Ventless dryer quality?

May 22, 2023 7:29 PM

I have a whirlpool ventless dryer. When the water tank fills up with water, what is the water quality? Could I drink it? Water my plants with it? Fill the dog water dish with it? I don’t use any fabric softener except for the occasional glug or two of white vinegar. Is it pure evaporated water? It feels silly to pour the whole tank of water down the drain.
posted by Grandysaur to Home & Garden (8 answers total)

You could drink it, but I sure wouldn't. A consideration nowadays is, any synthetic fabrics you're drying will be shedding micro-plastic fibers, which you may then be introducing into the environment by watering plants with, or dumping it down the drain.
posted by Rash at 7:39 PM on May 22, 2023 [7 favorites]

Best answer: I wouldn't drink it. We've been using it on the plants for the last year or so, and they're doing no worse than usual. I am not too concerned that the microplastics destined for the drain are being diverted to the garden.
posted by pompomtom at 8:55 PM on May 22, 2023 [2 favorites]

Best answer: The evidence I've seen seems to indicate that there's a trivial amount of detergent left on clothing after the spin cycle, and this mostly comes out in the dryer. I would not drink any waste water produced by any machine, because you don't know what process has condensed it, what it's been in contact with, or what substances were in the fabric it came from. It's certainly not distilled (evaporated and condensed) water.
It's probably not horribly toxic, but I imagine it would taste unpleasant and it might upset your digestion, the same way that drinking soapy bathwater likely would. I think watering plants is the best way to dispose of it.
posted by AugustusCrunch at 9:09 PM on May 22, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I use mine for watering plants.
This is a thing where I trust my own country's advice more than that from English-speaking languages, so I can't give you a link, but authorities here say it is good for watering plants, excellent for cleaning windows, and good for using in your steam iron, if you run it through a coffee filter first.
Do not drink or give to pets.
posted by mumimor at 11:39 PM on May 22, 2023 [4 favorites]

Best answer: Is it pure evaporated water?

In theory, yes - but only if your theory fails to take into account your dryer having only a lint screen, not a HEPA filter, between the drum and the condenser to stop assorted particulates from settling out into the water, and ignores all the assorted volatile organic compounds like scents and oils that will also be condensing out, and ignores the likelihood that some kind of microbial community will be able to make its living on all of the above.

Nobody really knows what the kinds of plastic micro- and nanoparticles that will inevitably end up suspended in dryer condensate will do to the ecology of garden soil over the long term, but they'll almost certainly do less harm there than if released straight into the waterways or incorporated into your own body or those of your pets. That said, I would expect that just dumping them down the drain and hoping the treatment plant will deal with them to be a lot better than letting a vented dryer blow them straight out into the air.

I would also expect the harm done by the use of any kind of dryer to pale into insignificance next to that done by the use of a car, if you're looking for some kind of scale of concerns.
posted by flabdablet at 1:03 AM on May 23, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I pour it in the garden. I don't think it's hurting anything. Also, if I time my showers right, I can use the warm water for rinsing off (my hot water bill was ridiculous last year. Anything I can do to save...).
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 1:54 AM on May 23, 2023 [1 favorite]

Some fabrics have stain repellent or flame retardant chemicals on them, like kids’ pajamas and some blankets. I would also be concerned that inside of the machine there might be pipes made with materials that are not foodsafe, such as solder or plastic. Personally, I wouldn’t drink it, feed it to an animal, or water edible plants with it. Grass or houseplants, sure.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 7:46 AM on May 23, 2023 [2 favorites]

Best answer: It's certainly not distilled (evaporated and condensed) water.

It is! However... a still operates by selectively capturing some fractions and discarding others. This is like taking a liquid riddled with traces of solvent, fabric conditioners, fabric dye, fabric waterproofing and evaporating it, and then capturing all the condensate not just a nice target range in the middle. Also as flabdablet points out, small bits of plastic are going to be entrained in the moist air flow and end up in the condensate as well. I use mine to water indoor plants. In practice, I would be comfortable using it on non-food plants for sure and food plants probably but I don't tend to do nearly as much drying in the summer and don't need outdoor watering the rest of the year.

Ironing water and cleaning glass (especially in hard water areas) as per mumimor also seem like good uses but I am not so organised as to do that.
posted by atrazine at 8:28 AM on May 23, 2023 [1 favorite]