Introduction
As the winter season approaches, saving money becomes a top priority for many households. One area where you can make significant savings is laundry. Heated airers offer a cost-effective alternative to traditional tumble dryers, with some models costing as little as 6p an hour to run. We tested popular heated airers from Aldi, Asda, and Argos to find out which one works best and how much they cost to run.
The Benefits of Heated Airers
Heated airers function similarly to traditional clothes airers, except they are plugged into an electrical outlet. The bars of the airer heat up, reducing the drying time for your clothes. This means you can dry your laundry without having to turn on the heating in your home. Not only does this save you money on energy bills, but it also helps the environment by reducing energy consumption.
The Test Results
Dunelm Heated Airer with Wings – Rating: 4/5
Dunelm's airer offers a decent size with eight bars across its width and two wings on either side. While it was a bit fiddly to set up, the clothes dried evenly and were ready in around two hours. The full load, including a towel, took approximately nine hours to dry. At just 6p an hour, this airer is a cost-effective option for drying your laundry.
AMOS 230 Electric Heated Clothes Dryer – Rating: 2/5
This dryer requires a sheet or something similar to speed up the drying process. Without it, only the parts of the clothes touching the heat seemed to dry. Another drawback is its cumbersome shape, requiring a relatively big area for placement. However, it folds up easily for storage. The cost to run this airer is around 4p an hour, and it took approximately 24 hours to dry a full load of clothes.
Easy Home Winged Heated Airer from Aldi – Rating: 2.5/5
Aldi's heated airers are popular due to their low upfront cost. However, we found that the clothes only dried where they were touching the bars, requiring multiple adjustments throughout the process. Lighter items dried in around two hours, while heavier items took longer. The full load was completely dry after 10 hours, costing approximately 62p at 6p an hour. This airer can be tricky to set up, but it folds up small for storage.
Argos Home 11.5m Heated Electric Indoor Clothes Airer – Rating: 2/5
The Argos airer had similar issues to the AMOS model, with clothes only drying properly when a sheet was added or the clothes were moved frequently. It took a full 24 hours to dry the clothes, costing around £1.49 at 230W per hour. However, tower-shaped airers like this one are faster and take up less space when in use.
Asda Heated Winged Clothes Airer – Rating: 3/5
Asda's airer was the easiest to set up among the winged airers, with the legs already attached. The clothes dried fully in around nine hours, costing approximately 56p. Thicker items took longer to dry, while lighter items dried quickly. This airer uses 230W of energy, equivalent to 6p an hour.
JML DriBUDDI Heated Indoor Airer – Rating: 3/5
This airer has a unique design with a fan attached to a tower. While it takes longer to set up and doesn't fold down for storage, it dries clothes faster than some other models. Loose tops dried in a couple of hours, while jeans and thick jumpers took longer. This airer uses 1200W per hour and took around six hours to dry a full load, costing £1.94 in total.
Conclusion
Heated airers provide a cost-effective and energy-efficient way to dry your laundry during the winter months. Our tests showed that the Dunelm Heated Airer with Wings performed the best, offering efficient drying and low running costs. However, each airer has its pros and cons, so consider your specific needs and budget before making a purchase.
Source: [Original Article]
