The Scoop on Dryer Balls
Thursday July 5, 2007
Dryer Balls are one of the latest in a long line of As-Seen-On-TV products that promise to save you money and time, but should you buy into the hype? Not sure? . . . I wasn't either, and that's why I decided to take a set for a road test.
The Claim:
"As Dryer balls tumble around in the dryer they lift and seperate fabrics allowing air to flow more efficiently thus reducing drying time up to 25%."
The Findings:
After months and months of drying my laundry with dryer balls, I concluded that . . . the whole scoop on dryer balls
Instead of buying the advertised balls, I use two tennis balls….works great! Use it for every drier load.
I tried the dryer balls, and they worked quite well. However, the fumes from the PVC plastic made me become very short of breath, made my eyes, nose, throat and lungs burn. Gave me a headache and earaches. I had to get rid of them, after only a couple of uses. I also had to rewash everything that was dried using the dryer balls. I had washed the balls before using, but it didn’t help. Too bad they are not made from a safer plastic.
Use tennis balls but be careful since some tennis balls will stain wet clothes. Also my husband and I have found that clothes are generally dryer faster than you expect. We moved to a new house with a much higher electric bill and we started shortening the time the clothes went in the dryer until we discovered that a full load will dry in 40 minutes, not the full hour we were giving them. So I’m thinking that these balls just make you re-examine how long you were drying anyway. I still have not found anything that will stop static cling, even vinegar didn’t do it in my laundry.
Sandy
Oh and we also moved the heat from High to Medium and they still dried in 40 minutes.-S