You might have noticed that no fabric care guide ever suggests using fabric softeners or dry sheets. Well, there is not one but seven good reasons behind it (and maybe even more). In this blog, we will share the pros and cons of fabric softeners and dryer sheets and suggest the best alternatives for these in laundry care. Let’s get started!
Reason 1: Silicone Coating
Did you know that the first time you use a softener on your clothing, you are actually coating it with silicones? Yep- that’s right! Laundry softeners reduce the water absorption rate in textiles by up to 80% in a single wash. This means that your towels will no longer do what they were made to do, i.e. soak up water.
Reason 2: Reduced breathability
By using a softener, you are reducing the breathability of your clothes and coating the spaces between the yarns. While your favourite tee may feel all soft and cosy after being dried with a fabric softener, the next time you wear it on a hot, sunny day, you might as well be wrapped in cellophane. The reason? It won’t absorb sweat or body oils anymore, making you extremely uncomfortable. For people with sensitive skin, it can even lead to rashes or severe irritation.
Reason 3: Set in stains
When you use fabric softeners or dryer sheets, any stains on your clothing become set-in, making it extremely challenging to remove them later on. Even the best stain removal methods can stop working because both softeners and dryer sheets coat your textiles with silicone, so you need to remove the coating to get rid of the stain underneath.
Reason 4: Attract lint
Unfortunately, silicone has more than just a few consequences and not only for your clothing, but also for your appliances and the environment.
According to the US Fire Administration, the failure to clean out lint from laundry machine dryers cause thousands of home fires every year. The silicone from softeners and dryer sheets can coat the dryer’s lint catcher, resulting in the dryer catching excessive lint and making the appliance prone to catching fires as the air filters become blocked, leading to overheating
Here’s a simple hack: If you have ever used a softener or a dryer sheet, pull out your dryer’s lint catcher and place it under running water. If it holds water, it’s probably coated with silicone, and you need to clean it ASAP. Fill your sink with hot water and using a bristle brush, carefully scrub the mesh to remove the residue. After doing this, you have a sure-fire sign to stop using dryer sheets or fabric softeners.
Now, circling back to the health of your clothing, when silicone is coated on the surface of textiles, it makes them highly susceptible to catching lint which increases the likelihood of pilling. As a result, you start seeing those pesky little balls of fabric named “pills” on your clothes, which dull the color, and give a worn-out appearance.
BONUS TIP: BIORESTORE cotton is the best lint eliminator for clothing made of at least 70% cotton. Simply add your clothes with lint or pilling in the washer and add the recommended amount of BIORESTORE laundry powder. Using the instructions mentioned on the packaging, run a cycle and complete the process with a quick spin in the tumble-dryer. By removing the lint and pills (which cause a rough surface) the original colors and soft hand feel of the textiles is restored.
Reason 5: Phthalates
Dryer sheets are typically packed with phthalates, which are common endocrine disrupters. These chemicals are extremely harmful for human health and can cause significant problems for children, pregnant women and their babies in utero. For me, that’s a price too high to pay just so your clothes feel a bit softer or smell like sea breeze or a ‘sunshine’ fragrance.
Some alternative methods to freshen up your clothing are essential oils, natural fabric softeners, and bio laundry powders like BIORESTORE cotton as mentioned above.
Reason 6: Toxic Chemicals
You might have heard people recommending placing some fabric sheets around your home’s foundation or even on your boat to keep mice away. Now, just think about it yourself. If mice (and other insects) are running away from something, why would you voluntarily rub it against your favourite pieces of clothing? If something is toxic enough to be used as an animal repellent, it’s definitely not a wise choice to add it to your laundry care regime.
Reason 7: Not Vegan
Finally, if you are someone who cares about the well-being of other creatures on the planet, here is an interesting fact for you. One of the primary ingredients used in fabric softeners (that is also added to dryer sheets BTW) is dehydrogenated tallow dimethyl ammonium chloride, typically derived from processing the fat from horses, cows, and sheep.
Plus, we all know that animal fats don’t really smell good. That’s why most softeners come with an extra fragrance ‘’boost’’ to cover the smell of the original ingredients.
What to use instead of fabric softener?
There are great bio laundry powders available on the market that can be used as great alternatives to fabric softeners. For example, BIORESTORE cotton is a specialised laundry powder designed to revive the vibrancy and handfeel of clothing made of at least 70% cotton in only one home laundry wash. With this advanced Re-Tergent, you can keep your wardrobe looking and feeling its best, that too, without any harmful chemicals. Similarly, you can find dedicated fabric care detergents for other types of garments as well.
Is fabric softener toxic to humans?
Unfortunately, yes! Fabric softeners are typically packed with phthalates, also known as “endocrine disruptors”. These chemicals are extremely harmful for human health and can cause significant health problems for children and pregnant women (and their babies in utero).
Another chemical found in softeners i.e. “benzyl acetate” has been linked to pancreatic cancer. When used in laundry, it creates small vapours, causing irritation to eyes as well as respiratory passages.
