Drying clothes outside ahaha

deaddonkey

Hi,

I live in a terraced street in Drumcondra, no sunshine in the little back yard or laneway because they face North.

I do laundry once a week/10 days and if it's sunny I air them on the railings or bring the clothes horse out into the front yard (behind the railings) for a couple hours. Let me reiterate that there are clothes there for a maximum of 4 or 5 hours every 2 weeks.

I've just had one of the neighbours complaining that I'm making the street look like a tenement, and she's threatening me with all sorts of resident's association middle class nonsense.

I've looked for and can't find any regulations saying I can't do this.

Or am I dealing with a whinging residents' association that has nothing better to do with its time?

JuliusCaesar

deaddonkey wrote: »

Or am I dealing with a whinging residents' association that has nothing better to do with its time?

Yes.

SunnyDub1

TBH I can kind of see your neighbors point - it would annoy me.
is there no alternative to drying them ?


On the other hand your neighbor can't do anything about it, so if you want to leave them out then leave them out, it's on your property - not hers.

deaddonkey

SunnyDub1 wrote: »

TBH I can kind of see your neighbors point - it would annoy me.
is there no alternative to drying them ?

There is if I was happy to wear clothes that had taken 3 days to dry in the shade of the back yard and smell like mold, but I don't really want to do that.

I'm quite amazed that anyone has sensibilities delicate enough to be bothered by it.

There's a guy running a car alarm fitting service on the street with alarms going off all day long, and cars are parked on the pavement and if you were pushing a buggy you'd have to walk on the road, but my jeans and t shirt over the railings is bothering people.

I'm genuinely puzzled.

stovelid

It looks pretty shit to be honest.

SunnyDub1

deaddonkey wrote: »

There is if I was happy to wear clothes that had taken 3 days to dry in the shade of the back yard and smell like mold, but I don't really want to do that.

Buy a tumble dryer or use your parents or friends .. Plenty of other ways to dry clothes.

I'm quite amazed that anyone has sensibilities delicate enough to be bothered by it.

As stated already - it doesn't look good

There's a guy running a car alarm fitting service on the street with alarms going off all day long, and cars are parked on the pavement and if you were pushing a buggy you'd have to walk on the road, but my jeans and t shirt over the railings is bothering people.

Some things bother people more then other things...

However that would annoy the sh*t out of me - report him.

I'm genuinely puzzled.

..

fundlebundle

Don't see anything wrong with it op.
My neighbours above do it and it doesn't bother me at all. Although I would have to check if they have clothes out before I light the BBQ.
That oul wan is just being an oul wan. It is best to not to take away the one thing they like to complain about or they will just find something else.

phasers

SunnyDub1 wrote: »

..

Some clothes aren't suitable for tumble dryers and they cost money.


Don't mind your neighbour OP, she sounds like an auld bag with nothing better to do. You've said yourself that there's no regulations saying you're not allowed to dry clothes in this manner so there's nothing she can do.

Although you could always ask her if you can use her tumble dryer instead :pac:

Oink

Did your one tell you what rule you were breaking, since you are not aware of any?

We have house rules in the building saying we can't do it.

(I hate to use the dryer, but I hate more to see my neighbours' laundry out except in their own garden if they had one. so I like the rule. But that's just me. I can see OP's point.)

(EDIT: and I hang my clothes inside my tiny appartment if I don't use the dryer)

deaddonkey

Oink wrote: »

Did your one tell you what rule you were breaking, since you are not aware of any?

No she wasn't able to, she just said she'd complain because it made the street look bad.

She also told me if someone was considering buying a house on the street they wouldn't buy there because the clothes were hanging outside.

????

I need a drink.

MagicMarker

I wouldn't pay any attention to her tbh.

lau1247

deaddonkey wrote: »

No she wasn't able to, she just said she'd complain because it made the street look bad.

She also told me if someone was considering buying a house on the street they wouldn't buy there because the clothes were hanging outside.

????

I need a drink.

Let her complain and see how far she'll get.. clearly she has nothing better to do.. It's not like you have it out there all the time..

As for the 'if someone was considering buying a house on the street' situation, that is not exactly your problem.. tell her to get a life..

