credit: Jagendorf
t's a little embarrassing to admit this, but when we were first married, if I didn't have enough dirty clothes for a load, I would pull clean ones out of the drawer to add to the washer. (RED face - I know!)
I DON'T DO THAT ANY MORE!
I wanted to share some easy and helpful hints to help you with the process of drying your laundry.
- Be sure to shake and untwist items before tossing in the dryer. This not only reduces wrinkling, but allows the clothes to dry a bit faster, and this saves energy.
- I love using liquid softener, but just recently began using it in a different way, after my sis-in-love suggested this idea that works well for me. In a plastic container with a lid, I mixed the softener with twice the amount of water, cut a sponge in half and put it in the liquid. When I throw the clothes in the dryer, I lightly wring out one of the sponges and toss it in the dryer. The clothes will not have static, and the product lasts much longer. I think it's a wonderful money-saving tip.
- Cleaning your lint filter before drying every load reduces drying time significantly - another money saving idea.
- Don't overfill the dryer - it will take much longer to dry and things will be more wrinkled.
- Dry loads back to back so the dryer doesn't have time to cool down, then heat up again.
- A general rule for drying: If clothes were washed in hot water, most likely they can be dried on high, but if they were washed on permanent press/cooler water cycle, they should be dried at 'medium' or 'permanent press' setting also.
- I believe one of the most important things to remember when drying clothes, is removing them from the dryer right away so they don't have time to get wrinkled. Keep clothes hangers handy and don't ball everything into the basket when removing, as that can add a lot of wrinkles too.
- When I don't get right to my dryer when it stops, I turn it on to reheat the clothes a little bit before I remove them. Makes the task of folding the clothes a little nicer when they are warm.
