Sick of clothes not drying this winter? Me too. Destined for a home full of mould this winter, I invested in the Dry Soon Drying Pod to put it to the test.
After 5 years of living in a flat I was absolutely versed with drying stuff in the winter indoors. Throw in a dog, partner and a house susceptible to damp and no warm airing cupboard, drying clothes indoors so far this winter has been nothing short of a nightmare.
It’s been raining NON STOP so we can’t attempt to dry outdoors, we don’t have a tumble drier, and we have no airing cupboard.
Clothes are taking 3+ days to dry completely, the wash load is backing up and mould has started to develop on walls, rattan accessories and on blinds! There was no way we could take another wash load of this, I was this close to jumping in the car and taking it to a laundrette.
This was an option, but the hassle? These are the options I initially looked into and found as the best way to dry clothes in winter, before heading onto my review of the Dry Soon Drying Pod.
Best Way To Dry Clothes In Winter
Drying Washing Outside In Winter
Drying washing outside in the winter is still one of my favourite ways. Air drying helps clothes smell fresh, doesn’t shrink them, and it costs £0. The biggest problem?
Weather is SO unreliable in the UK, and in the South it pretty much rains non stop which means even chancing it on a dry day isn’t even reliable. Many also don’t have the space for a line, or you may not even have access to a garden.
If you do have the space and it’s a dry day, get it out on the line! But it’s certainly not the best way to dry clothes in the winter that’s fully reliable.
Tumble Drier
A tumble drier does what it says on the tin. It’s the perfect solution for drying clothes in the winter, it actually works, and its quick meaning you can effectively tackle your laundry situation without having to worry about it drying, or making your home damp.
We know it’s great, but with the cost of living crisis we face, the benefits of one are far outweighed by the cost of running one.
Costs can vary greatly by the kWH used per cycle and the model, Ideal Home give the below example to give you an idea of how much it can currently cost to run one;
“An example 9kg heat pump tumble dryer uses 2.16 kWh for a full load and 259 kWh per year. This means that you’ll be spending just 73p per cycle and £88.06 per year. Based on the April figures, this used to be 60p per cycle and 43p a cycle back in November”.
I think tumble driers are also personal preference, they can shrink clothes and make your clothes smell funky too. Aside from the fact that a lot of homes don’t even have the space for one, me included.
Radiator Drying
An obvious go to during the winter is using the radiator whilst it’s switched on to dry the clothing. I find this method effective, but it requires the constant movement of clothing to ensure it all dries through thoroughly.
If you’re heating is on anyway, radiator drying is a good short term solution to the problem.
It’s not the best because you can only fit so much on at a time, and it reduces the flow of the heat warming the room at a given time. To a certain extent, some of that moisture from the wet clothes is going to be absorbed into the home too.
Drying Pod
A drying pod is essentially a pod that holds your clothing inside and is heated by mains electric. These are a great solution to clothes not drying in the winter, they can be stored away not in use, they’re much cheaper to invest in than a tumble drier, and they roughly cost around half the price to run too.
There are lots of different drying pods on the market which vary in effectiveness, prices vary but around the £100 mark seems to be the average price for one currently.
Launderette
Of course, if you feel like it, a launderette is a serious option for getting through your washing this winter. Launderettes really aren’t just for those in the East End and people that don’t own a washing machine. They’re an effective solution to getting through a huge lot of washing too.
I’m not 100% sure on costs as these will vary greatly throughout the UK, neither am I sure on how long wash cycles take. You do have the downside of sitting and waiting, but don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!
Dry Soon Drying Pod Review – How Does It Work?
The drying pod comes disassembled and is super easy to get setup. You have the power unit which connects with the three detachable tripod feet, a lower pole then gets inserted before adding the connector and upper pole. You then slot and screw the rack into the upper pole before putting the cover over the frame.
The cover has an ample zip down the side and top so you can easily take your clothes in and out of the drying pod.
The rack in the drying pod has 6 arms, designed to hold between 2-3 hangers each. Loading them evenly is key so the heat can distribute correctly, and actually dry your clothes.
Getting it working is also incredibly simple. There’s two ways to use the drying pod. You can start the process manually by just turning it anticlockwise to the On button, this relies on you timing it and switching off when required.
The favourable method, for me at least is putting it on a timer. You can put it on a timer at 30 minute increments up to 180 minutes, you do this by moving the dial clockwise to the desired time, once done the red light shows and the drying pod activates.
There is minimal noise when the drying pod is in use which is a big plus, you’ll see the drying pod start to puff out when in use, and the hot air can escape through vents at the top. The instructions state that warm air up to 70 degrees will circulate and it can take between 1-3 hours for washing to completely dry.
