Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Money matters

Find financial and money-saving discussions including debt and pension chat on our Money forum. If you're looking for ways to make your money to go further, sign up to our Moneysaver emails here.

Original poster

£6 for a load in the tumble dryer?

277 replies

whereisthejasmine · 01/04/2022 08:24

someone on the news just said that it will be £6 per load to use the tumble dryer? is that right? I am searching online and the rates I see are more like 37p per hour a year ago - if that doubles its still less than a £1/hour.
Be grateful to confirm the realistic cost for 2022 as if it is £6/hour I will have to abandon it.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
StColumbofNavron · 01/04/2022 08:29

If we have to abandon our tumble it will make things tricky. We have no outside space, not even a balcony and nowhere to put a clothes horse. Any clothes horse could not hold enough clothes and in any room would take 48hours to dry. We’d probably never get to sheets and towels again.

0ats · 01/04/2022 08:31

Don't use one. Clothes horse all winter and washing line in spring summer.

Handsnotwands · 01/04/2022 08:31

Have you anywhere you can put a pulley maid? We have one in our stairwell. It fits a whole load of washing and dries really quickly

We abandoned the tumble dryer a while ago

TangoWhiskyAlphaTango · 01/04/2022 08:35

I too have given away my tumble dryer. I use a drying wrack in my bedroom and hang clothes on hangers from picture rails - not pretty but free!

LemonViolet · 01/04/2022 08:38

Clothes horse can go over/in the bath? Or if you have ceiling height a pulley system ceiling airer apparently dry quicker than standing airers as well (I guess the air is warmer up there).

When I lived in a flat with no space I took towels and sheets out to a launderette for service wash monthly. Depending on costs that may still be cheaper than multiple tumble dryer loads.

OutlookStalking · 01/04/2022 08:39

Drying indoors is one of the biggest causes of damp. We abandoned this many years ago (asthma/eczema) after a mumsnet thread allerted us to this!!

OutlookStalking · 01/04/2022 08:40

We have a condenser dryer and every time we empty it theres several litres of water. It's like intentio ally painting water on your walls!

Ohsugarhoneyicetea · 01/04/2022 08:40

I have a heat pump tumble dryer, which apparently costs a 1/3 of what a vented or condenser dryer costs to run.

Original poster
whereisthejasmine · 01/04/2022 08:40

thank you for all the tips - but does anyone know what the per hour costs of the dryer is likely to be with the new prices? Obvs it will vary depending on the rate I am on, but I am hoping there is an average cost to be found somewhere. All I can find is data from April 2021

OP posts:
womaninatightspot · 01/04/2022 08:42

@OutlookStalking

Drying indoors is one of the biggest causes of damp. We abandoned this many years ago (asthma/eczema) after a mumsnet thread allerted us to this!!
This might as well throw a bucket of water at your walls. If you do dry indoors make sure you air the place well/ get a dehumidifier.
Justkeeppedaling · 01/04/2022 08:43

@whereisthejasmine

thank you for all the tips - but does anyone know what the per hour costs of the dryer is likely to be with the new prices? Obvs it will vary depending on the rate I am on, but I am hoping there is an average cost to be found somewhere. All I can find is data from April 2021

No, but I do know that tumble drying is one of the most expensive and inefficient ways to dry your clothes. Plus it's bad for the planet.

DogandMog · 01/04/2022 08:45

Clothes horse + dehumidifier (much cheaper to run... typically 0.15 kwh vs tumble dryer 2 - 3 kwh).

Or you could line dry for a few hours to get most of the dampness out, then a quick finish in the dryer. Windy days are the best weather.

Original poster
whereisthejasmine · 01/04/2022 08:45

ah ha I have foudn something. This is what I wanted to know, link here in case it is helpful for others. Looks like a dryer load is going to be over £1 a load, but not £6 as per the lady on the news earlier this morning. So I can still use it but will use it sparingly (ie finishing off the washing that I have had out on the line)

www.nea.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Electricity-Consumption-Around-the-Home.pdf

OP posts:
TheUndoingProject · 01/04/2022 08:46

blog.domesticandgeneral.com/articles/cost-of-running-a-tumble-dryer/

This gives you the kWh it uses - you could just update based on prices rises.

Ganhame1 · 01/04/2022 08:47

I saw her say this, I was assuming she watched the amount on her smart meter. She may have a low rated energy efficient tumble dryer. I don’t have a smart meter to test it out on our condenser dryer.

FleeceNavidadfromtheSheep · 01/04/2022 08:47

I've been using a drying rack and running the dehumidifier to remove moisture from the air.

Then folded laundry goes into the airing cupboard for a day or two if not completed dry.

Obviously hang stuff outside if the weather is fine.

Bonus: I use water collected by the dehumidifier on the houseplants.

Mindful that it is easier to make the change from tumble drying is you don't have several loads and need a quick turnaround.

LemonViolet · 01/04/2022 08:47

Good ventilation is definitely important when drying clothes indoors. But for many people there just isn’t any other option!

Shouldbedoing · 01/04/2022 08:48

I'm interested too, OP. Prior to the price rises I've been working on 65p a load from older figures. I think that £6 is nonsense. Even at £1.30 I think its money well spent. I use a clothes horse and the line where possible too

Geekygeek · 01/04/2022 08:48

www.idealhome.co.uk/property-advice/how-much-does-it-cost-to-run-a-tumble-dryer-295558

No where near £6 a load apparently.

ClarasZoo · 01/04/2022 08:48

Mine is energy efficient C and costing £1.20/hour at the moment. I need to compare that to my dehumidifier which also works welll…

Rainbowshine · 01/04/2022 08:49

It depends what you define as a load, the figure is £6 a load, not per hour. If you have a newer tumble dryer they can take 2.5 hours to dry a load, so £6 might not be inaccurate. Your looking at cost per hour and need to factor in how long the cycle takes. As well as whether you want to tumble dry etc.

GiantKitten · 01/04/2022 08:49

Just found this - not sure how they can specify really, as cycles vary depending on load (eg jeans vs shirts) but certainly nowhere near £6!

£6 for a load in the tumble dryer?
Moaningturtle · 01/04/2022 08:50

An extra spin in the washing machine cuts down drying time a surprising amount, but I have no idea if an extra spin cycle uses more or less energy than the 20 minutes it saves in the drier? I need a much better grasp of maths to be able to work these things out.

FleeceNavidadfromtheSheep · 01/04/2022 08:50

Dehumidifiers aren't cheap though, so factor that cost against using the tumble dryer you already have.

I had one due to damp in my old house, and it was about £150.

RestingPandaFace · 01/04/2022 08:51

The cost will depend on the electric consumption of your dryer my washer dryer uses 6.28 KWH for a full cycle at 28.02p per KWH which is £1.73. My tariff doesn’t seem to have gone up by as much as many peoples though.