J. Ross Moore was damp as hell, and he was not going to take it anymore. On his farm in North Dakota, in the early 1900s, Moore knew there had to be a better way. Frustrated with having to hang his clothes outside to dry, he built a shed, stuck an oven in it, and started hanging his clothes there instead. With that, the light bulb went off over his head. Moore took his idea a step further, making an oil-heated drum to dry his clothes in. He later sold this idea to a manufacturer, who produced a machine they called the “June Day.” By 1938, the “June Day” was being sold in stores and J. Ross Moore, once only a farmer with clammy clothes, became the inventor of what is known today as “the dryer.”
It took J. Ross Moore about 30 years to invent the dryer. Several other now-common items had already hit the market when the dryer was finally completed – the iron (1903), vacuum cleaner (1907), dishwasher (1913), and pop-up toaster (1919) were all being used already. So why, one might ask, did it take so long for a clothes dryer to be invented? And, greater still, why has clothes drying technology advanced so little in our modern age?
Dryers first started using a negative pressure system to dry clothes back in 1958, and that’s pretty much the same way clothes are dried in a modern dryer. In other words, while dryers have gotten more gadgets and special features (like settable timers, for instance), the method of drying clothes hasn’t changed. The dryer, then, despite what could be a fancy appearance, is maybe the most unevolved of appliances; just look in a laundry mat, where the dryers still have coin slots. Even the soda machine can take a dollar bill, but to dry clothes a person must have quarters, as if they’re at an arcade in 1986. I remember walking around the laundry mat with a roll of quarters, not sure if I was there to dry my clothes or play Donkey Kong.
I became curious about dryers because I live in South Korea and there are no dryers here. There are, I’m told, machines that can both wash and dry clothes, but there aren’t machines specifically for drying clothes, and the multi washer/dryer is not that common. In its place is the drying rack, which I have in my apartment. It takes about two-thirds of a day for clothes to dry on a drying rack, although I typically leave mine on longer. I want my clothes super-dry. Anything less doesn’t make sense to me; that would be like showering, looking at your towel, and choosing to shake-dry instead.
As I collected my clothes from the drying rack this morning, I asked myself that most important question: why has clothes drying technology advanced so little? The answer, I believe, is that there are some things that don’t need to get any better, and really probably aren’t all that needed in the first place. As wonderful as J. Ross Moore’s invention is, the dryer is essentially a tool of convenience. I’ve read that in Japan right now, they’re busy trying to invent a “microwave clothes dryer,” but it has so many safety problems that they can’t get it approved. Leave a pencil in your shorts, and the microwave dryer will burst them into flames. Forget a cigarette lighter, and the microwave dryer explodes. The simple act of drying clothes doesn’t lend itself to all the wonders technology has to offer, and pursuing it any more just isn’t worth it. This particular field of business, it seems, has all dried-up.
(Note: I would like to point out that I start this essay with a play on a famous movie quote, and end it with a pun. That’s all. Thank you.)
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The one improvement I can see is inventing a machine that transfers wet clothes from the washer to the dryer itself, eliminating the task of wrestling with soggy sheets and leaving a trail of orphaned socks in between the two machines. If someone takes this idea and runs with it, I want the first machine off the assembly line!
Another brilliant idea. Maybe the washer could be on top of the dryer, and when it’s done washing, there could be a shoot for the clothes to fall through, down into the dryer. And then somehow the dryer can start automatically. If this is the type of promise the future holds, sign me up!
An impressive start and finish to your essay. Much more impressive, from what I read, than the machine itself.
Haha – nice comment. I really miss taking hot clothes out of the dryer and pressing them against my face. That, I think, is the machine’s greatest asset.
I understand if there are no dryers in tropical countries like the Phil. Plenty of sunshine there and eco-friendly. But it snows in Korea , right? So how long does it take for a regular blue jeans to dry… in winter?
It’s freezing in Korea. Yes, it snows and it is not in any way tropical.
Clothes come out the washer kind of damp – not soaked or anything. So they don’t take THAT long to dry. The best thing about the drying rack is that sometimes company will come over, and I’ll have my boxers and stuff all out their hanging. It really lets people get a glimpse into my life, you know?
Are you serious? There’s no dryers in Korea? That sounds pretty ridiculous. Although I suppose when it comes to dryers, no Korean brands comes to mind.
Regardless of Korea or Death Valley the temperature on the inside of a dryer remains the same. The water in the clothes evaporates,,but doesn’t shrink the clothes. The air heated by GAS or ELECTRICITY is approximately 160 degrees F. as evaporating water decreases in quantity the temp rises and as soon as that happens the thermostat cycles off. If clothes are not dry enough the thermostat cycles on. That’s why the control is marked cool,medium and dry, giving the user a choice for the various fabrics. How do I know all of this?
After WWll I was hired b y The Hamilton Mfg Co.Of Two Rivers Wi. Hamilton and ROSS MOORE made June Day
before WWll. It was scrapped because of several improvements that were needed. I was the FIRST PERSON
hired by Hamilton to be a full time field service instructor.