Technology Vs. Mother Nature...which do you prefer?
By fruitcakeliz
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
United States
July 25, 2009 7:25pm CST
A question for all of you out there.
When doing your laundry, a chore we all must partake in at some point and time, which do you prefer, to dry your clothes in a dryer? or to hang your clothes outside and let the power of mother nature do it?
I would personally prefer to hang all of my clothes up outdoors and allow mother nature to do the work. I love the smell that the outdoors leaves on my clothes. Far better than any of the scented dryer sheets on the market! I especially love drying my bedding and my towels by this method. I often times find they dry faster and more thouroughly when i can hang them out doors, as in the dryer they don't get the room they need to tumble around and recieve the appropriate airflow. Many times when i use the dryer for these items, i pull them out and they still feel damp, which is no fun.
By hanging my clothes out doors, i am not only saving electricity and money, but i feel i also save time. If you get a nice sunny day with a slight breeze, things hung outdoors dry in half the time it would take in the dryer.
I do use the dryer many times also though. I always use the dryer for my socks/understings, as these items are not only a pain to hang out because there are so many of them, but i live in town and don't feel like putting them on display for my neighbors to see when they are hanging outdoors. Also, as i live in maine, it becomes rather difficult to dry cloths outside during the winter months, as everything would just freeze, and never dry.
I always look forward to the spring and summer though, when i can hang everything outdoors on a nice sunny, breezy day, unfortunately this summer has been very rainy and i haven't been able to do it as often *pout*
So how about you? What is your preference when it comes to drying your clothes?
3 people like this
14 responses
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I PREFER to dry them outdoors. Did you know the sun disinfects them as well? The only downfall I can think of is it also bleaches the color out of dark clothes. But you are right....you can't beat the aroma of sun dried linens!
Unfortunately....I often do not have time for hanging them out.
2 people like this
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I was not aware of the disenfecting qualities of the sun.. Thanks for informing me. And yes, you are right, it can tend to bleach out colors and make them less vibrant, but then again, so does frequenst washing and tumbling in the dryer. I guess we lose on that matter either way!
@marguicha (215788)
• Chile
26 Jul 09
For me it´s Mother Nature always. My dryer is now at the garage. It can be used anytime, but I haven´t found the need in the last 12 years maybe.
. In winter (we have mild winters anyway) I hang the clothes one by one in hangers and put them in the bathroom to dry. I do the same with my underthings summer and winter. I have a secluded patio to hang the clothes away from other people´s eyes. I made a trellice and put pots with plants. No one knows what´s behind that.
I do not wash towels everyday as many people do. My home is not a hotel. But I do wash handtowels very often and each person has his own bathtowel.
Happy posting and take care
. In winter (we have mild winters anyway) I hang the clothes one by one in hangers and put them in the bathroom to dry. I do the same with my underthings summer and winter. I have a secluded patio to hang the clothes away from other people´s eyes. I made a trellice and put pots with plants. No one knows what´s behind that.
I do not wash towels everyday as many people do. My home is not a hotel. But I do wash handtowels very often and each person has his own bathtowel.
Happy posting and take care1 person likes this
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
Thanks for your reponse! I wish i had room away from prying eyes to hang out my clothes like that....I also wish i could totally break away from the dryer! Especially since i have to use a pay/washer dryer on the premisis of my apartment building...it would save me even more money.
@marguicha (215788)
• Chile
26 Jul 09
Thank you for giving me best response. I live in a house so it´s easier. Things have been getting difficult lately because a German Shepherd puppy came to live with me. So my habits have changed somewhat until she learns to behave. But there´s the bathroom to hang clothes at night.
@IMEzekieL (498)
•
16 Aug 09
A bathroom to hang clothes?
Sounds interesting.
Hope your clothes won't smell $hitty afterwards haha.
@SHAMRACK (8576)
• India
26 Jul 09
Dear friend,
Actually I would like to be close to nature and the technology has been given much better output in some cases where I could save my money and time. But I hope it has it own negative impacts on the nature and our health. Hence moslty if I get time I would be much to nature and if not I would prefer technology.
1 person likes this
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
Yes, in todays society, where everyone is pushed to be "eco-friendly" , hanging your cloths out doors is certainly the way to go, time permitting. Thank you for your response!
@puddytat101 (657)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I often use a dryer, but I actually prefer them hung out on the line. Not only does dryer heat up my house (which is good in winter) but I almost had a fire one time with an older dryer. I never knew my dryer had stayed on 24/7 until I got an outrageous electric bill!
Some things you don't want to hang out for the neighbors to see!
