I have a clothsline in my new house and put some clothes up today. I don't get it... I mean a dryer will dry faster and they will not be stiff or wrinkled. Why do so many people still hang out clothes? Is there an advantage that I am missing? Also, is if you leave them out overnight, they will have to dry the next day than. What if it rains.. do you have to wash them again? And why do some people hang wet clothes out in winter when they just get iced up? (I live in Canada). Please help me! No one at my last province hung out clothes. Here everyone does and I dont' get it. lol... is it purely for the fresh air smell in the linen?
2007-10-27 10:28:32 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Home & Garden ➔ Cleaning & Laundry
I had to start doing my own laundry when I was 11. I had to hang my clothes on the line unless it was currently raining. I had to give my Dad a dollar to use the dryer unless it was raining. It was purely economical. As a lazy, scheming teenager, I would watch the weather report and try to time my laundry days with crappy weather. Countless loads mildewed in the washer waiting for a downpour so I could turn on the dryer. Lots of loads sat out and re-dried after the promised rain came late and I just couldn't wait to hang them out. Rained on clothes are just fine.
I never understood the icy clothes either. My parents insisted they would dry, but I actually found them to be partially dry when they thawed and had to be hung around the bedroom for a couple of hours before putting them on or putting them away.
The worst was the spiders that invaded since I always left them out too long. Not only was I the type that would wash and dry one pair of jeans in the machine just because I wanted them, I was the type to retrieve one wanted item off the line and leave the rest up for days.
I think the difference you notice could be economical. If the people are a little poorer, they may do it to save money or they may not even own a dryer. Maybe the electricity in your new area is more expensive. Maybe the houses don't have basements and less people want a dryer up in the kitchen. Some people who can afford to dry their clothes don't do it because they think it is wasteful.
As for the wrinkled thing, now I am a semi-lazy grown adult and my inner-child insists on using the dryer.....and leaving the clothes in there until I re-wash and re-dry because there is no way I'm ironing. At least if I left them on the line that long, I'd only have to deal with spiders and bird crap.
2007-10-27 10:46:49 · answer #1 · answered by chuckyoufarley 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A dryer is much faster but I hang a few things outside to dry. I hang flannel shirts outside so they won't shrink from dryer heat. (also throw rugs, so the rubber backing does not come off in the dryer). Yes, you can get a fresh smell on linens when they are outside hanging on a breezy day. If it rains, you can just let them airdry on the line. I don't hang much out in the winter. I agree about the icing up and don't want that. It all depends on what you like and prefer. Good luck
2007-10-27 17:40:55 · answer #2 · answered by puanani 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I love to hang clothes outside. There's nothing like the smell of sheets that have hung out in the sunshine. Every day that the sun is out and I have a load of clothes to wash, I hang them outside. It not only saves electricity, but the smell is something you just can't get from fabric softener. If your clothes are wrinkled or stiff, just throw them in the dryer for about 10 minutes. That will take out the wrinkles and soften them. If it happens to rain, I just leave them out until they are dry. I don't hang them out in the winter, but I do have a clothesline strung up in my basement. It really does save on electricity and wear and tear on your dryer.
2007-10-27 20:30:46 · answer #3 · answered by Darlene mouse 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes clothes dried in the dryer are softer and less wrinkled, if you don't have a lot of wind. Using an electric dryer is a great convienence, but hanging out clothes on a line saves all of that energy plus gives you some exercise.
2007-10-27 17:36:55 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well the more artificial heat you add to clothes the more damaged they become , hanging your clothes outside helps to keep your whites whiter than white , no need to use bleach as the bleach only burns the fibers in the clothes and turns them yellow and gray after sometime. The sun bleaches your clothes white the natural way , I think hanging your clothes outside gives them that extra special freshness especially in the winter , When you Iron them you smell the freshness. Also you save money . As for the wrinkles. if you fold your clothes when the come straight from the machine before hanging them on the line , you hang them out quicker and they have no wrinkles
2007-10-27 17:38:22 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Well reason why i hang dry outside on the line is because i can't afford a dryer with no job. Another reason is sometimes it is more safe on fabric to let it air dry then hot air.
2007-10-27 17:33:31 · answer #6 · answered by rosabearr ") 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Since there is nothing fresh about the air these days, I don't get it either. However, I have never hung clothes outside and haven't lived in communities where it is allowed either. Even if I didn't have an HOA rule against it, I wouldn't. Who wants to look at clotheslines and who has time to take wet clothes outside and pin them up? We don't live in the 50's.
2007-10-27 19:32:42 · answer #7 · answered by dawnb 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