Tumble Dryers - vented or condensing ?

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stevewestern

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I have decided to treat the wife to a tumble dryer this Christmas but as we have never had one I don't know what sort to choose (OK, to be slightly more honest we are buying one as I have almost finished the new shower room and utility room but it doesn't sound quite so macho this way..)

I have a core bit and drill to cut the hole if we go for vented but having just insulated the entire area it seems wrong to be cutting a hole, buy obviously vented has to be simpler and maybe cheaper as there are fewer parts.
I doubt it will be used a massive amount but if we go for condensing I want one that can be plumbed into the washing machine waste.

So, any suggestions ?

Thanks for any helpful ones !
 
Condensers are more expensive to buy and more expensive to run, they take longer to dry the same load than a vented dryer (not much but it adds up over time). They are neater of course and easier to install.
 
We switched to a condensing unit and the wife wonders why we never did a long time ago.

No need to worry about drilling holes, no more steamed up windows and a lot less fluff floating around.
 
Ours is vented but it lives in the garage and vents through the door. No problem with fluff, the door filter catches it and it's dead easy to clear it and drop the fluff in the bin and since the thing vents outside, no condensation problems. A stainless steel louvred vent lets the moist air out and stops uninvited guests from getting in. Flexible hose does the coupling job.
 
Venting, out through the wall. We have a steel mesh in front of ours.
 
In the garage venting out, however in the cold weather it takes a lot of cold air in rather than warm house air. Old fashioned clothes horses also work well.
 
Used to have a condenser took an age to dry and was good at shrinking clothing, takes about twice as long as a vented.

I it were me I would be getting the drill out!
 
Spoony said:
I it were me I would be getting the drill out!
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I guess that says it all...

Many thanks for all the replies, s'pose I'll be standing out in the cold tomorrow morning drilling my way through 9" of solid concrete block then...
 
I would take any excuse to get a drll out and drill a big hole :)
 
my condenser is great - and because it doesnt vent the heat outside it helps with keeping the house warm too (less of a benefit in the summer admittedly but we usually use the line if its hot and sunny anyway.

that said mines a miele so this may not be true of cheaper brands (although it was an ebay bargain when our condensing Beko which was an utter heap died)
 
We have a condenser in our utility room. I love it, as does our sphynx who sits on top of it looking very pleased with himself when it's on. I try to only use it when the solar panels are generating most if not all the energy for it as they are more expensive to run.
 
Ye cannae beat a Miele!

Mines a Hotpoint, vented, in the shed.
 
My 12 year old vented dryer bust a belt 2 weeks ago.
1 x £8.99 belt later....fixed. marvellous.
I line dry in summer. But in winter as there's no one home all day (so the heatings off) it would take a freaking age to dry stuff on a clothes horse.

Sorry. ...I digress....vote for vented.
 
Condensing every time. Especially if its in kitchen or utility room.
 
Just got a new condenser that lives in the garage, after a good spin dry most stuff is dry in 60 min.
 
60 minutes is a long time!
 
bertpalmer said:
We just bought a condensing one - because my wife said we needed condensing. What the others say above is true - it takes a surprisingly long time to dry.
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Yeh, but you get loads of free(ish) hot water to wash the car etc!
 
We use condensing. Yes it does take a while to dry but it was simple to install and use. Ours lives in the garage.

wontolla said:
Yeh, but you get loads of free(ish) hot water to wash the car etc!
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Beauty of this is that the water will dry on the car and leave no "water spots" behind so you can rinse the car with it. When I get round to it, I plan to make sure the water can be emptied into a giant water butt which can then be used to feed a pressure washer and also a hose.
 
omens said:
We use condensing. Yes it does take a while to dry but it was simple to install and use. Ours lives in the garage.


Beauty of this is that the water will dry on the car and leave no "water spots" behind so you can rinse the car with it. When I get round to it, I plan to make sure the water can be emptied into a giant water butt which can then be used to feed a pressure washer and also a hose.
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Good idea that, must convince my Mrs I need a pressure washer!
 
