Disclaimer: I received a set of 6 dryer balls through a giveaway. All opinions expressed are my own.

I haven’t used fabric softener for at least five years. The smell always bothered me, and once you look into it, it is really quite bad for the environment and for you! If you buy sheets they are not biodegradeable. The liquid literally coats your clothes. Even if you use fabric softener, you aren’t supposed to use it on towels because it cuts down on their absorbancy! The liquid softener also leaves your washing machine a mess. When we moved in to our house I disassembled the dispenser in our washer and thoroughly cleaned it. It was quite difficult to get all the residue off. And especially because we cloth diaper, I didn’t want that getting on any of our laundry.

Without softener, you still need something to help out the dryer – in come dryer balls. I’ve always used plastic ones, and recently bought a new set at Target. They are quiet and supposedly help drying time. Then this past month I won a giveaway for a set of Woolzies Dryer Balls. They are billed as being able to cut out dryer time and end static, plus be quiet – some people use tennis balls in the dryer and these are supposedly quieter than tennis balls.

My thoughts? They cut down on drying time a bit. My cloth diapers generally take 70 minutes on high but this took maybe 10-15 minutes off. However, they were MUCH louder than my usual plastic balls. It was really distracting to be watching TV in the next room over, as husband and I could hear them beating the inside of the dryer. However, I will say I now have ZERO static. I was constantly being shocked when emptying a load of towels from the dryer. But now I have a pleasant, shock-free experience. So that is really the best part of these, as my plastic dryer balls didn’t cut down on any static.

So in the end, now that I have used these, I certainly wouldn’t pay $35 for them. When they die out (supposedly after 1,000 loads) I’ll go back to my plastic ones.