"Hanging Clothes Inside to Dry Adds Moisture to the Air, but it is an Eyesore"
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
United States
January 23, 2017 5:22pm CST
Why buy an expensive humidifier when you can use simple techniques that our ancestors used?
When we moved to our new place I thought I would really miss my clothes dryer. Well, I do miss it, but the good thing about having to hang our clothes to dry is that it adds much needed moisture the air.
Our heat is forced air and it really is dry. Adding extra moisture to the air is essential. On the days when I don't hang clothes to dry I can actually feel it in my sinuses. The air is dryer and therefore my sinuses are bothered by this dry air.
If you don't hang clothes to dry and need extra moisture in the air, I would suggest using a crockpot filled with water. Turn it on slow and the water will heat and evaporate into the air, thus adding moisture. Or, put a pot of water on the stove over low heat and add the water as it evaporates.
Our ancestors put pots of water on their woodstoves to add moisture to the air. I know many who have wood stoves who still do this.
So, I guess even though my method of drying clothes is an eyesore, it is providing much needed moisture to the air at no extra cost to me.
Have you ever tried these methods to add moisture to the air, or do you use an electric appliance to do so?
15 people like this
16 responses
@celticeagle (190127)
• Boise, Idaho
24 Jan 17
All three of us have dry nostrils. It is awful. I remember at my grandmother's she had a clothes line in the living room. Went right over the coal stove.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I hang our sheets on clothes hangers and hang them on the curtain rods. Often times they are too large for the racks. Not a purdy site, but it is functional.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
@celticeagle I wish I had the old fashion racks. They were so durable.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (190127)
• Boise, Idaho
24 Jan 17
@ElusiveButterfly .....When my daughter was very young. I used to have those wooden racks in the house and clothes everywhere. She loved to play in, around and on them.
1 person likes this
@Jessicalynnt (50523)
• Centralia, Missouri
25 Jan 17
eh, saves you money, helps out at home, whatever works for you! I lived in Texas, wasnt needed there, dont think MO needs it either. I do know that the grandparents did when they only had a wood stove for heat, there was always a kettle on the stove.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
26 Jan 17
Kettles on the stove were always filled with water. They used them for moisture and to keep water hot for tea.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
28 Jan 17
@Jessicalynnt my great aunt had a gas stove that she used to keep her tea water hot. It was fun to go there and have tea with her.
1 person likes this
@Jessicalynnt (50523)
• Centralia, Missouri
27 Jan 17
@ElusiveButterfly I dont remember using it for the hot water, but I was kid, someone might have and I prob wouldnt have noticed
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
Towels absorb a lot of water and also take longer to dry. Therefore, they are great for providing moisture to the air.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
@Juliaacv jeans are a good thing to air dry too. They do get a little stiff, but air drying is better for them.
1 person likes this
@Juliaacv (56456)
• Canada
24 Jan 17
@ElusiveButterfly Towels and sweat pants, that's what gets hung out around here.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128861)
• Gainesville, Florida
25 Jan 17
I don't do this to add moisture to the air (I guess it's a side benefit), but I hang my clothes to dry inside because it saves money over using the dryer. Where I live, we have the highest electrical rates in our state, so I try to cut electrical use wherever I can. It can cost anywhere from 65-75 cents per load to run the dryer, and with kids I can often wash three or four loads a week. By not having to run my dryer, it helps save anywhere from $2.10-$2.60 per week in electrical costs. It doesn't sound like much, but it adds up over the course of a year. Oh, and I always do loads of laundry early in the morning, and then hang everything up to dry before I go to work. Then, when I get home in the evening, all the clothes are dry and ready to be folded.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
26 Jan 17
I can say that our electric bill is much lower from not using our dryer. I wish I could hang the clothes outdoors to dry.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
30 Jan 17
@moffittjc hanging clothes outside would present a problem for me as well. Seasonal allergies are not my friend. But, if you put them in a dryer for a few minutes it will remove the pollen from your clothes.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128861)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Jan 17
@ElusiveButterfly I wish I could hang some of my laundry outside as well, but I feel there is not too many days of the year where I can do that. Between our high humidity and all the pollen, it's not always advisable to hang clothes outside.
1 person likes this
@miesse2 (226)
• Canada
29 Jan 17
I hang clothes inside, but never actually to add moisture to the air. It is more an energy saving thing. my basement actually normally needs a dehumidifier running to remove some of the moisture.... Any methods for removing moisture that you know of?
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
30 Jan 17
I have read that if you put bags of charcoal briquettes in a boot tray it will absorb moisture.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
31 Jan 17
@miesse2 at least you'll have extra moisture in the air and your electric bill will be less.
1 person likes this
@miesse2 (226)
• Canada
31 Jan 17
@ElusiveButterfly thanks, interesting a may have to try it but that probably would be an eyesore as well!
1 person likes this
@scarlet_woman (23463)
• United States
24 Jan 17
i put a pot on my radiator.we have big cast iron ones and it works just as well as putting it on a wood stove.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I love the old cast iron pots. I remember seeing an old tea kettle on the stovetops. My mother put a roasting pan on the radiators for moisture.
1 person likes this
@marsha32 (6631)
• United States
13 Feb 17
An animal chewed into our 220 plug wires under the house so we can't use our dryer. Yep, hanging clothes around the house to dry is an eye sore. I hadn't ever thought about it putting moisture into the air.
We've been blessed with nice weather to be able to use the clothesline several times this winter plus I've done a couple of loads at my daughters while I babysat.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
17 Feb 17
Our landlord won't allow clotheslines in our yard. I am going to use the racks outside once the weather changes.
@xstitcher (39090)
• Petaluma, California
24 Jan 17
I have hung things to dry in my bathroom, but I didn't realize that it added moisture to the air. 
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
25 Jan 17
It does and if you have dry heat it really helps the air quality.
@BelleStarr (61463)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I definitely have boiled water on the rop of my stove to put moisture in the air.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
25 Jan 17
When it is really cold outside and the furnace is having trouble keeping up with the cold, I put large pots on the stove and it also helps to heat the place too!
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (502957)
• Italy
24 Jan 17
I hang my clothes in the laundry room, I would never hang them around the house. I use a humidifier in the bedroom only, I put vases full of water on the floors in the other rooms. We have serpentine heating in the floor, so this method works.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
If I had a laundry room or another room where I could place the racks, I would. Once we get the storage room finished I will put them in there.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I also have set out bowls of water and let them evaporate gradually. When we had a fish tank we were constantly adding fresh water to it because it evaporated so quickly due to the heat.
1 person likes this
@Morethanamom (1948)
• Canada
24 Jan 17
We have a humidifier attached to our furnace, so thankfully we don't have to do anything extra to add moisture.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I wish I was so lucky. But, it does save on electric bills this way.
@PatZAnthony (14749)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
23 Jan 17
It is one way of adding some moisture and save money on the cost of drying too!
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
23 Jan 17
Our electric bill is nearly 2/3 of what it was in our old place. We also have a gas water heater so that saves a lot as well.
