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Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

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Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#51

Post by nitrogen »

NoSorryCannot wrote: post #32
jasonv wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, that’s where the name comes from. I hang dry most of my laundry in my own house still. I learned to appreciate this after moving from a big city to a town of 13 people. Of course we all had lots of space but my house had one of those circular drying line contraptions. I enjoyed going out and hanging my laundry, even in the cold winters. Even in the snow. The sun and dry air did their thing pretty quickly. When I…

And the smell of tumble drying. I live in an apartment complex and the smell coming out of the dryer vents is overwhelming. It's not intrinsic; there would barely be any odor at all if people gave up dryer sheets and fabric softener, but it seems like many have never heard anything so outlandish as that.

I spent a couple years living in high density highrises (putting my YIMBY money where my mouth is, I guess) and the laundry exhaust (and other ventilation problems) traveling into my apartment made the air nigh unbreathable.

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#52

Post by jiofih »

jiofih wrote: post #8
S_A_P wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have done line drying and it ended up smelling not so great. Like someone who went outside on a hot day. I wonder if you need a low humidity environment for line drying to “work”.

You need sun the most. In most of the northern hemisphere it will only be viable for a couple months in the summer.

For those downvoting me, you’d do good to read the paper which is the subject of this discussion.

It clearly states that UV/sunlight exposure is crucial for the pleasant “dried linen” smell, and half of the northern hemisphere does not receive enough UV during winter (check any UV/vitamin D map).

Personal anecdotes notwithstanding; I’m not saying clothes won’t dry in the winter, you just won’t get the same results.

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#53

Post by jiofih »

SECProto wrote: post #10
jiofih wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You need sun the most. In most of the northern hemisphere it will only be viable for a couple months in the summer.

> In most of the northern hemisphere it will only be viable for a couple months in the summer. This is not correct. I've done line drying year-round, doesn't work great when it's below zero (freezes) but otherwise works fine. I think low relative humidity is important so the moisture in the clothing has somewhere to go.

It works in low humidity, but it doesn’t result in the same pleasant smell, as the paper explains.

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#54

Post by morsch »

bonoboTP wrote: post #18
throw0101a wrote: post #14

In Ontario, Canada, some condo boards for town house developments (like home-owner associations) didn't like people putting up laundry lines and so prevented them since backyards were considered "common elements" and under group jurisdiction. So the provincial government had an existing law that prevented the use of "renewable energy" systems from being blocked by local by-laws and such. So they classified clothes li…

I have a similar clause in my rent contract in Germany, forbidding line drying, and first I didn't really understand why people care about this (I planned to use the communal dryer anyway). But to be explicit, it's because the optics of visible laundry makes people associate to poor people who have no other drying options. They don't want the neighborhood to look like poor neighborhoods. Maybe it will become one of t…

Not that you claimed anything else but: A bit less than half of all households in Germany have a dryer[1], air drying is very common. Your landlord cannot prevent you from drying clothes within your flat, any terms to that end in your lease are void ([2], IANAL).

[1] https://www.destatis.de/DE/Themen/Gesellschaft-Umwelt/Einkom... still more than I expected

[2] https://www.mieterbund.de/index.php?id=597

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#55

Post by cortesoft »

marton78 wrote: post #4
lukevp wrote: post #3

I can’t remember a time I ever line dried laundry outside. How significant is this smell, is it worth changing my laundry drying habits just to reproduce it?

Yes. Nothing beats it. Also, drying laundry electrically is a waste of resources, the sun will do it for free, as long as you live in a moderately warm country.

I guess it is a matter of taste.. I really don't like the smell of line dried clothes, and I also don't like the feeling clothes have after being line dried.

Probably because of what I grew up being used to.

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#57

Post by WalterBright »

When I lived in Arizona, I'd take the clothes out of the washer, step outside, and put them on the line. When I finished pinning them up, I'd return to the beginning of the line and take them down, perfectly dry and fresh.

Who needs a dryer :-)

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#58

Post by anewdirection »

monadic2 wrote: post #39
stormdennis wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We once rented a flat, in a nice building housing mainly retired people. One day we gave the place a good cleaning and hung out a mat to dry on the balcony. Within half an hour the residents association which we didn't know existed were knocking on our door and demanding we take in the offending item.

As someone without a hope in the world for owning a house any time soon, what kind of teeth do these associations actually have to enforce their whims?

It depends. Unless membership is optional, I would consider it a lesser value home. Which is ironic given its intended function is to (possibly) keep one asshole from ruining property values, in exchange for a different set of assholes (possibly) destroying value in another way.

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#59

Post by scatters »

dingaling wrote: post #22
tenpies wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am always disappointed that drying racks aren't more common in NA. Even in an apartment, you can set it up overnight and wake up to dry clothing in the morning. Better for the environment and your clothing.

Not so good for the apartment though, unless you have dehumidifying air conditioning.

Modern portable dehumidifiers are small, unobtrusive (about the size of a cereal box) and whisper quiet (they use Peltier cooling). Every house in a maritime climate should use them.

Re: Chemical analysis and origin of the smell of line-dried laundry

#60

Post by itronitron »

lukevp wrote: post #3

I can’t remember a time I ever line dried laundry outside. How significant is this smell, is it worth changing my laundry drying habits just to reproduce it?

I personally can't stand the smell of line-dried laundry. It's not worth changing your habits to reproduce it.
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