Beko DPHR8PB561W Heat Pump Tumble Dryer Review

When we moved into our home three years ago, we inherited a loud old tumble dryer that a member of the family was about to throw out.

It sounded a lot like a small plane taking off, the door at one point had to be taped shut and it was probably the least efficient white good in the house.

So when it seemed to get noisier, I knew it was only a matter of time before it would come grinding to a complete halt.  Lo and behold, it did just that halfway through drying a load of sheets.



I did a little research on the internet to try and find something to replace my old one. Usefully, having no vent built into the utility room (thanks architects!) it needed to be a condenser or heat pump drier and these are usually a little more expensive.

Consequently, I consider myself really rather lucky to have been sent one to review by the folk over at AO.com, the Beko DPHR8PB561W Heat Pump Tumble Dryer.

This dryer not only has a sleek, modern design but also has plenty of great features; the highlight being the internal light, which means you can hunt down that rogue sock hiding at the back of the drum on darker days. It is also quite amusing to watch the washing going round like circus tumblers under a spotlight. 

The sensor drying is a little sensitive and once or twice I've had to add an extra few minutes to finish the drying completely, but this isn’t a big problem for me and I prefer that it stops the cycle sooner rather than over-drying and wasting energy.

The functions are operated via a super-easy-to-understand dial and the water tank and lint filter are easy to empty also. It is quiet (well anything is compared to my old one) and has plenty of functions rather than being just warm or hot, which means I can dry all of the clothes and not just sheets and towels like I would do before. 

With a 24 hour timer, it is great for setting ready to come on first thing in the morning or whilst I am out at work ready for when I get back.

Overall, I love this dryer and would consider it well worth the extra outlay over a standard model.

We were sent this item in return for our opinion on the dryer, all words and images are my own.

Twilight Garden from Zoflora

I have been using Zoflora for a few years now and it has become part of my cleaning routine, making sure everything from my toilet to the bin smells nice and are bacteria free.

They recently relaunched a fragrance after popular demand, Twilight Garden, a blend of moonlight flowering lilies with the richness of ylang ylang and jasmine, balanced with uplifting notes of peach and musk.

Unlike my usual favourite, Springtime, this fragrance is more like a perfume and is very strong but I like it and we've been using it in our downstairs toilet, my children love it.

The great thing about Zoflora is that if you clean the toilet with it, it leaves a long lasting scent not only on the toilet itself but on the toilet brush, so whenever you clean the loo it smells great again.

It is also perfect for popping on a bit of kitchen paper and placing in the bottom of your bin, it leaves it smelling great.

Zoflora have a world of information about how to use the disinfectant over on their website as well as some great ideas in their news section. 

They currently have a competition over on their Facebook page where you could win a £500 holiday from Best Loved Hotels, plus many more prizes available including ‪flowers‬, garden centre gift vouchers and Zoflora Twilight Garden.

NB: I was sent this product to review, all words and opinions are my own.

Eco Friendly Cleaning Products

I am not sure why but something about pouring bleach down the toilet just seems wrong, especially when the eco friendly cleaning products I use are just as good.

The thought of more rubbish entering our drinking water has always been something that has bothered me, it's why the water we drink in our home is always filtered.

With a young family in the house I am also concerned that what I am spraying on surfaces or in the air could be ingested by them in some way or another, so wherever possibly I always try to use green cleaning products.

With so much going down the drain that can't be helped I feel that even small amounts of change can benefit the environment, the water we drink and the air we breath.

Next year I think my new years resolution will be to find even more eco friendly, green and natural solutions for my cleaning.

With four and a half years of using reusable nappies to help the environment, we may as well continue in the hope all will not be lost for our children and grandchildren.


*This is a sponsored post, all words and thoughts are my own.

Image courtesy of mack2happy / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Image courtesy of nixxphotography / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Ssshhh, but I actually like cleaning!

OK so I don't necessarily 'like cleaning' but I really like the end result.

I love seeing a nice clean worktop with everything in it's place and no clutter.

I like a clean and vacuumed carpet and a dust free mantle piece, a nice clean toilet, free from...well you know!

Here are just a few useful insights from my time as an 'amateur' cleaner:

Do not have anyone else around, OK it does mean you have to do it all yourself. Although I usually end up going back over what the helpers have done anyway! As much as I love them pitching in, at 4, 1 and 31 they spend most of the time getting in the way.

If it is raining or there is no way of getting rid of the family helpers, the 4 year old likes cleaning the windows, the 1 year old is usually quite content to watch mummy clean, whilst the 31 year old has become quite skilled at glueing broken toys back together and can sometimes be trusted with cleaning out the shed - beware this can create more mess!

