Vent: I tried the "foil ball trick" for my dryer and it made everything worse

Saw some hack online about tossing a ball of aluminum foil in the dryer to reduce static. Did it with a load of socks and tshirts last week. The foil ball completely unraveled and left little silver flakes all over my black clothes. Took me like 20 minutes picking them off with tape. Learned that some internet tips are just garbage. Anyone else fall for a cleaning hack that backfired hard?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_simon2d ago

That foil trick is a known myth honestly. The aluminum foil can actually cause arcing in the heating element if it breaks apart, not just leave those annoying flakes. You really need to use wool dryer balls or even a clean tennis ball to knock out static. Static cling happens because of friction and moisture imbalance. The foil doesn't fix that at all.

-1

anderson.piper2d ago

Tried foil once back when I was desperate and it left little silver bits everywhere in my clothes. Just get some wool balls, they actually work and don't wreck your dryer.

-2

rubyk262d ago

Exactly. Ran into the same problem with the foil flakes. Switched to wool balls maybe three years ago and haven't looked back. Just toss three in with each load and the static's gone.