New dryers have improved
Q
AFOLLOWING a series of fires caused by faulty tumble dryers – many concentrated among cheaper brands – Which? decided to campaign for a total recall and repair of machines that might go up in flames. Or smoke. Early this year, it reported that a million dryers had still not been modified. And nearly a year later, many remain potentially dangerous. You should never buy second hand.
But new machines have improved substantially. If your household is one or two people, you might consider a combined washer/dryer. Older dryers required an outside wall with a hole for the vapour hose – now many dryers have condensers rather than vents.
There is a wide price choice. Which? reports condenser dryers starting at under £200. You also have a choice between electric and a handful running on gas.
But a new option is heat pump technology which recirculates hot air around the machine. Costs are falling – the average dropped from £697 two years ago to £585 with entry level machines now at £400. Options include delayed timers, warning lights when the fluff filter needs cleaning and up to 10kg capacity for cottons.
The heat pump advantage is lower running costs as the energy is kept within the machine. Whether this is important depends on how environmentally conscious you are and, if cost saving is the top priority, how much you will use it. The downside of heat pump dryers is that they can take up to twice as
AS it is the time of year when you can no longer dry clothes outdoors, and we are fed up having racks of wet clothes all over our home, we’ve considered buying a tumble dryer. But I recall Which? ran a campaign suggesting tumble dryers were a problem. I remember there were some frightening numbers of machines that caused fires. Are they better now and how do I choose one? Janet D