Dryers
Clothes dryers use a lot of electricity. An average load costs around a dollar to dry.[1] It doesn't sound like much, but over a year it soon adds up.
By choosing to dry clothes outside on the clothesline, and using your dryer sensibly, you can potentially save around $130 a year.[2]
Choosing a dryer
- The best way to minimize running costs and get the best results for your clothes is to choose the right sized dryer for your needs
- If you are going to use your dryer regularly, look for a model with an auto-sensing feature. Auto-sensing prevents over-drying.This saves electricity and is also better for your clothes.
- If you will only be using your dryer occasionally, simple timer models tend to be cheaper and should still do the job.
Choosing by labels
All dryers have energy rating labels so you can see roughly how much electricity each model will use in a year. Make sure you're comparing similar sizes of dryers and look for the one with the lowest annual energy consumption (kWh).
Hints and tips
- Ideally, the best place to dry clothes is outside in the fresh air and sunshine. This can help kill bateria and dust mites, and the sunlight even helps fade stains
- Try to avoid drying clothes inside on racks as moisture will be released into the house. A covered outside area is better for clothes drying
- Make sure your dryer is vented to the outside so the moisture doesn't make the house damp
- Avoid overloading and over-drying
- Try to dry clothes in loads of similar weight items. Your jeans are going to need a lot longer in the dryer than light-weight items
- Thoroughly spin-dry the clothes in your washing machine first. It takes a lot less electricity to spin water out of clothes than it does to heat it out
- Clean the lint filter on your dryer after each load.
Notes:
[1]Running costs taken from Consumer Appliance Running Costs (online) and updated for current electricity prices.
[2]Savings based on using your dryer to do 4 loads a week, each week of the year.
