Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

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moonshadow
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Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by moonshadow »

And completely free...

Behold, one full week of skirts and shirts (from my vacation, finally got around to washing them)
clothes_line.jpg
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Kirbstone
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by Kirbstone »

Impressive, Moon and the Sun is doing its thing there big-time. Pity the washing machine isn't also solar powered, or perhaps maybe it is and you have a whole field full of solar panels feeding 'Lectric into the Grid!

Just yesterday I went over to a hillside farm to lunch with old friends. They are a big family, have a farm & a strong stream beautifully tamed to drive a hydro-electric turbine and they haven't bought any imported power for many years. Impressive.

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Jim
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by Jim »

moonshadow wrote: Mon Jun 20, 2022 1:56 am And completely free...
Actually dual-powered clothes dryer. It's also wind-powered.
clothes-line.png
I don't know how they got the line so tight!
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denimini
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by denimini »

I dry my clothes in the shade, under the verandah, so they don't fade, takes about an hour in summer. Just the temperature and low humidity does the trick, even at night. I suppose it is still solar power in a different form.
Unfortunately washing clothes is not quite that simple.
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Dust
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by Dust »

A friend of mine's family growing up dried their laundry hanging inside the house, at least sometimes. I assume this was weather related. They also hung it outside at times. It works, but the machine is so quick...

Some weather just isn't conducive to this. Rain, snow, high humidity, etc. I drip dry some items indoors, but that's for keeping the machine from destroying them, not to save energy or anything.
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by crfriend »

Dust wrote: Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:48 amI drip dry some items indoors, but that's for keeping the machine from destroying them, not to save energy or anything.
I do this all the time for my delicate/hand-wash stuff, or stuff that has a lot of elastic content in it. Clothes-dryers are very hard on elastics.
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moonshadow
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by moonshadow »

Dust wrote: Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:48 am A friend of mine's family growing up dried their laundry hanging inside the house, at least sometimes. I assume this was weather related. They also hung it outside at times. It works, but the machine is so quick...

Some weather just isn't conducive to this. Rain, snow, high humidity, etc. I drip dry some items indoors, but that's for keeping the machine from destroying them, not to save energy or anything.
A while back our old dryer bit the dust and while working on a replacement I would hang up our clothes in the basement if they were calling for rain. This actually worked pretty good with the help of a high velocity fan to help move air around the room while they were drying.
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rode_kater
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by rode_kater »

I've had experience with a very humid climate where on bad days you could hang your clothing in the sun for a day and it would still be damp. If you left it too long the clothes would just go mouldy.

I'm very happy I don't live there any more.
trainspotter48
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by trainspotter48 »

Given the current cost of energy in the UK, I suspect that all those who have access to solar/wind clothes drying do so. I know the best device I ever purchased was an overhead drying rack that hangs over the central heating boiler in the kitchen - works beautifully during the rainy season, which can feel like 400 days a year!!
Otherwise, when solar/wind technology is available, the back yard clothes line is called into service.
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by pelmut »

rode_kater wrote: Tue Jun 21, 2022 10:46 am I've had experience with a very humid climate where on bad days you could hang your clothing in the sun for a day and it would still be damp. If you left it too long the clothes would just go mouldy.

I'm very happy I don't live there any more.
That sounds like some 'digs' I was in many years ago.  The drains in the stable yard outside were blocked and investigation under the downstairs carpets revealed a porous brick floor directly on top of earth with no damp-proof course.  Salt spilled on the kitchen worktop would become a small puddle by the next morning.
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Re: Solar powered clothes dryer... an ancient technology..

Post by Ray »

We have solar panels on our house - building regulations insisted - plus a battery in the house. Therefore we use a tumble dryer which is solar powered (we get about 15-20 kWh on a good day). Delicates are hung up inside the house. I miss a washing line or whirligig (we have one in the garage - need to get it out) as the feel (and smell) of air dried clothing is fantastic.
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