Today, we are inundated with advice on how to dry laundry and save money during the cost of living crisis, but “not all of this advice considers the hidden costs for households”, states Chris Michael, home air treatment expert and Chief Product Officer here at Meaco.
With more challenges rising from the increased cost of living and a jump in the electricity unit price, seemingly with every price cap, there is a wealth of advice available to households around how to save money. Much of this advice offers valid alternatives to running energy hungry appliances in the home; switching your tumble dryer for a dehumidifier, changing your traditional heating to smart energy controls, as examples. However, not enough of this advice considers the challenges that many of these alternatives will present to consumers in the medium to long-term.
As a result, some common myths are appearing which can be misleading for consumers. Here, we explore some of the key ones to consider:
Myth #1: Drying laundry naturally is always the cheapest option
Many of us are aware that one of the most energy hungry devices in the home is the tumble dryer, with a laundry load costing more than £2 to dry. Alternatives to using the tumble dryer include drying clothes naturally on a clothes horse, a radiator or on the back of chairs. These options will be fine initially, but many don’t realise that over time it can introduce problems and incur additional costs.
The moisture released by the clothes as they dry will stay in the air. This means three key things. First, that your clothes take longer and longer to dry. And second, that it can start to cause real damage to your home and health. Finally, that damp air is more expensive to heat!
As the autumn leaves fade and we enter winter, you may notice that wet washing will take increasingly longer to dry. What had taken the ideal 6 hour Laundry Mode cycle, it now taking even longer – even on lighter loads. This is especially true for households keeping windows closed all season long to keep precious heat in.
This is because the laundry had been left out in conditions 50-60% Relative Humidity early in the season, is now being hung out to dry in conditions 60%RH or higher. This means your laundry has to compete with an already wet environment. Even running a dehumidifier from scratch in these conditions would mean it’ll work harder to remove moisture from both your room and the hanging washing!
Cost-wise, what does this really mean? It means you’re more likely to throw that laundry back on to rewash and remove the musty smell. It also means you’re more likely to break out the tumble dryer again, even when you know it’s an expensive option!
It also means you’re creating more damp in your home. This can lead to problems which can be expensive to fix. Increasing moisture in the room’s air can cause condensation and mould issues. You may notice this in condensation on the windows, that musty smell clinging to your clothes and furniture. This can cause damage to wallpaper, carpets, furniture, and windowsills – all of which will can be expensive to fix.
Finally, as we said, there is a third hidden reason why air drying your laundry can be expensive! The answer is how you heat your home.
Did you know? Damp air is also more expensive to heat, so any heating system will have to run for longer to heat up the room. It is much more efficient to heat dry air than it is to heat damp air. It’s because your boiler will be working to heat both the air and water molecules. For more information, explore our blog: 7 Ways to Stay Warm, Save Money and Delay Putting the Heating on.
So, while air-drying can be a low-cost option in the right conditions, it’s not always the most practical solution in winter. The real question is how to dry your washing effectively while keeping running costs under control and managing excess moisture in your home.
Myth #2: Opening windows will solve any problems with moisture
Advice around opening the window when clothes are being dried suggests that the damp from the clothes will disappear out of the window. The detail behind this approach depends on fresh air coming in from outside on a day when it is colder outside than inside, and the outside air is therefore warmed and dried.
In Germany, this is known as “shock ventilation” or “Stoßlüften” and it can be effective under certain conditions. Read more on our blog, The German art of “Stoßlüften”: Can shock airing help British homes beat damp and mould this winter?
In the UK, during September and October, opening a window wouldn’t have helped as temperatures were so mild. The level of relative humidity in the house would have just increased and mould could grow.
While the method of creating an air exchange may not create a damp problem, it would need two windows open to have an effect which would create a cold draught. This then likely leads to households using their heating more to keep the space warm and losing expensive heated air out of the open windows, wasting both energy and money.
It all comes down to the science and the relationship between relative humidity and temperature.
On rainy or particularly cold days, households would be forced to decide between a warm house and drying laundry. For many of us, it is not a pleasant or financially sound solution.
Myth #3: Dehumidifiers are a false economy or expensive to run
Households need a solution to drying washing indoors without using a tumble dryer, keeping the warm air in and without creating a buildup of moisture in the air. Even Martin Lewis, the money-saving expert, has recommend making the switch!
The solution to drying your washing is having dehumidifier which will dry clothes faster and prevent condensation and mould in your home.
However, some advice available for consumers still states purchasing a dehumidifier is a false economy, as the appliance costs to buy and costs to run, but usage can be capped at a mere 150-200 watts (the equivalent of five or six pence*) per hour. The cost of buying and running a dehumidifier can heavily outweigh the costs of removing and repairing any damp damage to a home.
A dehumidifier will not only dry washing, but it will also protect the whole house from damp and condensation problems and one with a HEPA filter will also clean the air.
Because dry air is cheaper to heat than damp air, as we discussed earlier, a dehumidifier will help households save on heating bills. The energy that it uses will also heat the space, so there are many gains all round.
Sometimes we have to spend a little money to save a lot. As the weather gets colder and pressure on budgets continues to ramp up, it is critical that consumers make the right purchasing decisions for their needs.
Many of our dehumidifier are equipped with an easy to use Laundry Mode so you can switch on and return to clean, dry laundry (free from those musty smells, even later into the winter months)! From what would have cost more than £2 per load with a tumble dryer could cost you just 20p with a dehumidifier*.
For more information to help with purchasing energy efficient appliances, take a look at our blog, How to Save £300 Drying Washing with a Meaco Dehumidifier.
*Based on cost to run of MeacoDry Arete® One 6L, based on an energy price cap at 26.3p/ kWh.
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MeacoDry Arete® Dehumidifier and Air Purifier
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2 responses
When will dehumidifiers be available?
Stocks arrive weekly, sometimes faster, but they are selling really fast and you have to be quick I am afraid. Ourselves, John Lewis, Currys, Argos, BuyItDirect and BigOnElectricals are the places to keep an eye out.