Dryer Balls of PVC
I’m a nice person overall. And I generally don’t like to tear down products made with good intentions. At least I hope the intentions here were good. Still, why would you produce a supposedly “green” product with PVC (polyvinyl chloride), a product material that major retailers like Target are systematically reducing in their stores (in items like toys, infant products, packaging and fashion accessories)? If you missed it, here’s the Dangers of PVC post from earlier.
What are dryer balls?
The makers say that they will soften your clothes and help prevent static cling. They are billed as green because you can stop using fabric softener and dryer sheets. But, most (if not all) of these dryer balls are made of PVC.
I even caught my beloved Gaiam selling them. They don’t make them, but I believe they are selling Nellie’s Laundry dryer balls. If you enlarge the photo on Gaiam’s site, you can see the web address. It takes you to Nellie’s Laundry site. Also, I asked Gaiam’s customer service if the dryer balls they are selling are made of PVC, and they confirmed that they are. Nellie announces proudly that her dryer balls are made of PVC. She isn’t the only one who sells these though. Dryer balls are everywhere it seems.
You don’t have to buy something like this to soften your clothes. There’s a great dryer sheet/dryer ball alternative that’s been around for a long time.
This solution isn’t new. In fact, it’s been all over the place like kudzu. But in case you haven’t heard about it or considered it:
Add 1/2 cup vinegar and/or baking soda in rinse cycle to soften clothes. Put essential oil on cloth in dryer if you want fragrance.
No, the clothes won’t smell like vinegar, but you do need to measure. If you pour it in wildly, yes, your clothes will smell like vinegar. That happened to me once. I’ve never tried the baking soda option, but I may still since the laundry well never runs dry. Also, I’ve never experienced any static cling with the vinegar option.
I personally think that vinegar gets clothes softer than dryer sheets. And it is much cheaper as well. (Visit Deb Ng’s famous Simply Thrifty post: 66 Uses for Vinegar!)
Fun project: If you like to sew and want fragrance on your clothes, try making a little pillow and put the cloth with essential oil inside.
So, does anyone think dryer balls are green? Have you tried vinegar to soften clothes?
Tags: dryer balls, essential oil to add fragrance, gaiam, Nellie's Laundry, PVC, vinegar to soften clothesRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Consumer Choice, Greenwashing, Toxic Stuff
4 opinions for Dryer Balls of PVC
Jul
Mar 18, 2008 at 7:01 pm
We received a pair of these as a Christmas present, and I can’t say that I thought much about them either way (my husband was excited for them, though, since I refuse to use dryer sheets - so I do use the balls). I only use the dryer for sheets and towels, and I think they come out fine without any softening aids.
Since we already own the balls, what to do? Are they causing us harm if I use them? Evil PVC residue? Since I doubt I could recycle them here, it seems like they will end up in a landfill if I get rid of them now.
Peggy
Mar 18, 2008 at 11:42 pm
Jul, one reason I decided to discourage dryer balls is because there’s no good way to dispose of them. Even if you find a place that accepts plastics #3, these things will release their dioxins when being recycled. But this is true of many things made of PVC.
I honestly can’t say whether they are harmful to use in the dryer. I don’t think that has been studied. I don’t know if they are getting hot enough to release any gases or not. If you want to be on the safe side, use tennis balls instead. This is something I’ve seen suggested by manufacturers of down blankets.
If I wanted to get rid of some dryer balls I would mail them back to the manufacturer with a note about why I’m sending them back.
Jul
Mar 19, 2008 at 10:06 am
Tennis balls - interesting idea! I would have never thought of that (but then again, I would have never thought of these spiky little balls, either).
Julie
Mar 30, 2008 at 12:52 pm
This has been most informative as I too was considering buying the Dryer balls for my laundry, mostly to cut down on drying time. Considered tennis balls too but I suspect they’re not so green. Someone makes balls out of wool that is then felted and used in the dryer but their fabrication is labour intensive and they sell out like hot cakes - I guess they’d be easy enough to make…
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