Clothes dryers can use a ton of energy in your home, zapping resources and raising your bill. Luckily, there are plenty of options that will allow you to go dryer free most of the time.
The basic clothesline: Obviously people have been using the basic clothes line for hundreds of years. It’s simple to set one up too. You don’t need two properly placed trees either. Mother Earth News has an easy tutorial about how to make your very own sturdy clothesline. There are also retractable clotheslines you can invest in as well that can be inside.
Drying racks: Drying racks are nice because they can be used both indoors and out, and usually fold up nice and tidy and out of the way when not in use. There are many drying rack options like the Expandable Wall Rack (shown above), an Over-Bath Drying Rack, or a basic folding drying rack.
Hangers: You have to hang your clothes anyhow, so why not simply take them from the washer, put them on hangers, and hang them on the shower rack for a day. THEN move directly to your closet. This is pretty much what I do all year round. Living in rainy Oregon makes it difficult to hang clothes outside year round, so this is easier. Inside clothes dry super fast too, so it’s not as if your bathroom will always be clothes covered. There are even eco-friendly hanger options, such as…
- Save the ones your clothes come on. Seriously folks; according to a Readers Digest story last year, about 3.5 billion hangers end up in the landfill annually. What the!? Use the ones you’ve got.You can also check thrift stores for used hangers.
- B Green Bamboo Hangers
- Compost friendly Wheatware Hangers