Sasha CampbellA sunny day can help you do more than enjoy the outdoors. It can also help you dry your laundry. All you need is a clothesline or drying rack and a place where air can move around the clothes.
The benefits of drying clothes outside include saving energy, lowering drying costs, and enjoying fresh-smelling laundry. You do not have to hang every load outside. Even drying one load outside now and then can save some dryer energy.
When you hang wet clothes outside, the sun adds warmth and moving air carries moisture away. This is one way of air-drying clothes. You can dry shirts, towels, sheets, and many other items this way.
How long they take to dry depends on the weather. A warm, breezy day often works well. Clothes may take longer on a still or humid day. Give each item enough room on the line so air can reach it.
What Are the Benefits of Drying Clothes Outside?
Here are seven reasons to try drying clothes in the sun.
1. It Can Lower Your Energy Bill
A clothes dryer uses energy each time it runs. A clothesline uses no electricity or gas.
When you dry a load outside instead of using the dryer, you save the energy the dryer would have used. The U.S. Department of Energy suggests air or sun drying as a way to save energy [1].
How much money you save depends on your dryer, energy rates, and how often you do laundry. You can start with one load a week and hang more when the weather is good.
Sheets and towels are a good place to start because they can take up a lot of space in the dryer.
2. It Can Help the Environment
Using less energy to dry clothes can help lower your home’s impact on the environment. Each load you hang outside is one less load your dryer has to dry.
You do not need perfect weather every day. Hang clothes outside when you can and use your dryer when you need it. If your family does many loads of laundry, these small changes can add up over time.
3. Clothes Can Smell Fresh
Many people enjoy the smell of sheets and clothes after they have dried outdoors. Air moves through the fabric as it dries, leaving laundry with a fresh outdoor smell.
You do not need a scented dryer sheet to enjoy it. Still, the place you choose matters. Keep your laundry away from smoke, dust, and heavy traffic.
If there is a lot of pollen in the air and someone in your home has allergies, drying indoors may be a better choice that day.
4. It May Reduce Wear on Clothes
A dryer tumbles clothes while warm air dries them. Hanging clothes on a line avoids that tumbling. It also helps you avoid drying them for too long. The U.S. Department of Energy notes that overdrying can cause wear and tear on clothes [2].
Always check the care label before hanging an item outside. A heavy sweater, for example, may stretch if you hang it while wet. Lay it flat on a drying rack instead.
Strong sun can also fade dark or bright clothes. Turn them inside out or hang them in a shady spot where air can still move around them.
5. Sunlight May Help Brighten Some White Fabrics
White sheets and towels can look fresh after drying in the sun.
Sunlight may help lighten some marks on white fabric, but the result can vary. It will not remove every stain.
Treat stains before washing, and check for stains again before hanging the fabric out to dry. If a mark remains, it may need another wash.
Keep colored items out of strong sun if you are worried about fading.
6. It Can Keep Your Laundry Area Cooler
Some dryers can make a laundry area feel warmer while they run. On a hot day, you may prefer to hang clothes outside instead.
This may be most helpful if your laundry space already feels warm. Try washing early in the morning. Then hang the load outside and bring it in once everything is dry.
7. It Gives Large Items Room to Dry
Sheets, blankets, and big towels can get tangled in a dryer. On a long clothesline, you can spread them out so air reaches more of the fabric.
Shake each item before hanging it. This helps open up folds.
Leave space between items, and check thick seams and corners before bringing them inside. If you put away a damp sheet or towel, it may develop a musty smell.
How to Dry Clothes Outside
You don’t need a costly outdoor clothes-drying system to get started. A strong clothesline or a drying rack can work well.
Start by checking the weather. Pick a day with little chance of rain. A light breeze can help clothes dry, but strong wind may blow them off the line.
Give wet laundry a good spin in the washer first. The less water left in the fabric, the sooner it can dry. Shake out each item, then hang it with space around it. You can put shirts on hangers if that makes them easier to dry without creases.
Choose a clean place where your clothes will not brush against dirt or plants. Make sure your line or rack is strong enough to hold wet laundry.
Bring clothes inside when they are fully dry. If towels feel stiff, shake them before folding.
You can also put suitable items in the dryer for a short tumble on low heat if you like them softer.
Is Sun Drying Right for Every Load?
Drying laundry outdoors works best when the weather, fabric, and drying space all suit it.
Rain and high humidity can slow drying. Dust and pollen can settle on clothes outdoors. Strong sunlight may fade some colors, while delicate items may need shade or a flat rack.
The care label can help you decide how to dry each piece. If an item needs heat for a specific cleaning reason, follow those instructions.
Sun drying is a way to dry washed clothes. It does not replace proper washing.
You can mix drying methods to fit your day. Hang one load outside while drying another indoors. Use the dryer when time is short, or rain is on the way.
Takeaway
The benefits of drying clothes in the sun go beyond a fresh smell. It can save dryer energy, lower drying costs, and give large items room to dry. It is easy to try, too.
Start with a few towels or sheets on the next sunny day. Once you know how long laundry takes to dry in your area, you can decide when sun drying works best for your home.
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