MetaEfficient Reviews » Dryers

Spin Dryer From Laundry Alternative

Justin — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 21:21:05 +0000

A spin dryer is an appliance that can readily improve the energy efficiency in your laundry. A portable spin dryer like this one from Laundry Alternative, uses centrifugal force to dry clothes. The dryer was out of stock for a while, but it is now available again. Spin drying is much more efficient than electric tumble drying, in terms of energy use. Spin drying is also faster — it takes 2-3 minutes to get clothes to a semi-dry state. The drying can then be finished by hang drying the clothes or putting them in a tumble dryer for a few minutes. Spin drying is much gentler on clothes than tumble drying, it also removes mineral deposits and detergents, rather than baking them on. The spin dryer costs $129.95, which is much less than the previous spin dryer we featured, the Spin-X.

Update: I’ve been testing this spin dryer for a few months now, and it works quite well. It does make a bit of noise as it spins, but the noise is reduced if you load the dryer evenly. You have to get used to loading the dryer 2-3 times to dry a whole wash load. But many of my clothes come out of the machine practically dry – they are just a little damp to the touch.

Available from Laundry Alternative.

Centrifugal Clothes Dryer: Spin-X

Justin — Tue, 12 Jul 2005 06:57:10 +0000

Drying clothes with centrifugal force is efficient and quick. The centrifugal dryer Spin-X rotates at 3300 RPM (revolutions per minute) — using 1420 G forces. Most washing machines only spin at 500 RPM.

The dryer removes a quart of water from clothes using the same amount of energy a regular clothes dryer uses in the first 15 seconds of operation. In other words, the dryer uses 25WHr for a 3 minute spin.

The Spin-X dryer holds 10 lbs. of wet clothes per load.

Available from Spin-X dryer for about $540.

Clothes Drying Racks: Effective

Justin — Tue, 31 May 2005 13:38:03 +0000

If you dry your clothes on these racks instead of a clothes dryer — they will smell fresher and last longer. In many homes, the clothes dryer is the number two electricity consumer, after the refrigerator.

Used in combination with a Spin-X: metaefficient.

GreenFeet sells clothes drying racks made of reclaimed wood. The Vermont Country Store sell large racks made of birch dowel.