# Dryers: gas vs electric
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [March 20, 2013, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467 "2013-03-20T17:04:23Z")
**Posts on this page:** 14
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/1 "2013-03-20T17:04:23Z")
I’m about to buy a washer & dryer…are there any compelling reasons for buying gas vs electric?
The laundry room has a 240v electric outlet. We would need to have a gas line installed. So, is gas worth it?
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### Author:  [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/2 "2013-03-20T17:53:44Z")
Gas dryers get hotter and dry clothes quicker.
Natural gas is a cheaper fuel in most areas.
If you already have natural gas in the house then it shouldn’t cost all that much to run a line. You’d have to check with a plumber.
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### Author:  [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/3 "2013-03-20T19:27:19Z")
All things equal, I prefer gas, but you will pay about $50 more for a gas dryer vs electric, and if you need a gas line run to the laundry room, that will be another upfront cost. Depending on who does the work, and if you get the (usually) required permits, it can be expensive. A couple of years ago, I was quoted $600 by the gas utility to tee off a line from the gas meter and run about ten feet along the outside wall to reach the laundry room.
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/4 "2013-03-20T19:40:43Z")
In short, go gas if it’s at all an option and costs no more than $150-200 more, all in. Gas dryers work better and run cheaper, and short of A/C, nothing will impact your electric bill so hard as a dryer.
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### Author:  [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/5 "2013-03-20T19:51:08Z")
Gas is superior as far as drying power goes, but remember that you need a place to vent the exhaust to the outside. If your laundry room is in the bowels of your house it may be a no-go.
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/6 "2013-03-20T20:15:38Z")
> [@friedo](#):
>
> Gas is superior as far as drying power goes, but remember that you need a place to vent the exhaust to the outside. If your laundry room is in the bowels of your house it may be a no-go.
This isn’t unique to gas dryers; you don’t want to vent an electric dryer to any interior, even a garage, either.
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### Author:  [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/7 "2013-03-20T20:25:25Z")
A friend of mine was investigating gas dryers and he decided it didn’t make financial sense for him because of the additional cost of a gas dryer and an elevation in gas prices and his small family size.
At our house we almost always hang up our clothes to dry, so it’s a moot point.
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### Author:  [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/8 "2013-03-20T22:59:46Z")
Thanks for the input. Venting is not an issue (a vent is already in place). A handyman/friend says that he can run the gas line quickly & easily…sounds like gas may be the way to go.
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### Author:  [@FoundWaldo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoundWaldo)
#### Post date: [March 20, 2013, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/9 "2013-03-20T23:03:29Z")
I have had both, and contrary to what everyone else here has said, I prefer electric. The “hotter” and “dries faster” also seems to equate to “harder on clothes” in my experience. I’m sure it varies by appliance, but I’ve had two totally different gas dryers (one a cheap stackable and one a very high-end model), and on both the lowest non-airdry temperature was significantly warmer than the same setting on the electric dryers I’ve had. I find that my clothes come out better when dried on low heat settings. If my current place had a 220V outlet in the laundry room, I’d have an electric dryer, but since it doesn’t, I’m stuck with gas.
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### Author:  [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)
#### Post date: [March 21, 2013, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/10 "2013-03-21T20:18:13Z")
> [@NitroPress](#):
>
> This isn’t unique to gas dryers; you don’t want to vent an electric dryer to any interior, even a garage, either.
There are plenty of self-venting electric dryers. They usually have a condenser for the steam.
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 21, 2013, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/11 "2013-03-21T20:23:59Z")
> [@friedo](#):
>
> There are plenty of self-venting electric dryers. They usually have a condenser for the steam.
Sure, but that doesn’t change what I said about venting a (standard) dryer to an interior… which I’ve seen people do, until the walls start to sag.
Unless it’s utterly impossible, the cost of putting in an exterior vent far outweighs the cost, higher energy usage and lower efficiency of a condenser unit.
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### Author:  [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)
#### Post date: [March 21, 2013, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/12 "2013-03-21T20:43:35Z")
Aren’t there two venting issues with a gas dryer? You need to vent the hot air/lint… but do most gas appliances also need venting for the gas combustion? I know LP heaters come in vented (as in requires a vent) and non-vented.
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### Author:  [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)
#### Post date: [March 21, 2013, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/13 "2013-03-21T21:00:20Z")
> [@jsc1953](#):
>
> Venting is not an issue (a vent is already in place).
If it’s a plastic vent have it replaced with metal.
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 21, 2013, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dryers-gas-vs-electric/653467/14 "2013-03-21T21:02:32Z")
> [@Enkel](#):
>
> Aren’t there two venting issues with a gas dryer? You need to vent the hot air/lint… but do most gas appliances also need venting for the gas combustion?
No, the combustion exhaust goes out the same vent pipe.