tumble dryers glossary: all technical terms explained

Your search

Determines which kind of laundry appliance fits the washing and drying tasks you need to handle.

Tumble dryers: Dries freshly washed laundry in a rotating drum, freeing you from hanging clothes to dry.
Washer dryers: Washes and dries laundry in the same drum, saving space that separate appliances would need.
Washer dryer cabinets: A criterion used in our filters under “Your search”.

Drying type

Determines how the appliance heats the air and removes moisture, affecting energy use and installation needs.

Heat pump: Reuses heat to dry laundry at gentler temperatures, reducing electricity use but often taking longer.
Condenser without heat pump: Uses an electric heater to dry clothes and collects moisture as water, avoiding the need for an outdoor vent.
Condenser and heat pump: Collects moisture as water while reusing heat, reducing electricity use without requiring an outdoor vent.
Vented: Sends warm, moist air outdoors through a duct, so installation requires a suitable external vent.

Bosch range

Groups appliances by product line, helping you compare their features and equipment levels.

Bosch Série 4: A criterion used in our filters under “Bosch range”.
Bosch Série 6: A criterion used in our filters under “Bosch range”.

Format

Helps you choose an appliance size that fits your available space and the loads you expect to dry.

Standard: Provides a conventional full-size cabinet for everyday laundry loads, requiring enough floor and door clearance.
Mini tumble dryer: Offers a compact body for very limited spaces, with less room for laundry in each load.
Small tumble dryer: Fits into tighter spaces than a full-size dryer, usually requiring you to dry smaller loads.

Energy class, A to G label

Shows energy efficiency under standardized analysis, helping you compare electricity use across dryers.

A: Marks the highest efficiency tier on this label, helping you identify dryers that use energy efficiently.
B: Ranks below A and above C for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
C: Ranks below B and above D for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
D: Ranks below C and above E for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
E: Ranks below D and above F for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
F: Indicates low energy efficiency on the current label, so comparable dryers with better ratings generally use less electricity.
G: Indicates poor energy efficiency on the current label, so comparable dryers with better ratings generally cost less to run.

Energy class, old label

Shows energy efficiency under the previous labeling system, helping compare electricity use among dryers carrying that same label.

A+++: A criterion used in our filters under “Energy class, old label”.
A++: A criterion used in our filters under “Energy class, old label”.
A+: A criterion used in our filters under “Energy class, old label”.
A: Marks the highest efficiency tier on this label, helping you identify dryers that use energy efficiently.
B: Ranks below A and above C for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
C: Ranks below B and above D for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
D: Ranks below C and above E for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.

Loading type

Determines how you put laundry into the dryer and where you need clearance to open its door.

Front loading (porthole door): A door on the front lets you load laundry from the side facing you, so you need clear space in front of the dryer.
Top loading: A lid on top lets you load laundry from above, so the dryer needs clear space overhead and cannot sit beneath a fixed countertop.

Installation

Determines where and how the dryer can be fitted, helping you check whether it suits your room and available space.

Freestanding: Designed to stand independently, the dryer can sit in a suitable location with the connections and ventilation it requires.
Built-in: Designed to fit into cabinetry, the dryer needs a compatible opening and the clearances specified for safe operation.
Wall-mounted: Designed to attach to a suitable wall, the dryer frees up floor space but needs secure mounting that supports its weight.

Colour

Describes the exterior appearance, helping you choose a dryer that matches your room or other appliances.

White: A white exterior offers a neutral appearance that can coordinate with light cabinetry and other white appliances.
Black: A black exterior creates a dark appearance that can coordinate with dark cabinetry or contrast with lighter surroundings.
Grey: A gray exterior offers a neutral appearance that can coordinate with gray cabinetry and other appliances.
Silver: A silver-colored exterior gives a metallic-looking appearance that can coordinate with other appliances without implying a metal finish.

Features

Describes extra functions that can make drying easier to schedule, monitor, or adapt to your laundry needs.

Delay start: Lets you postpone when a drying cycle begins, helping you schedule it for a more convenient time.
Delay end: Lets you choose when a drying cycle should finish, helping you plan when your laundry will be ready.
Time remaining display: Shows an estimate of how long the drying cycle has left, helping you plan when to unload your laundry.
Automatic drying control: Uses sensors to adjust drying to the load and stop when the selected dryness is reached, helping avoid unnecessary drying.
Anti-crease: Moves the drum intermittently after drying ends to help reduce wrinkles if you cannot unload the laundry right away.
Smart connectivity: Connects the dryer to an app or home network so you can access supported functions such as cycle updates or remote controls.
Remote control: Lets you control supported dryer functions from a distance, so you do not always need to use the appliance's control panel.
Self-cleaning condenser: Automatically rinses lint from the condenser to help maintain drying performance and reduce manual cleaning.

Programmes

Determines how drying settings adapt to different laundry needs, helping you care for fabrics and get the dryness you want.

Quick: Uses a shorter drying cycle for suitable loads, helping you get clothes ready sooner when you are in a hurry.
Delicates: Uses gentler drying settings to help protect delicate fabrics that are suitable for tumble drying.
Wool: Uses settings designed to care for wool items approved for tumble drying, helping limit shrinking and felting.
Sportswear: Adapts drying settings to suitable sports clothing, helping care for synthetic fabrics and technical garments.
Household linen: Provides drying settings for items such as sheets and towels, helping bulky household fabrics dry more evenly.
Hygiene: Uses drying conditions designed to reduce certain germs on suitable laundry, with results depending on the cycle and load.
Refresh: Helps freshen lightly worn clothes and reduce odors between washes, without replacing a full wash when clothes are dirty.

Availability

Shows whether a dryer can currently be obtained from a retailer, helping you plan your purchase.

In stock: Indicates that the retailer has the dryer available to fulfill an order, although delivery timing may vary.
Home delivery: Allows you to have the dryer brought to your address, making it easier to receive a bulky appliance.
In-store collection: Allows you to pick up your dryer at a retail location, so you can arrange your own transport home.

Made in

Identifies the declared country or region of manufacture, helping you choose according to your preferences about production location.

France: Indicates that the dryer is declared as made in France, without implying that all its components come from there.
Europe: Indicates that the dryer is declared as made in Europe, without implying that all its components come from that region.

Condensation efficiency class on the current label

Shows how effectively the dryer collects moisture from laundry, helping you compare how much moisture escapes into the room.

A: Marks the highest efficiency tier on this label, helping you identify dryers that use energy efficiently.
B: Ranks below A and above C for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
C: Ranks below B and above D for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.
D: Ranks below C and above E for energy efficiency, helping you compare electricity use for similar loads.

Condensation water drainage

Determines how collected water leaves the dryer, affecting installation needs and the routine work needed after drying.

Tank to empty: Collects water removed from laundry in a container that you need to empty regularly to keep using the dryer.
Direct connection to a water drain: Sends collected water into a household drain through a hose, saving you from routinely emptying a water tank.

Drain hose

Helps you check the hose needed to carry collected water to a household drain, so you can plan the dryer's installation.

Included: A drain hose comes with the dryer, allowing collected water to flow into a suitable drain instead of requiring you to empty a tank.
Optional: A compatible drain hose can be purchased separately to send collected water into a suitable drain instead of emptying a tank.
Not compatible: The dryer cannot connect to a drain hose, so check how it handles moisture before deciding where to install it.

Door hinge position

The hinge location determines which way the door swings open, affecting access to the drum and clearance around the dryer.

Left: Viewed from the front, the door hinges are on the left, so you need space on that side for the door to swing open.
On the right: Viewed from the front, the door hinges are on the right, so you need space on that side for the door to swing open.