Some options, like the fan models in our round-up, tell you how many clothes on hangers you can dry at once instead. The tiers can be rearranged (by unfolding one half of the rung down), making way to dry longer items such as trousers, dresses, towels or bedding.

If drying and storage space is a big factor in your choice of airer, then the compact Dry:Soon Mini is the option that can most easily be hidden, slotting easily into a cupboard or tucking behind furniture. For top results, pair with one of the best dehumidifiers to suck away the moisture that washing releases as it dries, and your indoor laundry regime is sorted.Its controls were straightforward, and the three tiers provide ample space to dry a full load of laundry. It takes up a lot of space when its wings are out and its temperature fluctuated a tad, but this didn’t impact its performance or its energy consumption, using an impressively low eight pence an hour on test.

Instead of wrapping delicates in towels and balancing them precariously on the bathroom radiator, or hanging dresses up in the shower to drip-dry, an electric airer means you can just wring them out gently and lay them flat to dry.I found it easy enough to slot the contraption together the first time I took it out of the surprisingly small box it arrived in, with no tools required.