Washing clothes at home gives us the option to machine dry or line dry them. In addition, line drying involves hanging clothes. I mean on a clothesline or drying rack outside your home. Meanwhile, machine drying uses hot air or tumbling action.
Saves Energy
Line drying laundry conserves energy and helps to protect the environment by saving precious fossil fuels. It is the pinnacle of green laundry and living!
There are more than 90 million clothes dryers in the United States. All according to the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers. In addition, air-drying clothes can reduce the average household’s carbon footprint. That’s by a whopping 2,400 pounds a year. Experts determined that if all Americans line-dried clothing for just half of a year, it would save 3.3 percent of the country’s total residential output of carbon dioxide.
Just like any other thing, line drying also has its drawbacks. It takes longer for clothes to dry fully. It even makes the situation harder on rainy or humid days. Moreover, it is also impractical for people who live in apartments or areas that do not have an outdoor space. Hence, machine drying is mainly used by people who are short on time or rely on laundry delivery services and who need their clothes as soon as possible.
But despite its drawbacks, why is line drying better for drying clothes?
Cost-Effectiveness
Washing clothes at home gives you the option of line drying your clothes. This helps you save on gas or electricity bills and laundry products such as fabric softeners and dryer sheets. Moreover, machine drying may save you time, but it is expensive. Besides the utility bills, you have to maintain and invest in the best model to have an energy-efficient dryer. A new clothesline is much more affordable than a new clothes dryer.
Environmental-Friendly
You do not use significant energy to dry your clothes, which contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Moreover, line drying makes you skip using chemicals in fabric softeners and dryer sheets, which are harmful to the environment.
Besides it is safe for the environment, line drying has some health benefits. Yes, you heard it right. What are the health benefits of line drying clothes?
Sanitizes clothes
Line drying exposes the clothes to the sun, which kills bacteria and microorganisms. . However, you should note that line drying clothes is not enough to completely sanitize heavily soiled or contaminated clothes.
Moreover, air drying and exposing your clothes to the sun freshen them. The natural smell is better than the perfumes and dyes used in dryer products. Fresh air is less expensive than dryer products and much gentler for your respiratory and skin conditions.
Improves Respiratory and Skin Condition
Line drying allows you to skip fabric softeners and dryer sheets that may cause skin irritation to people who have skin sensitivities. Besides reducing the amount of exposure to chemicals, line drying clothes increases their exposure to fresh air and decreases humidity levels that may encourage mold and mildew growth.
Machine-dried clothes may retain moisture that increases humidity levels in your home and contributes to respiratory issues. Moreover, if clothes are damp, it may exacerbate skin conditions.
Both have advantages and disadvantages; using line drying and machine drying depends on your preference and situation. But, in this case, if you have respiratory and skin conditions, it is best to line dry your clothes and only machine dry them when you are at the laundry service and you are in a rush.
