Why not use solar power like clotheslines as a way to reduce energy consumption?
Answer:
b/c that takes effort and people are lazy. Some people do still use "solar dryers"
Some people do use solar energy to reduce energy consumption. However, until the technology gets to a point where solar panels are efficient in the production of electricity, it would not make much sense for the average person to do this.
clotheslines are an excellent way to reduce energy consumption and probably the cheapest considering how much energy the typical dryer uses.
This is probably one of the oldest renewable energy systems around.
I do this as much of the year as I can. Clothes dryers use a lot of electricity, so drying on a clothesline saves significant energy.
For clothes that don't dry quickly, like thick cotton or denim, you can compromise by putting them in the dryer for a short time, then taking out and drying in the sun the rest of the way.
Why not use a horse and buggy to get too work, or let your hair dry in the wind or use candles etc?
1) some cotton-blend clothes will be stiff and scratchy so you will have to iron them (using energy)
2) air pollution, especially in cities, makes the clothes dirty while hanging on the line
3) Most clothes will require ironing...even jeans, because wrinkles won't come out like they do with a dryer
4) If birds fly over (dropping) you have to re-wash clothes, which again takes energy
I think that if we all did something even as little as air drying some, of our clothes, take showers instead of baths, turn off the lights, tv, radio, computer and other appliances when we leave the room, use a ceiling fan instead of the AC all day, it will make a huge difference, and after a while we would not even notice the changes
I use an outdoor clothesline to dry all of my laundry spring through fall. The only time I use the clothes dryer is in the winter, and then only for towels and socks. Everything else gets hung in the basement to dry. Towels & socks do get hung outside spring through fall. I just don't have enough room in the basement to hang them there.
Well, there are other nations that do this, like Turdistan. They must be smarter than us.
This time honored method, which harkens back to simpler times, is to my mind, still a great idea. But, there are problems, most of which boil down to the fact that hanging the clothes outside tends to make them dirty and stinky in many areas. I live far from dirty stinky stuff, but at this time of year there are tons (really -tons) of pollen in the air -I see it piled up on my car each morning- and hanging out my duds would be a sure fire way to make my allergies even worse than they are NOW. And then, there are the birds ...
And -get this- in some places, community covenants FORBID clothes lines on grounds of appearances -they "look shabby," they say. Many, however, allow use of of one "clothes dryer," which is one of those merry-go-round looking things with lines to hangs yer whitey-tighties.
So, I've made some compromises which I'll pass along for your consideration. I run the dryer on "fluff," which circulates air but adds no or little heat -that cuts down on power considerably even though it takes longer. So what? -I'm not in a hurry.
And in the winter, I'll frequently take damp (but not really wet) clothing and spread it out on the bed. In the low humidity it dries quickly and puts some moisture back in the air. I've never had a problem with a damp or moldy mattress because of this. Otherwise, damp clothing may be put on hangers in the laundry room until needed.
But, yes, it would be nice to be able to "hang it out to dry," and those who can do so -should consider it.
I live in Arizona so I recently started using a clothesline and it is great. I just wonder why I didn't think of it sooner. Not only am I saving energy (and money) but my clothes come out smelling great. And with the heat here, they dry in no time. Plus, it is even kinda fun in a wierd way. Kinda like pioneer days or something. The link below is for the one I just bought at Ace Hardware. They also had some at Home Depot. And there are different kinds depending on your needs.
expensive
There are many communities that don't allow people to air dry their clothes, and that can be a problem. I live in the mid-Atlantic area, and dry outside as often as I can. If the clothes are a little stiff, wrinkled or damp feeling - as they will be in high humidity days - put them in a dryer on air fluff only for 2-5 minutes, and they are great. Once in a while I have a problem with a piece or two from birds, but despite Philadelphia being only 3 miles away, pollution is not a problem. Air drying is better than paying to heat up clothes, so that the house gets hot and I pay more to run the air conditioner!
You obviously don't do the laundry in your house. When Al Gore starts drying HIS clothes on a clothesline I'll start thinking about it.
Unfortunatly, many Americans live in areas that have HOA or Residential CC's that prohibit clotheslines!
I use the solar dryer method here in Florida all the time. It works great. The only problem is you have to time it when the neighbors are not using their leaf blowers and weed eaters, but that's another story.
Nobody wants to wait around while the sun powers something. Also nobody really wants to go outside and hang their clothes up. Its sad people put their laziness before our planet.
I live in a rural community, therefore making it very easy to dry my clothes on a clothes line, and I use it all year round, although sometimes in the winter I may use the dryer in really stormy weather. Many other families also use a clothes line. Why not? It saves you money, your clothes smell great, and the wind shakes out all or most of the wrinkles, the towels may not come out the softest, by a rougher towel is a good exfoliate! Also many people in my community use solar energy, it is becoming a very popular trend.
OK to those who insist that people are simply lazy, I must object. I agree laziness is a problem, however, many Home Associations, as well as apartment complexes do not allow clothes lines and not all of us are lucky enough to have basements. I do try to dry as many of my clothes, particularly big items like sweaters or shirts that can be hung up on the shower line. This does some help. Unfortunately it is the best I can do for now. Three kids can create an unbelievable amount of laundry so I am not sure that a clothesline would be practical 100% even if possible. For those who say that is lazy, ask yourself, should I spend that extra 30 minutes helping with homework and reading to my children while trying to hang as much as possible or avoid the time spent with the kids. If anyone has some suggestions on other simple ways to dry clothes while living in an apartment, I am very interested to hear what you have done.
you can also use indoor clothes drying racks, some floor models expand, others stretch out over a bath tub, LL Bean makes a wall mounted model that slides out, doubles as a shelf.
This lets you "air dry" in winter, avoid the possible bird problem. Plus you actually get more laundry done!
One load can be air drying inside, in good weather another load can be outside while a third load that will not dry well that way; jeans, bath mats...runs in the standard dryer.
Actually more efficient
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