Heat Pump Tumble Driers

A short while ago, our designer Chris, was looking into a heat pump tumble dryer for his family – the Samsung DV80F5E5HGW (8Kg load). Obviously, being a technical expert, he loved the heat pump technology, but he had also worked out how much it could save his family in ££ and energy use –  around £122 a year in savings and uses 1.98Kwh on a cycle compared to over 5Kwh for a regular condenser type. This month, Which? magazine has reported on their test lab top 5 heat pump tumble dryers.

Heat Pump dryers work on a closed circuit system. As the hot air leaves the dryer, the air is rapidly cooled and the condensed water is collected. The dry air is then rapidly heated and returned to the dryer in a continuous cycle. Because the air is being recycled and the system is efficient, you save energy and costs on your drying – typically 40% lower than with a conventional condenser tumble dryer. They are also generally quieter than other dryers, and because they use lower drying temperatures, your clothes will like them too.

The first step to cutting your energy costs is always to use less energy, making the best of dry weather and the washing line will give you the most savings, but if a drier is essential to your home, then these are a good option.

The following driers are recommended either by Which? or listed on the super helpful website, Sust-it, which gives you great information about a whole range of household appliances.

Samsung DV70F5EOHGW – £24 per year

Panasonic NH-P80G1 – £24.79 per year

Bosch WTW863S1GB – £26 per year

Panasonic NH-P80G2 – £26.88 per year

Panasonic NH-P80S1 – £26.88 per year

AEG T86580IH – £29.29 per year

Miele T7950 – £29 per year

Siemens WT46W381GB – £29.80 per year

Zanussi ZTH485 – £32 per year

(Prices as at March 2014 via Which?/Sust-it)

Embedded energy is always worth considering, so only replace your tumble dryer if it’s essential. To reduce the running costs of your new or existing dryer follow these simple steps:

  • Keep the lint filter clean – even a small layer of dust can reduce air flow
  • Check any external air vents, eg behind the drier, accumulated dust can reduce air flow
  • Choose the right setting, experiment with how long your average load takes, the auto settings are often too long
  • Turn off the wrinkle-free setting, otherwise your dryer will continue to ‘tumble’ intermittently to keep the clothes from creasing
  • Close duvet covers to prevent smaller items getting trapped and taking longer to dry
  • Fill the drum instead of doing lots of small loads

Sust-it very helpfully gives ratings for cost per year, Co2 saved, cost per cycle and cost per load. The website also price compares retailers. The Top 10 Energy Efficiency Guide also gives detailed information on a range of products.

Which? reviews require a subscription to access full information on their product testing- points worth considering are: drying time, condenser effectiveness, speed, creases and noise levels.

by Mark Smith

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