IN A SPIN
I tried a £2.50 gizmo from The Range for drying clothes – it slashed £100 off energy bills & I’ll never wash without it
My washing dried more quickly and was easier to iron too
DRYING clothes is an essential but time-consuming household chore, made all the more difficult when winter arrives.
Tumble dryers are among the most energy-guzzling devices around the home, but often essential to get laundry sorted.
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Many of us have ditched them for alternatives - from heated airers to dehumidifiers.
But they don't work for everyone and can often be more of a faff, like finding the space to hang clothes and the risk of damp and mould.
As a busy mum-of-three with a lot of washing to do, my tumble-dryer is non-negotiable, but the cost can be a worry.
I was keen to put dryer balls to the test to see if they really work and just how much they can save on my energy bill over the course of a year.
Read more on energy hacks
Experts say the gizmos can reduce energy consumption in a number of ways.
First, by separating your clothes, they help to increase air flow in your tumble dryer.
This means the hot air can circulate more easily and evenly around your clothes, helping them to dry faster.
They also reduce static in your laundry, meaning clothes are less likely to cling together and will dry faster.
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When clothes are static free, they also tend to be softer and more comfortable to wear.
Using dryer balls can also reduce the build up of lint.
If there is too much, it can reduce the efficiency of your machine and clothes will take longer to dry.
I ordered a pack of two Dryer Balls from The Range for £2.49.
In the product description it says the spiky balls 'help to circulate your clothing around the drum more so the fabric dries faster, and also helps the clothes soften without the need for a chemical conditioner'.
The ad says 'This will not only reduce your drying time but also your bills!"
My condenser tumble dryer costs around £1.40 a cycle to run which tots up to £166.69 a year.
The exact cost of running a tumble dryer depends on the wattage and of course, how much you use it.
So can these odd plastic balls bring that bill down at all?
The first thing to note is that they are very easy to use.
You simply toss them into your dryer with your wet clothes and run the machine as usual.
I began by using two, but you can use up to six balls per wash.
Here's how much I saved...
Clothes - £43.68 a year
A full load of clothes usually takes around two hours 40 mins to dry, at a cost of £1.40.
Using two dryer balls, it only took two hours 10 mins, reducing the drying time by 30 mins - around 20% and a saving of around 28p per cycle.
I'd usually put at least three loads of clothes in a week, so that's saving triples to 84p.
Over the course of a year, that's £43.68 saved.
Towels and sheets - £62.40 a year
A towel load usually takes around three hours and ten minutes to dry, at a cost of £1.70.
Using two dryer balls reduced the drying time to around two hours 40 minutes, costing just £1.40 a cycle and a saving of 30p per cycle.
As they are hard to dry outside, I'd usually put at least two towel loads and two loads of sheets in the tumble dryer every week.
That's savings of £1.20 a week and £62.40 a year.
My verdict
Not only could I save £106.08 a year by using dryer balls, but my clothes came out feeling softer than usual and with less creases so they were easier to iron.
That probably saved on energy costs too.
I'll be using them all the time from now on and may invest in some more.
More tips to save on your cleaning bills
Consumer expert Martyn James said tumble dryers are one of the biggest energy guzzling appliances in the home.
"The big offenders are 'wet appliances' including washing machines, tumble dryers and dishwashers," he says.
"Try to only use them for full loads, learn more about what that 'eco mode' does as that could save you energy and drop the heat as low as you can go.
"These machines have to quickly generate heat, so can result in them adding a quarter of the cost of your energy bill.
"'You should also regularly clean out the lint drawer, which can help your machine run more efficiently.
"It's great that this test found dryer balls can help reduce costs, too."
Changing the temperature you wash clothes at can save cash too.
Consumer experts at Which? found that cutting the temperature from 40C to 20C reduced running costs "dramatically" and by an average of 62%.
An extra washing machine spin before you tumble dry your load could shorten the time you have the dryer on.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
An extra washing machine spin before you tumble dry your load could shorten the time you have the dryer on.
Washing and drying your clothes at a cheaper time can also cut costs - if you're on the right tariff.
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