How on earth are you drying bath towels if heating not on much??

[GlomOfNit]

Just that, really. Our heating used to be on, but low, all day (I KNOW), on the basis that it was more economical to keep things at a baseline ok temp than have to reheat a cold house twice a day. So we were pretty cosy. Those days are gone now obviously and we currently have thermostat set to come on at 17 or so, twice a day. We have a horrible cold bathroom anyway (ground floor, built in what was once the house tool cupboard apparently, 1920's ex-council house dating from the days when you'd have a bath in front of kitchen range). We used to sling towels over radiator after baths to dry off. But now radiators aren't on, or not on for long enough. I sling them over bannisters to air (none of this is helping the damp in the house either ) but they don't fully dry like that.

Obviously in good weather we put them outside but it's getting cold enough that they don't really dry. They start stinking pretty quickly if they don't dry properly.

Are there any clever tips I'm missing? (no, we don't have a functioning tumbledrier any longer and I'm not looking to buy one at the moment, for obvious reasons. We do have a heated Lakeland airer thing but it's really awkward to have out all the time. I also have a decent dehumidifier.)

This! On a sunny day like today my washing airer follows the sun round the lounge. It's a proper obstacle course at times.

I've LOADS of hot sun on the front garden and at times I'm sooooo tempted to pop it out there

We don't have anywhere to put one at the moment, unless we have it in a bedroom or living room. Our utility area is in the garage and I believe the heat pump driers don't work in outbuildings.

I'm sure you're not! Everyone finds a way to do things that works for them.

I do try and place laundry in sensible places - ie in the sunny dining room bit of the family room in the afternoon, if sunny, but again that necessitates a clothes airer that just gets in the way. I suspect there's no easy way around this.

Think I'll look into microfibre ones too

@stuntbubbles Where did you get your Turkish waffle towels? Do you have a link?
Thanks!

I have a heated airer for clothes, but towels I just sling over the backs of the dining chairs. Our table is in the kitchen though so tends to be warm.

Extra towels mine are taking two days to dry. It's too rainy this week to put anything out. We have a gas tumbler which is cheaper. It's in the garage had to use it this week

No heating that should say

How?

I'm thinking about getting a new thermostat (mine died) and TRV's you can control from an app. Then being able to turn just the bathroom towel rail on, but need to ask if that's ok to do and designate one if the other rads to be the uncontrolled one you need to have.

Dry yourself with a flannel before using the towel! It always surprises me that people don't don't this anymore. It was the standard way to dry yourself in my grandparents' time (pre-driers) and I've always done it myself. The flannel absorbs most of the water so the towel isn't so damp, will dry quicker and need washing less often. Flannels very easy to dry out too!

"One of my friends has a lovely and very practical mother. She dries herself very quickly for a few seconds with a flannel (which I imagine gets quite wet) then wraps self up in a big bath towel which hardly gets wet."

I just wrap myself in a towel and air dry while I'm drying my hair, but my towels still get dams so I don't think this is the solution. I hang it up in the bathroom, but doesn't dry thoroughly. My hair towel I drape over the shower screen, but again without heating, doesn't dry very well. I just live with it.

(I'm talking about drying used towels that are a bit damp of course, not towels straight out of the washing machine)

Having a dehumidifier on in a room with them on a drying rack would help.

I am very lucky in the sense I have an airing cupboard and a tumble dryer. It's thoroughly miserable trying to dry laundry without those. My previous house was also 1920s ex council and a very damp house, it was a nightmare as we didn't have what we do now and did use the dehumidifier a lot.

Stop using bath sheets and use smaller towels. As upthread, wipe yourself down with a flannel after showering/ bathing to remove excess water. Then use a smaller towel to dry off. And shower/ bathe less during the winter.

I've never owned a tumble drier and never had a towel go musty on me. Not a good housekeeper but I must be doing something right.

My friend bought one of those ceiling hoist airers she swears by it. I guess because heat rises it works better. You could put some hooks in the ceiling then hang off clothes hangers

I've always used the flannel trick (70's kid) so bath towels haven't been a problem. I've dried the hand and tea towels by popping them in the oven once I've taken the dinner out. I lay one on each shelf and leave the door open. This will only work if you have a clean oven though!

@GlomOfNit i was going to do that when I did the bathroom, but the fitter talked me out of it (he said they often went wrong & were expensive way to heat the rad, pointless when the option is to be on with the heating ) but I wish now I'd done it. I can't now as there's no electric supply near enough (would have been easy to do at the time before the bathroom was plastered & tiled!!)

I'm even looking at getting a wall heater installed (other end of the bathroom nearer an electrical supply).

or just 'toughen up' it's warm enough when in the shower!

I just hang my towels on the big heated towel rail and their currently dry by my next shower and if not I'd just grab a fresh towel and alternate them.

if I've totally soaked a towel I'll put it outside or over an airer.

I don't have, don't like, don't want a tumble dryer. I'd rather just put the heating on.

Have 2 towels each on the go, using each towel every 2 days giving the most recently used towel time to dry

Not all heated towel rails heat up with the water - mine doesn't. It's plumbed in like a radiator and only heats up if the heating is on.

Same here. Our tumble drier's been broken for two years and we've stumbled on without one, but it lives in the side porch and we genuinely have nowhere indoors to put a heat pump one. The porch doubles as an extra drinks fridge in winter and we often put the cooked turkey in there overnight after Christmas dinner.

Dehumidifer (used for drying the washing anyway).

I put them outside especially on a windy day and it takes the worst of them then hang them over the radiator. If it’s wet outside and extra spin at the highest speed you have on the washing machine helps.

I now wash bedding, towels etc based around the weather forecast if it’s dry with a wind a certain day I do them then. If I really have to I put them in the tumble dryer but not often.

BigBadBarry I may message you off-MN about that. I believe We Know One Another [wunk] unless I'm badly misremembering a username. (don't worry, I'm not a mad stalker)

Those of you suggesting microfiubre camping towels - do you really find them as effective as a cotton towel?

I've tried them and they don't seem to dry me very much, just kind of move the damp around. Not at all absorbent in my experience.

I wash towels every 10 days or so. Before anyone objects - before getting out of the shower I rub myself down with a dry flannel (which gets used once and then washed with other clothing etc) which removes most water. If needed I will wring the flannel out and carry on. I also use a micro fibre towel to wrap my hair. This means that the towel itself doesn’t get very wet at all and is mostly used to keep me warm while I get ready and dressed. I also air it out over several pegs in the bathroom before the next use.

When I do wash towels I give them an extra spin and leave them outside until they’re pretty much dry. If needed I will air them inside until they are completely dry.

But I've just got out of the bath and my towel is barley damp. I don't undestand how your towels are getting so wet just from the few drops of water that are left on you after a bath or shower?