While drying clothes on the radiator might seem like a cheaper alternative to using your tumble dryer, one expert strongly advises against the method. “Radiators can seem a handy option for drying laundry,” explained an expert from Which? “You’ll likely have them in your home already, so popping your clothes on one could seem a simple and easy way to save money.”
Doing so, however, risks the consumption of a much greater amount of energy. The expert explained: “Radiators circulate warm air around the room, so if the heating is on at set to 20 degrees Celcius, your radiators will pump out heat until the room reaches that temperature at which point, the boiler will stop.”
So what’s the problem? Cold and wet clothes act as a “barrier” to the heat, the expert said. As such, you could find yourself heating your room for a lot longer than is necessary.
“While you might end up with dry clothes, you’ll also end up with a colder home and bigger energy bills – and maybe even mould,” the expert warned. But is there a suitable alternative?
“Place your clothes on an airer near the radiator – it might take longer, but it helps the air to circulate around the room,” the Which? expert instructed.
Additionally, if you want to speed this process up, he suggested purchasing an electric heated airer. “They do work better on smaller loads though,” he closed his clip. “Or use a tumble dryer.”
Writing in response, one energy efficient TikTok user reported: “I’ve got a ceiling fan. Just hang the clothes on an airer and turn that on. Much cheaper as probably runs around 60w instead of nearer 250w. It will help warm air circulate over your radiators too.”
A second person suggested: “With all the damp issues people seem to have these days, I think it’s probably for the best that houses get fitted with some kind of ventilation that leads to either air extraction (ideally with a heat exchanger to capture some lost heat), or ideally a dehumidification system in the attic, that vents up through the hallway which will help dry the house air and kick in when it rises too much.”
Backing up the Which? expert’s advice, OnlyRadiators states drying clothes on radiators is a “terrible” idea. The UK company elaborates: “When you’re drying clothes on a radiator, you’re really just blocking the radiator from heating the room. The plug – your wet clothing – gets a huge amount of heat but your room stays cold.
“Your radiator, even without a thermostatic valve, is trying to reach a certain temperature. Yet you’re plugging the upstream heat of your whole system. Your boiler then has to struggle to heat the room using a radiator whose convection cycle is blocked. Your radiator is rendered completely inefficient and it’s costing you mega-bucks. The central heating hates it and your bank account isn’t any better off either.”
As for the aforementioned risk of mould developing, they add: “Drying clothes indoors involves releasing a very surprising amount of moisture into the air. After all, once that water evaporates it has to go somewhere. And the weight difference between freshly washed clothes and freshly dried clothes adds up to litres of water.
“So all that water is taking a ride along an air current until it ends up sticking to the first cold surface it meets. So, the moment your moisture leaves those clothes, it’s the same moisture that is adding to, or causing, your mould problems”.
