AIBU to never use fabric conditioner?

[Greysparkles]

After a very random boring conversation with a friend she thinks I'm some sort of slattern for never using it. I say it smells awful and no one's ever complained so why would I bother
Who is BU?

I also use white vinegar. It's supposed to help keep whites whiter.

YANBU

Never use it. Hate the smell and it brings me out in a rash. We have velvety soft water anyway so never had a crunchy clothes issue.

I’ve never used it in my life.

Just more crap foisted on us by marketing companies. Expensive, wasteful.

The smells are rank.

I've started using just a dribble of fabric conditioner in my normal washing.

I do this, and not in every load too. My sister seems to chuck it in by the bucket load, but I find sipping away at it leads to much better usage.

Mind you, my rule of thumb for most products is half the amount the manufacturer suggests you use - of course it's in their interest to suggest you use whacking great quantities at a time!

I stopped using it years ago when I was trying to save money. Never missed it. I notice the greasy feeling on clothes now if it’s been used - I do dms washing and she likes to use it.

I’m sure on a similar thread someone said it had been invented to stop friction making cloth fibres overheat in manufacturing or something like that. Basically a greasy lubricant for clothes

I can't stand the smell and it makes everyone except DD itchy. In fact even walking down that aisle of the supermarket usually makes me sneeze. I also find most washing powders too fragranced and itch causing, so I use M&S own brand. Nobody has ever suggested that I'm a slattern, although one friend did express surprised that you could choose not to use it, she thought it was necessary somehow.

Wish someone made an unscented version, then I may use it. But to me it smell awful. I don’t think people can smell it on them if they use it all the time. If anyone comes to the house with it on their clothes I have to open doors and windows after they have gone. Occasionally it has triggered an asthma attack. Bloody hate it. Why on earth would you spend £xxx on perfume and then let it get overwhelmed by a cheap artificial stench?

Ludicrous to call you a 'slattern' for not using it!

She evidently doesn't understand the meaning of the word.

DD has awful eczema and we have been advised not to use it. We’ve stopped using it and haven’t noticed a difference in the clothes at all! 😊 just saved us money!

I don't use it, I honestly think it's superfluous and can be overpowering, my grandchildrens' clothes reek of it I think it has a very chemical odour. My washing always smells nice without it. I'm sure it clogs up the machine in the same way as hair conditioner, which I do find necesary, is prone to leave residue around the plug holes and after a while there is a build up that hinders the free flow of water until it's dealt with.

I'm sure I've read it's not good for washing machines. Gunks up the pipes & that build up causes stagnant water / smells. Same with liquid laundry detergent. Didn't use either for years at home, soft water area but no issues, I actually felt clothes were cleaner.

Sometimes use the laundrette now & chuck it in their machines if I'm doing a wash (& remember). Think it's the psychological cos other people's dirty stuffs been through before mine so I lob some in.

2 eczema sufferers in my house but Fairy conditioner doesn't make us itchy.

Yanbu. I’ve never ever bought or used fabric conditioner. No idea what it’s for. Clean clothes shouldn’t smell of anything.

It’s a waste of money. Clean clothes don’t need any added fragrance.

I never use it on towels as advised on most labels. I remember years ago something on watch dog about it causing damage in washing machines. So I use it but watered down. Probably doesn't apply any more. Only like the lavender ones

I can't believe so many people on this thread don't use it! 😮

I've never not used it, except for towels. And even then I use a bit. I've lived in both hard and soft water areas.

However what I have noticed is that a lot of people seem to think they need to fill the entire cap of the bottle. Nope. Look carefully and you'll see the "fill line" just less than halfway down the cap. Since I showed my son this, our laundry bills have gone down significantly!

I must admit I did go back to it after a while of using vinegar and essential oils. I’m not sure why it’s a trained habit o suppose. I’m definitely not one for zoflora and glade plug ins though, just white vinegar for cleaning.

Your bills will go down even more if you just don't use it at all.

I wear expensive perfume. Why would I want my clothes to smell like Tesco own brand Impulse body spray?

The smell reminds me of home, as DM uses it

We don't use it anymore and haven't in a couple of years. Number of reseaons, which amount to "it is inconvenient". I noticed only some towels go crunchy, some aren't affected at all - a bit of vinegar every other wash fixes chrunchiness, though. We don't have a dryer anymore, either, so it is really only the vinegar that makes the magic happen - no secret fluffing up

I stopped using it when I married a man who hates artificial smells and I haven't noticed any difference, apart from towels being more absorbent because they're not coated in a film of something possibly unpleasant and chemical.

And I now agree with him about the smell - they're all pretty horrible.

I've never not used it, except for towels. And even then I use a bit. I've lived in both hard and soft water areas.

Why though? What does it add apart from manufactured scent?

I have a tesco value one that I use for the shower curtain, coz the label says so. It stinks though! I'd never use it on our clothes, way too pongy!

White vinegar instead of fabric softener is the best. It leaves the clothes soft and makes the smell of the washing powder come out more. It’s also chemical free and cleans the washing machine at the same time!

A water softener is much better, but failing that, try Washing Soda Crystals.

A lot of the hardness in towels is an accumulation of soap scum and old softener wax.

Try a hot hot hot wash of your cotton towels with soda crystals and no detergent, powder or softener. I bet you a pound that the water will foam up as the old soap residue dissolves, and they will be softer and whiter afterwards.

YANBU.
We do not have to buy products just because they exist.

Do you just put a scoop of crystals in the detergent drawer?