Do the math on clotheslines
Re: “Regional district can regulate clotheslines in electoral areas”, (Citizen, May 10)
Leaving aside the fact that Ms. van der Boom moved into a strata where she knew the rules about clotheslines, let’s do the math on this before the CVRD and other jurisdictions blindly jump on the bandwagon:
According to hint No. 16 on the BC Hydro website, hanging four loads of laundry per week instead of using the dryer can save $65 per year.
So $65 ÷ 52 weeks = $1.25 per week savings.
Estimate the time it would take you to go outside and hang four loads of laundry, plus the time to go out and take it down, and bring it in.
The work involves carrying four loads of heavy, wet laundry some distance to the clothesline and hanging it up. Taking it in would be faster and lighter. There might be some ironing involved — with heavy hydro usage — for items which wouldn’t have needed it had the dryer been used.
That’s an awful lot of extra work each week to save $1.25. And that doesn’t even factor in the home’s heat loss as you struggle through the door with laundry eight times each week, plus eight times empty-handed.
What is your time worth?
Far more efficient would be to adopt hint No. 17 from the bchydro.com site, and toss a towel in the dryer:
“A dry towel added to your dryer load can significantly reduce drying time.”
On four loads a week, that would save you $14 per year.
Little things can add up and make a difference — as long as you look at the big picture and do the math.
Lori Hamilton
Cobble Hill