Detergent Free laundry Ecoballs

greyteam1959

Onlly thing with the dryer balls is the cluncking and banging if you only have a few things in the dryer.
It drives me mad !!!!!!!

Ben84

I'm pretty sure the washing balls don't work from my experiences with them and from things I've seen since.

The first few washes were fine, but then I suppose all the residual detergent washed out the clothes/machine and the grime started to build up on the fabrics as well. Stale, dingy washing was the result after a few weeks.

Good housekeeping tested eco balls and concluded that they work no better than washing with just water. Also, the claims (if any are given) for how the balls work that I've seen so far have been unreassuringly strange and vague. The water is supposed to form some kind of special 'state' that I've never heard of before, that seems to have no reason to have cleaning properties (where is the dirt attraction or surfactant-like properties?), and I could find no references to it that weren't from other washing ball literature.

Unfortunately, the chances they work aren't looking very good so far.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Dryer balls work - mine came from the Pound Shop and they cut the drying time down from 55 mins to 35. And everything seems softer rather than the 'crunchy' texture they can be when you leave them in the dryer too long.

abwsco

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

Dryer balls work - mine came from the Pound Shop and they cut the drying time down from 55 mins to 35. And everything seems softer rather than the 'crunchy' texture they can be when you leave them in the dryer too long.

Exactly the same here with them as well:)

Magentasue

I have the dryer balls and am not convinced they work. However, so many people claim they do and I did think a load of towels took less time when I first got them. I have avoided tumble drying this year and my dryer just stops when it's done rather than me setting it or x minutes, so it's hard to work out how much quicker things dry with them. I think it helps with softening and detangling, though, so am happy to use them. They were about £7 and will last and last so I think they're worth having.

Wash balls different matter. Haven't tried them but friend has and she was far from impressed. Soap nuts, I have tried, and they worked OK for towels and the like. No good for my whites load (school shirts etc) and useless for normal loads with PE kits, grass-stained jeans etc. Over the years, I've tried most eco friendly laundry products and the only thing that worked was home washing 'powder' made by grating bar soap and mixing with borax and washing soda. This worked well for all but really soiled loads but I gave it up when son 1 got a job where he had to wear black shirts because they'd often come out with soap stains. Other black things were fine but these shirts often needed rewashing.

Now I buy branded detergent and mix with soda crystals because it's the only thing that works consistently now that I've moved to a very hard water area.

angelavdavis

mervyn11 wrote: »

Onlly thing with the dryer balls is the cluncking and banging if you only have a few things in the dryer.
It drives me mad !!!!!!!

Could be an incentive to stop you using the dryer and saving electricity?

cyclingyorkie

Magentasue wrote: »

I have the dryer balls and am not convinced they work. However, so many people claim they do and I did think a load of towels took less time when I first got them. I have avoided tumble drying this year and my dryer just stops when it's done rather than me setting it or x minutes, so it's hard to work out how much quicker things dry with them. I think it helps with softening and detangling, though, so am happy to use them. They were about £7 and will last and last so I think they're worth having.

Wash balls different matter. Haven't tried them but friend has and she was far from impressed. Soap nuts, I have tried, and they worked OK for towels and the like. No good for my whites load (school shirts etc) and useless for normal loads with PE kits, grass-stained jeans etc. Over the years, I've tried most eco friendly laundry products and the only thing that worked was home washing 'powder' made by grating bar soap and mixing with borax and washing soda. This worked well for all but really soiled loads but I gave it up when son 1 got a job where he had to wear black shirts because they'd often come out with soap stains. Other black things were fine but these shirts often needed rewashing.

Now I buy branded detergent and mix with soda crystals because it's the only thing that works consistently now that I've moved to a very hard water area.

I seem to remember that Kim and Aggie put tennis balls in the drier...just as efficient apparently!

I too have the joy of living in a hard water area - a situation much improved by the purchase of a magnoball - mine cost about £13....but lasts about 5 years..and washing is much softer....hence you can use less detergent! I got mine from an ethical website...but I think Lakeland sell them now!

Tip from a washing machine engineer - if powder gunks up your dispenser drawer it will also gunk up your machine!

His recomendation was to put the powder in a dosing ball (and you'll need less of it!) and in with your washing!:beer:

Magentasue

cyclingyorkie wrote: »

I too have the joy of living in a hard water area - a situation much improved by the purchase of a magnoball - mine cost about £13....but lasts about 5 years..and washing is much softer....hence you can use less detergent! I got mine from an ethical website...but I think Lakeland sell them now!

Tip from a washing machine engineer - if powder gunks up your dispenser drawer it will also gunk up your machine!

I'm not allowed in Lakeland on my own unless I leave my purse at home.

I find soda crystals work well and they're supposed to soften the water and help clean. For ages, they were about 55p a pack and then went down to 29p so I stocked up. Now I see they're 80p - bad soda harvest this year, I guess. I also do one boil wash a week for whites which is supposed to help with degunking.

Volcano

cyclingyorkie wrote: »

I too have the joy of living in a hard water area - a situation much improved by the purchase of a magnoball - mine cost about £13....but lasts about 5 years..and washing is much softer....hence you can use less detergent!

Magnets are another scam. They don't soften water, cure pains, increase fuel efficiency or any of the myriad of claims made about them.

http://www.chem1.com/CQ/magscams.html#PURP

Fire_Fox

Why are so many people using a tumble dryer at all?? I have a fantastic airer from IKEA that holds two to three loads of laundry, and takes up just two square feet of floor space.