Thirteen Ways to Use Dryer Lint TT# 19
Had you walked into my laundry room this morning, this is what you would have seen on top of my dryer.
Perhaps you would have thought, "What in the world?" Yes, I am so cheap that I save my dryer lint.
Awhile back Butterfly Mama had a post about making a fire starter from your dryer lint. Today that is exactly what I did with mine. It really is an easy process that uses all recycled materials. The finished product.
I got to wondering, what else you can do with dryer lint? Here are 12 more uses that I found with links where explanation is needed.
2. Add it to your compost.
3. Put it in the yard for birds to pick up to use for nesting material.
4. Give it to your small pets like rabbits and gerbils for nesting material.
5. Use it to mulch around plants - You'd have to do a laundry wouldn't you?
6. Make lint paper mache.
7. Make lint clay.
8. Make lint paper.
9. Line the bottom of your houseplant pots with it. It helps to keep the soil in the pot while still allowing drainage.
10. Create artwork. I kid you not. Check it out.
11. Spin it into new yarn. Knit a sweater or some socks.
12. Use it as packing material.
13. Make a draft stopper for your doors.
Who knew you could do so much with your dryer lint?
Thursday Thirteen
I don't think you could use it to make a Dodge Charger accessory do you?
Labels:
recycling,
Thursday 13
43 comments:
That's a cool list. I never would have thought, though I wonder at least three times a week if there's some way to use the stuff! God bless.
Wow, very creative.
Now that's what I call a creative and interesting TT! Who would of thought. Happy 2008 to you...
Okay, you win. I can never come up with a list like this! Impressive.
SJR
The Pink Flamingo
http://thepinkflamingo.blogharbor.com/blog
Excellent list! I am going to give 9 and 12 a try.
You get the award for most creative this week. I have never even thought about dryer lint...LOL
wow ~ I never knew dryer lint had so many uses (not that we have a dryer!!)
I agree....you are very creative. Quite a list for lint use.
I tried the fire starter thing it didn't work so well, I think we have an abundance of man made fibers :D. LOL!
I think I'm going to start saving it for the draft stoppers, bet it would make good stuffing for other projects & lots cheaper than fluff!!!
Excellent list! I usually save mine to toss in the woods for animals, but I never thought of using it for stuffing in a draft stopper. I like the idea of putting it in the bottom of pots too! Thanks!
What great ideas! We use the fire starter idea, but I have never tried any others!
Okay, this was definitely a very cool list, I never thought of the compost idea. Going to try that one.
Happy New Year!
Wow I had no idea there were so many options -- we just add it to our compost.
Your list made me giggle. I never thought about it. Great ideas. Happy TT.
what a fun list! the artwork sounds like fun
happy TT
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? I just got finished like 5 minutes ago telling someone that we saved our dryer lint too!! How weird is that? The boys use it to practice starting fires with their flints. It's so flamable that they don't have to use much effort to get it to spark (light).
Very serendipitous.
I like the bird idea the best.
Happy TT!
My Thursday Thirteen #6
I have seen some amazing dryer lint art. The person who did it would deliberately put towels in the dryer in the colors that she needed to use, which I thought was kind of cheating a bit.
Great post!
13 Unresolved Issues from 2007
And all this time I've been tossing this stuff in the trash bin.
Life is sexually transmitted and other thoughts to ponder.
I suppose we can extend this to navel fluff and pocket shmutz?
I Linked your post from 13 Political Reasons the Chicken Crossed the Road
WOW! Never knew you could do something with a dyer lint! Very interesting list you got too:)Thanks for sharing:)
My Thursday 13 is up as well! Happy New Year!
I have made the fire starters before and buddy burners tooand they work very well
I just read about a project using a milk carton to hang outside with yarn and dryer lint for the birds to make nests. I told Jude we could start saving stuff. Thanks for giving us all these other ideas to use the stuff. Add it to my project list...my house will never be clean.
Hey!!!!!! How about just throw it away!
I remember reading in the Tightwad Gazette to NOT use the compost on edibles unless you use all natural fibers. If you have any synthetics in your laundry, the compost made with that lint should only be used on ornamentals.
Cathy
Making lint paper sounds great...I might have to give that a try!
