While the recent bitterly cold weather has passed for many of us, there's more to come before we see spring sunshine, and with the chilly climes make it particularly difficult to dry our clothes.
If the clothes horse just isn't cutting it, you might be tempted to stick your wet washing on the radiator. However, experts have argued that this popular habit can potentially be causing more harm than good.
Without realising, placing clothes on radiators to dry them faster could be triggering condensation, which can lead to mould growing in your home. Interior Expert Owen Whitlock at Beanbags.co.uk revealed why drying clothes on radiators isn't the best idea.
He said: "While hanging wet clothes over your radiators will dry them, this could cause excess condensation in your home. This will lead to mould which can create all kinds of damage including staining paintwork, not to mention the allergens that mould can produce.
"As well as this it could increase the cost of your heating bill. Hanging clothes over the top of your radiator will prevent it from heating your house, which means the boiler will need to work harder than it needs to, therefore increasing its running costs."
Helping with the issue, Owen shared a selection of vital tips on how you can dry your clothes quickly indoors without having to resort to the tumble dryer, which is pricey to run.
To start, the expert encourages people to wash their clothes early to take advantage of any sunlight.
While we're definitely not putting clothes outside on the washing line in the winter months, people can place their clothes airer in a spot inside their home where natural light is projecting onto them.
Next, he advises people to turn over their clothes when they're drying on an airer - a common mistake people make.
Owen says people should turn their clothes over every couple of hours to help them dry evenly.
To reduce the need to iron, people should consider drying their clothes directly on hangers. This will leave them drying with few creases.
Then, Owen advises people to consider putting lavender oil in their fabric conditioner to help combat any unwanted smells from drying clothes indoors.
Adding a few drops of lavender oil to your fabric conditioner should give your clothes a long-lasting smell to help to neutralise any damp smells that can happen when you dry your clothes indoors.
Finally, the pro says that people should wash fewer clothes per load. If your clothes airer is overcrowded the clothes will take longer to dry, which can result in them smelling damp and musty. To rid of this smell, you may end up having to wash them again.
Having too many clothes in your washing load will result in the clothes being damper when they come out of the washing machine.
Washing fewer clothes per load will allow for more space in your washing machine and your airer, so they will dry quicker and avoid having a damp smell to them.
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