Are washing lines on the verge of extinction?

Pighead

With the advent of Tumble Dryers and radiators is the noble washing line in danger of becoming a relic of bygone times? Pighead lives in the big schmoke these days so its kind of hard to gauge the usage of Washing Lines in modern day society.

Back in the day Pighead and his buddy Sniffer Sean would frolic through the countryside "examining" various washing lines contents from around the area. If somebody had seen us in action they may well have used the word "sniffing" instead of "examining" but luckily nobody ever seen us so we'll stick with "examing"

One of the biggest shocks of an adolescent Pigheads young life was finding out that those sweet smelling lacy black undergarments belonged to Mrs Hanratty the secretary of the local Bingo club. Proof if ever proof was needed that women in their 70's are capable of sexiness as well.

Anyway whats the story these days? Do women still use washing lines? If so why? Do they give a better dryness than Tumble Dryers or do they just like to show off their knickers to the local sniffy pervs?

derek27

Tumble dryers continuously buff off fibres from clothes which degrades them over time. Major benefit of using one is that clothes don't be so creased coming out of them. It makes perfect sense to use a washing line if you have place to put one as you get your clothes dried for free. Dryers use huge amounts of electricity.

Run_to_da_hills

Its down to laziness, who could be bothered leaving the comfort of a snug apartment to hang out clothes in the pi***ng rain.

Rb

I think most people with a backgarden still use washing lines tbh, I know every house on my road does, and for the wet days it's just flung on the radiators or clothes horse.

The people of Cork no longer use them though, they think their one step ahead for once and are using these to dry their clothes. Or so I've been reliably informed anyway.

biko

Pighead wrote: »

Anyway whats the story these days? Do women still use washing lines?

Most people I know with back gardens have lines. Men and women

Pighead

With all this eco friendly, saving the world stuff thats going on these days Pighead forsees a future ban on Tumble Dryers and a return to the au natural version of clothes drying that has served us so well for billions of years. If John Gormleys reading and decides to implement this idea Pighead requests that the new law shall be named "The Pighead Saving the World Law"

John Mason

i have a washing line that i use in the summer:)

Rb

Not gonna use the fancy sub-only stars now that you've subbed, Pighead?

Also, very cunning, non-transparent plan you've got there

Pighead

biko wrote: »

Most people I know with back gardens have lines. Men and women

Yeah but its only women that use them for the purpose they were intended for ie drying. Men use them for other different reasons ie sniffing.

Do you use washing lines for the purpose they were invented for Biko?

Pighead

rb_ie wrote: »

Not gonna use the fancy sub-only stars now that you've subbed, Pighead?

Also, very cunning, non-transparent plan you've got there

Subbed? Nope. Fraid not mate. Pigheads a scab of the highest order. All Pigheads spare change goes to lesser well of people who need it more badly. Like me.

Rb

Pighead wrote: »

Subbed? Nope. Fraid not mate. Pigheads a scab of the highest order. All Pigheads spare change goes to lesser well of people who need it more badly. Like me.

Explain the custom user title so...?

Dyr

Not up to the usual standard of thread that we expect, 2.5/5 at most.
Pigheads been having a lean patch of late it seems.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

If you want to go au naturel then we should all abandon lines and machines and go naked. For the summer, anyway. It's not that cold and supposed to be getting warmer anyway. And think of all the energy we'll save. EArth Hour..? Fvck off - we should have a COMPULSORY naked hour. Weekly.

Rb

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

If you want to go au naturel then we should all abandon lines and machines and go naked. For the summer, anyway. It's not that cold and supposed to be getting warmer anyway. And think of all the energy we'll save. EArth Hour..? Fvck off - we should have a COMPULSORY naked hour. Weekly.

There's a massive amount of people I don't want to see naked tbh.

Pighead

rb_ie wrote: »

Explain the custom user title so...?

Can't explain it. Its unexplainable. Magic & Illusion. 6th becoming mod. Madness.

Rb

Pighead wrote: »

Can't explain it. Its unexplainable. Magic & Illusion. 6th becoming mod. Madness.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

rb_ie wrote: »

There's a massive amount of people I don't want to see naked tbh.

Pervert!

Earthhorse

I've written a one act play set in a suburban Dublin back garden and my one fear is that the rich symbolism of the clothesline, along with the clever wordplay derived from same, will be lost on a generation that grew up without one.

Pighead

Bambi wrote: »

Not up to the usual standard of thread that we expect, 2.5/5 at most.
Pigheads been having a lean patch of late it seems.

Excellent points and brilliantly made Bambi(4.95/5 at least).

This is all part of the problems todays generation have to deal with on a regular basis. Everything has got ****ter.

Mars bars were bigger, and Tangle Twisters, and Mr Kipling's Apple Bun thingys (they were huge - could hardly get your mouth around them), and cars and whales, and Pigheads old school trousers

Forget global warming, its global shitness thats our problem.

Wertz

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Its down to laziness, who could be bothered leaving the comfort of a snug apartment to hang out clothes in the pi***ng rain.

No, I'd say anyone hanging out their clothes in the pisssing rain has more of a problem with acute stupidity than just simple laziness.

Like RB says, anyone with a backgarden or any sort of apartment balcony where the property management company don't send around the heavies with scissors, will usually utilise air drying of their laundry. I know I do.
For something that you need quickly or for dark winter days where the opportunity doesn't arise, tumble dryers serve their purpose...but their running costs are obscene and they damage clothing. Clothes racks and radiators can only do so much and if you do a lot of washing, then you can be left with a very humid space that promotes mould growth and breathing problems.
Nothing like a pair of jeans fresh in off the line.