OK, so how about a few of you condensing dryer owners tell me what you have and why you chose it ?
 
Hotpoint Aquarius TCM580 because a neighbor has one, mainly bought it because where it HAS to go there's no way of venting it!
 
Spoony said:
Used to have a condenser took an age to dry and was good at shrinking clothing, takes about twice as long as a vented.

I it were me I would be getting the drill out!
Click to expand...
Gary Coyle said:
Wouldnt touch a condensing one again, 2 hrs to dry a towel, bleeding rubbish
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Try a faster/longer spin on the washing machine. The dryer the clothes go in the tumble dryer, the less time it takes.
 
The thing to be aware of is that a condenser drier produces more steam inside the drum, so if you open the door and stick your hand in, you think the clothes are still damp and taking ages to dry.
Leave them for 60 seconds until the steam disperses and the clothes are bone dry.
 
Bobsyeruncle said:
The thing to be aware of is that a condenser drier produces more steam inside the drum, so if you open the door and stick your hand in, you think the clothes are still damp and taking ages to dry.
Leave them for 60 seconds until the steam disperses and the clothes are bone dry.
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Spot on!
 
We used to have a vented, then when it went AWOL, we bought a condenser. That was five years ago and we wouldn't change it.
We tend to use it on the days when I make bread, because it provides enough heat in the kitchen to prove the dough nicely, and the main reason, is because it fits flush under the worktop and does not require an ugly hose routed to the outside.
 
Have a condenser now.. . for all the reasons above wouldn't go back to a vented.. I get free heating in the winter & its hardly used in the summer. Its in our kitchen.
 
Choosing a washing machine with a high spin speed and efficiency takes a lot of the drying effort out drying clothes.

Lakeland do heated airers so that clothes dry out faster than normal air drying.

I've never bothered with a tumble dryer as usually clothes washed in my washer and left to air are pretty much dry the next day.
 
Much as we'd love to hang the laundry out to dry, a combination of a small garden and feeding the birds means that laundry needs redoing all too often! A small kitchen also makes a condensing TD less attractive - no spare space for it under the worktops or (for that matter) anywhere else in the house. Cat likes the warm air that the vent emits too!!!
 
wontolla said:
Try a faster/longer spin on the washing machine. The dryer the clothes go in the tumble dryer, the less time it takes.
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Wow, would never have thought about that.

Seriously, we have a 1400rpm spin washing machine, condensers by their very nature are poor in comparison to vented machines, however, they are built for a specific purpose which is to allow the user to place them where they want without the need to knock holes in the wall or have an ugly pipe sticking through an open window, not ideal this time of year.
 
Had condenser and vented, the condenser was nothing but trouble but I don't think that was an issue as such with it being a condenser, just from it being crap full stop! That was a Hoover something or other. The vented is a pain in the nuts of getting the window slammed shut on the flexi hose, should probably get something a bit tougher!
 
The trouble with using air dryers/clothes horses is that towels end up stiff as a board and like sand paper. I assume a tumble dryer stops this.
Or maybe Im doing summat wrong.
 
We were about to get new towels until they went through the new dryer, they came our all fluffy and soft. I don't like drying on airers in the winter as it makes the house too humid so the humidifier has to come out.

We bought a beko condenser dryer from very which had several hundred good reviews and can be paid off over 3 months interest free.
 
DorsetDude said:
The trouble with using air dryers/clothes horses is that towels end up stiff as a board and like sand paper. I assume a tumble dryer stops this.
Or maybe Im doing summat wrong.
Click to expand...


Well, fabric conditioner helps but I have to admit that I actually like the scratchy feel of line dried towels! The places we get them probably help that feeling though, it happens in Crete...
 
I have a Hotpoint Aquarius condenser tumble dryer and it's been brilliant. Only a few repairs have had to be done in the last 8 years but all been cheap and easy to do myself.

I do agree with vented ones drying quicker, but I love the ease of keeping the condenser one clean and heats up the garage as well.
 
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