Build A Solar Powered Clothes Dryer    (tongue in cheek...)
clothesline finished
6X6 clothesline post installed
clothesline test clamps
clothesline post base

An inspired invention!  The previous two pages show my Solar Electric System, and my Solar Heating System.  Now, here is my

 

  "Solar Powered Clothes Dryer!"

 

First I removed a 4X4 post on the deck where the 6"X6" post will go, and drilled a 12" hole directly beneath.

Then I had to come up with a mould for the concrete base.  I only needed eight inches in height but I wanted a very large diameter for strength as the post will be going into the concrete and not mounted on top with saddles like the deck support posts.  A 'Sono Tube' that large is a special order and you must buy the whole tube, so I walked about my property thinking of galvanized tin, wooden boxes and then I noticed this old traffic pylon that had been left in my barn.  I cut the base off and placed it over the hole.

 

After pouring the concrete I set a 12 foot 6"X6" post into it.  Then I leveled the post and clamped it to the top rail.

 

When the concrete hardened, I cut off the plastic mold, removed the clamps then lag bolted the post to the deck.

A 'Sono' (cardboard) tube can be "unraveled" but a plastic mould from a pail, tube etc. must be cut off, although it's not as difficult as it sounds.

You just make one vertical cut with a box knife and peel it off.  It can actually be easier than removing a Sono Tube.  And the advantage with plastic is that you can put it back (with an overlap) and bolt it together.  The next one will be slightly smaller but can be reused many times.  I've already used mine again for a neighbour.  The small bolts face out with the nuts on the outside and are easily removed.  Place the seam to the back of your normal view before pouring.  It worked just as well the second time as the first and would for many more times.
  The next day in the sun

Le voilà, the latest in Solar Powered Clothes Drying technology!

After attaching the hardware it underwent some rigorous field testing... works like a charm, and the clothes dry for free!

 

Showcasing another tip.  Have you ever had clothes blow off the line because the clothes pins were too weak?

"Earth provides enough to satisfy everyone's needs, but not everyone's greed."

Mahatma Gandhi

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."   Native American Proverb

"Our future will either be green

 or not at all."   Bob Brown