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Fabric softner

8 years ago

Would someone please share the appeal of fabric softner. We use all free and clear to wash our clothes. Tide is horrid for my skin and my son's. I also use no scent dryer sheets to control static.

Why would fabric softner be better?

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Comments (4)

larsi_gw
8 years ago
Fabric Softener makes clothes, sheets and towels....SOFTER, lol! It allows the fibers to lay smoother, so clothes are SOFTER ;) Most brands use wax or animal fats, while some are plant based.

Downy, owned by P&G, is the largest fabric softener maker. They claim that softener reduces wrinkles, prevents pilling, prevents fading, extends fabric life.

Downy, Snuggle and All make scent free fabric softeners if scent/perfume is not desired or you cannot tolerate it.

I use fabric softener on almost every load I wash. It makes clothes, towels and sheets feel so good!
gwlake thanked larsi_gw
gwlake
Original Author
8 years ago
What about high quality and high thread count sheets. Would it make a difference. I appreciate your answer. We didn't use it growing up because it was expensive. :).
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I do not use FS & never have, not dryer sheets nor the kind for the washer. In my opinion they stink of artificial scent & when I am around machines whose owners use them, I go into sneezing fits. I also use unscented liquid detergent. My sister has severe asthma; my husband and daughter have mild asthma. I would not think of using scented products in my house because of exposing the asthmatics to triggers. Here is the thing, you FS users---if something is bad for asthmatics to breathe, it is also bad for you to breathe. Their immune systems are just hypersensitive to bad things, and they get an attack. The same stuff is bad for you; you just do not get the early-warning "siren" from your body that they do from theirs. As to fluffy towels--may I suggest buying higher quality towels? Hotels that have thick soft towels are buying really good ones. I have cheap thin towels from my college student days that are great for rubbing the cat after her bath --- and I have thick, soft, nice towels that I dry myself with. Are you shaking them & fluffing them when you pull them from the washer, not just stuffing them in the dryer?
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mamapinky0
8 years ago
Well personally I don't like fabric softener on sheets, makes them too soft, but I like my sheets to have that crisp smooth feel.I really can't answer about modern day sheets most of mine are from the 70's. I just can't find any modern sheets that feel like the older ones, they usually feel either like guaze or they are too soft.perhaps I've looked in the wrong places lol. Usually I buy them at flea markets yard sales or thrift stores, than they go thru a process to remove built up detergent, and body oils..lol that I doubt new sheets could tolorate. Wish I could have helped .a note about dryer sheets...they are known to cause an invisable build up on the dryer lint screen that does not come off without hot soapy water, this can cause fires..if you use dryer sheets run water thru your lint screen and see if the water runs thru freely, if not it should be washed.
suburbanmd
8 years ago
Liquid fabric softeners are said to leave residue in the washing machine, the same residue it leaves on the clothes. Since we replaced our moldy-smelling Whirlpool DD type top-loader with a front-loader, we haven't used fabric softener at all. From what I read online back then (2008), the moldy smell likely came from fabric softener and perhaps liquid detergent. We didn't do cold washes, so that wasn't it.

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