Dryer balls can help prevent clothing from clumping and wrinkling in the dryer, which reduces drying time. If you are looking for ways to limit single-use products in your everyday routine and around your home, dryer balls are a great option when it comes to laundry. They come in various sizes and materials but are most commonly made from wool and are an eco-friendly, sustainable alternative to single-use dryer sheets and fabric softener.
What Is a Dryer Ball?
A dryer ball is a spherical object usually made from wool, sometimes from rubber, used as an alternative to single-use dryer sheets to help prevent clumping and wrinkling and to reduce drying time.
Keep reading to learn more about how dryer balls work and the benefits of using them.
How Do Dryer Balls Work?
Dryer balls reduce drying time by preventing clumping and increasing airflow as they tumble between the clothes. Additionally, wool dryer balls help absorb moisture from wet clothes.
Most dryer balls are made from wool, but you may also see some made from rubber and even plastic. The construction is simple enough you can DIY them. Whatever material they are made from, they are an excellent way to avoid using single-use dryer sheets, produce less waste, and save money at the same time. Dryer balls made from wool are eco-friendly.
To use them, throw one or more dryer balls in the dryer with your clothing as you would a dryer sheet. If you miss that fresh laundry scent that you get from dryer sheets, you can easily give wool dryer balls a pleasant fragrance using a couple of drops of essential oils, such as lavender, citrus, or eucalyptus. They will retain the scent and transfer it onto the contents of the dryer through heat and air circulation.
Benefits of Using Dryer Balls
Reduce Waste
Unlike dryer sheets that need to be tossed after only one use, wool dryer balls can be used hundreds, even thousands, of times, which makes them much more environmentally friendly. Once you are ready to replace them because they are not filled with any chemicals or artificial materials, they are biodegradable and can actually be composted.
Prevent Clumping and Wrinkling
Dryer balls absorb heat from the dryer and as they are tossed around with clothing, towels, or bedding, they help items separately and prevent clumping. As garments clump together, it causes wrinkling that can be hard to iron out, but with this drying method, there is better circulation of warm air that ensures faster and better garment separation.
Save Money
Because a set of dryer balls can be used over and over again, it will save you the amount of money you would be spending on constantly replenishing dryer sheets. Dryer balls also help extend the life of your clothing because they don’t contain any harsh chemicals that can break down and damage fabric over time. The fact that they reduce drying time also helps, as your clothes aren’t exposed to high heat for prolonged periods of time, which helps them to stay in better shape, saving you money in the long run.
Reduce Drying Time
One of the main benefits of using dryer balls is that they help reduce drying time, sometimes as dramatically as cutting it in half. As they move around inside the dryer, they separate items so instead of them moving around in one giant clump of wet material, warm air flows around each item, drying it faster.
Soften Clothing
Instead of using fabric softener while doing laundry, use dryer balls for the same effect. They don’t contain any of the chemicals, artificial softeners, or heavy scents that a fabric softener might, which means that they are more gentle on your clothing. As the dryer balls bounce around, they help fluff and soften each garment. The wool balls work best with small to medium loads, which is a better way to dry your clothing anyway, as overloading the dryer leads to excessive friction which reduces the softness of materials and creates wrinkles.
Disadvantages of Dryer Balls
Certain wool dryer balls, such as ones made from plastic, can damage your dryer if they are too dense. If they crack, they can potentially scratch your dryer and damage your clothes as well. Wool dryer balls also don’t last forever. When they start to loosen and fray, it’s time to replace them.
Dryer balls alone won’t add a pleasant scent to your clothes like dryer sheets, so you’ll need to add essential oils to the balls before each load if you want the scent.
Lastly, it may take some time to get used to the noise that dryer balls make when they tumble.
How to Clean and Care for Dryer Balls
Taking care of your dryer balls is super simple, and it can actually give them a new lease on life when they get a little too loose and frayed. Just wash them on a gentle cycle in hot water and dry them on a high-heat cycle. You can wash them alone or with a load of other like-materials. Alternatively, you can also handwash them with warm, soapy water.
How Long Do Dryer Balls Last?
Most dryer balls can be used hundreds of times and therefore last for well over a year. After that, if they’re looking a little bit worse for wear and aren’t working as well anymore, try handwashing them or running them on a gentle cycle. If they have collected a lot of lint, dirt, or pet hair, use a lint roller or fabric shaver to remove it, and continue using them. You will know it’s time to replace the dryer balls once they begin to heavily shed and disintegrate, or if they are too loose and even break apart.
FAQ
- How many dryer balls do you put in the dryer? Depending on the size of the load, three to four dryer balls should sufficiently speed up the drying time. You may need to use as many as seven balls for larger loads.
- Can dryer balls damage the dryer? Wool dyer balls are not dense enough to damage your dyer. However, heavier plastic dryer balls may cause damage, especially if they become damaged or cracked.
- How often should you wash dryer balls? Aim to wash your dryer balls every 100 loads or once every 1-2 months. Use the gentle cycle and hot water, or handwash them with soapy water.