| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| luvnlife |
Posted - Aug 13 2008 : 8:24:03 PM
I would love to be able to hang all my laundry outside on the old clothesline that came with my farmhouse but I think I'm doing something wrong. My clothes come out stiff and wrinkled and don't smell bad but not "fresh" either. I have a water softening system so it isn't hard water. I use Amway's SA8 detergent because it's very user friendly on septic systems. Do I need to use liquid fabric softener? I don't cuz my plumber said it's hard on the my pipes, too gooey. I'd love to utilize my clothesline and save time and money by drying them the greener way. Any ideas to help? Thank you ahead of time!!!
Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
Farmgirl Sister #306 :) |
| 25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Acelady02 |
Posted - Aug 24 2011 : 8:19:25 PM
I finally got my clothes line and so enjoy hanging them out. Yesterday DH came outside and saw me standing on the porch looking at the cloths...he wanted to know what I was doing....told him it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside to see the cloths flapping in the wind...don't know why just know I love it..
I make my own laundry detergent and like it alot better then any store bought stuff...love the smell of my sheets off the line.
(((((Hugs All)))))Penny
Farmgirl Sister #3343
God gives Miracles to those who Believe, Courage to those with Faith, Hope to those who Dream, Love to those who Accept, & Forgiveness to those who Ask... |
| walkinwalkoutcattle |
Posted - Aug 21 2011 : 5:37:39 PM
I like my laundry smelling like nothing! I guess that's what my clothesline fresh smells like-no degtergent residue, no fabric softener oils...pure cloth! :)
Farmgirl #2879 :)
Starbucks and sushi to green fried tomatoes and corn pudding-I wouldn't change it for the world.
www.cattleandcupcakes.blogspot.com
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| 22angel |
Posted - Aug 21 2011 : 06:07:30 AM
My mom always hangs her clothes on the line. Even in the middle of winter, she'll have a big wooden clothes horse full of clothes that she puts outside, b/c there isn't always a trail to the clothes line. My dad has a fit if the humidity in the trailer is above X (whatever number corresponds to the temperature outside - there is a little chart by the humidistat thing), but Mom sticks clothes outside all of the time to freeze dry in the winter. I think the smell is always intensified by being freeze dried. I have noticed though, that the air where my parents live & the air where I live smells differently. Weird. Who knew? I said that when my dad was around & he just looked at me like I was crazy lol. We didn't like line dried towels - they were really "crunchy", but everything else was fine for line drying. Now, I hang up what I can on my "spare closet" & sometimes in the bathroom too, then the rest just go in the dryer :s.
Life isn't about finding yourself. It's about creating yourself.
"When I grow up, I want to be dirt." seen on a box through construction in Wyoming 2010 |
| walkinwalkoutcattle |
Posted - Aug 10 2011 : 2:27:20 PM
I've also heard you can spray the clothes with a wrinkle releaser or 1 tsp of fabric softener to 1 cup water in a spray bottle. I just save my dryer for my husbands clothes and do all mine and my daughters diapers outside.
Also, fabric softener makes clothes soft because of the oil. This is why you CANNOT use softener with diapers. It'll repel all liquids because of the oils deposited by the softener.
Farmgirl #2879 :)
Starbucks and sushi to green fried tomatoes and corn pudding-I wouldn't change it for the world.
www.cattleandcupcakes.blogspot.com
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| homsteddinmom |
Posted - Aug 08 2011 : 07:54:56 AM
Ikea has dry racks! make sure you check your stores for mark down stuff. A few years ago i got 4 dry racks from target, they wer metal with the sweater mesh on it. They were original $30 i got them for $5 each!
Homesteading Mom in East Texas. Raising chickens, Rabbits and goats here on my farm! |
| I Love My Kitchen |
Posted - Jul 31 2011 : 1:03:51 PM
I hang my towels til dry then soften them in the dryer for about 5 minutes. Best of both worlds.
"There's no place like home." |
| Annab |
Posted - Oct 15 2008 : 03:21:40 AM
since we live on a dirt road, I gave up line drying years ago
i like that clean crisp line dried smell
I remember my mom always line drying so the smell reminds me of summers as a kid
I have heard that fabric softener buildup is what actually causes dryer fires
the smells are too fake so I just add baking soda for a cleaner smell
AND I dicsovered Trader Joe's brand of laundry detergent no unnatural anything, cruelty free, and it smells like REAL lavender not the fake synthetic too smelly kinds |
| homesteaderbelle |
Posted - Oct 14 2008 : 9:22:44 PM
To make you clothes softer and less wrinkly, put your clothes in the dryer for 5-10 minutes after you have had them on the line. This will soften them up and it will kill any bugs that may have crawled in your clothes while on the line.
