Clothes Horse or Tumble Dryer? The Ultimate Climate Fight

 


Clothes Horse or Tumble Dryer? The Ultimate Climate Fight

(Or: The One Where Your Laundry Chooses Sides)

Let’s set the scene.

It’s January. The washing basket is overflowing like a laundry-themed volcano. It’s 3°C outside. And the forecast says “rain, drizzle, and a fine mist of despair.”

Now what?

Do you:

  • A) Hang it inside on a clothes horse and hope the damp smell doesn’t ruin your social life?

  • B) Fire up the tumble dryer and pretend you didn’t hear the whirring of carbon emissions?

  • C) Start a low-key domestic war over who left socks on the radiator again?

Welcome to the eco-laundry conundrum: drying clothes in winter without boiling the planet (or your house).

👚 The Great British Drying Dilemma

In summer, it’s easy. The sun and wind do the job beautifully — 100% solar and wind powered drying, free of charge.

But in winter? Not so much.

The choice boils down to two main options (and one that we shouldn’t choose):

🧺 Option 1: Clothes Horse + Dehumidifier

  • ✅ Low energy use

  • ✅ Gentle on clothes

  • ✅ Easy to set up

Pairing a clothes horse with a dehumidifier is a surprisingly efficient system. It pulls moisture from the air, preventing mould and that musty “wet dog meets gym kit” aroma.

🗨️ Top tip: Put the dehumidifier in a small room with the door shut. It dries clothes faster and uses less energy.

However, it does take time. Sometimes a day or more depending on room temperature and humidity.

But it works — and costs a fraction of a tumble dryer to run.

🔁 Option 2: Heat Pump Condenser Tumble Dryer

This is not your grandma’s tumble dryer.

Modern heat pump dryers are:

  • ✅ Much more energy efficient

  • ✅ Gentler on clothes

  • ✅ Fully sealed (no venting)

  • ✅ Pull heat from the room air to dry laundry

They use about half the electricity of older vented or condenser dryers. If you power them from solar batteries or off-peak tariffs, the impact shrinks even further.

🗨️ Yes, ours hums away on winter days when we have battery charge to spare.

Still, they’re not perfect:

  • ❌ Higher up-front cost

  • ❌ Slightly slower drying times

  • ❌ You still have to empty the water tank (or plumb it in)

🚫 What Not To Do: Radiator Drying

Yes, it’s tempting. Yes, it’s quick.

But:

  • It blocks heat from getting into the room

  • It adds moisture to your indoor air, risking mould

  • It creates condensation, especially in colder rooms

  • It’s just not energy efficient

Put simply: radiators are for warming people, not trousers.

☀️ What About Outdoor Drying?

Absolutely — whenever possible.

Even on cooler days, wind can do wonders, and UV light helps disinfect clothes too.

But in a British winter, this is often limited to:

🔚 Final Thought: It’s Not All or Nothing

We use a mix:

It’s not about perfection. It’s about making smarter everyday choices — and maybe accepting that your house looks like a laundrette from November to March.

But hey… at least it’s a carbon-conscious laundrette.

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