An electric Tumble Dryer can use a huge amount of  electricity to dry a load of washing ,  For most people the only maintenance we do on it , is to clean the lint filter every week or so. There are lots of things you can be doing to cut on running costs and squeeze more life out of your Dryer .

The easiest thing to do, is Clean The dust Filter, Each And Every Time You Use Your Dryer.

Why? Dryers work by forcing hot air through the drum and around the clothes in order to dry them. Every bit of hot air has to go through the fluff filter. If it’s blocked , then that slows down the air flow. That slows down the drying process, wastes electricity and means the clothes dryer has to run for longer to dry a load of laundry.

More use, means it will wear out sooner. More use, means it will use more electricity . Clean The lint Filter Every Time .

Because I must be lazy, I keep an empty detergent box near my Dryer . So instead of having to go to the Dustbin every time. I just clean the old lint into the empty detergent box. I empty it a couple of times a month. That’s only 2 trips to the Dustbin a month, instead of every day . If your Tumble Dryer is the “Vented” type. That’s the one that blows the warm damp air out through a flexible hose, or through a vent or pipe in the wall. Here is some advice for you .

Vent pipes clog up over time with old wet fluff and lint . This has the same affect as a bunged up filter. It harms the Dryer’s performance, uses more electricity and because your Dryer needs to stay on for longer. It will wear itself out sooner Once or twice a year , remove the vent pipe and wash it out. A garden hose works fine, or put some water into the bath and swosh the vent pipe around till it’s clean. I have one customer who uses the shower to do the same job. Most important , is that the vent hose or pipe is clean and not clogged. Some Dryers are connected to “Through The Wall Vent Pipes” Same thing applies, these get clogged as well. A Tumble Dryer is not very heavy , so it’s not too hard to pull it out from it’s place and disconnect the vent pipe. Wash it and replace it .

Many of the Dryers attached to “Through The Wall Vent Kits” use too long a flexible hose to connect to the wall. The result can sometimes be that the flexible vent pipe kinks when the Dryer is pushed back into place. You might never know, as often you won’t be able to see it. A kinked hose is worse  than a clogged filter. Quick way to check. When your Dryer is working. Go outdoors and hold your hand in front of the vent grille . If you can feel a of hot air blowing out, it should be ok. On the outside of “Through The Wall Vent Systems” There is often a wire mesh filter behind the exhaust . They are known to become blocked in a matter of months. This external filter just clicks off. Clean and refit it. If you have never cleaned it, you will be shocked at how dirty and blocked it is and how much quicker your Dryer will now dry a load of laundry.

If you are washing small “Fast” washes in your Washing Machine, these are around 2.5 kg. Turning the Dryer on for a small load is wasteful. Most family size Dryers will be rated at or above 5Kg. So why not wait and combine 2 small loads into one load. This saves on running costs and run time. Saving you more electricity and cuts down on the total Tumble dryer running time over a couple of separate loads. This is fine as long as you remember a golden rule. Don’t stuff your Tumble dryer with too much Laundry or over load it. Which brings me to the next point. Over Loading your Tumble Dryer is false economy.

Tumble Dryers blow hot air through the laundry as it tumbles around. If it is over loaded, the hot air can’t get at all the clothes. You will end up with some damp clothes and some over dried clothes. It is also very hard on the drum drive belt and front and rear bearings. Don’t do it. It’s not smart and it’s costing you money. So to Recap.

Clean the Fluff filter every time you use your tumble dryer . Clean the vent pipe at least twice annualy . Check the outside vent filter is not blocked . Don’t dry lots of separate small loads if you can avoid it. A large load (as long as it’s not an overload) is much cheaper. Don’t be tempted to stuff your dryer too full. You will only end up spending more on Tumble Dryer repairs and it’s false economy.

In my next article. I will share more ways to cut down on Tumble Dryer running costs and offer more advice on how to get the best from your Tumble Dryer.