Clothes generally dry well outside when the temperature is above 40°F (4°C). Warmer temperatures and lower humidity facilitate faster drying.
Warm, dry air is best for drying clothes, because warm air can hold more moisture than cold air. This is why we often get rain wen a cold front sweeps in. When drying clothes, a breeze is useful, but not essential. On a sunny day with a light breeze.
- Use a low heat or delicate setting. High heat can cause shrinkage, especially for cotton and other natural fibers. - Choose the delicate or gentle cycle if your dryer has this option. This cycle uses lower temperatures and is more gentle on fabrics. - Avoid over-drying.
Regular/Heavy: Fastest and hottest setting of your dryer. It's best to use this setting when you're drying white or light-colored clothing. Delicates: Low heat, so drying time will be longer. It is best to use this setting to use for delicate fabrics.
If the fabric is thick and heavy, like denim or towels, you can use higher heat levels to dry them faster. However, using lower heat for delicate fabrics like silk or wool is better. Remember that high heat levels can cause shrinkage, fading, and damage to the fibers in the fabric.
So long as the weather is dry, sunny, and breezy, there is technically no minimum temperature that clothes need to dry. However, be aware that the lower the temperature, the longer items will take to dry out. In temperatures below freezing, some items may also freeze and turn stiff before fully drying out.
High: around 140°F
Use high heat when drying heavier items like towels or heavier work clothes.
The lower the temperature, the lower the average energy and there will be fewer molecules with enough energy to break the molecular bonds and evaporate. Hence clothes take longer to dry in cooler winter temperatures than in summer.
Dryer - Use the medium or low setting to dry your luxury sheet sets. Using a setting that is too hot may cause the sheets to wear out faster. In addition, the high temperatures may also cause shrinking of the fabric of the sheets, so this is important to note.
Hot/high heat
The dryer symbol with three dots in a circle indicates that you can and should dry your item at the highest temperature.
Low heat is usually around 125 degrees Fahrenheit and is designed for delicate items like knitwear or sheer fabrics, as well as workout clothes made of high-performance fabric like spandex and lycra. Low heat helps protect heat-sensitive fabrics from fraying, fading, wrinkling, stretching and warping.
It has been shown that bed bugs in all stages of life die at a minimum dryer temperature of 113 degrees Fahrenheit — as long as that temperature is consistent for at least 30 minutes.
It's entirely up to you exactly when you hang the washing out - if you need to leave early in the morning, you can hang it out while it's still dark. Nothing bad will happen! In fact, in the summer you can even hang the washing out before you go to bed so that it's all ready for the sun as soon as it comes up.
Choosing the right drying cycle
The cotton cycle uses high heat and is perfect for towels, bedding, and sturdy cotton items. For polyester and mixed fabrics, use the synthetics cycle, which operates at medium heat. Delicate items benefit from the low heat of the delicates cycle.
According to the Spruce, the gentle cycle is best for materials like rayon or silk, permanent press is ideal for your everyday clothes, while the normal setting should be reserved for items like towels, sheets, and jeans.
Do not leave laundry outside at night as it risks humidity and bad odors. Better to spread it out during the day for good drying in the air fresh.
5. Use the Lowest Heat Setting. Not all dryers have a tumble or air dry option, but that doesn't mean you don't have options. Simply turn your dryer's temperature knob to “low heat.” If you can't find that setting, select “delicate” or “gentle” instead.
Airers are generally cheaper to buy and run, but take longer, so for large loads, a tumble dryer may work out cheaper.
As long as the area is dry, your clothes will start to dry in anything above about five or six degrees. Even if that means your clothes aren't completely dry, the time they need to finish off will be less than drying inside straight from the washing machine.
For a medium sized load, use two. For a large or extra-large load use 3. If you find yourself often doing large loads, you may want to consider using one of Bounce's new Mega Sheets. Mega sheets are specially designed to provide 3X static and wrinkle fighting ingredients* with just one sheet.
Delicate or Gentle Cycle
The low heat helps keep your clothes safe during the drying process, as these garments are prone to melting or stretching under high heat. Keep in mind that you may have to wait a little longer for your clothes to become dry when using this setting.