Sherifu

derek27 wrote: »

Tumble dryers continuously buff off fibres from clothes which degrades them over time. Major benefit of using one is that clothes don't be so creased coming out of them. It makes perfect sense to use a washing line if you have place to put one as you get your clothes dried for free. Dryers use huge amounts of electricity.

That's pretty much the +/- of both.

biko

Pighead wrote: »

Do you use washing lines for the purpose they were invented for Biko?

I do use them for clothes. Also have a clotheshorse for indoors when it's raining.
Actually never use the tumbler.

Pighead

biko wrote: »

I do use them for clothes. Also have a clotheshorse for indoors when it's raining.
Actually never use the tumbler.

Interesting stuff. Pigheads sesning theres a bit of New Age Man in young Biko. Next you'll be telling us you iron your own clothes as well.

Are you not using the tumbler because of environmental issues or financial ones?

Dave!

We've got a washing line in the back garden... There's a huge, erect pole (:)) at the end of the garden and the line is tied to the top of that, then it goes across to this kind of wheel thing on the wall of the house, and down to a thing for rolling the line up and down.

Works a treat, I'm sure. Ask me maaaahhh.

Quality

I dont like the tumble dryer, Takes the goodness out of the clothes.

There is a whole load of washing done in my house, I use the clothes horse during the winter and the Washing line during the summer.

Nothing better than fresh washed clothes dryed on the line, The towels come out a lot softer and the clothes are easier to iron.

Pighead

Quality wrote: »

I dont like the tumble dryer, Takes the goodness out of the clothes.

There is a whole load of washing done in my house, I use the clothes horse during the winter and the Washing line during the summer.

Nothing better than fresh washed clothes dryed on the line, The towels come out a lot softer and the clothes are easier to iron.

Good afternoon Quality. Sounds like you do the bulk if not the entirety of the washing and drying in your house.

Does this ever cause you to become silently resentful and bitter towards your husband/boyfriend?

Do you sometimes find yourself whispering to yourself "Oh yeah, away for pints with the lads again you lazy fcuker. You enjoy yourself whilst I wash and iron your small sized boxer shorts." Do you think that the Womens Lib movement didn't quite finish what they started?

af_thefragile

But what if its raning outside??
which it is almost everyday...!

Maximilian

Mind you, its pretty hard to sexually strangle yourself with a tumble drier.

Quality

Pighead wrote: »

Good afternoon Quality. Sounds like you do the bulk if not the entirety of the washing and drying in your house.

Does this ever cause you to become silently resentful and bitter towards your husband/boyfriend?

Do you sometimes find yourself whispering to yourself "Oh yeah, away for pints with the lads again you lazy fcuker. You enjoy yourself whilst I wash and iron your small sized boxer shorts." Do you think that the Womens Lib movement didn't quite finish what they started?

Not at all Pighead, I enjoy washing. I have it all under control. I seperate the clothes into the bundles.

Whites, Black delicates (work clothes and lingerie), Black roughs ( His socks, jocks, Tracksuits) etc, Reds, Coloureds ( Light coloured clothes) and Blues. I also do seperate washes for towels, Bed clothes and wools.

I sort my clothes and try to get a wash done every day and extra at the weekends, I have a cleaner once a week, so while I am out at work I pay a girl to dust, hoover, mop and give the bathrooms a run over, I find it easier to maintain the house myself then and in no way do I find any resentment towards my OH. I like to look after my man..:)

The only thing, I dont wash is his sports gear, :oYou see the OH plays a lot of football, and I dont like the smell of his sweaty, ****ty, mucky shorts, So I steer clear from them.

Gotta love Quality - where can I get one of yous ?

ScumLord

The oul queen still swears by the clothes line. It's quicker apparently, it doesn't even need to be warm out, as long as it's not raining or freezing the clothes line beats all for drying.

themadchef

Nothing more refreshing than to see a line full of fluttering sheets hanging on a proper clothes line. Not your fancy schamchy twirley roundy thingy . A proper country washing line goes on forevahhhhh.

Also if you're a cheap skate it saves on the old electricity bill.

You're nobody if your washing isn't out first thing....If you're not hanging it out till midday you get the "Jesus is she only up looks "

So much easier to bung it all in the dryer but it smells so much fresher off the line.

DublinWriter

I use a tumble drier in my Dublin pad and use one of those round twirly telescopic lines in my place in Meath.

You can't beat the tumble drier, end of. It's near impossible to get anything dry by hanging it outdoors in the Irish climate. Plus there is no restriction on the use of smokeless fuel outside Dublin and if the neighbouring houses put their fires on then all my smalls smell of peat.

While it doesn't bother me, the missus is a total arachnophobe and the spiders love using our washing lines.

Ruu_Old

We have one and use it during the Summer because it is bloody roasting here, saves money when prices of electricity and gas are always going up (boo urns for another rate increase request). Stupid energy hog drier.

Mrs_Doyle

Me and Connundrum bought our very own washing line today! Its in the back garden now, doing its duty and drying our sheets. Hooray for washing lines!!

The Real B-man

Clothes Horse FTW!

biko

Pighead wrote: »

Interesting stuff. Pigheads sesning theres a bit of New Age Man in young Biko. Next you'll be telling us you iron your own clothes as well.

Are you not using the tumbler because of environmental issues or financial ones?

A combination of both mate And yourself? You ever use the lines of the horse?

Pherekydes

biko wrote: »

Most people I know with back gardens have lines. Men and women

Hehe. This brings back to mind an amusing exchange between myself and the first woman I dated after the wife left me.

Her: So how do you get your clothes clean? [subtly noting that I wasn't a smelly ba***rd]

Me: I wash them. I wash them.

Her: Oh. And how do you get them dry?

Me: I hang them out on the line.

Her: Really? I'd love to see that. [Headline: Man hangs out clothes shocker]

Me: [I mean, WTF?]