Why You Need an Indoor Clothesline Today

White clothing pinned by clothespins to a clothesline. Photo Credit: Lennart Tange on Flickr.

An Indoor Clothesline Saved My Laundry Room

If your laundry room looks like a crime scene of damp sweaters, soggy swimsuits and soaking towels, you need an indoor clothesline. We’re not saying you need to ditch your dryer altogether. You’re busy, and you don’t always have time to watch your laundry drip dry. However, an indoor clothesline is a great way to cutback clutter while spinning a couple bucks off your utility bills.

Top Three Reasons to Install an Indoor Clothesline

  1. Clear Laundry Room Clutter. If there’s more laundry on your washer and dryer than inside, you may have a clutter problem. But what on Earth will you do with your favorite skinny jeans, cashmere sweater and other items that don’t dare go in the dryer? If you don’t have room for a drying rack, you’ll do what most people do: drape the damp clothes over every empty surface in sight. Unlike a drying rack, indoor clotheslines are retractable, which means they don’t take up any space until they are being used. We like that!
  2. Clothes Last Longer. We’ll admit: Sometimes it’s easier to throw a lightly-worn shirt in the laundry hamper rather than fold it up and put it back in the dresser drawer. And boy, that hamper fills up fast! Instead, let your lightly-worn laundry air out on the clothesline. And if you forgo the dryer altogether, your laundry won’t be subjected to all that heat. That means your clothing will maintain its color and quality for much longer.
  3. Save Some Money. According to consumerenergcenter.org, your electric dryer accounts for 6% of your electricity bill. At 32 to 41 cents a load, an average family is spending between $83.20 and $106.60 a year (at 5 loads a week). You can probably cut that in half by simply air drying your lighter loads.

How to Install an Indoor Clothesline

Whatever you save in energy will more than pay for your new indoor clothesline. Retractable indoor clotheslines range from $10 to $20 online. We also like the 5-line retractable clotheslines, which range from $15 to $50 for a much longer line. Both options are fairly easy to install — I guess you could say installation is a “breeze!”

  1. Use the hardware provided to mount the retractable end to the wall of your choice. Use the drywall anchors if you’re not screwing into a stud. And if you’re mounting inside of a tiled shower, use a glass/tile drill bit to drill a hole for the drywall anchors.
  2. Mount the clothesline receiver on the other side of the room. But before you do this, measure the distance from wall to wall to ensure that it will reach!

If your clothesline is a little more complicated than this, or you have a grander vision, call your local handyman for some help!

Where Should You Install Your Indoor Clothesline?

  • Laundry room
  • Shower or above bathtub
  • Screened in porch
  • Above a utility sink
  • In front of an open window
  • Garage

At Molly Maid, we’re dedicated to helping you maintain a clean and tidy home. An indoor clothesline is just one way to keep your laundry room in order. For more house cleaning tips, follow us on Facebook or contact your local Molly Maid for a free cleaning estimate.