Why I Don’t have an Outdoor Clothes Line!

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A couple of years ago, I got rid of my outdoor clothesline and before you call me crazy, I’ll tell you why!

 

Most years, we experience periods of wet weather around cyclone season at the start of the year, and then again in winter, and for anyone trying desperately to stay on top of their washing when it’s wet, raining and miserable, it can prove to be almost impossible.  It can also be extremely frustrating because there’s only so long you can ignore the growing piles of washing.

 

That’s why, a couple of years ago, I arranged for the installation of a lift and lock style fold down clothes line in my garage.  You’ll find these in a range of sizes but I opted for one that measures 2.4 metres wide and 600 mm deep with 6 string lines.  The size you get will very much depend on the space you have available but this size suited me perfectly as it doesn’t affect our movement around the cars and is big enough to hold one full load of washing from a 7kg washing machine.

 

I have to say, this is one of the best things I’ve done around the house and here are the reasons why I love it:

 

  • I can wash at any time of the day or night without having to worry about going outside in the dark.

 

  • I never have to be concerned about the weather because I can hang my washing out rain, hail or shine.

 

  • If I’m not at home and the weather takes a turn for the worse, there’s no need for me to worry or rush home to rescue my washing from the line.

 

  • I hardly ever use my clothes dryer any more. Dryers tend to chew up a lot of electricity so this saves me a small fortune.

 

  • My garage faces the western sun so, even on the coldest days in winter, my garage still heats up enough to dry my washing in a single day rather than hanging out for days.

 

  • Theft from the clothes line is a thing of the past as my clothes line is now locked securely in the garage.

 

  • I can hang out a load of washing at the very last minute before a weekend away or a holiday knowing that it will be safe and dry when I return.

 

  • We have solar panels installed, which means I can maximise their benefit by washing at night time when my electricity charges are at their cheapest, saving me money.

 

  • I no longer need to rewash items that get marked or stained from bat or bird droppings.

 

  • No need to worry about playful pets stealing and chewing items from the clothes line.

 

  • It saves space in the house because I no longer have to make room for an airer if the weather is bad.  It’s also a better use of indoor space if you have an empty wall in the garage.  I still have my airer “just in case” but now I mostly use it for swimming towels around the pool … so it does get used and I have it as a back-up if needed.

 

  • We’ve now removed our outdoor clothes line because it wasn’t being used at all and was on the cold side of the house with no sunlight.  This has meant we can now use the space for something else by installing brackets for our surf skis.

 

  • I don’t have to worry about clothing and other items being exposed to harsh sunlight which might cause fading.  I still get the same “fresh air” feeling by simply putting my garage door up and letting the breeze blow through.

 

  • I can now also make better use of the space on the clothes line by hanging things directly on hangers.  I can hang up at least twice (and sometimes three times) as many clothes.  The hangers won’t blow off the line and hanging most things also reduces the amount of ironing I have to do.

 

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This won’t be for everyone and you may still think I’m crazy but this really works for my family … maybe it could work for yours!

So tell me, do you think you could sacrifice your outdoor clothes line?

 

 

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Comments

  1. I think that’s a great idea. Unfortunately, there’s no room in my garage for a clothes line – I can barely get the cars into it! But I can see this being very practical xx

  2. Lorena Alcántara says:

    I used to have a indoor clothesline in my garage, but recently I moved to a big house with a huge yard and no garage… now I have to use an ourdoor clothesline, and I do not like it, the sun dries clothes too much, making it feel like cardboard for a while when you wear it…