Urban Blog

We’ve talked in this space about the beauty and simplicity of drying clothes on a laundry line, rather than in a gas or electric clothes drying machine. On one hand there’s the elegance of carrying on an old-world tradition, still popular in much of the world (if often forgotten in the US); on the other, there’s the innate satisfaction that comes from adopting a practice that’s not only frugal, but also good for Mother Earth. 

Let’s look at the numbers. Most homes and apartments already have a gas or electric dryer in them, so the purchase cost is often overlooked in many cost comparisons. But it’s there, nonetheless: consider you’ll pay between $500-$1,600 per unit, depending on the bells and whistles of a particular model. Most manufacturers admit you can expect to need a new clothes dryer about every ten years, so if you spread out the cost you can estimate between $50 and $160 per year in purchase price. 

Operating costs vary depending on the local cost of your electricity or gas, but if you do about one load per day, a good estimate is about 15 to 20 cents daily for a gas dryer, and 30 to 40 cents for an electric one. That’s between $55 and $146 per year. So depending upon the kind of dryer you buy and your energy costs, drying on a line can save you between $105 and $306 each and every year. 

What’s more, consider the carbon footprint; the electricity required to dry each load also represents about 5 pounds of CO2 — 1,800 pounds annually. Even drying half your clothes on a line essentially keeps 900 pounds of CO2 from the air — surely a worthy goal! — as well as saving the money as outlined above.

Save money, lower your carbon footprint, and save the planet? Seems like a good deal, right? For more information about clothes drying, contact us!