Dryer Balls – save money & reduce chemical exposure
Replacing dryer sheets with 1 – 3 dryer balls leads to several benefits. Dryer balls can be made from plastic or wool. Another option is to make your own aluminum foil balls – simply made by crumpling foil. Toss them in with wet laundry instead of costly, chemical-laden, single-use dryer sheets.
They save money in two ways. First, single-use unlike dryer sheets, dryer balls are reusable for many, many loads. Using the same wool dryer balls for over 1000 loads is not uncommon. Plastic ones don’t last quite as long but they are inexpensive and a great option for people with a wool allergy. Wool dryer balls can even be refreshed and rehydrated simply by tossing them in the wash with other laundry.
Dryer balls have also been shown to significantly reduce drying time by up to 25% or more. That adds up to a lot of energy savings over a year. Maybe more important is the time they save by shortening the time needed to dry your clothes. The balls bounce around creating air pockets and separating layers of cloth to increase airflow.
The bouncing action of the balls reduces static and wrinkles by preventing wet laundry from clumping. Increase the wrinkle-prevention by dampening your dryer balls to create a steam effect. This hypoallergenic method eliminates the chemicals and artificial scents used in dryer sheets.
Think the chemicals in dryer sheets don’t affect your skin? Most dryer sheets contain harmful chemicals. Scientific American identified some of the most harmful ones:
- benzyl acetate – linked to pancreatic cancer
- benzyl alcohol – an upper respiratory tract irritant
- ethanol – linked to central nervous system disorders
- limonene – a known carcinogen
- chloroform – a known neurotoxin and carcinogen
There are versions of dryer sheets with fewer harsh chemicals and fragrances, but replacing them with dryer balls eliminates all of them from your clothes, while saving time and money.