clothesline: what kind of line?

So I have many clotheslines, but my main one in my backyard uses two pulleys and is maybe 10 meters maximum, goes off my (elevated) back porch and attaches high on a masonry wall that is my property boundary on that side, cutting diagonally across my downward-sloping garden so my clothes can catch the sun all day as it travels in the same direction above my veggie garden.

Previously I used a metal cable covered in vinyl made specifically for this. It is very expensive and a PITA to set up and tension. The vinyl coating must have gotten cracked, the cable rusted, and kaboom, my line fell yesterday. It's the second time this happened and I'm wondering if there isn't a better option. I remember my mother always had cotton lines that lived outside in the rain, snow, sleet, etc. Here we have no snow, but our sun is brutal and things get destroyed pretty quickly, because of this most people here dry their clothes on non-movable rigs that use heavier galvanized wire (no coatings).
I like my pulley system and wire doesn't really work with that, I'm thinking about either a lighter poly cord (which is what I use in my raise-and-lower clothesline on my covered back porch, it's lasted something like 7 years) or maybe something like jute, if I'm going to have to replace it every year I may as well just go natural (and local).

Anybody have anything I should be thinking about, or something they really love and recommend? I do have one of those old hold-the-two-lines-together gadgets I snagged from my mother's house when she moved, never was able to use it with the metal cables because the tensioner blocked it from traveling, but I could use it with a fabric or jute rope it I had to.

My thoughts are that cotton is cheap, benign and basically functional for a clothesline.

Eric

I use single strand steel wire that I think is ~10 gauge or so.  I pulled a large spool of it out of a dumpster.  I think it is zinc-coated, as it has no tendency to rust, though I wipe it with a damp paper towel each and every time I put clothes on it.

We use a straight cotton line and it lasts many years.
I wonder if a light waxing might help cotton in the summer sun?
We also have 4 or 5 of the double roller line controls.
The cotton line does stretch, so double rollers are needed.
About every other year I tie another knot in the line to tension it back up.

thanks for giving me a name for the double roller thing, Thomas! never knew how to refer to it.

I'm going to go look around and see what my options are. Cotton will have to be from a specialized rope store, the synthetic stuff is easier to find.

For a clothesline, the synthetic stuff might last longer and to me would be okay if disposed of properly when the clothesline is no longer viable.

I am not sure if my clothesline is cotton or a cotton blend.  I have been using it for almost ten years.  It needs to be replace though I have not been able to get an okay from dear hubby.

I live in southern Mexico where almost everyone uses clotheslines. They sell twisted hemp rope specially for this purpose. It holds up well to the sun (better than cotton) and the twisted rope eliminates the need for clothes pins because you pull the two parts apart and slip a bit of the clothes between the two. The first few things that go in will be very loose and you'll think, there's no way this will hold, but as you add more the line will tighten around the clothes.

Here's a picture I found online as I'm in the office at the moment. This line is likely nylon as one part is blue.

Depending on where you live, you may be able to find this kind of line at a Mexican supermarket or a latino bodega shop.

Good to know about the hemp holding up. I've seen those double-twisty ropes, they are great for stationary lines.
I use jute (? ramie?) rope in the garden for staking up plants and after one season it's toast, I can throw it in the chipper and it comes apart, but it's also much thinner. Not sure if we still have hemp rope here, many things to investigate today....

I'm no help - mine is heavy brass cable that I ran around 3 trees, where 2 lengths of it get full sun, the other is more shaded. I thought it was perfect, because it gives a spot that won't fade my darks and brights. There is a uv- resistant coating on the brass, but it's only been up for a year, so I have no idea how well the coating will hold up, over time. But, being brass, at least I know it won't rust. It was expensive, and from Lehman's, but I bought it with permanent mounting, longevity and low maintenance in mind.

thomas rubino wrote:We use a straight cotton line and it lasts many years.
I wonder if a light waxing might help cotton in the summer sun?
We also have 4 or 5 of the double roller line controls.
The cotton line does stretch, so double rollers are needed.
About every other year I tie another knot in the line to tension it back up.

Unfortunately, waxing the line would have the same effects as oiling it - stains left on the clothes.

