Let’s talk about laundry…
As a child, my sister and I had most of the household chores divided between us. There were a few that we both did, but as we got older we started splitting them according to the jobs that we preferred. I swept and mopped, she vacuumed; I did the dishes, she did the laundry. This worked great at the time, because she despised washing dishes, and I felt similarly about laundry. However, looking back now, I see that this system left us at a disadvantage, as when we became responsible for our own households, we had to learn to do well at the chores we had spent years building up a resistance towards.
Needless to say, when I first moved out, my relationship to laundry was one of dread and distaste. I would put it off until it piled up and then spend a couple days playing catch up. Eventually, I realized that this is not a sustainable approach to a task like laundry, as it is a part of life that can’t actually be avoided. So, I decided to take a new approach and incorporate it into my routine in a way that was more enjoyable for me (for more on how to do this, be sure to check out my post Keeping a Clean House: 5 Tips for a Tidy Home).
Hang drying laundry is one such change that I made in my laundry routine which has allowed the process of doing laundry to become much more enjoyable for me.
Why would one want to hang dry their laundry?
I know what you might be thinking, how could hang drying laundry, which is arguably more work, make this chore more enjoyable? Well, there are several reasons that hang drying laundry makes it a more pleasant task, as well as various other benefits that make it especially worthwhile.
It provides you with the opportunity to slow down:
Hang drying laundry does take a bit more time than tossing a load in the dryer, that’s true. However, I see this as being a benefit of the task. The job itself is somewhat mindless, but it still requires your attention, which means you cannot do it while scrolling social media or staring at your phone. Instead, you are provided with a few uninterrupted minutes outdoors, during which you can let your thoughts wander and appreciate the beauty that is right around you.
You might still say, “Well, that sounds nice, but slowing down is the last thing I have time to do”. I would like to remind you that you get to choose how your time is used. In many places around the world, hang drying laundry is the norm, even for families with multiple children and two parents with full time jobs. So, if they can do it, you likely could too, if you so desire.
It helps preserve the life of your clothing and fabrics:
Hang drying laundry is more gentle on the materials than using a tumble dryer. The laundry is stationary, or flowing gently in the wind, rather than being thrown around and stretched in the dryer. Additionally, the heat of the dryer expedites the breakdown of your fabrics, whereas drying your clothing outside will not create as much wear and is significantly less likely to cause any shrinkage.
It saves money and electricity:
The reduced wear on your laundry will allow you to save money as you will not need to replace your items as frequently. Additionally, by hang drying your laundry outdoors, you will avoid using a gas or electric clothes dryer, which is more environmentally sustainable and will lower your utility bill.
Your laundry will be fresher and cleaner:
The wind and sun are absolute powerhouses when it comes to laundry. Laundry that is hung to dry outdoors comes inside smelling like a breath of fresh air. The sun, with its UV rays, kills off bacteria on items hung to dry outside. As a result, you may find that you sleep better in hung dry sheets and feel fresher in hung dry clothes. The sun also acts as a natural stain remover and brightener to light and white fabrics, without the need for additional chemical cleaners.
How can I start hang drying my laundry?
Every individual’s living situation is different and thus, you may have to be creative to figure out a way to get started with hang drying. There are two different methods that I have used, depending on my living situation, which are both great ways to get started.
Option #1: Purchase a Laundry Rack
I got started drying laundry outdoors on an umbrella style drying rack, like this one. It worked well and was convenient because it could be stowed away when not in use. However, after about six months one of the arms did eventually break off, which is why this is not my favorite way to hang dry. There are many types of laundry drying racks that you can look into to see what might be best for your living situation. Some of them can be used both indoors and outdoors, which would be especially helpful if the weather where you live does not allow you to dry laundry outside year-round. Shop around and decide what would work best for you.
Option #2: Hang Clothesline
If you have a patio with tall wooden posts, a couple of good trees, or a fence across from your house, you can look into stringing some laundry line between these points to create a space for hang drying. I currently have clothesline hung on our covered patio, and this has quickly become my preferred way of drying outdoors. There are many types of laundry line that you can use, and you could even get a retractable clotheslines so that your line does not always have to be out. Cotton clothesline is nice, but it is a bit more difficult to clean in the instance of things like bird poop, which is why I currently use plastic clothesline. There is also steel clothesline, which would be more environmentally friendly than plastic, while still being easy to wipe clean. There are many different ways you could go about stringing clothesline in your outdoor space; experiment and see what will be the most functional for you.
A few quick notes for success
Drying laundry outdoors is pretty self explanatory, you just need a place to hang it and some clothespins to keep it from blowing away. However, there are a few simple tips and tricks I have learned that can improve your overall experience.
Tips & Tricks for Hang-Drying Laundry
- Hang your darker colored clothing inside out or in the shade when possible to help prevent fading.
- Hang whites and items with stains in direct sunlight to make the most of the natural bleaching ability of the sun.
- Hang items with the heaviest part at the bottom to help pull out wrinkles.
- Hang shirts and dresses with the pins on the sides rather than in the middle to avoid having items dry with puckered marks.
- Shake each item off as you remove it from the line to make sure no critters are stowing away indoors.
- Hang socks in matching pairs so you can easily fold them as you take them down off the line.
- It is very easy to quickly fold items as you pull them off the line, I highly recommend making a habit of this to save time.
Some Notes on Detergents and Fabric Softeners
If you find that the clothing you hang dry is extremely crunchy, this is likely due to fabric softener and detergent having built up in the materials. There are a few things you might try to remedy this; you could use less detergent, do a second rinse cycle, switch to a more natural detergent (I use the brand Meliora), or do a laundry stripping process. I find that towels tend to dry a bit crunchy no matter what, but my clothing and sheets do not have this issue as the detergent I use is very light and doesn’t build up.
Hang drying laundry is a great way to improve your enjoyment of the chore and will benefit your laundry as well as you. It is simple to do once you find a system that works well for you, and while it is a bit more time consuming than using a dryer, I have found it to be time while spent.
Now that you’ve likely learned more about hang drying laundry than you ever thought you would, I hope you will be inspired to give it a shot and see if this simple change is something that can be sustainably incorporated into your routine.
Have you ever hung dry your laundry? What are your best tips and tricks? I’d love to hear from you in the comments down below.
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