How to Dry Clothing Without a Machine Dryer

Drying your clothing and household items without using a gas or electric dryer can not only save you money, saving your green, it can also help in your efforts towards a greener environment. Being able to dry your clothing without a clothes dryer can also come in handy for the potential breakdown of your dryer which will almost always come at the worst possible time. There are several methods for drying your clothing both in winter and summer. There are also options available for rain or shine and amount of drying space available.

As a first note, if your items are soaking wet and you have a washing machine, put them back in the washing machine. Set the machine for the final spin cycle. You do not want to re-rinse but giving the items an extra run through the spin cycle will remove excess water in the clothing or household items.

Obviously if you have yard space available setting up a clothes drying line is the first choice for drying items in good weather. Even if you do not have trees, a line can be strung from the side of your home to the garage or to a swing set. Any type of a high and sturdy place to hook up your line will work. Items dried this way will also come out naturally smelling better and softer without the use of additives again contributing to a greener environment. That is unless you are in the middle of a smoggy or polluted area. In that case you may wish to dry items inside.

If you have a three season type of room or even a large awning you have even more options. A drying line in this type of location can be used even in less than favorable weather. Just allow a bit more time for clothing to dry if it is colder or wetter outside than ideal.

No room outside? Clothing can be dried inside just as easily. A clothes line can be put in your laundry area or even bathroom if necessary. Clothes drying racks are also available and take up less lengthy space. A clothes drying rack is also good for drying sweaters and other non-machine dry-able items. To speed up the process place a dry towel under the items that you lay flat, just remove and/or replace if the towel gets soaked. During winter try and place your line or rack near a heat vent to speed the drying process. This will also perform double duty as the wet items can add humidity to dry air. In the summer place the rack or line near an oscillating fan for quicker drying results.

Hopefully these ideas will work for you or help you to come up with a drying system that fits your exact requirements. Not only will you have a way to dry items if your dryer does break down but more frequent use of non-machine drying can save you money and help in efforts for a greener environment. The gas and electricity you can save may be well worth the effort!