[BigTex]

Everyone is missing the incredibly obvious here.

Find one of the neighborhoods that were built in the late 1940s through the 1950s in your town or city. Most of these homes had clothesline poles in the back yard. Drive up and down the alleys in these neighborhoods until you see a pair of poles in a back yard that do not look to be in too bad a shape, but that are not currently being used.

Go to the front door and ask if they would be willing to sell you the poles for, say $50 (or less), if you dug them out and did not leave a hole behind.

When you have dug them out you will see exactly how deep they were originally sunk.

When you get them home, you can knock all of the concrete off, sand, primer and paint them if you would like, and set them in your yard and you will be good to go.

There are probably millions of clothesline poles across America that have not been used in decades.

[Ang]

Well, now I don't feel like such a dumbass for waiting 20 years to start drying clothes on a line instead of wasting electricity with a dryer. Rocc tied a rope between two trees and that worked so well, I threw two T-posts into the ground right next to them and strung up a second line. The only advice I can give is to buy good clothes pins. Mine came from the dollar store and keep flying apart. The area we live in is pretty windy and now it's warming up so that by the time I get the last of the laundry up, it's time to start taking it down. It's a flippin' joke. How much energy would this country save if we all went back to line drying, do you suppose??

Amazon's on jet packs made me laugh 'til I cried...and I think the super high lines aren't for hanging clothes. They are for pinata's.

[SpringCreekFarm]

Everyone is missing the incredibly obvious here.

Find one of the neighborhoods that were built in the late 1940s through the 1950s in your town or city. Most of these homes had clothesline poles in the back yard. Drive up and down the alleys in these neighborhoods until you see a pair of poles in a back yard that do not look to be in too bad a shape, but that are not currently being used.

Go to the front door and ask if they would be willing to sell you the poles for, say $50 (or less), if you dug them out and did not leave a hole behind.

When you have dug them out you will see exactly how deep they were originally sunk.

When you get them home, you can knock all of the concrete off, sand, primer and paint them if you would like, and set them in your yard and you will be good to go.

There are probably millions of clothesline poles across America that have not been used in decades.

[PhebaAndThePilgrim]

Good day from Pheba, from the farm:
I took some photos of our clothes poles, but could not figure out how to do the loading.
Clothes poles I can figure out, computers are a different story.
Our poles are about 9 feet tall. They are old porch beams that came from a construction site my husband was working on about 25 years ago. They are great. They are about 6 by 6.
The poles are not 12 feet long. They should be so 3 feet could be buried. Somehow my husband attached the poles to treated lumber, and buried the treated lumber 3 feet in the ground.
There are 3 lines, about 22 inches apart on the metal crossbar mounted on the pole. My husband used metal eye bolts, and metal cable for the line. I measured the crossbar at about 80 inches, and the center of the line at about 70 inches off the ground, sag.
The line should not be much taller because it strains my shoulders sometimes with heavy stuff.
But, with heavy stuff the line sags more and denim jeans really make it sag.
I remember when I was growing up, everybody had clothesline, and everybody had a long pole, about 2-3 inches in diameter.
The pole was about 6 to 10 inches taller than the clothesline.
One end of the pole was notched to slip into the clothesline.
When the line had heavy laundry on it, just slip the notched end of the pole into the clothesline at the center of the line to take out the slack, and stop the sagging. Works great, is portable, changeable,
and better than having a line strung too tall.
I am 5,10", and I almost find my line too tall.
Hope this helps, and if somebody would care to inform me, I would be happy to download photos.
They are in my HP Image Zone, but I do not know how to get them to this post.
I am back out in the yard. Pheba.
PS. One downside of hanging out laundry. Hubby raises blackberries, many gallons per summer. The birds rob some of the berries, and always, always manage to go potty on my nicest item of clothing I have hung outside, thus ruining it forever. I tend to hang indoors, more than out.
Almost never use the dryer.

[max_in_wa]

Gonna have to work on that google-fu grasshopper.

Here are some ready made ones.

