We have used this tried-and-true trick for years. Considering how time-consuming and labor-intensive laundry can be, we're always looking for ways to make it faster and easier. Tennis balls make laundry fluffier with less static, and they make doing laundry faster and more economical.
Do tennis balls really work in the dryer? Tennis balls can provide some benefits like separating clothes, softening fabrics, speeding up drying time, and reducing static electricity. However, tennis balls also have downsides like leaving lint/residue behind and causing potential damage to clothes and dryers long-term.
Rather than tossing the ball into the drum, Masters suggests interesting the tennis ball into a tube sock and tying the top in a knot. I opted for a random pair of white socks, which was especially key as I was drying a load of light sheets.
Simply put, wool dryer balls are tightly woven balls of felted wool. They are generally biodegradable and can be made at home with a few basic supplies. The balls go inside the drum of your dryer and are often used in place of commercial fabric softeners and dryer sheets.
An extra tip: pop two clean tennis balls into the drum. They will help to circulate air flow in your garments and prevent the down feathers from clumping together.
Tennis balls bounce around in the dryer, separating the fibers and allowing more air to circulate, which helps the towels dry faster and fluff up. This also helps avoid the need for fabric softeners, which can reduce towels' absorbency over time.
Even plastic and rubber dryer balls won't have an effect on your dryer. Most manufacturers are careful to note the weight of each dryer ball and the material it's made of. That being said, most loads of laundry don't need more than 2-3 dryer balls at a time.
When you're washing bed pillows, comforters, or anything down-filled, adding a few new, clean wool balls or tennis balls to the dryer helps fluff them up. If you've ever pulled a freshly washed pillow out of the dryer to find it lumpy and misshapen, a dryer ball can fix it.
Try wool dryer balls.
Wool dryer balls are an easy way to help reduce lint in your dryer. Separating your clothes and reducing friction between items keeps them from producing as much lint.
A: Yes they do. Wool laundry dryer balls help separate items to let more air and heat circulate, which speeds up the tumble-drying process. That's good news for your energy bills and the environment. And the more laundry dryer balls you use, the quicker the drying time.
To help restore the fluffiness of the down, add two or three clean tennis balls to your dryer. Check the garment every 15-20 minutes to pull apart clumps. This process will help ensure that feathers are distributed evenly, and the garment is completely dry, which will prevent moisture.".
First things first: You'll want to avoid damage to your footwear when drying your shoes. That's why it's generally not recommended to dry shoes in a machine dryer. This runs the risk of potentially shrinking the footwear and damaging the glue that holds the shoes together.
The aluminum foil ball is better than fabric softener. It's better than dryer sheets. You toss this in the dryer. And for the next 30 to 60 trips to the dryer, this is going to absorb static better than anything you've ever used.
To dry a comforter without ruining it, use a low heat setting. Also, make sure to add tennis balls or clean canvas shoes to the dryer to help fluff up the comforter.
The hot ball was the one to bounce the highest because when a tennis ball is heated the gas molecules expand increasing the energy in the ball. When the ball gets colder the opposite effect happens. The gas molecules shrink causing the ball to have less energy and not bounce as high.
Clean Tennis Balls or Dryer Balls – Add one to three balls to speed up your dry time. It will sound like they are beating up your dryer but they don't actually hurt it. Dryer Sheets – Add a dryer sheet to freshen your pillow.
This is where sport and laundry come together. You find three tennis balls and you toss them in the dryer with your coat. This fluffs the coat back up as it dries because they bounce against the feathers. Makes the coat all fluffy and good-looking again.
Put your pillows in a dryer with tennis balls. You can put the ball in a sock, tie the sock, and put it in the dryer with your pillow. You can do this once a month to fluff your pillows. If you have a cotton fill pillow, use the dryer on low settings for 20 minutes.
Brown says, “Dryer balls may help reduce the amount of lint in your laundry. Wool dryer balls have the added benefit of helping to keep your laundry items separate while drying them, which reduces friction during the drying process and, as a result, creates less lint.”
Use a Dryer Sheet
They provide a range of benefits when it comes time to dry your clothes– 5-in-1 benefits! You're likely familiar with removing static, but they also soften fabrics, reduce wrinkles, lint, pet hair, and add amazing fresh scent.
Deemed a safer choice by many experts, wool dryer balls are an environmentally responsible alternative to traditional dryer sheets. Natural and chemical-free, 100 percent wool dryer balls are hypoallergenic, too, making them a smart choice for those with sensitive skin, including clothes for babies and kids.
Unlike wool dryer balls, tennis balls do not provide the option to add natural scents to the laundry. Tennis balls may contain chemicals such as dyes or synthetic additives that can transfer to clothing during the drying process. Tennis balls are not reusable like wool dryer balls, requiring frequent repurchases.
Can You Use Too Many Dryer Balls? Wool dryer balls are safe for most types of fabric, so it's usually fine to use more than the suggested number of dryer balls per load. However, keep in mind that using extra dryer balls can make your clothes dry faster than normal.
That depends on the size of your load. For a small load, use 1. For a medium sized load, use two. For a large or extra-large load use 3.