[EdwardDiego]

Serious question, do Americans use clotheslines? Our dryer is only really used for towels/sheets in wet weather.

The rotary clothesline [0] was standard in Australia and New Zealand for decades, although with the move to smaller sections, people tend to install compact linear lines instead.

[0]: https://99percentinvisible.org/article/hills-hoist-iconic-ro...

[acdha]

Some do but it was considered a poor thing for much of the 20th century to the point where many cities and HOAs had rules against them. This is changing but it amazed me when I lived in California where in the summer you could line dry in similar times at zero cost.

[rtkwe]

Generally no. Line drying has a connotation of poverty in the US and many cities have ordinances like this that make it tough to do. Also houses being generally larger and detached in the US we have an easier time installing them compared to row houses in Europe. They're also just built more recently so they have accommodations for them built in already.

"No person shall place or allow to remain exposed to the elements laundry, clothing, rags, or other cloth items hung or stored on a front porch or front or other street yard of a dwelling."

[EdwardDiego]

Oh wow. I did wonder why dryers were so frequently used in the US. Don't you have to worry about it shrinking clothing though?

[rtkwe]

I haven't had much trouble with that personally. Sometimes the first wash will shrink clothes slightly but afaik a lot of clothing manufacturers these days put clothes through a 'pre-shrinking' process that compacts them down simulating the shrinking process so they won't shrink appreciably.

[fbdab103]

A bigger concern is additional wear and tear. Dryers seem to be harsh on clothing and will reduce the lifespan vs just hanging.