ELC Video
By Heather Stapleton, Education Coordinator
Why are some green habits decidedly cool while others are decidedly not? Driving a hybrid? Cool. Hanging your clothes on the line? Not.
Yet, everyone can afford a clothes line, clothes pins, and hangers. Perhaps after everyone reads this, we’ll have waiting lists for the newest, eco-friendly drying racks. I doubt it; but, why not give the “old fashioned way” a try? Even line drying just one load of laundry keeps 3.35 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the atmosphere (Energy Information Administration).
Electric dryers are among the top energy uses in a home, followed by refrigerators, lighting and water heaters. Depending on family size, dryers can account for 6% of total household electricity use. In 2005, the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers reported 88 million dryers in the United States. Each of these consume approximately 1,079 kilowatt hours of energy per household, emitting an annual total of 2,224 pounds of CO2 (Energy Information Administration). While this is an interesting fact, it does not even take into consideration all of the dryers in laundry mats, cleaners, hotels, and hospitals.
In addition to saving energy and emitting less CO2, line drying offers other advantages. Line drying can actually work better than a dryer for busy people: you don't have to worry about being around when the dryer finishes to avoid wrinkling. And, line drying directly on hangers, minimizes wrinkling, thus eliminating the need for energy guzzling irons. Irons can consume up to 1,800 watts of energy, and two hours of iron use emits 4.8 pounds of CO2 (The Green Guide).
Moreover, clothes last longer because they don't get overheated (line drying preserves elastic and synthetic fibers) and the clothes don’t get beaten up so much (What exactly do you think lint is? Your clothes literally falling apart).
Not only will you save on your electricity and clothing bills, but you also save on laundry products. Sunlight is a bleaching agent and disinfectant. So, when you line dry, there is no need to buy bleach or other whiteners. And, rather than using detergents and softeners whose chemical scents mimic the fresh smell of line-dried clothes, you can have the real thing!
For those who live in apartments or don't have adequate outside space, place a drying rack by an open, sunny window.
Hanging your clothes on the line probably isn’t the chicest eco-tip you’ve ever received, but it’s relatively simple, affordable and effective; and, the whole family can participate in making your home greener, one step at a time.
Not the Chicest Eco-Tip
By Heather Stapleton, Education Coordinator
Why are some green habits decidedly cool while others are decidedly not? Driving a hybrid? Cool. Hanging your clothes on the line? Not.
Yet, everyone can afford a clothes line, clothes pins, and hangers. Perhaps after everyone reads this, we’ll have waiting lists for the newest, eco-friendly drying racks. I doubt it; but, why not give the “old fashioned way” a try? Even line drying just one load of laundry keeps 3.35 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the atmosphere (Energy Information Administration).
Electric dryers are among the top energy uses in a home, followed by refrigerators, lighting and water heaters. Depending on family size, dryers can account for 6% of total household electricity use. In 2005, the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers reported 88 million dryers in the United States. Each of these consume approximately 1,079 kilowatt hours of energy per household, emitting an annual total of 2,224 pounds of CO2 (Energy Information Administration). While this is an interesting fact, it does not even take into consideration all of the dryers in laundry mats, cleaners, hotels, and hospitals.
In addition to saving energy and emitting less CO2, line drying offers other advantages. Line drying can actually work better than a dryer for busy people: you don't have to worry about being around when the dryer finishes to avoid wrinkling. And, line drying directly on hangers, minimizes wrinkling, thus eliminating the need for energy guzzling irons. Irons can consume up to 1,800 watts of energy, and two hours of iron use emits 4.8 pounds of CO2 (The Green Guide).
Moreover, clothes last longer because they don't get overheated (line drying preserves elastic and synthetic fibers) and the clothes don’t get beaten up so much (What exactly do you think lint is? Your clothes literally falling apart).
Not only will you save on your electricity and clothing bills, but you also save on laundry products. Sunlight is a bleaching agent and disinfectant. So, when you line dry, there is no need to buy bleach or other whiteners. And, rather than using detergents and softeners whose chemical scents mimic the fresh smell of line-dried clothes, you can have the real thing!
For those who live in apartments or don't have adequate outside space, place a drying rack by an open, sunny window.
Hanging your clothes on the line probably isn’t the chicest eco-tip you’ve ever received, but it’s relatively simple, affordable and effective; and, the whole family can participate in making your home greener, one step at a time.
