Eco-friendly way of drying clothes in Japan

In such a high-tech country like Japan, the vast majority of people still dry clothes outside in the air, just like they were doing this 100 years and more ago when there were still samurai and ninjas running around. Now, on sunny (and even cloudy) days you’ll see streets with all kinds of clothing, pants, shirts, towels, Hello Kitty socks and futons hanging on the balconies and front porches of nearly every house and apartment building. Why for heaven’s sake are they doing this?

There are a few good reasons. By using a clothes dryer (which are extremely rare in Japan), the energy consumption would increase and consequently electricity bills would go up, which is not in best interest of most people. Japan is an island with scarce natural resources and saving is part of daily life which the Japanese are being taught about since elementary school. People also believe that direct sunlight destroys all those evil germs on textile. Clothes that dry in air also last longer and keep the colors brighter than clothes that are often exposed to high temperature in the dryer. Some people even consider hanging the clothes outside as some kind of relaxing work that brings you back to the time when life was much more simple.

Well, nevertheless, many washing machines that you can buy in Japan are actually a washer + dryer combo, all in one. Still, the drying is not very powerful and just helps that the laundry dryes faster. You’ll eventually end up hanging the clothes outside to have them dry completely. People tend to use these combo dryers in bad weather and when they have to dry something a bit quicker.