Wash Balls Scam | Fraud?

Wash balls are one of those too good to be true products and the explanation of how wash balls work is a little shaky. So here I'll present another opinion of these balls that I've found on the web. I'm not that good in physics so I have no idea what is true but I think it is fair to give both versions of the truth and also to hear voice from the users - if you are using a wash ball please leave a response here in the wash ball reviews.

Are wash balls a scam?

Washing balls have small pellets also called "washing pearls" inside. They are made out of ceramic. They are supposed to interact with the water in the washing machine and enhance it. So what do they do?

Wash balls with infrared rays and alkalization
Can wash balls generate far infrared rays to cut off the hydrogen and binding of water molecule?And do they radiate anions to soften the surface tension of the water?

All material generate infrared waves which are basically heat. This also reduces the surface tension of water. But this would probably be marginal in comparison to the radiation emitted by the water which is being heated in the washing machine.

I don't know of any tests that would prove that wash ball could (and does) generate stronger infrared waves.

The other claim about alkalization and pH is also untested.

Chlorine free water
Wash balls are supposed to clean or neutralize the chlorine from the water. Chlorine is added to tap water and is also found in normal detergents. It is used for disinfection of drinking water. Here I can only say that the amount of chlorine in the tap water is very small.

Are wash balls antibacterial?
This is dubious. Because chlorine is added to water so it disinfects it and acts as an antibacterial agent. If wash balls neutralize it that would cancel this effect and make wash balls do just the opposite. If there is another way how wash balls kill the germs - it is not explained in detail so I can not say if it is true or not.

Magnetic wash balls
There are a few wash balls on the market (not all of them) that claim that they have magnetic powers. I mean the fact that they have magnetic elements inside is not controversial. It's what these elements are supposed to do - they minimize the size of the water molecules and smaller molecules clean scale and rust from old washing machines.

This is highly unlikely. Magnets do attract rust but they would pull it into your laundry and water molecules can not be just scaled and made smaller.

Can they release anions (negative ions)?
Laundry balls also release anions. Anions weaken the connection between the dirt and the fabric. This is possible but anions would be created in only a small quantity.

So, that is the other point of view. So are wash balls a scam and a fraud? I don't know. As I said I am using them. Anyway - please share your opinion about this here.

Thanks!

Why use washing balls?

What would be the benefits of using washing balls instead of laundry detergent? I should note here that there are "heated" debated weather washing balls work of not. This is partly why I started this website. I am using washing balls for a while now and they work fine I guess. I do add some detergent because I like the fresh smell that the clothes get from it. And my clothes are never that dirty like a child's clothes would be for instance.

So - why use washing balls?

1. You can wash and clean clothes and laundry without the use of detergents. There are many positive aspects of this
2. you save money - you acn use one washing ball for 3 years or even longer and in that time you can save quite a bit since you do not need to use the detergent, or you can cut the detergent use by 80%.
3. environment - this is why they are also called eco wash balls. Without using a detergent you are not polluting water and you are saving the environment.
4. Because you do not need to use any detergent your clothes are detergent free. If you wash them the normal way there is always a little bit of detergent left on the clothes. Some people are allergic to that detergent residue and washing balls are a great way to avoid that.
5. All (or most of them) detergents contain amounts of chlorine. Chlorine works as an antiseptic but it also causes clothes to pale and become discolorated. It also ages the fibers and makes clothes less elastic. So by not using it your clothes will stay more colorfull and elastic.
6. Washing balls have an antibiotic like effect. You will get rid of mold, pathogenic organisms and unpleasant odours caused by bacteria.
7. Because of all this you also do not need to use fabric softeners, bleaching agents or other washing additives. Which is pretty cool...
8. Also if you are worried - the washing balls will not get tangled into your clothes or will not ruin them in any way.
9. They will also clean the inside of old washing machines (just make sure you clean the washing machine filter afterwards)

This is quite a nice list of benefits. In the next post we will really cover how the washing balls work and achieve all that (or at least what manufacturers say they do).

Eco Wash Balls

Eco wash balls are orb like objects made out of plastic that you put into your washing machine where they help to clean you clothes during washing. Wash balls are meant to be used as a replacement for washing detergent or at least as a way to reduce using the detergent for as far as 80%.

Inside of the plastic shell of the eco wash ball are lots of smaller pellets usually made out of ceramic. The general idea behind this is that these pellets interact with water molecules to help clean the dirt of your clothes.

Newer eco wash balls can be used 1000 or even more times, so if you wash your clothes every day you could use them for almost three years. Off course, if you wash your clothes once or twice a week this period is greatly extended.

There are many benefits to using them, like saving the environment and saving some money. We will look into them in more detail later.

They are also very easy to use - you just put them into your washing machine together with your dirty clothes and you are done.

Since all this sounds to good to be true there is also some controversy about these washing balls. There are various debates where people claim anything from eco wash balls to be magical and that they work perfectly to the fact that they are a scam and that the clothes would be washed the same if you used only water and no detergent and no wash balls at all.

We will try to find a few answers to these questions.

To finish this introduction to eco wash balls - here are a few pictures so you can see for yourself how they look: