This week I
embarked on a new “green” adventure. With help, I installed a
clothesline in my back yard. And now I hope to save money and energy
by harnessing our awesome Sacramento sunshine to dry my laundry!
I started thinking
about a clothesline this winter when a belt broke in our dryer and I
had to wait a week for it to be fixed. They were relatively sunny
days, and I kept thinking “if only I had a clothesline, I could
still get the laundry done!” Then I started researching and
thinking about the other benefits of a clothesline, and once
tax-return time rolled around I took the plunge.
After
some research, I decided on a conventional two-poles clothesline.
[There are endless other options (from freestanding indoor racks to
retractable multi-line systems that bolt into the wall outdoors) –
and I found a fantastic article
to help me chose which I wanted.] In the end my choice came down to
an umbrella clothesline or the two poles, and I ended up going with
the poles mainly because I wanted it to be less expensive and because
I space really isn't an issue in my yard.
I
ordered my poles,
wire, and even clothespins online from (where else?) Amazon.com.
Then I enlisted the help of my dad and my husband to dig holes, pour
Quikrete (cement), and string the wire. Following is a step-by-step
of what we did, in case you're thinking about installing your own.
(If you're not, you can enjoy the pictures anyway, or skip down to
the “helpful hints for line-drying” section, or just stop reading
now.)
Installing a
Clothesline:
(Please note that my instructions below regarding pouring the
Quikrete are based on different forums and advice online, not the
Quikrete bag.)
- Chose a location. Some things to consider when choosing your site: you want somewhere that it's not too much in the way, and that you don't mind walking to to use. You don't want it to be on a slant – with one pole higher than the other – because all your clothes will pile up on the lower end. Shade or not-shade is totally up to you. Here in Sacramento things dry quickly enough (most of the year) that you don't really have to worry about fading from sun exposure.
- Assemble materials. We had two poles and wire, a shovel, a digging bar, a post-hole digger, a tape measure, a level, a wrench, a bag of Quikrete (see below), some gravel-sized rocks, and the garden hose.
- Decide how far apart you want the poles. My poles are approximately 18 feet apart. This distance was based on how much wire I had (100 ft), and how many lines I could get between the poles (5). Since I wanted extra wire on either end to tie-off the lines, I went with 18'.
- Decide how deep you need your holes – the instructions with your poles will probably tell you. Ours needed to be 20” deep.
- Dig holes. In my high-clay soil this isn't quite as easy as it sounds. Fortunately we have a 40 lb digging bar that breaks up the clay,
and then we could scoop out the loose dirt with our post-hole digger.
- Once your holes are the right depth, put about three inches of rock in the bottom of the hole.
- Position your post in the hole and dump some Quikrete on top. Try to stay upwind of the “smoke” drifting from the hole as you pour!
- Fill the hole about ¾ of the way to the top with Quikrete. Using a level, make sure your pole is standing up straight.
- Using the garden hose (or a bucket, if you don't have a hose), fill the hole to the top with water.
- Assemble the rest of the pole and insert the grommets (if included) into the holes across the top bar.
You may need a wrench (and a second set of hands) to tighten the grommets – and they might not tighten completely.
- Allow the Quikrete to set completely (can take anywhere between 24 and 48 hours) before stringing the the clothesline.
- We threaded the wire through the grommets, starting at one pole, moving across to the corresponding grommet on the other pole, then threading through the neighboring grommet on the same pole before going back to the first pole (and so on, until all five lines were strung). My clothesline is therefore one long line, and we only had to secure the wire to two grommets. An alternative would be to string each of the five lines individually, but this involves wire cutting and 10 grommets, and I didn't want to mess with that.
- We were creative about tying off the wire – if you want something much neater, you can get a turnbuckle. (No, I don't have any idea how to install/use one – but if we end up “upgrading” our line, I'll post an addendum to this post!)
OK, really, I'm not an expert in line-drying as yet...so far
I've hung exactly two loads on the line. So I don't really feel
qualified to give lots of helpful hints. I could have researched
some hints, but it just so happens that my partner-in-green-blogging,
Amanda, has been line-drying for years. So I asked her to help me
out. She said:
As
long as the sun is shining I've got my clothes line out. It really is
much easier than it looks and with a few tips to help you along the
way you might find it to be somewhat enjoyable!
- Add white vinegar to your rinse cycle or put it in your softener tray to keep clothes from being too stiff.
- It doesn't have to be fancy. I have a plain ol' clothesline strung between my back porch and the fence and clothespins from the dollar store. Even if you just hang out your sheets you'll be amazed out handy it is to have around.
- Shake those bad boys out. There's a reason they do it in old movies, it shakes out the wrinkles!
- The biggest time waster are those silly clothespins. So in order to cut down on time, use less. I "connect" my clothes with one clothespin. In other words, one clothespin holds up the edges of two shirts.
- I also try to hang up like things at the same time. All t-shirts go up together, all socks, etc. That way they go back in the basket in the same order and makes folding even easier.
- I put my wet clothes in cloth bags on my shoulders so I don't have to lean down and they are easy to grab and hang. When I take them off they go in a basket. I just release the clothes pin and let them drop in the basket. (And kick it along with my feet. Some call me lazy; I call it saving my back.)
- I hang my shirts by the hemline instead of the shoulders. You won't get those annoying little "puckers" on your shoulders that way.
- Some things I hang by one clothespin. Like wash cloths, dish towels, socks.
- Take your clothes down as SOON as they are dry. In August that should be like 20 minutes. If you leave them out too long they will get stiff and dark clothes will start to fade.
- I save my white load for last for two reasons. First of all those baby socks are a major pain. Secondly, I leave them out until the sun goes down to let them get as much sun as possible to let them get as white as they can. The sun can do amazing things to your whites if you leave them out there long enough.
- So this is a silly thing, but it kind of helps me with closet "inventory" in that I can keep track of what's been worn, where something is and any wear spots it might be getting. How many times do we ask ourselves "where is that ____ top?" I never find myself doing that when I line dry. I have a much better perspective on what I wear and when something might be getting too worn or even needs to be repaired.
I kind of love laundry day. I know,
call me crazy, but when it turns into a fun routine I just can't help
it. I put the baby on my back, turn on the music and enjoy being
outside for half the day. By the time I'm done hanging and folding
it's time to start over again so it makes the loads go quicker than
you think. I hope some of these help you and maybe, just maybe, you
can enjoy laundry day as much as I do! :)
Thanks Amanda!
Happy Drying, everyone!
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