5 Simple Eco-Friendly Laundry Swaps
Clean Up Your Laundry Routine
Why Make the Switch?
You may have heard the saying: “Nothing is certain except death and taxes” — but every time I hear the phrase, I feel like one thing is missing: laundry! It never seems to end. And because it is a perpetual chore, shifting our habits around it can have a big impact — for both us and the planet.
Your Health
Examining the products that we use to wash, stain treat, and soften our clothing is of particular importance because of their close proximity to our skin. When you start researching the toxic, harmful, and possibly cancer-causing ingredients in common laundry detergents like Tide, you will want to avoid them at all costs. Many chemicals and fragrances used in home laundry care, including detergent, stain removers, and fabric softeners, have been linked to asthma, skin allergies and irritation, cancer, disrupting hormones, reproductive and developmental toxicity, and more.
Here is a list of some ingredients to AVOID:
The Planet
Traditional liquid laundry detergents are usually packaged in high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic jugs. A mind-blowing 68% of these bottles are not recycled and contribute to the approximately 275 metric tons of plastic waste generated on land that goes into our oceans and waterways annually. Additionally, stain removers commonly contain linear alkylbenzyl sulfonates (C10-16) and disodium distyrylbiphenyl disulfonate which are harmful to the planet and do not readily biodegrade.
Five Simple Steps to Green your Laundry Routine:
01. Shift your Laundry Detergent
From plastic jugs to toxic ingredients, it may be time to rethink your laundry detergent. Luckily, there are many safe, effective, body- and earth-friendly products out there that are sure to keep your clothes clean.
The Alternative: Choosing an eco-laundry detergent is an easy and essential first step. Natural laundry detergent is not only better for your health, but it’s also better for the environment, waterways, and animal life.
Here are a few brands to get you started:
Meliora Cleaning Products (A Rating) — packaged in refillable metal canisters
Dirty Labs Fragrance-Free Detergent (EWG verified) — packaged in recyclable aluminum containers
Healthy Baby Detergent Concentrate (EWG verified) — packaged in a glass bottle
Note: Product labels can be tricky. Federal and state laws don’t require manufacturers to disclose the majority of cleaning product ingredients. And often there are hundreds of chemicals behind words like “fragrance.” To dive deeper into the ingredients in products you’ve been using (and their health impact), head to the Environmental Working Group’s site and look for products that are EWG verified or have received an A rating from EWG (and come plastic-free).
02. Change your Stain Remover
Stain removers are important. They help extend the life of clothing. Because the fashion industry contributes 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions due to its long supply chains and energy-intensive production, it is important to take care of your clothes so you can wear them as long as possible. The problem is that stain removers often come in plastic bottles and contain a lot of nasty hidden harmfuls. Many stain remover ingredients are not good for our health.
The Alternative: Stain remover bars are a fantastic alternative to plastic spray/gel/pen stain removers.
Try this:
Meliora Cleaning Products: Laundry Soap Stick Stain Remover (A rating) — packaged in a recyclable paper box. Plus, it’s dye-free, preservative-free, palm oil-free, cruelty-free, and fragrance-free, and they list all of their ingredients (and discuss them in detail) on their website.
How to use a stain recover bar: Simply wet the bar and the stain with water. Then gently rub the bar on the stain and wash the garment as instructed on the garments label.
Note: Just because a stain remover comes plastic-free and in bar form does not mean that it is safe. The Wash and Stain Bar by The Laundress, for example, is not rated specifically on the EWG site. However, their liquid stain remover has an F rating.
03. Swap out Dryer Sheets
Dryer sheets are single-use, meaning that they get thrown out after one use. They are made of non-woven polyester fabric (aka plastic) covered with chemicals to fragrance and soften clothing while reducing static cling. Not only do they create unnecessary landfill waste, but they are also bad for your health. In addition to making clothing more flammable, many dryer sheets contain chemicals and fragrances that can trigger asthma and disrupt hormones. In one study, researchers tested five name-brand dryer sheets. The findings showed that they emitted 15 endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) and chemicals associated with asthma. There are chemicals in dryer sheets that are known carcinogens and have also been linked to pancreatic cancer and central nervous system disorders.
