Hanging Clothes on the Line

[DawnCt1]

This is so typical in New England. When spring comes, clothes on the line usually dry within 3 hours, particularly in the summer. Even when it is humid. As soon as September rolls around, it literally takes almost all day. Now its October. Yesterday was a cool but nice day. Low humidity, sunny, slightly breezy. I got the laundry on the line by 9:30 when I got home from the gym and at 5 pm, when I brought them in, they still needed to finish drying in the dryer. They didn't need to be there long, but still, they needed to be dried. When do you "give up"? I have towels out on my deck rail now, they will mostly dry and I have a load in the washer that will be ready to hang in 20 minutes. Its almost not worth the effort.

 

[OrlandoMike]

In my new subdivision Clothslines are "illegal" unless your yard is fenced in! Guess where we went last night! Yep! Home Depot to shop for a fence!

 

[MoniqueU]

I don't think I have seen a clothesline in 30 years. I would freak if one of my neighbors had one. We don't have a homeowners association here so there would be nothing I could do but if I had to look at someones out my windows I would not be happy.

 

[DawnCt1]

In my new subdivision Clothslines are "illegal" unless your yard is fenced in! Guess where we went last night! Yep! Home Depot to shop for a fence!

It "illegal" in my neighborhood too but I have a walk out basement and its wooded on three sides so no one sees it. I have had a clothes line for 22 years. Its the first thing we put in when we moved here.

 

[OrlandoMike]

I would freak if one of my neighbors had one.

Just curious, why? Is it that much of an eyesore? If the economy keeps going the way it is, I'm sure a lot of people will be trying to cut back on electrical consumption!

When is the last time you slept on sheets that were hung on the line?

And FYI whites come out much whiter when hung out in the sun!

 

[tzolkin]

We just turned on our coal stove this weekend. So I guess now is when I give up. (We've been getting frost and high of about 50.) Like you, the last time I hung towels out I still had to put them in the dryer. I usually dry most things in the dryer all winter, but we use propane. The only thing I really do differently is use the dryer (maybe a bit more baking) and our bills are about double in the winter.

I'm planning to get another rack and hang the stuff inside. I hate having things hanging around on racks and hangers, but we just got a new stove for our guest bedroom/office. So if I put them in there, they'll be out of the way. I did some laundry yesterday and they dried in 2 hours in that room.

 

[Hercules10]

January and February are really the only time here in DFW that we don't use our clothes-line. And that's because I don't feel like chipping ice of my under-roos.

 

[MoniqueU]

Just curious, why? Is it that much of an eyesore? If the economy keeps going the way it is, I'm sure a lot of people will be trying to cut back on electrical consumption!

When is the last time you slept on sheets that were hung on the line?

And FYI whites come out much whiter when hung out in the sun!

Personally I think they are tacky. JMHO and my electic bill is huge but I would live without AC before I got a clothesline.

 

[barkley]

In my new subdivision Clothslines are "illegal" unless your yard is fenced in! Guess where we went last night! Yep! Home Depot to shop for a fence!

the city we used to live in would'nt allow them even if you had a fence.

 

[KikiFan]

I never hang towels or sheets outside - just cause I don't like the way they feel after being outside. Even putting them in the dryer for a bit doesn't help (for me) So those aren't really an issue to me.

But with clothes I never really "give up" I just switch to hanging them indoors to dry. I never ever put shirts and tshirts in the dryer. Its to hard on the clothes and they don't last.

 

[Piglets Mommy]

I so wish I could hang my sheets and all on the line to dry, but with our allergies, we can never sleep then, cause all the pollen sticks to them.

 

[OrlandoMike]

Personally I think they are tacky.

I'm all about tacky if it cuts my electric bill in half and makes my clothes smell better and last twice as long!

 

[Camicar]

Growing up, our clothes were dried on the line, winter included, until I was about 16. Not a fan of clothes lines.

1. I have allergies and having my clothes full of the pollen is not good for my health.
2. I dislike how hard the clothes are after being on the line.
3. It's not fun having the kids in the neighborhood see your underwear and pajamas and make fun of them or worse yet, steal them. Also not good when pervy teen boy neighbor steals your underwear when you're 11/12 and makes you an 'offer' to retrieve them.
4. And this:

chipping ice of my under-roos.

