Summer is officially here and it’s the perfect time to start practicing a simple green habit: air-drying your laundry outside! According to the US Department of Energy, the clothes drier uses 6-10% of our annual energy use. Hanging your clothes outside in the sun requires no energy and is free, so you can lower both your carbon footprint and your energy bill. In fact, the average American family can save up to $100 in a year, as well as 2,400 pounds of carbon emissions just by air-drying laundry!
Hanging your clothes out to dry comes with several other benefits as well! Air-drying is better for your clothes as tumble-drying wears down fabric fibers, destroys rubber elastic, and shortens the overall life of your clothes. Additionally, your clothes will be less wrinkled after hanging out in the sun all day, so you will look sharp and won’t have to use additional energy by ironing. Finally, the sun is a natural whitener AND disinfectant, thanks to its UV light, which eliminates the use of any harsh chemicals, such as bleach, that go into the water supply or onto your skin.
Clothes racks can be moved indoors during the winter and used in a basement, attic, or any open room. So take advantage of the great Rochester sunshine and get a head start on this green routine that you can practice all year round!
Article by: Ainslee Cunningham, Class of 2014
Sources:
http://www.tide.com/en-US/article/out-to-dry.jspx
http://www.bestdryingrack.com/Air_Drying_Benefits.html
Photo thanks to Pixabay