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
wow, that is scary...and so very possible for many people whose dryers are in the basement or another less-used part of the house. It is also good practice to always clean out your lint traps and occasionally the hose that vents th dryer, as the high heat and the lint can cause fire hazards as well!
and exactly...i don't need the little neighbor kids pointing at my bras and laughing, or for the world to see what kind of panties i wear..that is my business *lol*
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
yes, modern day adventures such as washers, dryers and other appliances certainly do make life easier and save a lot of time for us now a days, don't they? I can't imagine how i would ever get all my laundry done if i still had to wash them by hand and hand them all out to dry. I suposed i just woudln't do laundry as often *lol* Or have to own more clothes, so i had enough clean things to wear between washings.
@abhjth003 (27)
• India
26 Jul 09
Actually this post is something having a wide thinking potential.I is not only drying the cloths outside but also many other things.In todays worlds people are advised to depend more on the natural sources because they are more reliable and eco friendly. When you dry your cloths out side you not only save the electricity but also took a step in saving the earth.As u may know electricity even if it is a ecofriendly energy,its production expels a lot of pollutants into the atmosphere. so if there is an option to use the natural sources always do that and save the world.
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
It is good advice to do this whenever possible. We do need to think about The future of our planet. Luckily even if you can't use the poser of the outdoors to dry your clothes, over time the electric appliances we use have been coming more and more energy saving, to lessen the impact they make.
@megaplaza (1441)
• Nigeria
26 Jul 09
Mother nature of course, technology are borrowed from nature and the materials used in technology indirectly belongs to nature. A scientist once said, that it is smart to borrow from nature, don't reinvent the wheel. Do you think our level of technology can compete with nature. Wait a min, imagine the natural cycle that regulates carbon, water, and others doesn't work again, do you think tech. Can control those thing. To me every technology is an imitation of nature.
@megaplaza (1441)
• Nigeria
26 Jul 09
Well, i dry my clothes by hanging them outdoors, i have never used dryers and i still use the crude method of washing my clothes by myself with my hands. Maybe later when am more occupied, i will resort to dryers and washing machines.
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
so does that mean you ONLY hang your clothes outdoors and never ever use a dryer? how about to wash your clothes? If this is the case, good job cutting down your carbon footprint!
@robert19ph (4577)
• Philippines
26 Jul 09
hello fruitcakeliz,
just like you my wife do the same in drying our clothes. But she needs to put it in a drier first to remove the excess water in it before hanging them under the sun. This way, it will be dried quickly. Drying under the sun makes our clothes smell fresh and clean. Is the best, much better than drying them in the machine. Besides of that, we can save a lot of money doing that way for sometimes we don't need to iron anymore some of our clothes in going out. This means that we can have more time doing other important things than doing the ironing - saves time and effort as well.
1 person likes this
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
yes, that is true, if you hang clothes up properly, such and pants and shirts, the need for ironing is virtually eliminated...and i HATE having to iron clothes *lol* If i wind up using the dryer for an article of clothing that gets wrinkled easily and usually requires ironing, i try my best to remmber to remove the item of clothing before the dryer cycle is done, and hang it up while just a little damp, as this prevents the wrinkles form setting in.
1 person likes this
@ckhair13 (185)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I would love to hang my clothes outside, but with all the laundry that I have & I only do it once a week & end up with several loads its much faster to put it in the dryer. A lot of times if its a really nice day I will hang some things on the line like towels, curtains etc...but usually I just need to get it all done cuz I just don't have time to be doing laundry every other day. It does smell really nice when you do hang it out on the clothes line all day though!
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I am in the same boat with only really being able to do laundry once a week on one of my days off, because as i stated, i don't have my own washer/dryer and have to use the pay ones located in my building. And lately my days off don't seem to ever want to coincide with the few sunny, nice, non-rainy days we have had this summer!
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
yup, sounds like me. I don't like it when my clothes freeze on the clotheline!
1 person likes this
@abdullamunnim (14)
• Singapore
26 Jul 09
I believe mother nature is the mother of all technologies, what we term as technology is the consequence of what we learn from mother nature
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
i love it when people don't even read the discussion that is posted, and just come up with an answer based on what the topic sentance is. I mean comeone, at least read the first paragraph and see what the topc is about please! Sorry, i have just had like 4 or 5 people now give responses that don't have anything to do with how you prefer to dry your clothes, which is the topic of this conversation.
@sonic30132 (20)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I prefer to use a dryer because it is faster. I don't have much spare time, so it is a wonderful help.
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
yes, in todays busy times, all of the modern conveniences we have are nice. I sometimes wonder if i would be able to get anything done if i lived back when we did not have such things.
@fruitcakeliz (2641)
• United States
26 Jul 09
ahh..the things we give up in order to keep up with everything we have to do. Even the laundry detergets that claim to have "out-door fresh scents" don't come close in duplicating the wonderful smell of clothes dried on a line.
@IMEzekieL (498)
•
16 Aug 09
That depends on the situation. If I'm in a hurry, I would use technology. The bottomline is, we need both technology and mother nature. Sounds cliche, but they're part of life.