Who'd've thunk it? So many different uses. :)
My TT is about my 2008 road map this week.
wow what a rockin' t13!! I seriously learned something today
Thanks for the tips, though being an Aussie I line dry all our washing and don't use a dryer. Still, if this drought ever ends and I have enough rainy days to use the dryer I'll keep all these uses for lint in mind;-)
Kate
Stephanie,
What a unique post! Thanks for the ideas.
Awesome! I used to just throw the lint out lamenting how my "clothes" I just lost, but no more!
I also started line drying more.
I could put it in my pockets for next time thu the wash.
I use mine as stuffing material.
I also use my dryer sheets to pick up the dust off my wood floors. the best. I tie them in a bunch or on the bottom of the broom and it picks up all the loose hairs and dust..
Wow, who knew. great list, and all this time I've been throwing it out.
ZOMGWTFBBQ
What a bunch of RETARDED TREE HUGGERS!!!!!
Just throw the crap in the garbage!!!
And lint as ART and PACKING MATERIAL............YOU MUST BE KIDDING!!!!!
Boy I'm glad I don't know ANY of you personally
And you people think this is a GREAT list? Get a LIFE!
Oh and btw,
who actually thinks more than once in a lifetime if there is some logical way to use LAUNDRY LINT?
AND WHAT IN GODS NAME IS LINT PAPER AND WHO THE HELL WOULD USE IT? WHAT WOULD YOU USE IT FOR, TOILET PAPER? Ew...
And as for spinning it into new yarn for socks and sweaters or other articals of clothing... That is just completely disgusting.......... Anyone ever hear of skin particals, dirt and hairs.....
I can go on and on.... There is only one truely logical thing out of this list to use it for.... And that maybe the fire starter, because the fire would incinerate any of the unknowns left in the lint....
Other than that Mr. Garbage would love to have the lint as a snack.
A few questions, before I leave you all to ponder your desicions on reusing laundry lint.
Are you making this benificial to anyone? Have any clothing been truely made from this lint yarn? And if you have answered yes to that question, who is actually wearing it, how long does it last, and last but certainly not least, do you (or they) smell like a wet dog if it gets wet?
Annon.
Who knew a little thing like dryer lint could bring about such emotion!
If you read the post you will see that I used the lint for fire starters. The rest of the list is uses that were found online. In the year since I originally posted this, I have only made the fire starters with it. I make them with the lint b/c they work wonderfully and are basically free.
To answer your other questions, I suggest you look at the pages linked to see how the lint was turned into other useful items.
The list is entertainment tis all. Glad to give you something to do this afternoon.
Our lint has almost completely stopped building up when we cut our soap use in half and started washing everything on gentle cycle - I had heard on the radio that modern detergents are very hard on fabrics causing them to break down but I had no idea how much so until I tried this simple trick. Now our clothes are lasting much longer as well! (lint = damaged fabric)
Great list, but there is one very significant, very green, and very valuable use that has been missed.
I was just at the local laundry mat when they were cleaning out the lint from the big dryers. There was a lot of it. A lot. And it was all being thrown out.
It occurred to me that with all that fiber and air space it would make an excellent substitute for standard fiberglass insulation. Well, a couple of Googles and I came across a study that sought to investigate just that. They found that the dryer lint outperformed standard fiberglass insulation by 18%. Assuming the results are accurate. That's pretty impressive, considered the cost of insulation.
Think about it's use in low cost housing...
Here is the study:
http://209.85.173.132/search?q=cache:J-euea6cm4oJ:www.uoregon.edu/~hof/W08%2520HOF/SM%25202%2520BellyButton%2520poster.pdf+insulative+properties+of+lint&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=safari
On getty.edu they say that particles in dryer lint are as fine as asbestoes (.2 microns)and that makes it very dangerous to the lungs. For this reason, I'd be hesitant to use it as pet bedding. Here's the link: http://www.getty.edu/education/teacherartexchange/archive/May99/0186.html
STOP!!!!! I was just looking for info on how best to put the dryer lint outside... I read that dryer lint gets wet, and when it gets wet it STAYS wet, freezes in colder temps, and baby birds can freeze to death.... wow... who knew? Makes sense though.
Just wondering if anyone ever tried to use lint to stuff pillows or as insulation for quilts. Would the flammability factor cause a problem.
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