them 5 x/week, and i ride and dh cycles so lots of muddy gear here. Would need to buy much more if no dryer, and house is not warm enough anyway - maybe folk in modern very hot houses can manage without more easily. Also work full time so if i hang washing out it's dark in the morning when i put it out, then dark and damp again by the time i get home in the evening.

3dcs with dc4 coming in three weeks. No tumble dryer, mainly on environmental grounds, I guess. And because mil sail I wouldn't cope without one, and of course I wanted to prove her wrong. I have two airers, sling things over bannisters and use a bit of space in the boiler cupboard. I am perhaps a little ummm slack on the washing linen front, perhaps that makes it easier!

we don't have the heating on anymore than we normally would.

of course its possible!! thats what i do every day in life as i dont have a tumble drier.

i have 3 kids and a husband. generally, i put a washing on every morning 1st thing and then take it out, shake each item hard to get wrinkles out and put the thicker garments (jeans, jumpers) on radiators and pants, bras, socks, boxers etc on a clothes horse in the downstairs toilet.

heating on low all day. clothes dry by afternoon to take off and fold away. job done. easy!

northernlurker I have 3 DCs, no tumble drier and work full-time, so yes it can be done . I'm not saying its fun, especially in winter and its a bugger putting a line or two of washing out before you go to work and then it pisses down so its all wet when you come home! I would love a ceiling airer to get it out of the way but use a clothes horse, the radiators and outside.
I think people saying it can't be done need to look at the other end of the problem - use less clothes!! Of course, school uniforms, work clothes etc have to be clean but not everything has to be washed all the time if its only been worn for a couple of hours (teens) or is just slightly stained. sponge said article with Vanish, don't wash the whole thing.
Every so often i would gather up all bedding and towels (towels are a real sod to dry) and take then to the local bagwash for a service wash. Worth it if there was a backlog. There are five of us at home, and DCs were in terries all those years ago, so it can be done. With a fair wind

I have 3 DC, one in cloth nappies, the oldest DC is another child who comes back from school covered in muck. It can be done but it's a challenge drying it all. I think the worst time is October/March, when it's not cold enough for the heating to kick in and not warm enough to dry outside. Also a challenge if you have extra sheets - either because the DC wet them or you have guests.

I have two large airers, and a heated towel rail in one of the bathrooms.

If/when I get a tumble drier I will look back and think how did I manage.

I din;t have a tumble - three children - use a ceiling airer and lakeland heated airer - sometimes not plugged in, depending on how it's going.

Forgot to add (for clarification) that I have five children and cloth nappies

Dcs and 2 adults in this house and we've never had a tumble drier. We put clothes on clothes horse next to radiator in the dining room and they're dry in a few hours. I can't keep up with the ironing, so happy to dry the clothes slowly!

I meant to say I have 3 dcs .