Condensor Tumble Drier

nantucket66

nantucket66

nantucket66

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25 Jun 2005
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We've got this Bosch Condensor Drier arriving later today.

We live in a first floor flat. They are basically old large victorian terrace houses that were divided into 2. All separate (no communal areas) entrances/exits.

We have at the back of the property a make shift utility room which is on ground floor level, this (was once the old coal shed/outside toilet) is the rear entrance/exit to the property with a staircase leading down out of the kitchen. It's difficult to visualise hence the detailed description! It's part of the property as such and is secured/alarmed. People who I've described it to then have seen it have pretty much always said something 'I see what you mean now'.

The space is about 3 metres long x 1.5 metres wide x 2 metres high, it is powered, decorated and shelved out and is incredibly useful. It is not heated, as such it can get cold (getting a thermometer tomorrow). There are no windows, but is properly ventilated. The space us currently used for storage (washing powder, loo rolls and the like), tools etc.

This is the space where the new drier is going to live (along with a freezer to be ordered next month).

I have just bought an Dimplex 2 KW oil filled radiator to go down there as well to keep the chill off. It has an integrated timer and thermostat. When I first plugged it in I turned it up to max and left it for 30 minutes, nice and toasty so the rad has no issue heating the space at all, that said what is going to be the most efficient use of the radiator?

Constantly on at a low temp?
Turn it on an hour before the drier will be used and whilst in operation?
Leave it on the frost setting, so it only comes on if the temp drops below 5 degrees?
Or use the timer and have it come on for an hour or so 3 or 4 times through the day/night.

The radiator will only need to be on September through to May at a guess. I just want to protect the drier, but which way would be best and most cost effective?
 
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Looks like you should be more concerned about the freezer than the tumble dryer, sounds like Freezer will need 10 degrees Celsius to operate correctly so put the thermostat to 10 degrees or slightly more.

http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/help/...-tumble-dryers-installation-requirements.html

"A Tumble Dryer In A Low Temperature Environment

Almost every winter, especially a cold one, we get a rash of service calls telling us that a condenser (or heat pump) tumble dryer will not dry. Often this is accompanied by some sort of water leak or condensation problem.

The dryer is ordinarily then found to be in a low temperature environment and the result is unsurprising to us.

What happens is, instead of the water condensing in the condenser of the dryer it starts to condense on other cold surfaces, like the inner cabinet or even the drum of the tumble dryer itself. Meanwhile all that happens to the laundry in the dryer is that it gets mildly warm.

For a condenser dyer to operate correctly the room temperature must be above at least a 5?C minimum or, it won't work.

Many modern electronic dryers may well even display a fault code if the ambient or, room temperature is too low and just not operate at all.

Tumble Dryers Need Air To Breath

A tumble dryer needs a ready supply of cool (not too cool and not too warm) air to "breath".

It has to take air in that is cooler than the air in the dryer and it also has to be able to expel that air once it's heated and, even on a condenser or heat pump condenser tumble dryer, that air which is expelled will have some moisture in it, just as a vented dryer expels the air with moisture in it out the vent.

That means a few things for you to consider when you set out to buy a new tumble dryer.

The first is that putting a condenser or heat pump dryer in a confined space with little or a restricted supply of fresh air is a non-starter. You cannot put it in a cupboard and close the door for example. As an absolute minimum you should really have the dryer in a room that has at least 3m² with a fresh supply of air, even an open door to an adjacent room or an open window will do.

If you don't do this then all that happens is that the dryer ends up recirculating the air and, in the process, heating it up. With condenser based dryers this just utterly kills the efficiency of the machine."

With respect to Freezer - http://ao.com/advice/freezers/buying-guide/which-freezers-can-i-keep-in-a-garage.aspx

"Sometimes, there just isn't enough room in the kitchen to fit all your food. Many people choose to have a separate freezer in an alternate location. Usually the preferred place is a garage or outhouse. This is why you need to carefully consider what freezer is suitable for such places to prevent damaging, or even breaking your appliance.

Climate Control

Most freezers operate most effectively within their designated climate class. This can range from between a minimum ambient temperature of +10°C to a maximum of +43°C. Anything outside of this range could seriously affect your freezer’s ability to function optimally.

Cold Storage

Because garages are generally colder, manufacturers recommend not placing a freezer in there or any other outbuilding. A freezer operates with a thermostat that records the outside air temperature. If the temperature is warm, or within the designated climate range, then the compressor will turn on to keep food cold.

However, if the temperature is too low, the thermostat will think that it does not need to turn the compressor on. The freezer will struggle to keep your food chilled properly. It may even end up defrosting completely.

Flexible choice

So what can you do? Well, brands such as Beko and Zanussi recognise that garage storage is becoming more and more popular, especially for larger space-taking models such as chest freezers. This is why they have developed appliances that are specially designed to operate in lower ambient temperatures as cold as -15°C. If a freezer is suitable for outside storage it will be stated on the specifications or instruction manual.

Being able to store your freezer in the garage will save you space in the home, plus it provides excellent additional storage for your existing appliances."
 
Thanks for that.

I'm picking up a thermometer/humidity gauge tomorrow which will help.

I'll monitor it carefully and set the thermstat so it just takes the chill off and keeps the drier above it's minimum recommended temperature and go from there.

As for the freezer......I may have to raise the temp of the thermostat to suit or re-think, we already have one in the kitchen, another would be a nice to have, but not a need to have and we haven't ordered one yet.
 
if its just a freezer your fine, the +10oC ambient is to do with wet walled mechanical fridge freezers where the temp of the fridge controls whether compressor runs, in regards tumble drier the issue is down to the ntc temp probes which dont like lower the +5oC
 
I think you are doing things backwards.

I'ld have got the freezer and a thermometer first, then recorded the ambient temperature of the space.

It's pretty small, and as long as it is draft proof, the freezer alone might kick out enough heat to keep warm enough.

As an aside, the thought of having to heat a place in order to then freeze stuff is almost bonkers, as is the thought of having a freezer that runs in -15c! Why need a freezer! :p (yes I know why, just thinking out loud)
 
Ok, got the drier, the radiator and the thermometer and have done a few experiments over the past day or so.

With the radiator off overnight the temperature at 8am this morning was 10.1 degrees, happy days well above the minimum 5 degree recommended temp. I ran the radiator on full pelt for 30 minutes then dialled the thermostat back till it clicked off and ran the drier on a 2 hour cycle. After 30 minutes of the radiator being on, the temp raised to from 10.1 to 16.7 degrees and by the time the drier has finished it was 18.4 degrees, radiator turned off once the drier had finished.

So, moral of the story, (for the drier at least) - the radiator is only relevant when it's cold. If when I put the washer on (and the need the drier afterwards) and the temp is low I know what to do.

A freezer down there will certainly require more thought (well at least the radiator being on a lot more), I may knock that idea on the head, like I mentioned, it's a nice to have, not a need to have as there is already one in the kitchen.
 
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