Paparazzo

Who's she going to complain to? Keep putting them outside, you need dry clothes. Few hours every week or 2 isn't excessive.

Oink

+1

You're innocent until they prove there is a law to break in the first place.

To the pub, I say! To the pub, and tarry not on the road!

Kaner2004

deaddonkey wrote: »

Hi,

I live in a terraced street in Drumcondra, no sunshine in the little back yard or laneway because they face North.

I do laundry once a week/10 days and if it's sunny I air them on the railings or bring the clothes horse out into the front yard (behind the railings) for a couple hours. Let me reiterate that there are clothes there for a maximum of 4 or 5 hours every 2 weeks.

I've just had one of the neighbours complaining that I'm making the street look like a tenement, and she's threatening me with all sorts of resident's association middle class nonsense.

I've looked for and can't find any regulations saying I can't do this.

Or am I dealing with a whinging residents' association that has nothing better to do with its time?

You can dry clothes out the front if you like. Nobody can stop you.
But in fairness it does make a place look like a tenement.
Are you a settled traveler by any chance? Just asking because most places I see washing hanging out the front have caravans parked in the drive.

stacey25

just ignore this:)

deaddonkey

Kaner2004 wrote: »

Are you a settled traveler by any chance? Just asking because most places I see washing hanging out the front have caravans parked in the drive.

No I'm a regular middle class white kid renting a room in a house, and also I don't believe in wasting money and limited fossil fuel resources on a dryer when I can put the clothes in the front yard and let air and sunshine do it for free with no environmental cost at all.

That was a long sentence.

ProudDUB

It's your front garden. You can do whatever you want with your laundry in it. The residents association can't make you do a thing. You don't live in a managed property where you signed a document agreeing to abide by the rules of the mgt association, so you can do what ever you want basically.

That being said, most people do think that it looks unsightly. For that reason apt buildings ban residents from hanging laundry from their balconies. It is not fair to dismiss this as an aul wan going all "middle class" on your ass. If you (for arguments sake) lived in a house with a garden or a drive way, and your next door neighbour had an old rust bucket up on blocks in the driveway, or their garden was an over grown mess, you would be perfectly entitled to be pissed off at how it looks. You aren't entitled to force the property owner to do anything about it, but you are entitled to be pissed off about it.

Perhaps if anyone approaches you about this again, explain why you can not dry clothes in your back garden, that your kitchen is too small to install a tumble dryer and that you are doing your best to keep the amt of laundry in your front garden to a bare minimum. Having good lines of communication with your neighbours is always a good idea.

EDIT: Just saw that you are a renter. How does your landlord feel about this? Does he/she live there too?

Kaner2004

deaddonkey wrote: »

No I'm a regular middle class white kid renting a room in a house, and also I don't believe in wasting money and limited fossil fuel resources on a dryer when I can put the clothes in the front yard and let air and sunshine do it for free with no environmental cost at all.

That was a long sentence.

Thats not true. There is actually an environmental cost.

Gravale

Get a tumble dryer. I've used one since 1975 and couldn't be bothered hanging clothes outside. Yes, there are a few items which are not suitable for a tumble dryer, but for those very few items just hang them inside.

As has been said, hanging clothes in a front garden is just not a nice thing to do. It reflects badly on the neighbourhood - and on the person doing it.

thethingis

Gravale wrote: »

Get a tumble dryer. I've used one since 1975 and couldn't be bothered hanging clothes outside. Yes, there are a few items which are not suitable for a tumble dryer, but for those very few items just hang them inside.

As has been said, hanging clothes in a front garden is just not a nice thing to do. It reflects badly on the neighbourhood - and on the person doing it.

Tumble dryers cost electricity. They also age your clothes more than natural drying. Its not environmentally friendly either.

Go for it OP and ignore you ahole neighbours.

Gravale

deaddonkey wrote: »

No I'm a regular middle class white kid renting a room in a house, and also I don't believe in wasting money and limited fossil fuel resources on a dryer when I can put the clothes in the front yard and let air and sunshine do it for free with no environmental cost at all.

No doubt if you're a middle-class kid you'll eventually move into your own home in a middle-class neighbourhood. I guarantee that you won't dry your clothes in your front garden then.