[Fiddlerdave]

Time has expired for sensitivity. There are those who will make it and those who will not. The absence of the most basic skills at this point in history preclude the possibility of this person being useful in the future. We can't save everyone. We can save some. The effort required to save someone like this would detract from more useful endeavors such as cleaning my nails. Rather than learn self sufficient skills, the poster should instead learn how to fill out government aid request forms and cleaning jack-boots by licking. Its the only way this one will get by.

I find this attitude arrogant and ill-informed. I suspect he would run out of gas driving all day trying to figure out the map while never asking a local resident for directions.

The person who asked this topic's question "skill" set is already in the top 99th percentile by being interested, They are in the 99.9th percentile if they actually install a clothesline. They are in the 99.99th percentile because they want to do it right the first time!

[Keith_McClary]

Gonna have to work on that google-fu grasshopper.

Here are some ready made ones.

"Google products" is USA only.

The products listed are very small.

I am looking for one that goes from a 5' high deck to a pole across the yard like this:


I don't need one quite so high (the fence to the left is 6' so the pole looks to be at least 20').

Also I want it to be sturdy:
The pole was pulled over by the weight of the snow on the lines despite being set in concrete.

and not dangerous:

They had swung a dog leash over the clothesline and, when Childs tugged on it, a large wooden post holding up the line fell and smashed Childs on the back of the head.

The bright and happy boy had suffered a catastrophic brain injury.

The doctors said I'd never be able to walk, talk, eat

[Keith_McClary]

Everyone is missing the incredibly obvious here.

Find one of the neighborhoods that were built in the late 1940s through the 1950s in your town or city. Most of these homes had clothesline poles in the back yard. Drive up and down the alleys in these neighborhoods until you see a pair of poles in a back yard that do not look to be in too bad a shape, but that are not currently being used.

Go to the front door and ask if they would be willing to sell you the poles for, say $50 (or less), if you dug them out and did not leave a hole behind.

When you have dug them out you will see exactly how deep they were originally sunk.

When you get them home, you can knock all of the concrete off, sand, primer and paint them if you would like, and set them in your yard and you will be good to go.

There are probably millions of clothesline poles across America that have not been used in decades.

Actually I am in a small former coal mining town, many homes have clotheslines (poles dating before the 1940's I bet). We have a spring cleanup where the town will haul away your junk for free and there are some poles in the alleys. But I would worry that an old recycled pole would break after I went to the trouble & expense of setting it in concrete. I think the cost of the pole itself is a small part of the project.

[Keith_McClary]

Time has expired for sensitivity. There are those who will make it and those who will not. The absence of the most basic skills at this point in history preclude the possibility of this person being useful in the future. We can't save everyone. We can save some. The effort required to save someone like this would detract from more useful endeavors such as cleaning my nails. Rather than learn self sufficient skills, the poster should instead learn how to fill out government aid request forms and cleaning jack-boots by licking. Its the only way this one will get by.

I find this attitude arrogant and ill-informed. I suspect he would run out of gas driving all day trying to figure out the map while never asking a local resident for directions.

The person who asked this topic's question "skill" set is already in the top 99th percentile by being interested, They are in the 99.9th percentile if they actually install a clothesline. They are in the 99.99th percentile because they want to do it right the first time!

You were quoting kpeavey, he seems to be suffering from extreme doomerism, Don't be too hard on him.

[Ferretlover]

What about a utility light pole that used to be available from the power company? They used to offer them with a security light; maybe a farmer would know-I have seen such lightpoles at farms.

[skeptik]

why on earth do you want a clothesline pole to be 4m high??

Better drying. more wind a few meters off the ground.

Traditionally in the UK - 2 x 4" by 4" posts, set down into poured concrete, washing line tied to an eye at the top of one, and running over a block at the top of the other then down to a cleat at about 4' above ground below the block.

to dry clothes - first undo line from the cleat and lower it to an easy to reach height, peg out clothes then raise the line to as high as your strength and the weight of the clothes allows. Lower line to unpeg dry clothes.

This method gets the clothes above the hedge/fence line in a typical UK suburban garden. Unlike the USA, most UK back gardens are hedged or fenced in.

[vandal49588]

If a clothes pole is this much trouble, I'd quit washing and wear the same thing until people could no longer bear my stench.

[BigTex]

This thread is sort of the peak oil equivalent of an Aggie joke.

