Try Not to Laugh

Ok. Try not to laugh.

After I calculated how much it costs to run my dryer per load, I have decided to REALLY make an effort not to use the dryer. Usually I like to use my drying racks indoors or out on the back deck. I’m not allowed by the HOA to have a clothes line. (Yes. I tried the clothes line outdoors anyways. I got a written warning in the mail and if I continued I was told I was going to be fined. Bummer!) But I only have 5  racks and if I do all the laundry on Monday, I tend to run out of room, especially with kiddo stuff…What’s a girl to do? It’s nice to just get all the laundry done in one punch and not have to worry about it the rest of the week.

I used to just throw the clothes that wouldn’t fit on the clothes racks in the dryer. At least I saved some money. After calculating each load to cost 76 cents, I felt that wasn’t good enough. So, I decided to hang some string in my family room and hang the rest of the laundry out to dry.

My kiddo thought it was awesome. He tried to pull down the clothes even though they were just out of reach. Better luck next time kiddo! My husband is going to be flabbergasted when he gets home. You can’t miss the indoor clothes line when you walk in the door. Hopefully they dry quickly. I am going to be some strange looks if I have to answer the door for a solicitor.

I thought about hanging a more permanent solution in the attic. It would be a pain to carry up and down all the laundry. But it would only be once per week. I started thinking. Would my clothes start to smell like insolation? I’m not sure it’s worth saving money if I have to end up rewashing my clothes. What do you think? Have you tried hanging clothes in your attic??

How much does it truly cost?

I know dryers are supposed to cost a lot to run. So, I wanted to specifically calculate out the cost to run my dryer in my area.

I found this great site to help me with my calculations. It wasn’t hard. But I love math!

http://frugalliving.about.com/od/clothingcare/qt/How-Much-Does-It-Cost-To-Run-A-Dryer.htm

Here’s the formula to help you out…

(dryer’s wattage x length of load in hours)/1000 = kilowatt hours (kwh) used

kilowatt hours x cost per kwh = cost per load

cost per load x # of loads per month = cost per month

cost per month x 12 = cost per year

Real cost per kWh:
I took my total bill and divided by the total kWh I used. This way I get the whole picture, base charge and taxes included.

$70.13/518 kWh= $0.1354 / kWH

Plug it in:
Plug and chug…plug the numbers into the formula and prepare for your jaw to drop.
(5600 watts x 1 hr.) / 1000 = 5.6 kWH used
5.6kWh x $0.1354 = $0.758 per load

MEANING….
It costs me about 76 cents to run the dryer for an hour per load. OUCH!

Or… $30.32 per month. (I usually run about 8 loads a week.)

Or… $363.84 per year. (And that is being conservative.)

Sometimes I run 10 loads per week if I have a lot going on. That’s $37.9 per month or $454.80 per year.

That’s a nice chuck of change! Think I’ll let Mother Nature dry my clothes instead!! And just in case, I put a note on my dryer of the true cost to discourage me from using it unless it’s necessary.

Dryer Ban vs. HOA

I like to only use the dryer for emergencies. The dryer works fine. I just don’t like what it does to my electric bill. I have tried to use a clothes line in my backyard. But as the HOA has kindly reminded me with lovely letters, this is not allowed in my neighborhood.

So… Plan B. I got 5 dryer racks from Ikea. I loves these racks the best because they are reasonably priced and hold a lot of clothes. I usually like to set the racks out on my back deck during the hot GA summer. For some reason, this seems fine to the HOA. Go figure… In the winter, I space my laundry loads out throughout the week so I can set up the drying racks inside. (There is a lot more room to set these up outside vs inside.) My little one likes to pull the clothes off the racks so I have to put them in a room that is off limits..aka the kitchen. These racks take up a lot of space, but my clothes tend to dry within 24 hours (including jeans, diapers and towels). I’ve been using these racks for years and they have held up great. Definitely have paid for themselves over the years!