While I have nothing against my dryer, I still enjoy drying my clean bedsheets out in the sunshine and fresh air every once in a while. In fact, there are certain items that I always prefer to air dry, whether it’s outside on a line or inside on a clothes rack.
If you’ve always been one to simply toss a wet load of laundry straight into the dryer without a second thought, you could be missing out on a lot of hidden benefits! Today, we’ll be exploring the many perks of air drying your laundry, as well as tips, tricks, and advice for making the most of it!
Related: 9 Dryer Mistakes That Are Wasting Your Time And Money
4 Benefits Of Air Drying Your Laundry
There are many benefits to air drying, from lengthening the life of your clothes to saving you money. Here are a few to consider:
1. It Extends The Life Of Your Clothes
The heat of your dryer helps to dry your clothes quickly, but it can also destroy elastic in your clothing. Over time, that heat can lead to a total break down of the elastic in your socks, underwear, pants with stretchy waistbands, and more.
Dryers can also lead to pilling, which are those little fabric balls that can make your clothes look frumpy and worn. Pilling is a result of friction, as the fibers are slowly rubbed thin from tumbling around inside the dryer.
Dryers can also shrink clothes, as most of us know from personal experience. The best way to avoid any accidental clothing shrinkage is to simply avoid the dryer altogether!
And finally, the heat in your dryer can also set stains and make them nearly impossible to remove. To avoid this, pretreat stains before washing, then check the stain at the end of the wash cycle. If the stain is still visible, treat the stain again and wash the item a second time before air drying your stain-free clothing item.
Related: How to Wash (& Dry) Silk Clothing
2. It Saves You Money
While drying clothes in your dryer requires electricity and thus costs you money, air drying your clothes is free! Even if you air dry just a portion of your loads of laundry, you’re still likely to see savings on your monthly power bill.
Air drying clothes can also save you some money in the form of laundry supplies, as you don’t need to use dryer sheets or other dryer products. (Cutting back on these products is also a good thing for those who are sensitive to fragrances and chemicals often found in dryer products.)
3. An Indoor Drying Rack Helps Combat Dry Air
Colder temperatures and dry air can cause the humidity inside your home to plummet, leading to dry nasal passages, dry skin, and even increased susceptibility to viruses. Drying your clothes indoors on a drying rack can help boost the humidity in your home as the moisture in your clothes evaporates into the air.
(And for more ways to fight dry air and increase the humidity in your home, check out this list!)
4. Sunlight Naturally Brightens And Disinfects
Sunlight naturally brightens, whitens, and disinfects fabrics, so it’s a great way to dry both bedsheets and light clothing. For darker clothing and linens, hanging them in a shady area, turning clothes inside out, and drying them indoors are all good options for avoiding color fading.
More Ideas You'll Love
The Best Clotheslines And Racks For Air Drying Your Laundry
AmazonBasics Foldable Clothes Rack
No clips or clothespins are necessary with this drying rack—simply lay your items over the bars to dry. It’s small enough to set up inside most bathtubs if you’re short on space, and its lightweight steel frame makes it easy to move around and fold up for storage. I love how sturdy it is too!
Riveda Retractable Clothesline
This retractable clothesline can be used indoors or outdoors, and you’ll hardly notice it unless you’re actively using it to dry clothes. It’s 40 feet long, giving you plenty of room to hang things, although the reviewers do wish it supported a bit more weight.
AERO W Wall-Mounted Clothes Rack
This space-saving collapsible clothing rack can be mounted to any wall or door, indoors or out! Simply pull it out and hang your clothes, then push it back in when it’s not in use. It’s very sturdy and works well in most laundry rooms (even small ones!)
HAWATOUR Portable Elastic Clothesline
If you need to dry clothes while traveling or want something you can move around as needed, this portable clothesline is perfect. It’s small, lightweight, and even comes with clothespins build right in!
Now that you’ve brushed up on the benefits of air drying and know all about the best tools for the job, here are some “dos and don’ts” that will help you master the air of air drying!
Do’s And Don’ts For Air Drying Your Laundry
When Air Drying Your Laundry, DO…
- Check your local weather forecast. You don’t want to hang your laundry right before a rainstorm. And if it happens to be a particularly humid day, you’ll need to plan for additional drying time.
- Use less laundry detergent. Scaling back on detergent will help prevent that crunchy feeling clothes sometimes have after being air dried, which is usually related to lingering detergent residue.
