Best solution for indoor clothes drying.

nailer8

Just got 1st draft of plans back from architect.
Was wondering where will we dry clothes indoors. I don't like tumble dryers and although I am a fan of clothes lines the reality is 6 months of the year you can't really use them.

Some of the options at the moment are:
1-clothes line in the garage (very slow to dry in cold weather, nucence bringing clothes in and out in bad weather.)
2- bigger utility and use clothes horses (unsightly, might cause dampness in the house)
3- bigger hot press with room for clothes horse (small space where would the moisture go, also no air flow)

Will have a MHRV system, if I went for option 3 and put an extraction point in the hot press would that work?

Have seen suggestions of dehumidifiers, surely they wouldn't be very Eco friendly, what kind of wattage do they require?


Any ideas greatly appreciated.

BryanF

nailer8 wrote: »

Just got 1st draft of plans back from architect.
Was wondering where will we dry clothes indoors. I don't like tumble dryers and although I am a fan of clothes lines the reality is 6 months of the year you can't really use them.

Some of the options at the moment are:
1-clothes line in the garage (very slow to dry in cold weather, nucence bringing clothes in and out in bad weather.)
2- bigger utility and use clothes horses (unsightly, might cause dampness in the house)
3- bigger hot press with room for clothes horse (small space where would the moisture go, also no air flow)

Will have a MHRV system, if I went for option 3 and put an extraction point in the hot press would that work?

Have seen suggestions of dehumidifiers, surely they wouldn't be very Eco friendly, what kind of wattage do they require?


Any ideas greatly appreciated.

A variation of option 3 me thinks. MVHR thing works, I haven't actual done it myself, but I know of another arch in cork would has successfully done it. I'm not sure if its an extraction point or a set-up in a sealed cupboard where the waste MVHR air is removed through. if no else comes back ill see if i can find out. i don't think you need to worry about dehumidifiers..

xxtattyberxx

My partener gave me a great idea. I live in a small house, no utility, no shed. Im a bit ocd about laundry and find escpesially during winter its impossible to dry clothes,towels,bed lined, no room for a clothes horse infront of fire etc. SO he was saying how his mother uses a poly tunnel in the garden to dry them. I love the idea, only I cant find a small enough one for the garden :S

cuculainn

nailer8 wrote: »

Just got 1st draft of plans back from architect.
Was wondering where will we dry clothes indoors. I don't like tumble dryers and although I am a fan of clothes lines the reality is 6 months of the year you can't really use them.

Some of the options at the moment are:
1-clothes line in the garage (very slow to dry in cold weather, nucence bringing clothes in and out in bad weather.)
2- bigger utility and use clothes horses (unsightly, might cause dampness in the house)
3- bigger hot press with room for clothes horse (small space where would the moisture go, also no air flow)

Will have a MHRV system, if I went for option 3 and put an extraction point in the hot press would that work?

Have seen suggestions of dehumidifiers, surely they wouldn't be very Eco friendly, what kind of wattage do they require?


Any ideas greatly appreciated.

We are going with option 3......we will have a clothes line in the shed and then an MHRV extract point in the hotpress.......only problem is the hotpress is upstairs

therightangle

nailer8 wrote: »

Just got 1st draft of plans back from architect.
Was wondering where will we dry clothes indoors. I don't like tumble dryers and although I am a fan of clothes lines the reality is 6 months of the year you can't really use them.

Some of the options at the moment are:
1-clothes line in the garage (very slow to dry in cold weather, nucence bringing clothes in and out in bad weather.)
2- bigger utility and use clothes horses (unsightly, might cause dampness in the house)
3- bigger hot press with room for clothes horse (small space where would the moisture go, also no air flow)

Will have a MHRV system, if I went for option 3 and put an extraction point in the hot press would that work?

Have seen suggestions of dehumidifiers, surely they wouldn't be very Eco friendly, what kind of wattage do they require?


Any ideas greatly appreciated.

Why not go with Option 2?
The utility should already have a MVHR planned for it, its downstairs (next to washing machine?), and there would be no need to put a MHRV outlet in the Hot Press (assuming you are not putting damp/wet clothes in there) which wastes heat.