Line spreaders,   these are similar to what we have.
https://www.amazon.com/ZLY-Aluminum-Clothesline-Spreader-Accessories/dp/B08DLHWGVH/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=clothesline+spreader+metal&sr=8-6

I get it that you're looking for not too expensive, but my first thought was to splurge and get stainless aircraft cable...

one issue with cables is weight: mine was maybe 4 or 5 mm diameter and surprisingly heavy, to the point that if I didn't keep the pullies really well greased I sometimes had trouble pulling it in and out (and greasing the 9-foot-high pulley was a job nobody wanted to keep up with).
I just measured and it's 11 meters each way, so just the cable itself is already pretty heavy. I wish I could use smallish wire, but going through 2 pullies is probably too much to ask.

this is what I would use if i did not have coils of stainless accumulated. Dyneema line sold at marine stores  Non stretch, UV resistant as strong as steel but much lighter.
I have the same set up from porch to apple tree on t hill so there is height to hang sheets.

Thanks everyone for your feedback.
I decided to move away from the metal cable. The next bit was typical for living in the developing world: most of the cool lines suggested here would have to be imported, might get here or not (I have a pair of sneakers that's been in customs limbo for months, you have maybe a 50/50 chance of actually receiving your merchandise. Don't even ask me about the taxes).
I could special order a cotton line, but it was just cotton without any sort of non-stretch core and $$$$. Jute was even more expensive (!). We produce both of these raw materials but the vast majority is exported and not used here.

So I ended up going with a synthetic line, and it is so much easier because of the lighter weight. We also fooled around with the pullies: they were a bit cockeyed, which I think was what caused the vinyl casing on the cable to break (in turn causing it to corrode). Not sure how long it's going to last, but I'll take that one day at a time. And next year when I'm up in the US I'll see what I can pick up to keep as a reserve.

I saw that this thread was referenced as helpful by another, similar thread and wanted to share that, American Science and Surplus, a mail order/catalog/online store that sells a LOT of surplus and random weird things they get in bulk. They do have some things that have been in their catalog for several decades, including a rather extensive collection of wires, cables, ropes, lines and other things that can be used to hang things.

If you can get stuff sent from the US, and it's a reasonable extra fee, you might consider them as a source. I like their creativity and silliness, and the fact that I can get all kinds of interesting things through the mail in a nice safe brown box that doesn't look interesting - that's where I got my condenser equipment (lab glass), and where I go for microscopes, slides, lab glass stuff, and all kinds of interesting bits and bobs.

Use double braided polyester rope. The is the type of rope that is used on sailboats. It stretches very little and has very good resistance to UV rays from the sun. Furthermore, it can be maintained by machine washing it. It should preferably be white, then there is no risk of the cord's color staining the laundry.
And use a clothesline tightener.
Here is a link to this type of clothesline in my webshop: https://popotamus.net/shop/retractable-clothesline-364p.html
You can probably find the components locally where you live.

I’d like to offer a general suggestion for those who has a similar situation in the future. Traditionally hemp ropes were used for rigging at sea due to their strong resistance to environmental stress.  It’s a good choice for a clothes line, but can be a bit rough on the users’ hands. Sisal rots easily so if you live in a dry climate it might be a good option, but if you get pretty regular rain may be short lived.  For any kind of commercially made outdoor cordage check out websites that market to sail boat owners. They offer an endless variety of tough reliable weather hardy lines and more accessories for rope work than you can imagine.

I went to a boat supply store and bought metal cable covered with some sort of plastic and it's lasted at least 30 years with negligible breakdown of the covering. The ends fit through an aluminum (I think) piece with 2 slots–you make a loop, feeding  the wire out one and back through the other and tighten  the two screws to hold it in place . Then I just screwed hooks into a tree and wooden posts of an existing garden structure. Back when copper was cheaper, I bought a 2" piece and sank it into concrete and screwed a hook into it and capped it. I bought copper because it wouldn't rot and looks nice. Too expensive now, unfortunately!

When we have to take the wires down for hurricane prep or tree-trimming, we just pull the loops off the hooks.