Collectively, cloth dryers cost Americans over 4 billion dollars annually to operate. Asides from the mountainous cost that dryers impose, they also leave behind nasty carbon footprints. So if you’ve made the decision to live a dryer-free lifestyle, it’s a good one.
You can dry your clothes without using a cloth dryer; the sun and wind are free gifts you can begin to utilize. Frankly, after a while, you might not miss using a dryer once you’ve learned how to dry clothes without one.
Do you want to learn how to dry your clothes without a dryer? Keep reading to find out
5 Ways To Dry Clothes Without a Dryer
It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to save money, advocating for eco-friendliness, or trying to dry your clothes indoors because you live in a small apartment, knowing how to dry clothes without using a cloth dryer is an essential skill; it will come in helpful at some point, especially when you go on a long vacation.
Keep reading to learn 5 ways to dry your clothes without using a cloth dryer.
1. Spin Dry Using a Washing Machine
If your aim is to get as much water out of your clothes, then you should try spinning them dry in a washing machine using a high-speed setting. Doing this can get your clothes as close to dry as possible. Make sure your washing machine is clean before you proceed, to avoid minor stains on clothes. Here’s how to clean your washing machine.
Washing machines work, but if you want to get even more water out of your wet cloth, then you should get your hands on a spin dryer. Spin dryers can come up with much higher speeds that leave a washing machine in the dust. Even more, spin dryers use considerably less electricity than a dryer; on average, about 80% less electricity compared to a standard dryer.
If a spin dryer is something you fancy, then we recommend getting The Laundry Alternative Ninja Portable Centrifugal Spin Dryer. It is compact, inexpensive, and comes with a high-tech suspension.
2. Hang Clothes Out To Dry
Do you want to dry your clothes without using a dryer? Then you might as well do it the old-fashioned way, by hanging it out to dry – on a drying rack or clothesline. If you want to speed up the drying process, try opening the windows in your laundry room to allow for improved ventilation, putting a fan near the clothes, or hanging them near a radiator or heating vent.
If the weather is favorable, hang your clothes to dry outside in the backyard or on a balcony.
3. Dry Clothes Using a Towel
Instead of just wringing your clothes before hanging them out to dry, you can significantly reduce drying time by wringing the clothing in a towel. Note, however, that you cannot use this method with clothes that have delicate accessories, buttons, or other add-ons to avoid damaging them.
To do this, lay a bath towel – large enough to engulf the clothing – on a flat surface, then spread the piece of clothing flat against the towel. Next, roll the towel to encase the clothing, then squeeze. Take care not to squeeze too much or else the torsional force may rip the cloth (or towel).
Using this method will leave your clothes looking shrunken and wrinkled, so it leaves you with the extra task of unshrinking your clothes after drying.
4. Use a Hairdryer
If you’re trying to dry a small piece of clothing fast, then using a hairdryer can save your day; the heat and breeze from the hairdryer can easily help to dry your cloth.
Spread the clothing on a flat surface or hang it on a hanger, then turn on the hairdryer and blow the clothing item dry.
Note: This method should only be used for small clothing items.
5. Use an Iron And a Towel
If you want to dry your cloth fast, ironing them isn’t a bad idea. What you shouldn’t do, however, is place the hot surface of the iron on the fabric directly; it may discolor the fabric, most times permanently. There’s a better way of doing it, by using a towel.
To dry your cloth using a towel and iron, place the clothing on an ironing board (make sure it’s been squeezed already), then place a towel on top of it. Then you can begin to iron the towel. This way, the heat of the iron hits the clothing item indirectly and dries it.
Note: Try not to leave the iron on one part of the towel for too long to avoid leaving burn marks on the clothing (and towel).
Bonus – Use the Sun’s Energy
This is probably the best method on this list because sun-drying your wet cloth has a myriad of benefits attached to it. For one, your clothes will smell fresh. Also, the sun’s ray has germ-killing properties – and the list goes on.
So, if you’ve got an open space with a clothesline, avail yourself of the opportunity of using the free energy from the sun to dry your clothes. It’s as simple as spreading them outdoors on a clothesline or hanger to dry.
Note: Don’t leave your clothes in the sun longer than is necessary because excessive exposure can make the fabric’s color fade. On a sunny day, it takes about 3 – 4 hours to fully dry a piece of clothing, so you might want to set an alarm.
How to Dry Clothes during Winter (Without a Dryer)?
Drying your clothes in the warmer times of the year is a no-brainer, but it’s a different story when you need to dry clothes in the frigid winter air, without a dryer. Clothes can still dry in the winter as long as you don’t spread them out in the cold – they’ll simply freeze.
As it turns out, heat is not the only factor responsible for drying clothes, here are other factors that can help you dry clothes even in the winter:
Humidity
Humidity is the measure of how much water is hanging around in the air. So naturally, the higher the humidity, the longer a piece of clothing will take to dry. In the winter months, when the air is cold and dry, humidity is low, so clothes will dry faster. Just spread them indoors.
Wind
But you guessed it already. Spreading your clothes in a well-ventilated room can make them dry normally, although during the winter it can take longer to dry clothes. But if you open the windows to allow air to circulate in the room, eventually your clothes will dry.
What Can I Use Instead Of a Tumble Dryer?
What if you didn’t want to take chances with drying your clothes, you don’t have a cloth dryer but you need something that is more power-efficient, eco-friendly, and as effective as a dryer? Well, you might want to get your hands on a dehumidifier.
Dehumidifiers help clothes to dry faster by making the air around them dry; this is a sneaky yet effective way to dry clothes. Dehumidifiers can also prove extremely useful for drying clothes in the winter.
On average, dehumidifiers use about 300 watts of electricity an hour (compared to a cloth dryer’s 2,400 watts per hour). The only downside with dehumidifiers is that you get to run them for longer until the clothes dry. However, what a dehumidifier lacks in speed, it more than makes up for by drying your clothes gently. In essence, your clothes dry naturally without the risk of damage when you use a dehumidifier.
If you want something to dry your cloth that’s even less power-hungry, yet effective, you should go for an electric cloth drying rack.