As a renter, in the meantime, you couldn't give a damn about your neighbours. Very classy indeed.

not even wrong

OP, as you can see from this thread there are an awful lot of busybodies out there with nothing better to do than worry about their neighbours' laundry. My advice is to ignore them and continue to dry your clothes in the most environmentally friendly and effective way.

Gravale wrote:

As a renter, in the meantime, you couldn't give a damn about your neighbours. Very classy indeed.

Yes, and you couldn't give a damn about the pollution caused by your dryer. Very classy indeed.

How Strange

Ignore her and keep drying your clothes as you like. Yes it looks bad but hey houses are meant for living in and not just for looking good.

We have an apartment but with a garden and if we have good weather we hang our clothes out. It only gets sunlight up to lunch time so it's not always suitable. We got a tumble dryer and our electricity bill has increased noticeably.

So to avoid unnecessary expense keep hanging your clothes out once every two weeks. Sure it gives the local busybodies something to get incensed about!

Gravale

How Strange wrote: »

We got a tumble dryer and our electricity bill has increased noticeably.

It's interesting to hear that old wives tale again, and that's all it is. A full load of washing takes about an hour to dry on a 2kw setting. Electricity costs 20p per kilowatt hour, therefore it costs 40p to dry a full machine load of clothes.

Neither am I convinced in the slightest about your concern for pollution and the environment. Clean water vapour being expelled into the atmosphere for an hour or two per week will hardly bring on Armageddon. It's fashionable to imply it though and makes you seem like a caring person. Hanging clothes in one's front garden indicates the opposite.

ger vallely

OP is not intending nuking Drumcondra (are you?).It's bloody washing,out drying. I am not a renter and it wouldn't bother me if the nearest renters dried their wash out front. Even a mankini is best if washed and dried in public if neccessary.Everyone needs to find something else to be bothered by. OP for mayor of Drumcondra I say.

Elvis_Presley

how much free time must someone have to actually give a sh*t about something like this?

mikemac1

Drumcondra has a very elderly population, I'd guess one of the oldest age profiles of any area in Dublin
While most are lovely, others love to whinge and they certainly look down on renters.
Doesn't stop them parking on the footpaths though, rules don't apply to them

It's your front garden, you're fine to dry your clothes there.

And be thankful you don't live inside the Croke Park cordon and have people taking a piss in your garden as that's something I had to deal with :rolleyes:

That old wan is lucky to have you as a neighbour if that's the worst she will have to deal with

MariMel

What does your lease say? You said you are renting.
Every lease I have had says something about drying the clothes on railings or to the front of houses. Dont have a lease to hand to quote from. Just have a wee read of yours and see if you are permitted to dry your clothes outside the front of the house. If you are not, maybe ask your landlord about a tumble dryer stating how your clothes arent drying outside as back.

djimi

Its worth bearing in mind that if you ignore her and continue to put your clothes in the front garden there is a distinct possibility they might disappear some day! People like this tend to get petty when they think they are in the right.

Victor

Kaner2004 wrote: »

You can dry clothes out the front if you like. Nobody can stop you.
But in fairness it does make a place look like a tenement.
Are you a settled traveler by any chance? Just asking because most places I see washing hanging out the front have caravans parked in the drive.

Less of this please.

Thoie

If I was living nearby I wouldn't mind a clothes horse occasionally, but clothes on the railings is very odd. Besides anything else, house railings are usually pretty grimy.

gurramok

Putting your clothes out on a clothes horse behind the railings is none of anyone's business. Its a fact of modern life that clothes have to be hung out especially when the tumble dryer is crap\cost too much. A couple of hours does no harm to that aul wan.

JuliusCaesar

A long time ago - in the 1980s- when private apartments began to appear in the Isle of Dogs in London (the Isle of Dogs had hitherto been working class area with lots of tower blocks of council flats), there was a letter in the local paper. This letter asked that the council outlaw the drying of clothes on the balconies of the council flats, because it could be seen from the private blocks and it was unsightly.

The sound of laughter could be heard in Greenwich.



Some people also think you shouldn't grow vegetables in your front garden, only in your back.


