EcoBalls

[emzickle]

Does any one know if they are any good?

Do they work for you - and do they work with washable nappies too?

We have been using eco balls for our clothing the last few weeks. Have discover Hubby is a closet hippy!! have found them fine although i miss the lovely smells you get from using washing tabs. We haven't used them to wash nappies as it just doesn't seem right although should really give it a go as a test run!! Will report findings when have done so(!)

A few tips if you're going to use them
don't overload the machine (like i always used to do...i.e shove in as much as can possibly fit!!)
hang out the washing as soon as it has finished. if you leave in in the machine (say overnight) the clothes tend to get a musty smell
add drops of lavender or other essential oils to fabric dispenser with some water (will scent the clothes... don't know if this is much good for fabrics though!)

They have a 30 day money back gaurantee so it's worth a go to see how you like them.

I personally never got on with them but others have said they're excellent. I've tried everything as my son has sensitive skin, and eventually I've gone with Soap Nuts (see www.inasoapnutshell.com). They smell awful in the bag, but clothes come out smelling nice (again, as long as you remove them straight away). In fact, I now find the artifical scents of conventional washing products overwhelming and horrid.

They are (at least for us ) no good for adult tops or very dirty clothes, but for baby and toddler clothing they're brilliant. I also use them for bedding and towels, and any other lightly soiled items that come through the wash.

I don't use any of these for nappies, although again many people do and find they work well. It depends on the strength of the wee . I use Ecover, which is ok, but have recently discovered ECOS Laundry Liquid which is better (I get it from www.naturalcollection.com). Very rarely I run them through with a conventional non-bio product if they're getting a bit too stained.

Emma
www.makesachange.co.uk/
The Organic and Fair Trade Baby Boutique

I bought eco balls for dd's clothes as me and dh have eczema and allergies to some powders and I didn't want to irritate her skin. I too miss the lovely smells from regular powder and her clothes can smell a little odd but the milky sick smells and dried possit on collars etc. come out fine. The clothes feel lovely and soft and whites are fairly white. However, I also use it to wash her nappies (tots bots), which are made from a kind of sandy-coloured towelling. Washed at 40 degrees, poo stains aren't removed (although the stain remover that comes with the eco balls does remove them if used liberally - but the pot's really small). I haven't tried washing them at 60... Bottom line - I'd recommend them.

I too have been thinking about buying them, but where can you buy them?

My MIL bought me some to try out, she got them for me SIL and herself but I did the test run because of children.
The first wash was a good test as we had been decorating and dd had found the pot of white spirit whcih was soaking the brushes!
The smell came out and all the clothes looked clean

but

we found on dh's work tops, they still smelt stale, not sweaty but you know that worn all day smell. Also dd's pants, it didn't get the poo marks out of them (adament on wiping herself, lol), and bedding too.

In the end I resorted to using conditioner with them for the smell and softness and decided it wasn't as good as using tabs or powder.
Shame really but I love the smell of freshly washed clothes.

bit of tea tree in the drawer works for the stale smell