Wash balls - Laundry balls - Eco balls (merged)

Badgergal · 1 August 2005 at 4:44PM

Does anyone use these? I've seen them mentioned in a few threads before, but they don't seem to have their own thread. It has been explained to me how they work, but I only have a vague idea!

I have one and am happy with all the money it has saved me (and trips carrying heavy boxes of powder), except it is not fantastic at tough stains, I need to use some other kind of stain removal method first (but then sometimes need to do this with detergent too). They are fine for averagely dirty/smelly clothes though. My towels come out very bouncy and you don't really need softener (though I like to use vinegar and essential oils for a nice fragrance). Very environmentally friendly too.

Anyone else got one?

ancasta_2 · 1 August 2005 at 5:06PM

tbh ive never heard of them?! :confused

larmy16 · 1 August 2005 at 5:16PM

I bought some of these years ago, and quite frankly I thought they were pure bunkum.

Maybe they have improved though? I like the smell of washing powder so the non-aroma did not suit me.

I also thought they did not even get close to removing stains.

Well thats what I think!!:)

Daisy · 1 August 2005 at 5:35PM

I bought this one from Lakeland a few months ago

http://www.lakelandlimited.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/GBP/DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=nrIbiuc6AvLuwaXU0xwQjE_6JG76xACWyIw=?ProductID=qHLAqAYUyNQAAAEBV%2euarYqa

and it left green bits all over my dark wash. I think it's cheaper to buy a cheap laundry liquid/powder (or make your own gloop) and then use white vinegar as fabric softener.

swizzle_2 · 1 August 2005 at 5:48PM

I`ve used these too and was not impressed, now on lidl washing tabs and only use 1 or even 1/2 in a load- it says 1 for a normal load.

Has any one tried those balls that you put in washer and or tumble dryer, that circulate water air so you use less soap, less drying time?

competitionscafe · 1 August 2005 at 6:02PM

ancasta wrote:

tbh ive never heard of them?! :confused

I think these are them (never tried them due to being sceptical but am tempted)

http://www.ecozone.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=314

reviews:
http://www.ecozone.co.uk/product_reviews.php?products_id=314

or these :
http://www.naturalcollection.com/natcol/product.asp?bID=2392393&group=38&subgroup=1050&linkcolour=

Useful article?:
http://money.guardian.co.uk/ethicalliving/story/0,13437,1215683,00.html

"........However, even half a dozen washes later, we are delighted to report that there has been no real noticeable change to their colour. We also consider ditching washing liquid altogether (full of chemicals and made by multinational Procter & Gamble, say the auditors) in preference for "eco-balls". These, according to the manufacturer, "produce ionised oxygen that activates the water molecules naturally and allows them to penetrate deep into clothing fibres to lift dirt away". But despite some rave user reviews on the internet, a friend who has already used them was not been impressed and puts us off parting with the £30 start-up cost.

So we persist with conventional detergents, while making an effort to source ones with fewer chemicals. But altering our perception of what is "clean" and what is not is harder. The auditors say that in our modern society, where we do little hard manual labour and change our clothes daily, there is no need to thrash laundry around in a machine for two hours with hot water and chemicals, when a light, warm rinse will do. So we start making all our washes run on a "half load" setting, which cuts the energy and water consumption considerably..... " Source: http://money.guardian.co.uk/ethicalliving/story/0,13437,1215683,00.html

--

Trow · 1 August 2005 at 6:26PM

I have seen an article that compared washing with the balls to washing with nothing - and apprantly there wasn't any discernable difference - apparantly a lot of the way stains are removed is by the action of the washing machine itself.

I use half the amount of powder recommended and am happy with the results.

bonvonnie · 1 August 2005 at 7:51PM

I have one that my MiL brought back from Japan, but all the instructions are in Japanese

so I havent used it, she has and have told me that she has used it a few times and is happy with it.

The main reason I havent used it, is because having young children, i'm not too sure whether it biological / non-bio ... etc

Austin_Allegro · 2 August 2005 at 12:22PM

As far as I can tell they are bunkum - basically an expensive placebo. They work on the principle that it's agitation, not detergent, that gets clothes clean, and also on the fact that most clothes have a lot of residual detergent in them.

They're basically just a way of making money from well meaning people by playing on their fears about environmental damage. That's big business these days.

This link tells you more.

http://www.flimflam.com/scam12.htm

lisyloo · 2 August 2005 at 12:25PM

From what I've heard they don't work and are a con.
Water on it's own will remove most stains.

People are generally happy because they need no chemicals etc. but it's no different to just using water.

katiepops_2 · 2 August 2005 at 2:00PM

A mix of soda crystals and washing powder probably does just as good, if not better, a job.

I have three boys to contend with washing-wise (one very big, one medium sized and one littlie) and I can very easily do 10+ washes per week (in fact if I had the time to do 20 loads of washing tonight it probably would only just about clear the backlog I have).

I bought a big box of Tesco's own washing powder sometime in late April (I think) and some soda crystals, and I use a big dessert spoonful of soda crystals (no idea where all my tablespoons disappeared to) and a spoonful of powder, plus three spoons of white vinegar in the dispenser drawer. I've still got at least a third of the box of powder left (it cost about £4.50) and I'm halfway down my third pack of soda crystals (about 52 p for a packet). Much much cheaper than washing balls! Plus you can use the soda crystals and the vinegar for other cleaning jobs around the house.

Kate

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Wash balls - Laundry balls - Eco balls (merged)

Do laundry balls work? 64 votes

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