Fabric softener- sheets or liquid?

I use vinegar as a fabric softener

I don’t use the sheets but I have heard you should wipe off your screen now and again if you use them. They say not to use dryer sheets from the start on towels as they won’t be as absorbent when used with fabric softener.

I use liquid for my clothes and dryer sheets for towels/sheets/blankets.

I use neither.

Unnecessary and I don’t like the fumes.

I’m a laundry snob and spend a lot of time reading about fabric care and laundry techniques.

Fabric softener isn’t good for fabric, isn’t good for your washing machine, and isn’t good for the environment.

Absolutely!

They cause skin problems, breathing problems, set off asthma, trigger migraines, and pollute the air inside and outside your home.

There’s tons of info on why they’re bad, but here’s a link from the Environmental Working Group to get you started -

www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/2022/08/skip-most-toxic-fabric-softeners

I don’t use either. I hate the sensation of something coating things of washed. I do, however, use wool dryer balls with a few dabs of essential oils. Only for sheets, towels and comforters. I don’t use anything on my clothes.

I only use vinegar in the washer. I use sheets for most of my loads except jeans and towels. I have dryer balls as well.

I use Gain Original Scent dryer sheets because I looooove the smell ... sucks that sheets are toxic but I'm not going to stop now ...

Everything is toxic if you ask the right person. I know people have allergies, and some have sensitive skin that would want to avoid using them - but eh.

I use them sometimes, mainly for static in the winter. I do use some fabric softener also from time to time - mostly because it smells good. I am NOT one of those people who hate scents in their laundry! LOL I use it sometimes on my husbands flannel shirts. Never on towels - it makes them less absorbent.

I know the new HE washing machines do not get clothes as clean as the old school washers do. So I would think the fabric softener could really build up over time.

Ditto, although I just add my vinegar to the wash cycle.  

I’m not sure what you mean by crystals.

The wax melts? Like Downy Unstoppables?

IMO, those are the worst of all.

Why would you coat your clothes and towels with melted wax? It literally builds up making a layer on your fabrics. Towels become less absorbent (wax doesn’t absorb water) and your clothes get a weird sheen that actually attracts dirt.

Also, what happens to wax when it gets cold? It gets hard again. So what do you think that is doing to your machine and pipes?

The wax contains not only fragrance, but dye, which also gradually changes the color of your clothes over time.

The dye can also ruin clothes. For example, there are many reports of the beads not melting in the washer, then getting put into the dryer and melting into clothes, then never coming out.

I just don’t see the appeal of adding stuff like this to your laundry.

I know people who say they do it for the smell, but then don’t think about the fact that their detergent also smells, and they also wear perfume and other products and by the time you leave the house, you are the olfactory equivalent of an ugly pile of melted crayons that just look poop when they combine.

I'm a "neither" person now, too, but I'm running out of static alternatives. I tried the wool balls years ago and found them lacking. With my new dryer, I tried the aluminum foil balls, which worked for the most part, but they're LOUD. Next, I'm going to try a damp washcloth tossed in for a few minutes at the end of the cycle.

Do you have any recommendations for controlling static? Or any other laundry tips involving products would be greatly appreciated! Currently I use free & clear pods, but saw that Costco now carries Ecos Plant Power Detergent Sheets -- anything you know about those? 

I rarely use the liquid and have never used the sheets. I am not a big fan of extra smells and use the unscented soap. To be fair, if you use a HE machine, you probably have soap residue left over in your clothes too. Even when you use a little soap, you can rinse out the clothes in the sink later and there will be a residue.

I don’t really have any static issues.

How dry your environment is can cause static, so it may just be a climate issue.

I don’t put my clothes or my kids clothes in the dryer. I hang everything to dry except socks and my husband’s dress clothes.

I have read that one thing that causes static is drying for too long. The longer the dry clothes rub against each other the more static it creates, so drying everything for the shortest time possible is a good start.