I'm pretty eco-conscious when it comes to cosmetics and general body stuff, but no way would I use eco balls. Give me good old detergent any day - not the super highly scented stuff and all the conditioners and that - just normal bog-standard scented non-bio detergent for the whites and colour care detergent for the coloured wash (although, for years I just used a non-bio for everything - simply tried the colour care because it was on offer lol!). The bleaching agents they use in non-bio (as well as the bio detergents) are actually good for killing off mildew etc in your washing machine, in combination with a higher temperature wash. I was researching washing and washing powder and that was the advice - from independent sources, I might add. Also, basically the advice temperature-wise is: 30 degrees for coloureds, 40 degrees for whites, and 60 degrees for towels and sheets (and any stubbornly stained whites that can take it without shrinking, I suppose) - 60 degrees is necessary to kill off dust mites, apparently, and there's no doubt about it, if you've got any grubby white shirts, the 60 degree wash does the trick.