- Spin it thoroughly! Use the fastest spin cycle on your washing machine to wring as much water out of your clothes as possible, and it will speed up your drying time considerably.
- Try combining drying methods. Want the best of both worlds? Run your clothes in the dryer for 10 minutes before hanging them on your line or drying rack. Even a brief amount of tumbling action and airflow will help fluff up the fibers and prevent stiffness, and your clothes will air dry quite a bit faster too.
- Wipe your line or rack. Before hanging laundry on a clothesline or rack (especially if you use an outdoor clothesline), wipe it with a towel to pick up any dust and dirt that may be sitting on it. You don’t want that dirt to soil your freshly-laundered clothes!
- Shake each item before hanging. Shaking each item helps throw out the wrinkles, un-bunches hems, plackets, and sleeves, and helps softens the garment. After shaking, finger press hems or plackets back into shape to help ensure they dry correctly.
- Organize as you go. You can save yourself some sorting time by allocating a section of your clothesline or rack to each person in your household. That way, they’re already in order when it’s time to take them down and fold them!
- Use hangers. If you need more room on your rack or clothesline, hang some of the items on hangers.
- Store your clothespins inside. Clothespins that are left out on the line can deteriorate, get discolored, and even leave spots on your freshly washed clothes. No, thank you!
- Fold your clothes promptly. The best way to avoid wrinkles is to fold your dry clothes as soon as you remove them from the clothesline or rack. If they get crammed into a laundry basket and left for several hours, you’ll likely need to get out the iron.
When Air Drying Your Laundry, DON’T…
- Air dry down items. Air drying can cause the down in your jackets, comforters, and sleeping bags to dry flattened or in clumps. Instead, dry down items in your dryer along with dryer balls or tennis balls, which will help re-fluff the down as they tumble around.
- Hang sweaters to dry. Sweaters, especially heavier ones, can get stretched out of shape when hung out to dry. Instead, lay your sweaters flat to dry to avoid stretching them out.
- Dry your laundry outside if you have allergies. For those with allergies, avoid drying your laundry outside when your allergies are acting up. You don’t want pollen and other outdoor irritants to collect on your clothes and linens and make things worse! Dry your laundry inside on a rack instead.
Do you ever air dry your clothes?
Ah, the blessing of hanging out clothing, towels, bed sheets and blankets!
I have been hanging out laundry for over 60 years and wouldn’t have it any other way.
Yes, I own a dryer which gets used on cloudy, rainy, damp weather or where it’s just too cold out for anything to dry.
I also use a drying rack for our towels after showering so they don’t develop mold and air dry in the house until it’s time to wash them.
Where I live I have hung out clothing in December and January (we don’t get snow), so that’s an added bonus because the air is crisper, fresher and cleaner smelling.
I was taught to use a clothesline outside for all the laundry by my mother way back in 1963–and I haven’t stopped since.
Give it a try! You won’t be disappointed in the results
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Air drying definitely makes your clothes last longer. My kids are amazed that my clothes never wear out. Granted I am mature single lady. Shake & hang are a habit. Jeans get their legs pulled to keep them as long as when bought. Increased air drying when empty nester allowed. Maybe not pretty but very short term to have clothes hanging & drying. My daughter air dries most of her 3 kid’s clothes. They look & smell nice.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Line dried clothes smell so good too – somehow they smell of sunshine! I don’t have a drier as we live off-grid, so on wet days I dry the washing inside on a rack.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I dont own a dryer so yes
Please log in or create a free account to comment.My MIL taught me years ago that a few minutes of tossing in a drier will remove or reduce wrinkles on your laundry. Then remove from the drier and hang to dry to reduce costs, humidify winter air, reduce shrinkage, and also wear and tear on clothes. If you hang things on hangers until they are dry, they are often ready to go back in the closet right away. We have serious allergy problems, so we ONLY air dry inside.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I’ve air dried most of my clothing for the last 25 years. I’ve had different racks over the years and now have a solidly made (in Canada) wooden rack that is great! I found metal racks would fall apart over time. I only dry things like socks, hankerchiefs, and underwear. I also have an insta hang rack for hanging clothes. I also wash all of my delicates in laundry bags. It has really made a difference in the lifespan of blouses, pants and sweaters.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.For years I line-dried everything. The last 25 years I have lived in AZ and it’s better not to line-dry unless you have some decent shade. When I moved here and bought my house, I used large eye-hooks over my laundry room door and under the shelf over the washer/dryer to hang some 1″ dowels. The one under the shelf holds hangers and some clothes to dry. I use pant hangers and hang bras, panties, and my costly support socks also on that rack. The doorway-rod holds clothes to air-dry or to finish drying.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Great article Jillee! I’ve been air drying for yrs. I didn’t have room for a dryer for 30 yrs. Now that we moved and have a washer+dryer we still air dry many items. Tip-We’ve been using white vinegar as fabric softner for yrs as well. Works great. Much cheaper and no nasty residue to clean up because nothing gets ‘caked up’. (Now that I can have fluffy towels, doubt we’ll go back to hanging those.)