The Alternative: Wool dryer balls. They are chemical-free, reduce static cling, made from a renewable resource. They save you money over time and leave your clothes soft. They can be used 1000s of times, unlike single-use dryer sheets.
Wool dryer balls are not only better for your health, but they’re also better for the environment. Using wool dryer balls dries clothes faster — saving you money and reducing your carbon footprint by using less energy. Why is it important that they shorten dryer time (other than saving you time)? The energy you use in your home generally comes from a power plant. Most power plants burn coal, crude oil, or other fossil fuels — emitting greenhouse gases. When you use less energy in your home, you reduce your carbon footprint. When a lot of people work together to reduce their power usage, it can have a really big impact.
When buying wool dryer balls (or anything new, for that matter), look to purchase them from a company that supports sustainable practices and plastic-free packaging/shipping.
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04. Add a Microplastic Filter
Plastic fibers (polyester, nylon, acrylic, spandex, and other synthetic fabrics) make up 60% of our clothing. They rely heavily on oil for their production and contribute to microplastic pollution during manufacturing and washing. Yes, I’m talking about yoga pants, your fleece sweatshirt, and any clothing that isn’t made of 100% natural fabric (such as cotton, linen, wool, cashmere, bamboo, hemp, etc). One load of laundry can shed up to 700,000 microplastics per wash. According to a research team from the University of California at Santa Barbara “a city of 100,000 inhabitants releases a wash-related volume of microfibers equivalent to 15,000 plastic bags. A city the size of Berlin may be responsible for 540,000 plastic bags – every single day.” These microplastics end up in our oceans, our drinking water, and our food. Once microplastics are in our environment, we currently have no effective way to remove them - and they will take possibly millennia to degrade. A recent paper in PLOS found that “the average person ingests over 5,800 particles of synthetic debris” a year.
The Alternatives: Adding a filter is a low-effort was to filter out microplastics in your laundry. Popular options include:
A Microfilter Washing Bag — best for loads with a small amount of synthetic laundry using in-home machines or at laundrymats.
A Microfilter Laundry Ball — works well with any size load of synthetic laundry and with in-home machines or at laundrymats.
An External Filter Attachment — great for any size load of synthetic laundry, and because it’s mounted outside your washing machine, it must be used with an in-home (owned) washing machine.
05. Shifts Small Habits
In addition to swapping out laundry products, shifting a few small habits can also go a long way. Your washer and drying use a lot of energy, but that doesn’t mean you need to stop doing laundry altogether to make greener choices. Here are a few simple steps you can take to reduce your energy usage:
Wash on cold. Studies have also found that washing clothes with cold water reduces the number of microfibers released per wash. (And it also reduces your energy usage by not having to heat the water.) Opting to reduce the number of times you wash your clothes not only extends the life of clothing. It also decreases the microplastic impact you’re having because fewer laundry loads will mean fewer microfibers being released.
Hang dry clothing to save money and reduce your carbon footprint.
Avoid laundry during peak energy hours (typically 4-9pm, Monday - Friday) to reduce emissions and your energy bill.
Buy secondhand. Buying secondhand clothing can also reduce a garment’s carbon, waste, and water footprint by 73%. Much of a garment’s waste happens during its production - including microplastic waste so buying secondhand limits plastic pollution.
Use what you have. Be sure to use up what you own first before making any swaps to eco-products.
Final Thoughts…
Simple, right? And remember, even if you can’t do all of these actions all of the time (hello, snowy winters in Montana and soccer uniforms that need to be washed in a hurry after school), it’s ok. Do what you can and make shifts when it’s possible. It adds up!