The residents Association won't be coming to you as they know they haven't a leg to stand on; they probably won't listen to the complainer at all.

planetX

JuliusCaesar wrote: »

A long time ago - in the 1980s- when private apartments began to appear in the Isle of Dogs in London (the Isle of Dogs had hitherto been working class area with lots of tower blocks of council flats), there was a letter in the local paper. This letter asked that the council outlaw the drying of clothes on the balconies of the council flats, because it could be seen from the private blocks and it was unsightly.

The sound of laughter could be heard in Greenwich.



Some people also think you shouldn't grow vegetables in your front garden, only in your back.


The residents Association won't be coming to you as they know they haven't a leg to stand on; they probably won't listen to the complainer at all.

Having lived in the US where I couldn't even hang a towel out in the hot sunshine, I wouldn't be so complacent that residents associations won't get those kind of powers here. Big brother might start watching here too:mad: To suggest buying a tumbledryer is first world insanity.

mikemac1

She probably run the residents association

On a waaaay offtopic note those associations in that area are crooked and bent anyway. [I'll back this up mods before ya ban me :eek:]

In the old days Croke Park gave out tickets to the associations, there was about twelve of them.
In theory the tickets were supposed to shared and given out but the usual busybody families controlled the associations and gave them to friends, family or even just sold them

So Croke Park to their credit cracked down and now every year you have to register and the allocations are done by raffle.
If you win you get a letter and you head up to reception to collect.
The match tickets weren't free, just pay face value but there were free concert tickets.
Well done to Croke Park, a far fairer way of doing it

And this thread reminds me when the floodlights were being discussed one group started quoting the UN and freedom of movement and human rights, night games were going to restrict all these for residents
It was good to discuss the floodlights but that's just ridiculous :rolleyes:

Sorry, very offtopic
Drumcondra is full of great people but a fair few old wans and busybodys

Seomra Mushie

deaddonkey wrote: »

There's a guy running a car alarm fitting service on the street

OMG, I know where you live! I used to live on that street. :cool: Yeah, the back yards get NO sun and are tiny and high-walled. Why not use a clothes-horse indoors by a sunny window?

Solair

Well, I'd agree that it doesn't look great to have laundry hanging in the front garden, but at the same time, you are not breaking any law.

A residents' association is just a group of locals who meet up to voluntarily organise things in an area. They have absolutely no legal power whatsoever and can't do anything.

However, she could start ringing your landlord and making trouble, so be careful not to infuriate her too much.

That being said, your landlord would have absolutely no grounds for evicting you either and would get into all sorts of hot water if he/she tried.

There's a huge fuss going on about this stuff in the United States where certain communities banned outdoor drying entirely. There's now "Right to Dry" movements as many people feel that excessive use of tumble dryers is very environmentally damaging.

If you're stuck in an area like that where there's no outdoor drying, and you have a budget, a heat-pump dryer actually saves a fortune. That's what we use! It's a type of condenser dryer, but it's a lot more sophisticated.

The hot steamy air from the dryer goes into the cool side of the heat pump, the heat is extracted, and moisture condensed, then the heat from that process is used to re-heat the air on the way back into the dryer.

It basically uses way less electricity and also dries the clothes without heating them up as hot as a traditional dryer.

Victor

The obvious solution is to invite her over to a party on a nice sunny afternoon, but have a mankini barbeque on the go with the lads.

Kaner2004 wrote: »

Thats not true. There is actually an environmental cost.

Intermittent and temporary visual intrusion?

planetX wrote: »

Having lived in the US where I couldn't even hang a towel out in the hot sunshine, I wouldn't be so complacent that residents associations won't get those kind of powers here. Big brother might start watching here too:mad: To suggest buying a tumbledryer is first world insanity.

I think it is in Washington DC, it's illegal to have male and female underwear hung together on a clothes line.

frag420

Victor wrote: »

The obvious solution is to invite her over to a party on a nice sunny afternoon, but have a mankini barbeque on the go with the lads.

Intermittent and temporary visual intrusion?

I think it is in Washington DC, it's illegal to have male and female underwear hung together on a clothes line.

Apparently it has decimated the cross dressing community there:D