Tumble dryers: Energy efficiency
What do energy ratings on electric tumble dryers tell you?
You can't always trust the manufacturers' energy labels
Energy-class labels on electric tumble dryers are meant to help you choose a more energy-efficient model. The classes go from A (the highest rating) to G (the lowest rating).
Generally speaking, tumble dryers use a lot of energy, so most models are C-rated.
One thing to be aware of is that, in past investigations, we've found the labels don't always correspond with how much electricity a machine uses to dry a load.
Also, the energy class of an electric tumble dryer depends on which program the manufacturer selects for the test. So, for example, the White Knight CL 847 is A-rated – but only because White Knight elected to test it on a special low-energy program, which can take up to seven hours to dry a load.
We aim to make our own energy-consumption ratings more realistic. They're done using four different programs, and reveal bigger differences between models than the energy labels do.
You can find our ratings in the product summaries.
If you'd like to keep your energy use down, have a look at our tips for energy-efficient drying.
Energy-efficient drying
Most electric tumble dryers have a C-class energy rating. But, even so, the energy they use varies by around a third. And, with a million tumble dryers sold in the UK every year, that adds up. A washing line is far more energy efficient.
Imagine that everyone who buys a tumble dryer next year buys the most efficient, rather than the least efficient one – they'd save enough energy to power hundreds of households for a year each time they all dried a full load of cottons.
You can check out the product summaries to see our measurements of energy efficiency. But there are also a few things you can do to use less energy.
- Try to fit the maximum load in your tumble dryer every time
- Use a high spin speed on your washing machine to get your washing as dry as you can
- Clean the lint filter every time you use the machine. A blocked filter prevents the hot air from circulating freely, so clothes take longer to dry
- Make sure the room the dryer is in is well ventilated. This stops the tumble dryer from overheating. If it overheats, it takes longer to finish drying a load
- With sensor models, dry clothes for ironing together with other clothes. Start the load with an iron-dry setting, remove the clothes for ironing, and then put the rest on a cupboard-dry program.
- For more energy-saving tips, see our guide to using less electricity
Gas dryers - money savers
Gas dryers are an energy-saving alternative to traditional electric machines and are significantly cheaper to run. We've tested two gas powered models from White Knight. For more information see our gas tumble dryers page.
Are there any energy-saving electric dryers on the market?
White Knight introduced the first A-rated dryer to the UK in 2003 with their CL 847, now called the 84AW. AEG-Electrolux followed in autumn 2005 with the T59800 and since then John Lewis has also released A-rated models.
White Knight
White Knight bagged the first A-rated dryer when they introduced a low-energy program, which dries your clothes by tumbling them with very little heat. We tested it on a full load of cottons and a load of man-made fabrics. Pressing the low-energy button reduced the energy used by around half.
However, it takes forever. The time taken increases from 43 minutes to two-and-a-half hours for man-made fabrics, and from one hour 43 minutes to seven hours for a full load of cottons.
On the low-energy setting, the time taken to dry a full load of cottons increases to a massive seven hours. When run without the low-energy setting, it still takes longer than a lot of other machines and uses more energy than several of them.
So, unless you're prepared to wait seven hours for your washing to dry, it's not the most environmentally-friendly option, whatever it says on the label.
AEG Electrolux heat punp
The AEG-Electrolux T59800 uses a heat pump, which operates a bit like a fridge in reverse, to take heat from elsewhere and use it for drying the clothes.
This heat pump works on all of the programs and reduces the energy used by at least a third compared with other electric Best Buys. And the drying times are not longer. It's a good choice if you want an electric dryer that is as energy efficient as possible.