You can use white vinegar in place of fabric softener. White Vinegar will soften the clothes.
Belle
http://www.homesteaderbelle.blogspot.com/
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| Dixie_Amazon |
Posted - Oct 14 2008 : 07:53:11 AM
Target has drying racks too.
Dennise with 2 n's
Farmgirl Sister #47 **~~** Country girl raised in the city. |
| prairie_princess |
Posted - Sep 22 2008 : 1:24:52 PM
yes, i've found if you dry them on a windy day, they become softer and less wrinkled. though sometimes it's hard to wait for a windy day when you are in need of certain clothes...
"Now and then it's good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy."
-Guillaume Apollinaire |
| simplyflowers |
Posted - Sep 16 2008 : 02:28:19 AM
I've yet to read all the post to this but had to add something....maybe not helpful....but funny. At the previous house I lives at, I had a clothes line and "tried" to use it as often as possible. [The man I had lived with got upset the first time I used it because he could see his skivvies hanging on the line, and he thought the neighbors would too, so I put them on the middle line inbetween the other stuff, problem solved! LOL] I had two yappy/howling type dogs at the time, a terrier and a beagle. I soon discovered that they could climb the little step stool and yank clothes right off the line, so I moved the stool and solved that problem. I noticed that my line dryed clothes had a little odor as well. Not really sure what it was, but I had to stop hanging the bed spreads out for the entire time because it would make the whole bedroom smell icky when I put it back on the bed. THEN......I made a discovery one day, about five foot from the clothes line was a nice plush area of grass...THAT THE DOGS LIKES TO GO #2 ON! One day I got clothes off the line and each and every piece smelt like doggy doo. I was so mad because laundry is a hard thing for me to accomplish sometimes and I had to start all over again....ugh... Well, I couldn't move the cloth line, and I really couldn't ensure that they would do their business elsewheres....so I kinda stopped hanging out the clothes. Bummer. Now I live in another house with my DH, in an HOA community, and HOA would have a #2 of their very own if they ever spotted a clothes line in the back yard! Bummer. I do miss being able to use on b/c the energy savings are HUGE!! But I do hang clothes in the laundry room on a new rack that DH built for me recently. He's so sweet.
"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." -- Thomas Edison |
| Contrary Wife |
Posted - Sep 15 2008 : 8:26:57 PM
I love hanging clothes on the line. To me, sleeping on sheets hung outside is this side of divine. Hanging clothes on a line is an art too, if you hang them higgly piggly that's what they look like, but if you take care they can be just right to wear. I'll use my rack and put it in front of the woodstove this winter, we get too much freezing rain. Something else I wanted to say, if you have a septic tank, you might be careful with the vinegar, cause it's caustic and can kill the good "bugs" in your tank that takes care of breaking all the solids down. I love vinegar for many things, but it's something to think about.
Teresa Sue
Farmgirl Sister #316
"Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly." The Dalai Lama |
| cheneygal |
Posted - Sep 15 2008 : 8:12:31 PM
Thanks gals for the suggestions!! I will check them both out. We lived in Central Or. for 10 years, very dry, and I'd hang clothes out in the winter, just sheets and towels, and they "freeze dried" also!! I know it's a little late in the season, but like my hubby says "when you get something stuck in your craw, you don't give up on it"!!!!! I'm going to "Bed, Bath and Beyond" now!!
live, laugh, love |
| MagnoliaWhisper |
Posted - Sep 15 2008 : 09:55:44 AM
I love the ones at lehmans but I don't know how sturdy they are. Also they were quite expensive was the only reason I didn't get them from lehmans. :( And the ones I bought hold a lot more with less space. (I live in a small NYC apartment) However, I like the one from lehmans that hangs on the wall. But, I don't think it would hold 50 diapers.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
| Suzan |
Posted - Sep 15 2008 : 09:03:17 AM
I have used a spare room in our house to hang clothes in the winter, they dried just fine (we were without a dryer for two years). My gram used to hang her clothes out in winter, said they "freeze dried". |
| clux64 |
Posted - Sep 15 2008 : 05:58:52 AM
Lehmann's has a variety of wood racks on their website www.lehmans.com , I think in either on of Maryjanes books, or perhaps one of the early magazine/catalogs she recommended one made that is still handmade and very sturdy...does anyone remember?
