November 2014 - Snellings Gerald Giles

With an average lifespan of around eight to fourteen years, and a price tag that ranges from just over a £100 up to £2000, buying a brand new tumble dryer is an investment that requires some careful consideration.

From the brand to the energy rating, functions to the temperature settings – buying a tumble dryer involves making more decisions than you might expect.

And by taking the time to research the different options available before you buy, you can ensure that you invest in the tumble dryer that most suits your needs and your budget and makes for a smart investment both now and in the future.

Before you even begin your search, it’s important to decide where in your home your new appliance is going to live.

If you’re replacing an old machine with a newer model, you’ll probably have a good idea of where you want your tumble dryer to be positioned. However, if you’re buying a tumble dryer for the first time, you’ll need to put a bit of thought into its location as this could affect the type of machine you buy.

For those planning to place the machine below a work surface, it’s clearly very important to measure the space first to ensure the appliance will fit in its allocated spot.

The first decision you’ll have to make when buying a tumble dryer is whether to choose a vented machine, a condenser or a heat pump dryer.

Vented machines remove the moist air produced during the drying process and discharge it outside the home via a length of pipe. When fitting these kinds of tumble dryers, you can either have a permanent vent installed or simply hang the pipe through a nearby window. Normally cheaper to run than condenser dryers, vented machines are a more affordable option, though the fact that they need to be placed close to an exterior wall or window can make them impractical for some homes.

Condenser dryers remove the water from the damp air and separate it into a container. This container is then either emptied at the end of the cycle or the water is pumped out via the washing machine plumbing system where possible. As condenser dryers don’t need to be placed near a window or exterior wall, they are more suited to homes with a flexible layout or where the positioning of appliances is more limited.

Heat pump dryers run on lower temperatures and therefore use less energy, making them cheaper to run and kinder on the environment. In general, heat pump tumble dryers are also gentler on your clothes and operate more quietly. Like condenser machines, heat pump dryers collect the water removed from your clothes in a separate container, allowing the machines to be placed anywhere in the home.

On average, the capacity of domestic tumble dryers ranges from a compact 3kg to a spacious 9kg, with most full size machines offering a capacity of 7-8kg.

When working out the size of machine that you require, bear in mind that each kilogram is roughly equivalent to a full outfit including underwear and socks. This should give you an idea of the capacity your household requires.

In general, larger machines are more energy efficient as the air can circulate more freely and the increased drum space allows clothes to move around more easily. Larger drums can also prevent clothes from becoming unnecessarily creased.

At the moment, heat pump tumble dryers are the most efficient on the market with energy ratings of up to A+++. By re-using the hot air from the dryer rather than letting it escape, heat pump dryers use up to 50% less energy, a significant improvement on older models and something that can reduce your household energy bills by up to £100 per year.

Vented dryers also come in energy efficient models, generally ranging up to an A rating. Condenser dryers are becoming more energy efficient to catch up with their vented or heat pump counterparts.

Though tumble dryers have far fewer settings than washing machines, most will still have different temperature options for different types of fabric. Most full size machines will offer at least two temperature options, one for cottons and one for synthetics.

Some machines will also offer settings for specific types of fabrics and delicates, as well as offering users the option to stop the drying process before all the water has been extracted. This can help you to keep costs down and allows clothes to dry more naturally. Programs that aim to keep clothes from creasing are also common among good quality tumble dryers, with some machines able to continue spinning your clothes until the machine is emptied.

Consider all of the various options when buying a tumble dryer and this should make the entire process easier, less confusing and mean you’re more likely to find the right machine for you and your household. And, if you do your homework, you’ll have the peace of mind that you’ve made a sensible decision that should make family life that little bit easier leaving you with more time to enjoy the things you love the most.

Take a look at our range of tumble dryers from great brands like Bosch, Siemens, Miele and Panasonic. Click here.

So Christmas is only round the corner and we have to admit, here at Gerald Giles we’re no where near prepared! Now that the Christmas jingles are playing over the radio on the journey into work and you can’t walk down a high street without the gentle aroma of cinnamon lattes wafting through the swarms of shoppers heavily laden with mounds of Christmas gifts, we need to get cracking! We know that we won’t be the only ones who haven’t given Christmas a thought up until this point, so to help those frantic shoppers in our shoes we thought that we would bring you our complete guide for Christmas presents in 2014!

New to the market this year, the Bose QuietComfort 25 headphones are incredible. With noise-cancelling technology, they are ideal for when you’re travelling or want to completely ‘zone out’ to the outside world. They tick all the boxes when it comes to style, sound and comfort which is something that we all want in a pair of headphones. Available in white or black at £269.95 each in store, they are definitely worth the money. Ideal for family or a friend, everybody would be appreciative of this gift. If these are for a teenager who just loves to play their ‘music’ on full volume, everyone else in the household will be thankful as well!

If you have a baker on your Christmas list this year, then the new Smeg mixers are definitely worth consideration. Available in Smeg’s iconic pastel shades of cream or blue and black or red too. Either way, this retro 50’s look food mixer comes with a dough hook, whisker and flat beater attachments and a generous 4.8 litre bowl – plenty of space for making a Victoria sponge, fairy cakes or a bakers dozen of rolls. At just £379.99, it’s a decision which is a piece of cake to make!

One for those ‘party animal’ friends who love to pump themselves up to music before a night out or to help wind down after work. The Bose SoundLink Colour is brand new this year. A portable Bluetooth speaker available in red, blue, white, black or mint, it’s compact, durable and easy to use too. Pair to any Bluetooth device like a tablet or smartphone and access favourite playlists on the go with unprecedented sound. It’s the perfect gift at just £119.95 from Gerald Giles, so add one to your gift list now!

Finally, for that special person on your list or perhaps as a treat to yourself after the long hours of buying and wrapping presents, the Sony Xperia Z 16GB tablet is incredible. Water resistant and with a 10.1 inch multi-touch screen, this tablet is a great choice for every family member and with a 8.1 megapixel camera you’ll be able to capture Christmas Day in richer detail than ever before. WiFi and Bluetooth enabled, you’ll also have games, books and music at your fingertips. A real family buy and at the moment it’s only £299.99 from Gerald Giles!

So there you have it, our top picks for Christmas 2014. We hope that you manage to find that special gift for everyone on your Christmas list, now let the wrapping commence! From everyone at Gerald Giles of Norwich, we would like to take this opportunity to wish you a very Merry Christmas.