What do you do with your wet washing when it's raining and the heating is off?

[Worried123456]

The energy hikes sound terrifying so I know I must use the drier less. What do you do with the washing though? I could put it on the radiators but they are off?! Is it cheaper to turn the heating on then use the drier? Or do I get an airer and just wait for it to dry? The house isn't very warm (but I have a jumper on!) so it would take rather a while!?

Thank you Heaven and Heaven DH- obv you don't have a bath or a shower while it's running!

I actually have a back kitchen where I dry washing, but most people don't. So the bathroom overnight has got to be a good alternative, surely?

Use the drier, then hang any big stuff like jeans over airer to finish off because they take ages. Only use drier in economy 7 period though.

I am stupidly excited about the Lakeland airer. It has been despatched and I'm just waiting for it to arrive. Off to hunt out an old sheet - thanks for the tip.

I figure that I can send it back if it's no better than the usual airer hope I get to keep the wine though.

I'd use the dryer.

It's more costly to replace mouldy, musty clothes and fix damp problems in the house, caused by condensation, than to run it.

I think people do far too much washing. Once the dc are past the early years, when their clothing is quite small anyway and therefore less to wash and dry, they don't need clean trousers daily, clean nightclothes every night

We do. 2 boys with ASD - 7yo still in nappies and prone to drooling and 9yo who attracts dirt. Both always end up wearing most of their food/toothpaste/snot.

Bath towels last a few days, but we replace hand towels daily, because DS1's handwashing is not great.

Ouryve, I appreciate everyone's circumstances are different. I have an adult ds with SEN and he's had periods of bedwetting which has resulted in much more washing. But I don't see why a bath towel used to dry a freshly washed body needs constant changing.

I agree about the bath towel. Besides, never mind our washer, I think I'd keel over, if I insisted on washing them after every use. We're struggling to get the lid on the laundry basket, as it is!

You can get rotary airer covers so you can still dry outside I even if it is drizzling.

I personally do an extra spin to get everything as dry as possible in washing machine and then stick in dryer for an hour.

www.rotaire.com/why-rotaire.html

This made me laugh. NIGHTMARE!

I am ridiculously excited as my new dehumidifier is arriving today...I have put on a jeans wash with high expectations for indoor drying.....

Monkeyandanimal please keep us updated with the results - thinking of getting a dehumidifier now that I've turned a bedroom into a mouldy smelly box with all the damp washing in it

That cover is a good idea in theory though! If it was more like an umbrella you just open up when needed it might be better but as it is I can't imagine much of an airflow.

I am very much opposed to draping wet washing around the home.

A tumble drier will cost you between about 30p and 50p per load, depending what it is. I can't say if that is affordable for you.

If you have an extractor fan in your bathroom that works, you can use an airer or a line over the bath, with the fan on and the door and window shut and it will suck the water vapour out. An extractor fan will typically run for 50 hours on 14p worth of electricity. If you don't like your extractor because it is worn out and noisy, get a new one.

Another vote for rotaire (OK their marketing is unusual).... With the exception of school uniforms we don't often need clothes washed and dried within a day so I just leave the stuff outside.... And 10 mins in the drier during winter to finish them off..

Sorry, I just howled at "waiting for a dry day"
I live in Lancashire. We've no hope

Not allowed to hang washing outside and no tumble dryer so I use an airer. Sometimes in the bathroom with extractor fan on

Has anyone used a rotaire cover in wintertime? How long does it take to dry washing if the temperature is below 10 degrees during the day and below zero at night?

Well I've tried the ALDI cheapo one & I'm underwhelmed really, but at that price not surprised.

It does dry nicely the bits that touch the heated bars & last night * put a sheet over it propped up with a broom to make a tent & that helped most things. I can see me using it as a basic airer & popping it on at night for drying thicker clothes /top bit of jeans, then I will hang them up as usual in the morning to finish drying.

Will still keep saving for the larger LL one!

Well, the Lakeland one did the job. Left on for 3 hrs, covered with sheet, but realise should be double not single - duh - and then took most stuff off. Couple of DHs tshirts and a towel and ends of some socks still bet damp so rearranged them and put back on for 2 hours and bam. Done. Usually would take 2 to 3 days to dry.
I think rearranging and fiddling is the key!

I put on airier in bedroom, open windows (obviously not if rain is blowing in that direction) and shut the door. Seems to dry the clothes a lot quicker and gives the room a good airing too.

We are decorating the hall at the mo (well dh is, I'm sowing sod all) and it's just been on in the kitchen, it'll go in the downstairs study in the end in a corner by a window so it'll kind of keep the heat trapped a bit but circulated too.
I'm ridiculously pleased with it.

I am also in Lancashire and have been waiting for the elusive dry day... So as usual in this kind of weather all the washing got saved up till last night and this morning and I will tak it to the laundrette because I am sure those huge dryers are far more efficient at drying clothes than them being squashed up in a domestic dryer. Mine broke last year and we have not missed it.

One thing dp and I insist on is no damp washing drying in the house. The moisture out of e washing stays in the air in the house, settles on walls etc and causes damp. Dry houses cost much less to heat as you are only heating air, not air full of moisture.

Even at this time of year I check the weather forecast and if hothead next day looks ok I put a wash in at night at hang it out the next morning before we all go out. Even in damp ish weather its still dryer when I bring it in that when I out it out.

And to those who day the tumbler shrinks washing - this only happens to out clothes if I leave them in too long and they get over dry.

I don't mind the launderette, everyone just uses the dryers at ours and it gets quite sociable! I shall be there in a while with all my 20p coins and my kindle.

Finally, my washing dries a lot faster than my next door neighbours, because I have a 1600rpm spin speed on my washer. Hers only goes up to 1200. Makes a lot of difference how much water is still in the clothes when they come out of the wash.

i use the riotaire year round. In winter I hang it out during the day then hang on inside during the night. It is cold and not 100% dry but makes a big difference plus smells much nicer of outside.

should read rotaire

I've had my Lakeland heated airer for just over 2 weeks and I love it!

I have a small entrance vestibule that the back door leads into. I've put the washing machine there with the dryer on top of it. I screwed hooks into the walls on two sides high up and tied washing up lines to it. I hang clothes there to dry. They take a day and night to dry if the heating isn't in and it's a wet day. The hooks are really high up so I climb on a stool to dry them. But having them that high up means they dry faster and that they don't come in the way of anyone walking underneath.