It’s incredibly simple to setup and use, so let’s put it to the test.
Dry Soon Drying Pod Review – Does It Work?
I’ve used the dry soon drying pod a few times now on various different things, and wash loads. For the purposes of giving a fair and accurate test I did a full wash load with a mix of items, this included thin pyjamas to a super thick bath mat, hoodie and towel.
I did a standard wash in the machine and I hung 10 items in the drying pod on hangers, spaced appropriately throughout.
I initially set the timer for 1 hour which was not enough. I could tell that things had started to dry but the bath mat and towel felt so damp still. These items tend to retain a lot of water so I think they were making everything else take much longer to dry too.
I then had to add another 1 hour onto this for the items to completely dry. All in all, it’s done what the drying pod says it will, it dried within the 3 hour mark and once the timer was set I didn’t have to worry about it.
I learnt that 2 hangers really is the maximum you want to put onto each arm, and even then you need to be mindful what items they are.
A lot of heavy stuff together will take much longer to dry, and each arms items tend to encroach on the other which can be a bit annoying.
So, what did it cost to run the drying pod for 2 hours? Approximately it cost just over £1 for the hour electric use. On some tumble drier costs I looked at this comes in at just under half the cost of running of a tumble drier as opposed to a drying pod. A drying pod does seem to be the cheapest way to dry clothes in winter.
I thought I’d go into detail on pro’s and con’s of the dry soon drying pod so you can get an accurate look at the bonuses, and drawbacks of this drying pod.
Dry Soon Drying Pod Pros
- Easy, minimal setup time required
- Very sturdy, robust frame
- Doesn’t take up much room and can be stored away after use, suitable for small homes too
- Can fit a fair amount of washing on
- Drying time is only 1-3 hours
- Cheaper way to dry clothes in winter in comparison to a tumble drier
- Isn’t very noisy to run
- Investment cost is less than a tumble drier
Dry Soon Drying Pod Cons
- It still does cost to run one on your electric, and is an added cost you may not be used to
- You need to be mindful of what you hang in it, lots of heavy items take much longer to dry and resting them up against other items of clothing slows their drying time down
- Clothes do encroach onto the other hangers on adjacent arms
- If I’m being picky, it doesn’t really match the aesthetic of my home when it’s in use! I said I’d be honest about all the pros and cons, huh?
Take a look at my full demo of the product on my YouTube channel below!
Dry Soon Drying Pod Cost & Where To Buy
We purchased our Dry Soon Drying Pod from Amazon, shipped with Lakeland for £99, due to such high demand these are going in and out of stock super regularly, and I have already seen price fluctuations.
A couple of different options that I can’t comment on but are in different price brackets are;
Dry:Soon Heated Clothes Drying Pod Cabinet – Dries Using Hot Air Fan – Amazon
Also available to purchase directly from Lakeland.
This is part of the same Dry:Soon family but is a cabinet/wardrobe size and is on the more expensive side of drying pods on the market. It holds the same amount of clothing than the standard drying pod, but takes up a bit more space when put together.
It’s 4.5 rated on Amazon so still a serious contender for a drying pod this winter.
Portable Electric Clothes Dryer
This was one of the cheapest drying pods I could find on the market. It’s a little bit gimmicky and the frame doesn’t look as sturdy as the Dry Soon Drying Pod.
This actually has NO reviews on Amazon so the jury is currently out on whether this is going to be any good or not.
I’d still personally pay a little bit more for something that is well reviewed online and is likely to last a little bit longer too.
In Summary – Is It Worth It?
Would I recommend the dry soon drying pod? 100%.
The investment was minimal, whilst it still costs a little bit to run, it has completely removed the stress of drying clothes inside in the winter, it’s good for our health too because it has instantly stopped the growth of mould in our home from drying clothes internally. It also means that the laundry pile isn’t continually backing up.
I used to worry every time we had to do a wash because I knew it would be at least a 3 day stint for it to dry. Seeing mould developing within the last week was the last straw for us, and I’m so glad we took the plunge to give it a go.
If you’re also struggling to get your washing dry this winter, want to keep costs down and don’t have the space for a tumble drier, the drying pod is honestly the best solution. There are many on the market, so do your research if you’re looking at cheaper models.
The Dry Soon Drying Pod is incredibly sturdy, easy to use, takes up little space when not in use, and it actually works. It’s a yes from our household! If you like product reviews, take a look at my review of the Hoover HF500, it’s a game changer if you have a household of dogs!
Have you tried the Dry Soon Drying Pod? Do you have any other hacks for drying clothes in the winter? Do let me know in the comments below if you have any questions I haven’t touched on in the article.
