Disclaimer: I love Tide laundry detergent.
It’s the only detergent I use to wash my clothes. I adore the way it smells and it is the only laundry soap that my husband’s overly sensitive skin can handle. We’ve tried every product under the sun, and we always come back to Tide.
So when Tide had a booth at the BlogHer conference in Chicago this summer, you can bet your sweet behind I was front and center with outstretched palms gathering up every single free sample they would give me. I got tiny packets of laundry detergent and some new boost packet thingies. I also received a sample of their new product, the Bounce Dryer Bar.
What is a Bounce Dryer Bar?
It looks like a bar of soap stuck in a mounting device. You stick it to the inside wall of your dryer and it stays there for 2-4 months working as a constant fabric softener. In other words, it’s a replacement for dryer sheets.
Oddly enough, this is not my picture. This picture of a Bounce Dryer Bar is courtesy of rockinfree on Flickr. I don’t even think he has a review blog. He’s just taking pictures of his dryer bar.
Anyway.
The Bounce Dryer Bar made my clothes smell fantastic! It was so easy! Just stick it in there and forget about it, and load after load of laundry came out smelling like heaven! No, better than heaven. It smelled like my mother-in-law’s laundry! (This, by the way, is a feat I have been trying to achieve for 10 years now with no success. THANK YOU BOUNCE DRYER BAR!)
And then the Bounce Dryer Bar went and fell off the wall of my dryer.
I was sad. I was depressed. I was deeply disappointed that I would no longer have mother-in-law standard laundry.
But! No! I just restuck the bar to the dryer wall! Problem solved! I LOVE YOU AGAIN BOUNCE DRYER BAR!
And then, a week later, the Bounce Dryer Bar went and fell off the wall of my dryer again.
There would be no resticking this time. After about a month of use – half the time the packaging promised me – my Bounce Dryer Bar was completely useless.
I can’t decide if I want to replace it.
You can buy a 2 Month Bounce Dryer Barfor less than $6 online. Even if I have to replace it every month, it’s only $6. BUT – a box of Bounce Fabric Sheets
will last me at least twice as long for the same price.
And dryer sheets don’t crumble.
Yes, I said crumble. While I didn’t experience any problem with the bar dissolving in my laundry, I’ve had friends who also received samples and ended up with soap flake like specs of the Bounce Bar all over their dryer and freshly laundered clothes.
I’m torn. The idea of the Bounce Dryer Bar is fantastic and my clothes were softer and smelled better than when I use a normal dryer sheet. However, the long term execution was less than desired.
Have you tried Tide’s Bounce Dryer Bar?
What were your results?
Posted in Friday Flops: Products That Suck, Things For The Home Tagged: blogher conference, bounce, Bounce Bar, dryer bar, dryer sheets, fabric softener, free, laundry, laundry soap, sensitive skin, soap, Tide, tide laundry detergent
Have you heard of dryer balls? They’re little plastic balls with nubs all over them that you throw in the dryer instead of any sort of dryer sheets. As long as you have two of them in there, they’ll fluff up your sheets and keep them from being static-y without all of the chemicals that bother your husband’s skin. Best part? You buy them once, you don’t replace them again. Target sells them under one of their many home brands for about $7, if I remember correctly.
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Our fell and broke into a million billion pieces but gosh our dryer sure smells purty now.
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I’d love to see some survey about what kind if dryers destroy the bar-it’s got to have something to do with how hot your dryer runs. Mine kind of sucks, so it hasn’t killed the Bounce Bar yet.
Also? Tomorrow I’m escaping to Happy-Land, aka Orlando! Woo Hoo!
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Thanks for saving me the money of trying this! Eeek!
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Have been using the Bounce Dryer Bar without incident for over a month. My hubby loves it! We’ll keep an eye out to see how it does as it gets closer to needing replacement. But so far, so good!
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I did an unsolicited review of this a few moonths ago. It sucks. At first it is great. But after a week it fell off. It left clumps all over every pair of jeans I washed. It only lasted 2 weeks before falling apart!
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I live in England where mostly things get line dried. Though my clothing gets dried on a rack because we don’t have garden access. I suggest that you line dry your clothes for a week, then start using a dryer again. You’ll think you have mother-in-law laundry. Of course, I’ve gotten used to hang dried clothing. I really enjoy scratchy underwear. It keeps me from falling asleep during the day!
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Carrisa over at andsosheblogs had the same problem, except her Bounce bar also got the glue on some of her clothes.
http://andsosheblogs.com/?p=1185
I’m going to stick with my dryer sheets!
(You apparently can craft with used dryer sheets too. My MIL, aka Martha Stewart Jr, swears this to be true.)
