When possible we would recommend that you hang your clothes out to dry rather than using a tumble dryer. It’s more energy efficient, it helps your clothes last longer and it will save you money in the long term. Of course we know that hanging clothes out to dry all the time isn’t realistic, particularly in the winter months or if you’ve got a large household with high laundry demands. The purpose of this article is to help you increase the efficiency of your tumble dryer when it is needed; making it more environmentally friendly and hopefully decreasing your energy bills at the same time.
Top 10 tumble dryer tips for saving energy
- If your clothes still feel wetter than they should at the end of the wash cycle put them back into the washing machine on the spin cycle at high speed to get rid of that excess moisture.
- Clean your lint filters religiously, not only for energy efficiency but also for fire safety. Hot air is pushed through the filters and if there is lint build up then more hot air has to be created to dry your clothes. We also recommend that you periodically vacuum out the cavity that the lint filter slips into using the vacuum’s crevice tool.
- If you have a condenser tumble dryer make sure that you empty the water collection box prior to starting a new load.
- Be sensitive to your tumble dryer’s vent hose. A kinked or overly long hose can cause accelerated lint build up in your venting. When installing the machine make sure the length fulfills the manufacturers recommendations.
- When loading the dryer untangle clothes and bedding as you go. Hot air will take longer to reach, and dry, fabric that is compacted.
- Don’t overstuff your washing machine and tumble dryer. Putting too much fabric in laundry appliances can cause your machine to work harder than it should causing wear. In the dryer hot air needs a bit of room to circulate and compacted fabric will not only greatly increase the drying time but also increase the time spent ironing to get the wrinkles out.
- Use dryer balls - they reduce drying time up to 25% (as proved by science).
- Sort your laundry by fabric type and use the appropriate heat setting for each. Delicate items or items made of wool, spandex and lycra should be dried at a much lower temperature for a shorter amount of time than items like denim. If you sort your laundry not only will your drying time be shorter but your clothes should last longer.
- Empty pockets before starting the laundry. That tissue in the jeans pocket that makes it into the drying cycle will accelerate the build-up of lint in the machine.
- When an item fails on your tumble dryer check to see if dryer spares are available for it rather than replacing the machine. You may expend a bit of personal energy fitting the part, however you’ll save the energy required to create a whole new appliance, and save a bit of cash too.
When the time does come that you need to replace your tumble dryer try to purchase one that has an ‘A’ energy rating. We would recommend purchasing your next tumble dryer at www.appliancesonline.co.uk. Not only do their dryers all have the energy rating clearly labelled but they encourage customer reviews which means that you can get the inside scoop of what others who purchased that model think of the machine.