[max_in_wa]

What about a utility light pole that used to be available from the power company? They used to offer them with a security light; maybe a farmer would know-I have seen such lightpoles at farms.

Utility poles used to be preserved with Coal Tar Pitch. CTP is a known cause of bladder cancer. Granted, it would be outside, but don't let your clothes touch it.

[max_in_wa]

...
"Google products" is USA only.

Sorry for the assumption -- google shopping does have a UK branch, but Australia and Canada are out (although in Canada, many places will likely ship from the US).

The products listed are very small.

I am looking for one that goes from a 5' high deck to a pole across the yard like this:...

Sounds like you want a windmill or antenna mast secured with guy wires:

http://www.siliconsolar.com/air-x-guyed ... -17905.php

edit: note that the kit is for the parts only -- you supply the pipe.

[Ferretlover]

What about a utility light pole that used to be available from the power company? They used to offer them with a security light; maybe a farmer would know-I have seen such lightpoles at farms.

Utility poles used to be preserved with Coal Tar Pitch. CTP is a known cause of bladder cancer. Granted, it would be outside, but don't let your clothes touch it.

I didn't know that! Maybe a metal utility pole? No, wait. That would make it a lightning pole, wouldn't it? That wouldn't be good!

[draffen]

I made a couple of clotheslines last summer. Just affixed some 2" x 6" x 18" pressure-treated boards about 16 feet apart to my wooden privacy fence. Affixed two plastic coated "clotheslines" (from Wal-mart) to each set of 2 x 6 boards. It was cheap, simple and best of all it is hidden from neighbors by the same privacy fence. The height of six feet above the ground is adaquate for most all laundry. Large sheets can be folded to keep them off the ground.

[max_in_wa]

What about a utility light pole that used to be available from the power company? They used to offer them with a security light; maybe a farmer would know-I have seen such lightpoles at farms.

Utility poles used to be preserved with Coal Tar Pitch. CTP is a known cause of bladder cancer. Granted, it would be outside, but don't let your clothes touch it.

I didn't know that! Maybe a metal utility pole? No, wait. That would make it a lightning pole, wouldn't it? That wouldn't be good!

I should clarify -- I think (not positive) but there was a switchover to less dangerous preservatives in the 80s (might be 90s). Poles made after then would be fine, but are probably still in use so you're looking at new prices.

[hotzcatz]

We hang our laundry on lines strung under the house but our house is about seven to eight feet up off the ground. Some of the lines are old electric horse fencing which we got in a "free box" at a yard sale. Some of them are an official pull out/ retractable clothes line which never gets put away and stays pulled out all the time but it was at a different garage sale and we have two dollars invested in it. There is also some plastic covered steel cable and some quarter inch double braid nylon lines strung around. Some are tied to house support posts, some are tied to hooks screwed into the floor joists above.

The nice thing about hanging the laundry under the house is that it stays dry in the rain and the trade winds are usually blowing so it dries pretty quickly even in the rainy season.

Wooden clothes pins are much better than plastic ones. You can hang a basket or a cloth bag from the line to put them in or just leave them clipped onto the line.

The clothes lines that I always used to see installed outside in people's yards were usually 3" diameter galvanized metal posts with a wooden 4" x 4" bar at the top or with a welded bar across the top to tie the lines onto. Sometimes there would be one of those inline screw tighteners.

As for the height of the lines, if I were installing one, I'd make it so the clothesline was just about as high as I could easily reach. It's no good having a clothesline you need a step stool to reach.

There is no one specific answer, each clothesline will be different depending on who has what to build it with and where they are building it.

[GeoUSA]

Here's an alternate solution for people with a wooden deck that worked well for us. I installed eye bolts on the outside rail posts of the deck and ran clothesline between them. Using eye bolts of different lengths allows multiple lines for clothes on each side of the deck.

I installed additional lines on the metal posts of our deck cover. It's convenient to have deck furniture to hold the laundry basket and provide a staging area for folding the dry clothes. It also avoids the need to install any more poles in the yard.

My brother installed clothes line in his attic. He has the nicer pull-down stairs and claims this process works well in the winter and on rainy days. Hopefully he will not suffer mold issues in the attic.