I’m smitten with my new stainless steel clothes pegs! This is one product that was even better in real life than I imagined when waiting for them to arrive. Quite simply, they’re beautiful and easy to use!

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I needed some more clothes pegs for the second clothes line I put up because I have big wash days where I need them and because I’m not fastidious enough to take clothes pegs off the other line (under the veranda) when they’re not in use. Clothes pegs go on the line and stay there – rain, hail or shine. I’m sure I’m not alone on this, even though we know better. So, I started looking into stainless steel clothes pegs as an alternative to the bamboo ones I currently use.

Out of the options I found, I thought the Pincinox brand from Stainless Steel Pegs was the best (you can also buy these from Biome Eco Stores now). Stainless Steel Pegs is an Australian business but the pegs are made in France by a family owned company. I couldn’t find anything made in Australia that matches these pegs.

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There are a number of reasons why I think these pegs are amazing and worth the money:

  • They are really easy to use! I’ve been finding some of my bamboo pegs require a lot of force to open so I expected some strong resistance from the stainless steel pegs, but they open easily and still hold heavy wet clothing securely in the wind. Their size is also just right.
  • I can leave them on the line all year round and they won’t rust, rot or go mouldy.
  • Because they won’t rust, rot or grow mould, they won’t stain clothing.
  • They’re made from one solid springless piece of metal which makes them more durable and reliable than plastic, wood, or bamboo. These other types of pegs have a tendency to twist or break apart under pressure.
  • They’re meant to be unbreakable. The test will be if they can survive Shannon on the lawn mower! I’m not sure how so many clothes pegs end up on the ground at our house – I think someone is tugging the clothes off the line rather than unpegging them – but many have been sacrificed to the lawn mower over the years.
  • They have a lifetime warranty. I shouldn’t ever have to replace them and I could even pass them on to my kids! This is one more win in the fight against a throw-away culture.
  • They are recyclable, plastic free and zero waste.
  • Finally, you can use these in the kitchen if you need to, for example in the freezer or oven.

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Compared to plastic and wooden pegs, stainless steel pegs are more expensive, but over the course of a lifetime you will save money and your children will save money too if you pass them on. Here are the cost differences:

  • In a 50 pack of stainless steel pegs each peg costs $1.66 and lasts a lifetime.
  • A cheap wooden peg costs $0.04 each but lasts less than a year.
  • Plastic pegs cost $0.14 each but need replacing about once a year .
  • Pegs made from recycled plastic cost $0.18 each and in my experience are virtually a single use item. The ones I tried a few years ago were useless.
  • Bamboo pegs cost $0.40 each and so far have lasted a couple of years.

I feel like stainless still pegs would make a great house warming present for someone or even be highly appreciated as a Christmas present by someone who cares about sustainability.

I’m pleased to say that Stainless Steel Pegs have sent me some trial packs to give some lucky participants in my Zero Waste Home Tours but you can also order a trial pack from their website if you’re not sure about the investment you’ll be making.

Update: Some people have expressed concern about how hot the pegs will get on a hot day… after a number of 40 degree Celsius days I can tell you they do not get hot at all! Here is an explanation from Stainless Steel Pegs: On hot days with no wind the pegs can heat up a few degrees but on a day with some breeze they are the same temperature as the ambient air temperature. This is because there is not that much material and there is a large surface area so that the heat gained by exposure to the sun is quickly dispersed into the air via the large surface area of the peg.

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  2. This is fantastic, and even better that they offer trial packs – I’m a bit fussy about pegs and only ever buy one type so I’m glad I can give them a bit of a trial run before investing fully. Again, thanks so much for sharing what you’re doing.

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  3. Ditto. I buy my plastic pegs in New Zealand when we visit family as theirs are much tougher and stronger – but I’m going for these ones now. Solved my Christmas gift problems too!

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    2. Hi Mim, here is an explanation from Stainless Steel Pegs: On hot days with no wind the pegs can heat up a few degrees but on a day with some breeze they are the same temperature as the ambient air temperature. This is because there is not that much material and there is a large surface area so that the heat gained by exposure to the sun is quickly dispersed into the air via the large surface area of the peg.

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  6. These sound great and I broke about 4 pegs the other day so I’m in need of new ones.
    I’m curious as to whether you’ve seen the ones biome sell and if so was there a reason you preferred this brand?

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    1. Hi Fiona, that’s interesting, I searched Biome for steel pegs prior to making a decision and they didn’t have any. Maybe a new product. However I saw these sort of pegs elsewhere on the internet and they didn’t appeal to me because I felt like the spring would be stiff and difficult to use. I already have this issue with my bamboo pegs. I was also a little worried about the grip being sufficient. And, I guess the ones I have visually appeal to me more. But in saying all that, I haven’t actually tried them! So if you give them a go I’d love to know you’re experience.

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  9. I’ve had these for a quite a number of months, buying more because they are awesome, never had much problem with them heating up- the design is super durable and easy to use, they are smooth and gentle on clothing unlike wood or sun damaged plastic which can be rough and they look lovely too 🙂

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      1. Hi Tammy, the benefit of these pegs is partly that they last for many, many, many years without losing their ability to keep the clothes on the clothesline..
        They seem to be completely indestructible. In addition, the spring is much stronger than the spring in ordinary pegs and therefore it is possible to dry clothes on the clothesline without having to worry about it falling off the clothesline. And besides, they are much prettier than regular clamps.

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      1. Hi Thea Pym and Tammy, this is Ludovic from Pincinox 🙂
        Thank you for your comment / interest / reply (Tammy).
        Pincinox comes with a lifetime warranty, backed by 53 years of existence, a company that is still here in France, a distributor that is also still here in Australia. In 53 years, and many users living on coasts or sailing (ex distributor Manu Kea for boat owners in the USA), not 1 return for rust except for … copies from China. Prevention of rust is not only the quality of steel used, but the treatment that is applied after the forming process. Should you be disppointed, Pincinox HQ (bonjour@pincinox.fr) or Pincinox Australia (https://www.pincinox.com.au/contact) will be happy to replace them.

        Many supppliers of so called “marine grade” wire pegs neither offer strong grip against wind, neither lifetime warranty.

        Cheers
        Ludovic

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  18. Sorry, I add 1 comment. How come “marine grade” steel can rust ?
    Just because some atoms of iron can stay on the steel either coming from the rolling process, or from the stamping process (coming from either the ribbon of steel or from the machines). The matter ofpost-forming treatment is to take away any atom of iron, and create a totally even surface. Hoping I answer to your concern.

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