Although I am grateful for the assistance, a prime example of why I don't let my husband help is a story I was told about when he was younger. Left alone for a week whilst his parents were on holiday he attempted to clean the house ready for their return, he vacuumed the entire house without realising that the belt had come off the vacuum cleaner and it wasn't sucking anything up! More recently, whilst in a helpful mood, he put a yellow duster in with a load of light washing, giving our children's clothes a slight yellow hue. I sometimes think he is deliberately inept to get out of doing more chores ;)

I would definitely advise cleaning to music, it is without a doubt the one thing that gets me through cleaning, my current cleaning soundtrack contains mostly dubstep, although anything you can dance to is fine. Never be tempted by the telly though, you are liable to start watching it! Never has homes under the hammer seemed more appealing than when you are trying to clean!!!!

Next I would thoroughly advise that you invest in a steam mop, they are really great for cleaning all types of flooring and takes less time to dry than a traditional mop. I have also used ours to get rid of stains from carpets, food burnt onto the cooker and that random orange scum on bathroom tiles. All without too much elbow grease, something I always seem to be running low on.

To prevent mountains of washing up, try and plan your meals so you cook food that uses only one tray or pan. However, if you are like me on a Sunday when using every pot seems inevitable, it helps to try and clean up as you go, this isn't always possible so try and stack pots to make the mess look smaller ;)

Although I do vacuum throughout the day (treading on bits of bread stick or cheerio really grinds my gears) I tend to leave the tidying until the children have gone to bed, it means it stays tidy for more than five minutes!

Finally, I like to think of my home as clean even if it is not tidy, with two children constantly emptying toys on the floor and dropping crumbs everywhere, it is simply not possible to be spotless is it? I like to think of it as 'lived in', if it needs to be tidied it can be but the rest of the time it's just as it is.

A clean house is a happy house?!?

I have been trying to keep on top of my cleaning, every time I watch My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding I feel ashamed and inadequate, these women cleaning the skirting boards!

I have never once cleaned the skirting boards in our house, maybe hoovered them but never got some soap and water out and started scrubbing them!

Last weeks episode saw one young girl cleaning with bleach and no gloves. There was actually shock on my face, my poor hands suffer enough, these women must be hard core.

They also said that if a boy/man was caught cleaning they call him a sissy, but I think it's because men just don't clean the same way and you'd just end up doing it again.

I clean the kitchen floor maybe once a fortnight if it's lucky, we have a steam mop so it is pretty easy but still when do I do it?

I vacuum at least twice a day, I can't cope with treading on bits of left over food or crumbs from breakfast!

I clean the kitchen one or twice a week and the bathroom once a week but there are a few dust bunnies in the rooms at times...but that's OK right?

On top of washing, ironing, taking the children out, cooking, working, running a business and so on...

...please someone tell me there is more to life than cleaning or am I a dirty and rubbish housewife?!?

Image: Ambro / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

My oven is clean!

Today I have had my oven cleaned, I am not ashamed to admit this as it is now super sparkly!

I would have waited till after Christmas but it was so smelly that I thought it better to have it done before, so all my mince pies and Christmas biscuits get to cook away in a smell free oven!

Our oven is self cleaning but only the back and sides apparently so I just have it all done, the guys we use at RENU are brilliant and after an hour being here it is as sparkly as the day we had it installed.

The man who came was really nice he said I had a lovely house and even said it was a good oven and we should be proud of it!

Brilliant service and I am so happy with it, annoyingly I didn't take a picture of it before he cleaned it but here it is sparkling away :)

Cleaning to soothe the soul!

So I wouldn't normally admit this in case my husband reads it, but last night whilst cleaning the kitchen I decided I actually like cleaning.

When I was 15 and had just finished my GCSEs I cleaned my mums kitchen from top to bottom. I mean inside the cupboards the doors everything, with it I felt a sort of peace.

Seeing the once dirty cupboards (sorry Mum) sparkle was satisfying and helped with the stress of waiting for my results.

I would clean half a door and see the difference I had made with my soap and water and get quite a sense of joy..

Ok so this sounds a bit strange but even now I feel a sense of calm and control over what I have done, lining up the kitchen paraphernalia on the worktop everything clean and ready for the next day.

I certainly feel there is some therapy in cleaning and anything that takes my mind off the troubles of the day is great.

Shame I suppose that in the morning a certain man in the house will put his buttery knife on my nice clean worktop....grrrrr!

Oh well c'est la vie!