How to Line Dry Your Clothes

Imagine this: it’s a beautiful, warm summer day. You’re in the backyard, drinking a glass of iced tea, and listening the wind chimes. A few feet away, your morning laundry is hanging up to dry in the sunshine, dancing in the wind. And once it’s dry, you know it will smell warm and fabulous from being outside all day.

I don’t know about you, but to me, line drying takes me back to a simpler time. It’s the embodiment of summertime, and I love the way clothes feel after they’ve been drying in the sun.

Line drying used to be a common practice in this country. After all, it’s what everyone had to do before the first clothes dryer was invented in 1935.

But, line drying has fallen out of favor the past few decades. These days, there’s a lot of negative stigma attached to line drying. People, especially in planned communities, feel that line drying lowers property values and makes the community look “unsightly”.

According to the Wall Street Journal, more than 60 million people live in over 300,000 “planned communities”. And, most of them completely ban line drying.

Line Drying Is Eco-Friendly

The good news is that thanks to growing awareness and a trend towards frugality, line drying is gaining momentum again. And with good reason. According to LaundryList.org, people who regularly line dry can save $25 off their monthly electric bill.

And, clothes that are line dried last longer because they’re not regularly subjected to the intense heat of an electric dryer.

So, line drying clothes is a great way to go green and save money.

How To Line Dry Clothes

Ok, so line drying clothes isn’t rocket science. But, there are some tips that will help you get better results and save you some frustration.

• Buy a good line- Cheaper lines are going to sag with that heavy laundry over time. So, buy a sturdy, thicker line, and tie it as tight as you can.

• Don’t hang your line under a tree- Birds. Enough said.

• Fold your sheets- Sheets are big, and quite heavy when they’re wet. If you’re not careful, they’ll drag to the ground and get dirty again. So, fold them in half before pinning them to the line.

• Careful with your shirts- LaundryList.org says that if you’re not careful, button up shirts will have bunched shoulders from the clothespins once they come off the line. To prevent this, hang shirts by the hemline instead.

• Hang your dresses on a hanger first- If you want your dress to hold its shape, hang it on a hanger first, then attach the hanger to the line using a clothespin.

• Keep an eye on the weather- With summer comes thunderstorms. Make sure you’ve seen what the weather is going to do that day before you hang out all your laundry.

• Maximize space- If you’ve got a very small area to work with, don’t forget you can hang two lines on the same posts. One is high (this can be used for sheets, towels, and jeans), and the other is lower down, by your waist (which can hold small t-shirts, shorts, underwear, and socks).

• Don’t fold socks- If you fold socks over the line to save pins they’ll dry slower, and might fall off if a good wind comes through. Always pin them from the toes.

• Watch the time- It’s hard to say how long your laundry will take to dry because so much depends on outdoor temps and humidity levels. Tammy, a blogger in Seattle, has a great article on line drying; she says in the hot summer her clothes take less than two hours to dry. On a cooler, cloudy day, clothes could take 8 hours. Definitely go check out her article; it’s got a lot of wonderful information.

Line Drying Clothes In An Apartment

Just because you don’t have a backyard doesn’t mean you can’t line dry your clothes. There are tons of indoor drying racks that will allow you to air dry clothes in your bathroom or by the heating vent.

Plus, you’ll get the added benefit of the humidity from the wet clothes in the wintertime.

You’ve got to plan ahead with indoor drying. During the winter months, clothes can take 6-24 hours to dry indoors.

If You Live In A Banned Community

If you happen to live in a planned community where line drying is banned, then finding a way around it might be tough, especially if your neighbors are the persnickety type.

In this article from the Wall Street Journal, some people have gone to extreme measures to line dry their clothes. One woman had her clothesline out in the backyard, fought her months with the community planning board (which threatened legal action if she didn’t take her clothesline down), and is now line drying her clothes in the garage with the door half way open. She’s thinking of moving.

Another woman in Arizona dries her clothes on a line under her deck, out of sight from the neighbors.

Most of the time, complaints come directly from neighbors, who simply don’t want to look at someone else’s undies flapping in the wind. So if you can find a way to hide your line from view either with trees, tall shrubs, or a screen, then you might be ok.

If you’re rankled about the fact that you can’t line dry in your community, then talk with your local Homeowner’s Association. If you make the case for line drying, and explain how much money and energy and it can save homeowners, they might rescind the ban (especially if you get a petition going from your neighborhood).

Change can only happen if people are aware of the benefits!

More Resources On Air Drying

For the mother-lode of air-drying information, check out this amazing article from Tip The Planet. It really has everything you’ve ever wanted to know about air drying your clothes, and all the products that are available to do it.

Another great resources is LaundryList.org. They’re a non-profit whose goal is to raise awareness on line drying, and how much it can help the planet. They believe that everyone should have a legal right to hang out their laundry, so if you’re interested in taking action in your community these are the people to talk to.

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