Hydromatic debuts "revolutionary" Dryer Miser clothes dryer technology

It's far from an out-of-the-box solution that some green(er) dryers are, but the folks at Hydromatic Technologies think their new "Dryer Miser" technology is the cure for all your clothes drying woes, and the most energy efficient solution short of hanging 'em out to dry. The key to that, it seems, is the system's reliance on hydronic technology, which consists of a specially-engineered fluid that gets heated up in a self-contained system to dry the clothes. That apparently not only cuts the energy consumption of the dryer by up to 50 percent, but actually cuts the drying time by up to 41 percent as well. As you can see above, however, it's not exactly the most elegant solution, and according to the company, it'll initially only be available as an after-market kit that'll need to be installed by a qualified technician. No word on what it'll cost though, but the company is shooting for it to be available in the fall of this year.

[Via I4U News, image courtesy of Gizmag]

[Tom Oliveri @ Feb 15th 2008 3:01AM]

does it feature perpetual motion by any chance?

[Superprime @ Feb 15th 2008 3:16AM]

So it's the same principle as a refrigerator but with heating?

[glenn s @ Feb 15th 2008 3:20AM]

Slow news day?

[Tom Oliveri @ Feb 15th 2008 3:51AM]

hahaha burn!

[DarkLightConnection @ Feb 15th 2008 4:12AM]

I don't know where are you from, but where I am (really close to the states) it would be more like "slow news midnight"

[AlanJC @ Feb 15th 2008 4:23AM]

Newsflash, contributors and readers are from around the world. More intresting news as it happens!

[anthony @ Feb 15th 2008 5:51AM]

ASKO have been making these for years - they call their incarnation of the 'hydronic' technology - a heat pump. Problem is - it is relatively expensive.

http://www.appliancedesign.com/CDA/Archives/f561a3405ca38010VgnVCM100000f932a8c0____

[silverblackvoid @ Feb 15th 2008 6:38AM]

lol, i thought it was the backside of an old refrigerator!

[Kenneth Arcieri @ Feb 15th 2008 6:40AM]

I never thought I would be able to "kit" my dryer... Thanks Dryer Miser a dream come true!

[Mattia @ Feb 15th 2008 8:28AM]

AEG have made this kind of dryers for many years. It's the same method used for air conditioning.

[Karl Viklund @ Feb 15th 2008 8:32AM]

Does it blend?

[dm @ Feb 15th 2008 10:38AM]

will it find my lost socks

[kevjohn @ Feb 15th 2008 11:18AM]

"it'll initially only be available as an after-market kit that'll need to be installed by a qualified technician"

Qualified technician? ...BAH!!! Hand me my screwdriver, woman!

[bwmetz @ Feb 15th 2008 4:41PM]

Anyone read the actual website? Sounds like the perpetual motion post was spot on. I'm actually surprised "elixir" wasn't in there somewhere. Some points from their site:

"dry large loads faster than any other 110 volt dryer sold on today’s market" - So it only outperforms a 110V dryer, eh? Who uses a 110V dryer? I thought those were only the small portable units you sometimes put in small apartments.

"the Hydronic Dryer’s virtually maintenance-free design makes costly repairs and replacements a near thing of the past" - Don't know about everyone else, but aside from cleaning lint out of the vent, I've never had any maintenance to do on my dryers, much less "virtually maintenance-free" and "near thing of the past".

They go on to claim that it will reduce/prevent all manner of things such as lent induced fires. Right, like a dryer won't overheat due to lent problems because a fluid based heat exchanger is used. Guess they've never heard you have to change the filter on your air conditioner every so often.

[Rainier @ Feb 15th 2008 5:26PM]

At first glance, I thought it was a pic of a computer mod....

[jamesFF @ Feb 16th 2008 12:30AM]

Sounds like they use the same technology that is used in those new space heater that I always see advertized.
I always thought you can increase the efficiency of the dryer by recycle the wasted heat from the vent.

[C.R. @ Mar 4th 2008 4:55PM]

If only the uneducated did some research before posting comments.

The picture is of the back of a dryer, what did you expect it to look like??

The technology is sound, anyone with an engineering background would understand the process, its not like a refrigerator, a/c unit or heat pump. It would appear to simply be an electric 'fluid heater' in combination with a heat exchanger in replacement of the electric coil in a typical dryer.

And FYI - its that glowing red hot electric coil that causes lint fires - remove it and you significantly reduce the chance of fire.

As for the 'snake oil' they use inside - anyone ever heard of thermal fluids or heat transfer fluids? They're used everyday in thousands of industrial applications that reach in excess of 700F, plenty hot for drying clothes.

And no I don't work for the company... I saw a news clip and did a little research where I came across this abomination of reader comments.

[alegr @ May 13th 2008 4:22PM]

My guts tell me that the mysterious "hydrocarbon based oil" they talk about is just snake oil, formulated to draw money from investors pockets 41% quicker than regular steer manure.
Just check the website: "eliminates ultra-fine CO2 particles". Steer manure in ultra-fine form.