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I agree, Deborah, in warm, breezy weather, I, too, use an outdoor clothes line, I have for years. Our weather ,here, in the northeast becomes cold and damp and then very cold and snowy, once we hit November so then I use the dryer, especially for towels. I hang my delicate undies on a circular, clip-on drying apparatus that hangs on my shower rod in our upstairs bathroom. It is easy to remove for baths and showers.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Even before moving to our “off-grid” home I didn’t have a clothes drier. Air dried clothes smell so good especially if you use a perfume-free soap powder. They smell even better if the day has been sunny.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I am so happy to see others talking about line drying clothes. I was told once that line drying was “rural”. Well, sign me up! My mother used a Maytag wringer washer and the clothes line. I think line drying when possible is good for the wallet and the environment. In Japan, everyone has outdoor and indoor lines for clothes drying. Most homes and apartments have a balcony with a moveable rack. They live without dryers. On a personal note, I never hang underwear on the outdoor line. Too modest I guess.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.In nice weather I do hang my undies and by husband underwear on the clothesline. Heck, at least the neighbors know that we wear underwear and that it is CLEAN underwear. :-)
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thank you for the laugh
I was taught to use three parallel clothes lines and hang the “smalls” (undies, etc.) from the center line. Then hang the larger items on the outer two lines, shielding your unmentionables from view!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.We usually air dry some items in our garage -where our washer & dryer are located, or in our sunroom on a table with a towel underneath if the weather is warm. I have allergies and don’t want pollen or other things getting on my clothes. We also live in a humid climate which can make air drying take longer. I’ll have to try putting clothes in the dryer before air drying. I usually put the item in the dryer with a damp cloth after items are dried to remove wrinkles.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I partially machine dry shirts, T shirts, blouses and jeans for about 10 minutes on low to tumble out laundry wrinkles then I shake them, smooth out plackets and pockets with my fingers, put them on hangers and hang them to dry on the shower curtain pole. I do flip the jeans over half-way through the day if they’re draped over a hanger, to help them dry. This system works very well and the clothes are all ready to go right into the closet once they’re dry.
Sheets, though . . . I love hanging out sheets and bedding and other large laundry. We have lots of space for clothesline, but we also get a lot of wind. Regular clothespins couldn’t hold my sheets reliably on the line unless I draped the sheets in half over the line, which can be hard to do. Over not much time most clothes pins break or come apart easily under the pressure of wind. Clothespins designed for laundry use, as opposed to crafts and school projects, are pretty limited in styles and so hanging sheets out was a struggle for many years. About 18 months ago, though, I found and tried these clips from Amazon:
Clothespins 80 Pack,Multi-Purpose Stainless Steel Wire,Cord Clothes Pins Utility Clips,Hooks for Home/Office (Northern Brothers is the brand).
They’re great! There’s a big pack of them, inexpensive, no rusting so far, easy to use and I haven’t lost any laundry off the line since. I can get away with leaving the pins on the line exposed to the weather all through spring and summer, so I do. They can handle heavy stuff: I washed all our outdoors throw pillows this summer, used those clips to line dry them and they worked perfectly.
This seems like a tiny matter to get happy about, but it’s a big deal when you have your sheets all hung out and know, just know, that if the breeze picks up, many of them won’t stay on the line. I’m so glad I found these!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I live in the Republic of Panama, so I get to enjoy lots and lots of sunny days and love being able to dry my laundry outside, especially sheets.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I’m going to clear out space in the laundry room for more air-drying. I already air dry towels, rugs, and heavy items such as jackets (may finish those off in the dryer). Note: on the last item, it says dry “outside” for allergies, but you meant “inside” as stated in the paragraph. For towels, I like the rough feel of the air-dried towel without the fabric softener. For my elderly mom, I use the fabric softener for her skin.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Hi Mary. That is a list of “DON’Ts” so Don’t dry outside is what Jillee means!
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