Tumble dryer Vented or Condensor one? (for a family of 4 - 3 adults and one child)

[healtywealthy]

I've heard both, some people say vented is better no need to empty the water. Others have said condensor is a step up from vented.

Any thoughts :-) Thanks

We got a new condenser one from Bosch last year. Almost but not quite top of their range. I've been really impressed by the drying times and efficiency. Had a 10 yr old prev gen one from Bosch too and it's light years better.

I use the water from the tank to fill the iron as it doesn't create scale and throw brown water over everything. We live in a very hard water area though which may not be an issue for you.

Yes. I’m not sure there’s any cost saving overall.

I have a heat pump one after having vented and condenser previously. It takes bloody hours to dry anything, and there’s only two of us. It takes longer than a condenser which takes longer than a vented. So any savings on coat per hour must be negated by length of time.

I wish I’d got another vented even though the choice was limited.

it seems vented is the way to go then, thanks all

thanks @PhoneMyHelplineTwice . sadly my spin is 1200 and I can't change that until this machine breaks, I know it's a bit lower than other people's spin of 1600.

quick question, if I'm choosing a vented and my washing machine is 10 kg, do I need to get a tumble dryer of 10 kg or can a 9kg be fine? the machine always has some space left so clothes get cleaned better. any thoughts on this thanks.

I think speed is the good thing so going for vented. cost is normally okay, it's only going to be used more in winter. then once the cold is over i.e. spring/summer they go on the line and may only need 10 mins in dryer sometimes

another consideration is to have a large drum as it reduces need for ironing
I’ve a cheap beko condenser - very happy it - it’s lasting longer than expensive Bosch washing machine
yes it needs extra dry cupboard setting but it cares for clothes better/ doesn’t over dry and less crinkled

I haven't run trials, but I believe clothes come out smoother if it is less full, so I do large items like duvet covers separately, this prevents them engulfing the smaller things, and making two light loads dries better than one heavy load. AFAIK the amount of electricity used is proportional to the amount of water evaporated, so two 5kg loads should not use more than one 10kg load.

Condenser 100% mine is actually attached to the sink now so I don't even have to empty it.

OP I was you a few weeks ago, just bought this hotpoint vented one 2 weeks ago and it's great:

comet.co.uk/products/hotpoint-h1d80wuk-8kg-vented-tumble-dryer-white

Heat pump are recommended for energy costs but people say they take forever to dry clothes and are prone to break.

Vented dry clothes quickly and I'm impressed with how cool the clothes are, this one changes the direction regularly so things don't get tied in knots. It's also extremely simple with just the one knob, a hot or cool setting and on off button.

Before this I had a cheap one from argos that was still going after 20 years but would heat the clothes and was only 3kg.

So far we're really impressed, I looked at a lot of reviews before settling on this one.

Also you won't be able to get a vented one from summer 2025 so that was a reason for me to get this one, people are buying extra ones to keep in their garage for the future because the condenser and heat pumps are unreliable.

We have a Miele condenser one which actually has a small pipe at the back so you can choose to have it self drain (ours is at the side of the washer so we have channelled the outlet into the same drain) or you can use the tank function and empty yourself every few uses.

Vented every single time.

I go for basic simple white goods. Less to go wrong. Had a basic indesit vented tumble dryer I inherited with my previous house. 20 years old when I moved and left it for new owners. Now have a hoover condenser as no where to vent in my current home and it's 10 years old. Empty it every 4 cycles. Drys really well. Everyone I know who has sensors seems to have problems. Basic all the way I find best

I Beko condenser and its fantastic. Really fast and it drains down the waste pipe so no need to faff about emptying the draw.

I am sure the 9kg drum would be fine. Just don't overfill it.

why will they stop selling vented ones?

I think because they make more money selling the more expensive ones that go wrong more and need to be replaced.

There are quite a lot of people who object to having a hole drilled in the wall of their house.

I have plenty, extractor fans, pipes, ventilators, tumble dryers....

The tool is heavy, and although you can hire one, a plumber or builder can do it. I did several in one day when I hired one, but now I have my own. I would not recommend trying to work off a ladder.

It's EU law, because they are not as energy efficient. So it's not a case of the companies not wanting to sell them, but not being allowed to. You won't be able to get one from 1 July 2025.

I have a Hoover brand heat pump/condenser dryer. We bought it for energy conservation and to avoid having to put a vent hole into our kitchen wall.

It takes about two hours to dry a load of clothes. I clean the lint filter after every load, however after 18 months the performance did go off a bit with it taking a lot longer - I read the manual and found there is a secondary filter which is behind a plate at the bottom of the front of the dryer. I clean that once a month or so and the dryer works just fine 3 years in. I think quite a few people with this type of dryer don't know about the secondary filter. If that isn't cleaned periodically the dryer will take forever to dry clothes.

I like not having to clean out a dryer vent pipe every year too. The one we had in our last house was about 15 feet long and was a right pain to sweep out.

I see interesting to know. there's already a place for the pipe to go through the wall so that's great.

2 hours @DemonicCaveMaggot seems a long time. does anyone know if a vented will be quicker?

having looked on Youtube I do have a hole in the wall but that's for the sink. so it seems that for the vent it needs actual fixing and its own space in the wall. I previously had a condensor with a hose and that was a very small pipe.

so I'm not sure if now and may need to go for the condensor instead

I'm f you do go for the condenser make sure the water tank is easily accessible - a few years ago I made the mistake of buying one that had the tank at the bottom left of the dryer, which made it extra hard to get it out ad the dryer was situated in a corner. Now I have o woth a tank that slides out of the top making emptying so much easier

My spin speed is similar but I just do an extra spin at the end for bulky things like towels and jeans.

thanks all. yes I know what you mean, I had one with a draw at the top for water and that was pretty easy to empty just little heavy when full.

what the other type, heat pump ones are they rubbish?