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Mine has been sitting in the cabinet in my laundry room since BlogHer. I actually forgot about it until now.
After reading this I’m just going to throw it out. Doing laundry already sucks, I don’t need to be rewashing clothes because they have Bounce flakes all over them.
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I have, and I love mine!!
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Just thought I would mention that dryer sheets and the Bounce Dryer Bar contain toxic chemicals that can be harmful to you and are definitely harmful to the environment. Something to consider…
http://www.grinningplanet.com/2004/04-29/stop-static-cling-fabric-softener-article.htm
http://safemama.com/2008/08/27/dear-safemama-dryer-sheets-and-vaseline/
http://www.naturalnews.com/002693.html
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I started using mine when we got back from BlogHer and I’ve had no issues with it. I probably do about half the laundry you do and my apartment dryer doesn’t get as warm as yours (it sometimes takes me two dryer runs to get a load dry). So far, it’s stayed stuck and I have no flakes.
My only complaint is that I wish it came in the “free” version, as I’m a little senstive to fabric softeners. I was worried that I’d react to it, but so far, so good.
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I gave mine away because I live in an apartment with a community dryer.
I love Tide but don’t use Bounce, I use snuggle.
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I’m hesitant to try the bounce bar, because I can buy a GIANT box of bounce sheets at Costco for $11. I have always ripped my dryer sheets in half and by doing that I can get 10-12 months out of one box of Bounce.
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I gave mine to my mother in law who only uses Bounce and Tide. Hers fell off in two weeks and duct tape didn’t help. I use all free and clear products otherwise I would have kept it.
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I thought it worked pretty well for about the first week, but then … meh. I haven’t had any issues with it sticking or flaking though. I like the idea of NOT using dryer sheets (greener).
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I’m glad you did this review. I’ve been wondering. Now I know. I won’t try it. BUT I will am going to use the dryer sheets. I have grown sick of the smell of the Snuggle sheets…I want a new scent.
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I’ve had mine in since BlogHer & not had a problem. Maybe yours hates your dryer.
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So glad I’m not the only one whose free-at-BlogHer-use-it-and-write-about-it Bounce Dryer Bar turned into a huge noisy thunking thing.
I did like the results… until it came off and started disintegrating.
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DON’T USE IT!! We used it for many loads and when it wore down it has ruined a whole load of dark clothing probably about 300 worth of clothes! I will be writing to Tide and sending them pictures and a claim!
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EXPENSIVE TERRIBLE USED 18 X’S fell off wouldnt restick crumbs all over the clothes bangs in the dryer scratches dents …do yourself a favor dont buy it was expensive leaves tape residue what a job getting it off …just simply dont buy
If I had my receipt I would send it back to Procor -Gamble and emand double back for the aggravation it took in using it
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I just picked the parts of the bar out of my dryer after listening to it rumble and growl for 45 min while that load is drying. What in the world makes you think 5 weeks of softening is worth 9.49? I bought on 12/8 and if I installed I would say 5 loads of laundry have been done. Now I’ll have to try and get the sticky part off the sides of my dryer so the inside won’t look like pickin’cotton. I hope you are or have contacted lots of us and refunded with other satisfactory results. I have used Tide products since 1955 and never had more disappointment and distrust as I have now. Ball (or should I say) roll is in your court. Have leftover bar and receipt if you should need.
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I bought one last week and now it’s gone. It now says replace; I have no idea if it fell off or if it’s already been used up.
I’ll stick with the sheets.
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I love mine. It’s been in my dryer for over a month and no problem. I have a family of seven and do a loooot of laundry. the stick is almost gone…but I figure it’s because of all the loads I do. I love it!!
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I used my bar in my old dryer and it fell apart, so I gave a new one a second chance. We just got a brand new $1000.00 dryer, and I stuck the new one on. What a mistke!! It came unstuck, and fell apart during a cycle, so I didn’t hear it. The worst part is, it dented the brand new drum a bunch of times. So dissapointed, and very mad. Do not use it.
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Purchased the dryer bar and it stuck for about 3 loads then fell off – cleaned the surface and tried again – fell off and crumbled into tiny flakes all in the dryer…. Smells good, nice concept but really not satisfied with this product – may I suggest a magnetic type of holder and perhaps an enclosure with holes to contain the dryer bar itself in the event it does fall apart it will at least be contained but the smell/product will still perform. May want to rethink the concept design… just a though P&G.
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yes, mine fell off after a month, and now all my new summer clothes are full of holes, the bar is ripping them i have contacted the company and took the bar out of my dryer i gues they have made millions, by now and they dont care if i lost a couple hundred dollars worth of clothes
DO NOT PURCHASE THIS PRODUCT!!!!
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