Clothes dryer: the story on HearLore

Clothes dryer

M. Pochon from France created a hand-cranked clothes dryer in 1800. This early device required physical effort to turn the drum and move air through the fabric. Henry W. Altorfer later invented an electric clothes dryer in 1937. J. Ross Moore, an inventor from North Dakota, developed designs for automatic clothes dryers and published his design for an electrically operated dryer in 1938. Industrial designer Brooks Stevens developed an electric dryer with a glass window in the early 1940s. These milestones show how drying technology moved from manual labor to automated electricity over more than a century.

Tumbling And Heating Principles

A rotating drum called a tumbler circulates heated air to evaporate moisture while maintaining space between articles. Tumble dryers continuously draw in air from their surroundings and heat it before passing it through the tumbler. The resulting hot humid air is usually vented outside to make room for more air to continue the drying process. Using such a machine may cause clothes to shrink or become less soft due to loss of short soft fibers. A simpler non-rotating machine called a drying cabinet may be used for delicate fabrics and other items not suitable for a tumble dryer. Other machines include steam to de-shrink clothes and avoid ironing.

Energy Consumption Differences

Condenser dryers typically require around 2 kilowatt hours of energy per average load. Heat pump dryers use about 1 kilowatt hour of energy to dry an average load instead of 2 kilowatt hours for a condenser dryer. Conventional electric dryers can use from 3 to 9 kilowatt hours for a single load. Mechanical steam compression dryers operate in a very similar range of efficiency as heat pump dryers but result in drying times on the order of half as long as those of heat pump dryers. Ultrasonic dryers have the potential to significantly cut energy consumption while needing only one-third of the time needed by a conventional electric dryer for a given load.

Who created the first hand-cranked clothes dryer in 1800?

M. Pochon from France created a hand-cranked clothes dryer in 1800. This early device required physical effort to turn the drum and move air through the fabric.

When did Henry W. Altorfer invent an electric clothes dryer?

Henry W. Altorfer invented an electric clothes dryer in 1937. J. Ross Moore, an inventor from North Dakota, developed designs for automatic clothes dryers and published his design for an electrically operated dryer in 1938.

How much energy do condenser dryers use per average load?

What percentage of clothes dryer fires are caused by failure to clean lint filters?

The Fire Administration attributes Failure to clean as 34% of the leading factor contributing to clothes dryer fires in residential buildings. Underwriters Laboratories recommends cleaning the lint filter after every cycle for safety and energy efficiency.

Which appliance is second only to refrigerators and freezers as the largest residential electrical energy consumer in America?

Clothes dryers are second only to refrigerators and freezers as the largest residential electrical energy consumers in America. Over 80% of all homes in the US and Canada have a clothes dryer.

Clothes dryer

Tumbling And Heating Principles

Energy Consumption Differences

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