Drying laundry in winter, especially in a small apartment, can be problematic. Long-term drying of laundry contributes to the accumulation of moisture, condensation on the windows and the appearance of traces of mold in various corners of the room. Not to mention the polluted air. How to dry clothes in winter? The guide we have prepared for you will help you choose the most effective method. Your clothes will smell fresh, get into the closet faster, and you will have free space.

Do you dry your laundry outside in autumn and winter?

Some activities that can be easily performed in summer need to be adapted to completely different conditions in winter. Otherwise, they lose their effectiveness. This is the case with washing, namely drying it. In the summer, just put the laundry on the terrace or balcony and wait a while until it dries completely. It’s not so easy in winter.

Our grandmothers took the washed clothes, blankets and sheets out into the cold, where they hung them on strings just like in the summer. It is more difficult for us to convince ourselves to use this method. Have you noticed your neighbors doing it too, and Are you thinking about drying your laundry outside in autumn and winter? Try it out. This method really works.

  • The underwear really dries out in the cold, to be more precise, the water on it turns into ice under the influence of very low temperatures, which gradually evaporates – this process is scientifically called sublimation, i.e. the change from a solid state directly to a gaseous one, bypassing the liquid form.
  • In this way, the materials covered with frost actually get rid of the liquid that has accumulated during washing, and after heating and ironing, they can be put back into the closet.

But don’t forget that some of the fabrics we wear that weren’t around in our grandmothers’ youth or weren’t as popular as they are now can deteriorate more easily. If for various reasons you prefer home drying, we will advise you how to do it sensibly so that moisture does not accumulate in your home and the conditions are pleasant in it.

How to dry clothes in winter

In winter, laundry hung indoors dries much more slowly than in summer.

  • Not only does this maintain humidity in the rooms, and instead of the smell of your favorite washing powder or fabric softener, the characteristic heavy and musty smell of wet clothes floats in them, but the risk of mold on the walls also increases.

How to dry clothes in winter? Here’s a guide on what to avoid and what to use so that your clothes dry faster, smell fresh, don’t lose their softness, elasticity and proper structure, and so that the water that evaporates from them doesn’t collect on the walls.

What to focus on

  • Wash a smaller amount of clothes at a time. If you throw a lot of clothes, heavier fabrics or bulky materials such as bedding into the washing machine, it won’t all dry at once, causing a lot of moisture to accumulate in the apartment. It is better to sort things and wash them one at a time, letting a smaller load dry before hanging the next one.
  • Hang the laundry at certain intervals. Place clothes and other textiles on large, folding, standing or hanging dryers spaced apart. This will allow air to circulate between the individual pieces of clothing and moisture will evaporate faster if there is enough space. Also, avoid folding sheets in half, for example, because even if you hang and turn them regularly, the whole process will take longer.
  • Choose a mobile laundry rack. Large dryers are not very practical and take up a lot of space, but they can fit more washed clothes. In winter, it is recommended not to keep the dryer loaded exclusively in one room, but to move it from room to room. In that case, mobile models are the best, i.e. on wheels – then you just move them to another room and you’re done. If you have two or more dryers, try to hang laundry in smaller quantities in different rooms and ventilate them regularly.

Where to dry laundry and what to use

  • Be careful where you dry to avoid damaging the fabrics. I once thought of moving the dryer with the still damp laundry a little closer to the heated fireplace, which is enclosed by protective glass. Definitely don’t do this, because although the sight of dry laundry is tempting, many delicate, man-made fabrics can literally melt when exposed to such a high temperature (more heat from a glowing fireplace than you think).
  • Use technologies to improve air quality. In a small apartment, use dehumidifiers when drying laundry. A high-quality device with a modern humidity control system will dehumidify the air, which will improve the air quality and make your home smell pleasant, even if you have prepared more than one load of laundry in a row.
  • Don’t be afraid of the cold – this will make your home more pleasant and speed up the drying process. Winter drying of laundry requires regular ventilation of the apartment. Instead of placing the clothes dryer next to the radiator in the hope that the water will evaporate from the fabrics faster, it is better to move it closer to the window and at the same time turn the radiators open regularly. By letting the cold inside, you will not only improve living conditions. You will also get rid of excess moisture.
  • Use natural heat sources for drying. As soon as the sun rises on a winter day, even without taking the laundry outside, place it in a place where warm rays penetrate through the window. At the same time, open the window. This combination will cause the laundry to dry faster than if it is standing in the corner against the wall.

You can always, as our grandmothers did, take the clothes outside and wait for the frost to take its toll.

Just remember that laundry should not hang outside when the humidity is high in the air. After the rain, in the November gloom, there’s no point in trying. Your clothes will definitely not dry in such weather. Therefore, it is better to leave it at home and use the above tips.

Bed linen will smell and yellow stains will disappear. Pour into measuring cup while washing