Celeste
"No matter where you go, there you are"
--Confucious
www.urbanprairiehome.blogspot.com
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| MagnoliaWhisper |
Posted - Sep 15 2008 : 05:22:03 AM
Yes, go to Bed, Bath and Beyond.
They have one that is around 30-40 dollars. (but you know they send out coupons every week, so get on their mailing list and before long you will have coupons!).
It is a wire one, that is coated in a white paint/rubber.
It is square, with three tiers. It also has caster wheels.
It's VERY sturdy, my husband, daughter, nieces or nephews has not succeeded in destroying it yet! We even take it on vacations!
It will hold a ton too, it holds at least 50 diapers at a time! (I cloth diaper).
I wish I had a picture of mine. Grrr. I should of taken a picture of it on vacation, when I had the camera! grrrr.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
| cheneygal |
Posted - Sep 14 2008 : 9:36:40 PM
Anybody know of a good sturdy drying rack, or where they can be found?? I bought one at Ben Franklin, there must be one out there that isn't like four toothpicks and flimsy!!!!
live, laugh, love |
| Alee |
Posted - Sep 07 2008 : 12:14:53 PM
Hi Celeste!
I bought mine at a local hardware store. Look in their cleaning supply or dryer supply area. I don't remember the brand name. It sort of looks like a plastic coffee can with an odd lid that the vent hose goes into. You fill the bottom with water, attach the hose, and clip on the lid. The hot air hits the water, the dry lint sticks, and the lid is domed to let the hot air out as well. It was about $5 and works great! Just remember to change the water every day that you use it, and I would suggest emptying the water when the dryer is not in use. Otherwise the water can get stinky.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our blog: www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
| MagnoliaWhisper |
Posted - Sep 07 2008 : 11:32:41 AM
For the washing soda, I have never found it at a lot of the big chains like walmart. You need to go to your local mom and pop (or smaller type) grocery store. It's almost always on the top shelf, and looks like a huge box of baking soda.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
| clux64 |
Posted - Sep 07 2008 : 10:43:59 AM
Cool Alee! What is this attachment that attaches to the vent house and catches extra lint? Where can I get one if I wanted it?
Celeste
"No matter where you go, there you are"
--Confucious
www.urbanprairiehome.blogspot.com
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| Alee |
Posted - Sep 07 2008 : 10:40:16 AM
I actually do use my dryer in cold weather. I have a special attachment to the vent hose that catches any extra lint. Then the moist hot air blows into the house adding moisture to the air and not wasting the heat. Air is able to hold more heat when it has some moisture in it. However, you do have to be careful to not run too many loads back to back or you will have moisture streaming down your windows.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our blog: www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
| clux64 |
Posted - Sep 07 2008 : 10:18:49 AM
Michele...I had the same thought about the cold weather and it's effects on my delicious line dried fragrance. I know you can hang laundry out in pretty cold weather as long as it's not freezing (or the windchill isn't freezing). I've read a bit about people having drying racks in the bedrooms because the drying clothing adds moisture to the dry, furnace warmed air. Does anyone have any experiece with this? How do you 'hang' your laundry in the winter time?
Celeste
"No matter where you go, there you are"
--Confucious
www.urbanprairiehome.blogspot.com
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| luvnlife |
Posted - Sep 07 2008 : 09:55:37 AM
I'm hooked! (Or should I say "hanged"?) lol It's been a couple weeks since I've used my dryer to actually dry clothing. I love the fact that I can do a gob of laundry in such a short time by hanging it out on the line as soon as the washer kicks off, no waiting for the dryer to finish each load. At first I'd toss in a few items in the dryer just to take some of the stiffness out of them but now, I just give them a good shake a couple of times. I have the vinegar/lavender oil rinse down pat. I'm still on the look out for washing soda in my area so I can take full advantage of economic laundering. Thanks for all the advice. Now I just need to figure out what I'll do when the weather turns cold and I can't utilize my clothesline as much??? Ahhhh, scary thought, "Clothesline withdrawals!" :)
Family life is the source of the greatest human happiness. This happiness is the simplest and least costly kind, and it cannot be purchased with money~Havighurst
Farmgirl Sister #306 :) |
| nampafarmgirl |
Posted - Aug 20 2008 : 12:12:38 PM
Alee what is your recipe for laundrey soap?
Kim |
