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How to Choose the Best Clothesline: Cotton vs. Nylon vs. Plastic

Image Credit:
Photo by Pixabay
Written By: Jennifer Keating Digital Editor

Use a clothesline instead of a dryer to dry your clothes in warm, dry weather. You save money and energy, and the clothes smell great after drying in the fresh air! One reader says, “You get a little exercise, too!” Here are tips on how to choose an outdoor clothesline.

  • The average load of wash uses about 35 feet of line; your clothesline should accommodate at least that. Unless the height of a pulley-style line is significant, the clothesline shouldn’t be a lot longer than that, as the sag factor increases with length.
  • A load of wet wash weighs about 15 to 18 pounds (assuming it is spin-dried). It will shed about a third of that weight as it dries. This may not seem like much weight, but it won’t take long for your new clothesline to get stretched out a bit. By leaving a little “tail” when you tie your knot for either style of clothesline, you’ll be able to undo it, pull the line tight, and retie it as often as you need to.

Three Common Clothesline Types

  1. Basic plastic clothesline has the advantage of being waterproof and cleanable (you can wipe off the inevitable mildew). With wire and fiber reinforcement, it is stretch-resistant—and it’s cheap. You can find a 100-foot roll for less than $4. However, it is thin, which means that it will be harder for you to grip, and the clothespin is not going to hold as tightly as on a thicker line.
  2. Multifilament polypropylene (nylon) is tempting because it is lightweight, water- and mildew-resistant, and strong (our sample was 640-pound test). However, its slippery texture deters a firm clothespin grip, and it doesn’t tie well.
  3. Our top choice is a basic cotton clothesline. It’s about the same price as nylon, which is about $7 to $8 per 100 feet. In theory, it is weaker (only 280-pound test in our sample), but unless you’re hanging out pots and pans to dry, it should hold up fine.
Clothesline TypeProsConsBest For
Plastic Clothesline- Waterproof and easy to clean (wipe off mildew)- Reinforced with wire/fiber for stretch resistance- Inexpensive (about $4 for 100 ft)- Very thin, hard to grip- Clothespins don’t hold as tightlyBudget-friendly option; light laundry loads
Nylon/Polypropylene Line- Lightweight- Water- and mildew-resistant- Very strong (640-lb test)- Slippery texture makes clothespins slide- Harder to tie knots securelyDamp or humid climates where mildew is common
Cotton Clothesline (Top Pick)- Easy to grip- Clothespins hold securely- Affordable ($7–$8 for 100 ft)- Weaker than nylon (280-lb test)- May mildew if left dampEveryday laundry; best overall balance
Cleaning

About The Author

Jennifer Keating

Jennifer Keating

Digital Editor

Jennifer is the Digital Editor at The Old Farmer’s Almanac. She is an active equestrian and spends much of her free time at the barn. When she’s not riding, she loves caring for her collection of house plants, baking, and playing in her gardens.

Read more from Jennifer Keating

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Comments

<span>Lfpv</span> Sun, 06/28/2015 - 16:47
Living in NE Ohio, take a day and drive to Kidron, Ohio, to Lehman's. Guaranteed, you will find anything 'old-timey' there!
<span>Swood</span> Sun, 04/25/2010 - 22:52
If you do not find them at a fabric store like Joann's you might find them at a teacher supply store - they are used in crafts all the time.
<span>49Hillbilly</span> Thu, 03/25/2010 - 10:54
If you are refering to the old peg type instead of the type with the spring, I have seen them in craft stores, such as Michaels and JoAnns.
<span>Linda Johnson 6</span> Thu, 03/25/2010 - 08:08
I love hanging out clothes, hard to believe in some parts of this country it's against the policy of homeowners to have clothes lines,now I would be finding a differant place to live, no, I wouldn't have moved there to start with. Love the crisp feel of towels, they dry you off so much better when hung outside, and ohhhh to slip into the sheets that have been outside all day drying.........need to go back to the 50's, so much nicer.....
<span>Vcross1960</span> Mon, 09/23/2013 - 14:37
The "fiefdom" I live in doesn't allow anyone to have a clothesline or even put clothes out on a drying rack in your backyard (we're only allowed cross beam fences four feet high). Of course, they also don't allow solar panels or composting, they're keeping the subdivision "tidy" they say.
<span>Paula J</span> Sat, 05/02/2015 - 09:59
Hi, I also moved to a subdivision that didn't allow clotheslines by deed. Hung up two lines the first day I moved in and no-one ever said anything about them! Of course, it was an older subdivision by then!
<span>Crazynance</span> Thu, 03/25/2010 - 14:07
There used to be a rule against lines in Ontario, but David Suzuki got them to change their minds! :D
<span>Theresa Townshend</span> Thu, 03/25/2010 - 07:59
I am so fortunate to live in Florida. I hang my clothes all year. Once in a while we get a rainy spell so I can't, but that does not happen often. I do put some snuggle in the rinse water so that there is a softness that I don't get with line drying. Our water is very hard.
<span>Scott Giddings</span> Sat, 06/22/2013 - 09:21
Snuggle (or any commercial fabric softener) have chemicals. I have no idea what they are or what they do to me or the environment. I have found a little white vinager in the rinse water will act as a softener. After drying outside there is no lingering vinager odor.
<span>Ellen Delatte</span> Thu, 03/25/2010 - 06:40
No mattter how hard they try, no chemical company can duplicate the fresh, clean scent of clothes(especially cottons)dried outdoors. If you let the dew fall on the clothes and then dry, they come out particularly fresh and linens will stay that way for a long time.