In my post on Scent Free Clothing (Thrifting) I discussed methods of removing or reducing fragrance (laundry products or perfume) from second hand clothing. It used to be that thrifted and recycled clothing were a good option for people with chemical sensitivities because the ‘newness’, the chemicals used to product the fabric, as well as the remaining odour of dye, have been washed away. Then came heavily fragranced fabric softeners and dryer sheets that add a new problem-chemical to clothing. Not to mention that the Allergy and Environmental Health Association reports that both liquid and dryer sheet fabric softeners are ”the most toxic product produced for daily household use.”
Whatever in the world did we do before dryer sheets and liquid fabric softeners? In our house we hung clothes on the line and then ironed whatever needed to be ironed (most things it seemed). Unless I were to do laundry everyday, I do not have room on my balcony to air dry a full load of laundry on my drying rack. Still I do what I can by choosing fragrance free laundry products and looking for other alternatives.
I’ve been using Arm and Hammer Essentials laundry detergent (fragrance free and plant based). It is fine but nothing to get excitetd about. My last shopping trip I bought Nature Clean 3X, unscented (I think it was 3x the price as well), but I am impressed with it. There seemed to be a definite differrence in the clothing, smoother to the touch.
In the clothes dryer my complaint is static electicity. I wonder really, is static electricity enough of a problem to justify the use of toxic substances? Or is it now mostly by habit that we believe we really need these products?
I do think this is the case. I’ve bought dryer balls and used them with drying towels and sheets. I am not convinced they make a much of a difference, and the violence of what seems to be going go on in the dryer (thump, thump) has shied me away from using them in with fine fabrics. Warm the balls up in hot water before putting them in the dryer muffles the racket a little. But still, most of those dryer balls are made from PVC, trading one environmental toxin for another. But at least they are reusable for years. Still I find myself asking myself, do we really, really need to use anything?
I’ve found a brand of dryer sheets that are plant based and fragrance free: (Method squeaky green Dyer Cloths). They work fine — (but again, do I really need them?) I have (gasp!) gone as far as to put my clothes directly in the dryer with no fabric softener. With no major mishaps, I might add.
Having been convinced for so long that we need to use products, searching for a replacement to toxic chemical in the laundry is probably more in line with people’s thinking, than total elimination. So here is where my research on laundry alternatives and eliminating fabric softener has lead me:
- Tennis balls (clean ones) in the dryer. They are supposed to do as good a job as the blue spiked PVC dryer balls…unless you are allergic to latex, which is what is in tennis balls. If you are avoiding fragranced laundry products due to chemical sensitivities, putting a common allergen like latex into your clothing is not a good idea at all.
- Vinegar (1/4 – 1/2 a cup) in the rinse cycle. Some people use the fabric softener dispersers (Downy makes one) that release the product in the rinse cycle — filling them with the vinegar instead of fabric softener. I do not like the smell of vinegar. Some people say the vinegar odour doesn’t remain in the clothing after they are dry, others say it is there, so experimention is needed. Vinegar (it is reported) will also reduce static cling in the dryer.
- Baking soda can be used in place of vinegar. One would need to dissolve it in water first, and could also go in the Downy balls.
- Use a Borax detergent booster. I’ve used Borax for years, but I’ve never realized it could replace fabric softener. It’s time to read the box again.
How often the ‘old’ remedies remain the best choices for ourselves and the planet.
© Deborah Redfern, 2009. All rights reserved.
