Troubleshooting Difficult Home Appliances

Change Your Approach To How You Do Laundry To Save Money

If you've been used to doing your laundry in coin-operated machines in your apartment building or nearby laundromat, finally having your own washer and dryer in your own home can be exciting. While you might be tempted to load your clothing into each machine and forget about it until the washing or drying cycle concludes, doing so can be costly in two ways. Taking a lackadaisical approach to your laundry can raise your electricity bills unnecessarily, while also putting excessive hours of use on these machines -- which could lead to a breakdown and the need to hire a repair service like Better Homes Appliance Service to fix the problem. Here are some simple ways to change your approach to laundry to save money in one or both regards.

Air Dry What You Can

It might be a little more work to air dry some of your laundry every time you do a load, but doing so can keep your dryer usage down. Many articles of clothing can hang on a clothesline or drying rack without showing any ill-effects from the process. If it's dry inside your home in the winter, hanging some articles of clothing -- pillowcases are other ideal thing to hang -- can actually add some much-welcome humidity to the air, too. Removing some articles before you run the dryer means that the load will be lighter and less dense, which will result in a shorter drying time.

Wash On Cold Cycles When Possible

Setting your washing machine to the cold-water cycle can be beneficial for some articles of your clothing. Wool products, for example, are less apt to shrink when they're not exposed to heat. Additionally, filling the machine with cold water instead of hot water costs less money. If you're concerned about the cold water not being able to remove stains with the same strength as cold water, simply make a point of spot-cleaning your garments before putting them in the load.

Clean The Lint Trap Before Each Use

It's important to get into the habit of emptying out the lint trap in your dryer before each drying cycle as a way to make the appliance run more efficiently and, ultimately, save you some money. When the trap is blocked, the dryer won't be able to move air freely through the machine. The result can be that you need to dry the load for a longer period, which will only increase your bill and wear and tear on the appliance.