We manufacture wool dryer balls through a felting process using raw wool. As part of the process, the wool is formed into a pre-form ball and placed in a disposable elasticized nylon to hold it in place during the felting process. The goal is to speed up the process and find a reusable alternative to the current method used.

The felting process is 10-15 mins. of agitation in hot water and mild detergent solution that effectively shrinks and binds the wool into a solid ball.

After the wool is sufficiently felted, the string of balls is removed and the nylon is cut and peeled away from the ball and disposed of. This is a labor-intensive step that destroys the nylon which needs to be disposed of.

We are looking for a reusable alternative to the nylon that will allow the water to penetrate the ball during the felting process and be easily removed from the felted ball and be reused multiple times.

Our thinking is a custom-molded casing may work depending on the material.

Here are several of the challenges to overcome:

How to allow maximum water flow into the ball but not have the wool be pulled through?

How important is it that the casing is flexible?

What is the best material to use to construct the casing?

How will the wool be placed in the casing and later removed?