Dehumidifiers are a short term solution.

nailer8

After thinking about it all weekend we are considering another variation of option 3. We were thinking of making the hot press big enough to take the washing machine & dryer, ironing board and a drying rack as well as the usual hot press storage.
If the laundry starts and finishes upstairs why drag it downstairs to wash it.

It will free up space in the utility which is always seems in short supply and keep all laundry activities behind closes doors.

My main concern is noise, would it be a problem?

MicktheMan

A variation of option 2 could be as follows:
You are installing a MVHR system which means there will be an extract vent in the utility room. You could have this extract vent installed in an enclosure with doors and a normal vent at the bottom. Lets call this enclosure a "drying cupboard". You can then kit out the drying cupboard which ever way you like to be able to take your washing. The clothes will dry as internal air will be drawn through the vent at the bottom, up through the clothes and out the top into the mvhr ducting. You are in no danger of introducing any moisture into the house and when the utility room will still be ventilated.
I hope I have explained this idea adequately.

AMG86

I know a guy who uses the HRV system to dry clothes with no bother. However I would say if weather permits drying them in the open is a better option. Not always possible though in Ireland!.

Mike2006

I have used my utility as my area for drying clothes.

I also have a condenser type tumble dryer which I just use for towels etc..

I have mounted 3 of these on the wall in the utility and I find them very handy as they just fold away when not in use and the 3 of them will hold a weeks washing for 4 people.

http://www.airershop.co.uk/LeifheitTelegant100WallMountedClothesAirer.htm

They are not big enough to dry bedclothes so the clothes horse still comes out for those but just for 1 day as opposed to being plonked in the middle of the floor all the time.

I also have MHRV extraction in the utility and I have no issues in the room with condensation.

I will post a few pics tomorrow if you like.

Mike.

antoinolachtnai

MicktheMan wrote: »

Discussion here.

You can buy a clothes drier with a heat pump in it. It works on a different principle from a conventional drier. It will use less electricity. This is probably the 'cutting edge' of clothes drying in our time.

It is not cheap but the difference in price between it and a conventional dryer will probably be less than the cost of building and ventilating an airing room when all is said and done.

Good basic explanation here. http://www.beko.ie/lifestyle/benefits-of-a-tumble-dryer-heat-pump

I think putting the washer and dryer near bedrooms where airing cupboard might otherwise have been is a great idea. However it makes sense to have an arrangement to deal with any leakage from a faulty washing machine. There are special trays available for this.

boombang

Does putting a dehumidifier in a utility room work for drying clothes? That would solve the problem of moisture in the house and would probably result in fairly quick drying I imagine.

BoardsMember

nailer8 wrote: »

After thinking about it all weekend we are considering another variation of option 3. We were thinking of making the hot press big enough to take the washing machine & dryer, ironing board and a drying rack as well as the usual hot press storage.
If the laundry starts and finishes upstairs why drag it downstairs to wash it.

It will free up space in the utility which is always seems in short supply and keep all laundry activities behind closes doors.

My main concern is noise, would it be a problem?

This makes sense alright, but noise might be an issue.

Surprised nobody has suggested a pulley based clothes horse that hangs from ceiling, very handy.

Something like this: http://www.pulleymaid.com/edwardian_airer.htm

nice_guy80

Clothes drying shed/shelter?

Our neighbour has one

GreenFolder2

Have you considered a heat pump dryer and a drying cabinet solution ?

There's actually been a massive improvement in tumble dryer technology. The higher end heat pump machines are extremely good now. You'll get your clothes dried with very little energy (they use less than 600W) and also with relatively little heat. The water is basically being forced out of the clothes by drying the air with s dehumidifier in a closed loop with the heat being returned to the drum to maintain the cycle temperature.

They're don't produce steam or waste heat to the room and they are vastly superior to old air to air condenser dryers which basically used the room as a heat dump to cool the condenser. They're horribly unpleasant if you've got them in a kitchen or any area where you don't need that kind of heat.

You can get drying cabinet that use gentle warm air to dry hanging clothes and have systems that avoid water being evaporated into the room. No tumbling involved if you want to dry delicate items that can't be dried dryer.