Yeah, been there, done that.

 

[DawnCt1]

I find a certain amount of irony here when it comes to clothes lines. Its the easiest way to conserve. There is no way that a dryer can run less than 55 minutes for a full load of towels and clothes, yet with very little energy, they can be hung out, less than five minutes per load and dry. An umbrella type clothes line takes up very little space and the reality of the situation is, everyone has clothes. Everyone's clothes need to be washed. Why is something that is such a part of everyone's life, clean clothes by the time they get on the line, unseemly? I wish that I could have a reel type line that went from my deck to the tree in the back of the yard. The clothes would dry faster, but DH would have had to climb up 50 ft on the old oak tree.
I just wonder how many of us who chant "conserve, conserve, conserve" do not see that a clothes line is a daily, very effective way of conserving.

 

[Northstar]

This is so typical in New England. When spring comes, clothes on the line usually dry within 3 hours, particularly in the summer. Even when it is humid. As soon as September rolls around, it literally takes almost all day. Now its October. Yesterday was a cool but nice day. Low humidity, sunny, slightly breezy. I got the laundry on the line by 9:30 when I got home from the gym and at 5 pm, when I brought them in, they still needed to finish drying in the dryer. They didn't need to be there long, but still, they needed to be dried. When do you "give up"?

I give up every year when:

1. A major wind/rain storm brings my clothesline down and it doesn't seem worth it to nag DH to get it up again

OR

2. My hands are so cold while I'm hanging that cold wet laundry that I start thinking about wearing gloves... nope, gonna put it in the nice warm dryer.


again next spring....

 

[DisneyAddict_M]

I gave up about 15 years ago when my mom stopped forcing me to do it. Not a fan of crunchy clothes.

 

[SamIAm21]

Just curious, why? Is it that much of an eyesore? If the economy keeps going the way it is, I'm sure a lot of people will be trying to cut back on electrical consumption!

When is the last time you slept on sheets that were hung on the line?

And FYI whites come out much whiter when hung out in the sun!

Although winter is coming for Chicago, I might be putting up a clothesline in my yard next spring/summer. Natural gas prices are heading upward again!
I'm unincorporated, so if the neighbor's don't like, they can go look out another window!

 

[Kim&Chris]

Thankfully, it is not 'illegal' to hang wash out in my neighborhood. I start hanging clothes out in March/April, and finish late September/early October. It saves a lot of money, and the whites are definitely whiter thanks to the sun.

I don't hang undies out though

 

[Cindyluwho]

The clothes will dry a lot faster on the clothesline if you put them in the dryer for 5 minutes before hanging them out. It also gets rid of that "hard" feeling that one of the previous posters mentioned, it softens them right up! I only put my clothes outside on the line in the non-rainy months here in Seattle, but I hang them on a clothes rack in the bathroom during those times. After 5 minutes in the dryer it only takes 6 or so hours at most to dry them on the rack. So if I hang them in the AM before work they're ready to fold and put away by the time I get home.
And I'm just cracking up at the "tacky" comment. Seriously?? I suppose it would be tacky to have a recycling bin too. I mean, all those messy bottles and stuff - ewww gross, wouldn't want to have to look at that! Oh, God forbid ride the bus! How tacky would that be to be seen standing at a bus stop!!
OP, keep hangin' that laundry! Especially if you have some really bright, polka-dotted undies!! We'll change the world one clothesline at a time!!

 

[bubie2.5]

I find a certain amount of irony here when it comes to clothes lines. Its the easiest way to conserve. There is no way that a dryer can run less than 55 minutes for a full load of towels and clothes, yet with very little energy, they can be hung out, less than five minutes per load and dry. An umbrella type clothes line takes up very little space and the reality of the situation is, everyone has clothes. Everyone's clothes need to be washed. Why is something that is such a part of everyone's life, clean clothes by the time they get on the line, unseemly? I wish that I could have a reel type line that went from my deck to the tree in the back of the yard. The clothes would dry faster, but DH would have had to climb up 50 ft on the old oak tree.
I just wonder how many of us who chant "conserve, conserve, conserve" do not see that a clothes line is a daily, very effective way of conserving.

I totally agree with you on this.