Drying laundry outside
Laundry that flutters gently in the wind and smells wonderfully fresh while still in the cupboard: drying laundry outdoors is a great pleasure and can be done almost anywhere. The most environmentally friendly variant of drying may take a little more work than using the tumble dryer, but it also has many advantages. The following article explains how best to dry laundry outside and what should be considered when choosing a location - whether balcony, terrace or garden.
Content
Reasons for drying laundry outdoors
If you let your laundry dry outside, you can benefit from several advantages:
- Drying in the fresh air is free of charge
- The energy savings are also good for the environment
- Laundry dried outside is soft
- Laundry that dries outside smells particularly good even without fabric softener
- In contrast to drying in the apartment, humidity and the risk of mold do not increase.
If there is no time pressure and the use of a tumble dryer can be dispensed with, drying laundry outdoors proves to be highly recommended.
Where is the best place to dry laundry outside?
Laundry can be dried on the balcony and terrace as well as in the garden. Various factors play a decisive role in the choice of location: On the one hand, of course, sufficient space is needed to be able to set up a drying rack, clothesline or rotary dryer. On the other hand, the location should have good air circulation so that the evaporating water can also escape quickly. A very small, covered balcony or loggia is therefore sometimes not well suited. When drying laundry in the garden, care should be taken to ensure that the laundry does not hang directly under a tree to avoid soiling. And of course, a slightly sunny place is better for drying than a shady place. However, too strong, direct sunlight can cause coloured textiles to fade.
How should the laundry be hung up?
In order to be able to dry the laundry outside, the right device must be procured. For smaller balconies, compact drying racks are a good choice. However, these have the disadvantage that only a smaller amount of clothing can be dried. Large items of laundry such as bed sheets either take up the entire stand or hang on the floor.
There is usually a little more space on the terrace, so that a larger drying rack can be set up. In the garden, it is a good idea to set up a rotary dryer that is firmly anchored in the ground. These can hold and dry large quantities of laundry at the same time. If you like, you can also stretch a simple clothesline between two trees. The more space is left between the individual garments, the faster they dry.
Don't forget the accessories
To ensure that the laundry hangs securely and does not fall or fly away, it should be fastened with pegs. The pegs themselves are stored can be stored in a peg bag. And a laundry basket should also be ready so that you can easily bring the dried laundry into the house or flat.
What weather conditions are suitable for drying outdoors?
It is obvious that drying laundry outdoors in the rain is not a good idea. But apart from that, the laundry can be dried outside all year round - even in sub-zero temperatures in winter, this works thanks to sublimation. The temperature is rather secondary when hanging the laundry outdoors. Dry air and a light wind are ideal so that the moisture from the laundry can evaporate well and quickly. If the humidity is too high, the air cannot absorb the moisture from the laundry as well. The laundry stays damp for longer. Wind, on the other hand, whether warm or cold, accelerates evaporation.
Weather conditions | Dry season |
|---|---|
Sun, light wind, 15 to 20 °C | 4 to 8 hours |
Strong sunshine, dry air, 25 °C and more | 2 hours |
No sun, less than 15 °C | Up to 3 days |
Dry air, below 0 °C | 1 to 2 days |