Also you could just build a well ventilated closet with a high output radiator at the bottom and lots of hanging space. If you get the design right it will dry clothes without causing issues

Jakey Rolling

We have a laundry/drying room with MHRV extract point - zero problems with condensation and fairly quick drying e.g. jeans dry within a day. No heat source other than underfloor heating, just airflow.

Also have a condenser dryer which I don't mind using if in a hurry, as 100% of the electrical energy is being converted to heat which is kept within the building (rather than vented to the outside) or partially recuperated via the MHRV.

GreenFolder2

Actually a good washing machine with a high spin makes all the difference to natural drying times.
Also make sure it's mounted on a concrete floor as many machines will actually reduce spin speeds if they're not totally stable and it's nearly impossible to achieve that on a wooden structure.

Arddon

Hot presses aren't actually that hot anymore, with cylinders super insulated, the only heat will be off exposed copper? You'll need a heat source in whatever room it is.
On the "drying cupboard" idea, which is quite clever, how would it work with UF heating?

GreenFolder2

Maybe run a low temp high output aluminium radiator from the UFH source ?

They're typically the ones with a lot of fins to maximise heat transfer to the air from a lower temp source than a traditional system.

uberwolf

Mike2006 wrote: »

I have used my utility as my area for drying clothes.

I also have a condenser type tumble dryer which I just use for towels etc..

I have mounted 3 of these on the wall in the utility and I find them very handy as they just fold away when not in use and the 3 of them will hold a weeks washing for 4 people.

http://www.airershop.co.uk/LeifheitTelegant100WallMountedClothesAirer.htm

we'd a variation of those in a utility room in a house we rented. Combined with underfloor heating the room got pretty toasty and I'm intent on incorporating this facility in our home when we get a job done.

Fayre

Mike2006 wrote: »

I have used my utility as my area for drying clothes.

I also have a condenser type tumble dryer which I just use for towels etc..

I have mounted 3 of these on the wall in the utility and I find them very handy as they just fold away when not in use and the 3 of them will hold a weeks washing for 4 people.

http://www.airershop.co.uk/LeifheitTelegant100WallMountedClothesAirer.htm


Mike.

Wow brilliant gadget. And cheap! Would love to see photos of your utility?
Built a massive utility myself with the plan of putting the clothes horses in there so they aren't taking up space in the kitchen. Something that comes out of the wall or ceiling even better though. Have a HRV extraction point in the utility alright but have a large dehumidifer that I bought to dry the plaster out so can always use that if needs be as well.

JimmyMW

Fayre wrote: »

Wow brilliant gadget. And cheap! Would love to see photos of your utility?
Built a massive utility myself with the plan of putting the clothes horses in there so they aren't taking up space in the kitchen. Something that comes out of the wall or ceiling even better though. Have a HRV extraction point in the utility alright but have a large dehumidifer that I bought to dry the plaster out so can always use that if needs be as well.

http://www.castinstyle.co.uk/product.php/416/victorian-kitchen-maid-reg-pulley-clothes-airer
I have 3 of these purchased for my new house, will be fitting them sometime next year when construction is more complete.

bemak

nailer8 wrote: »

After thinking about it all weekend we are considering another variation of option 3.  We were thinking of making the hot press big enough to take the washing machine & dryer, ironing board and a drying rack as well as the usual hot press storage.
If the laundry starts and finishes upstairs why drag it downstairs to wash it.

It will free up space in the utility which is always seems in short supply and keep all laundry activities behind closes doors.  

My main concern is noise, would it be a problem?

My uncle bought a house with a scenario like this and I thought it worked very well and made a lot of sense. As you say all the laundry comes from upstairs and is stored upstairs so why bring it downstairs to wash it. I think this only makes sense when your primary method of drying is a clothes line is on a clothesline. 

Fayre

JimmyMW wrote: »

http://www.castinstyle.co.uk/product.php/416/victorian-kitchen-maid-reg-pulley-clothes-airer
I have 3 of these purchased for my new house, will be fitting them sometime next year when construction is more complete.

I saw that link in another post.
would that only work with a vaulted ceiling though? I only have a standard size ceiling in the utility