Samsung’s New Mini Microfiber Filter Traps Pollutants Before They Enter The Sea

Pretty much everything we do has an impact on our environment, whether positively or negatively. Washing clothes, as routine as it seems, is no exception. Aside from the excess use of water it generates, there is also another harmful aspect of the chore that goes unnoticed by most: the release of microplastics and microfabrics into drainage systems.
 
Fast fashion has caused much damage to the earth, whether it’s in the tons of clothes being thrown away each year or just tiny bits of your garments chipping away each time you wash them. Even as the industry is trying to rework itself toward more sustainable goals, the truth is that completely changing the textiles used is proving hard to do. So, one way to work around this is to prevent these micro synthetic fibers from reaching waterways.

Samsung is doing its part with the Less Microfiber Filter. It is a small device that sits on top of any washing unit, not just Samsung-branded ones, and captures 98% of microplastics before they can be washed away. The blades inside use a 65-70mm wide mesh to collect and compress the fibers before redirecting them off to one side.
 
The device is made from recycled plastics and shipped out in sustainable packaging. It was also designed to be long-lasting, convenient, and only needs to be cleared out once a month.

The company claims that just by using the filter four times a week, the microplastics captured within it will amount to eight 160z plastic bottles each year.
 
 
 
[via Yanko Design and New Atlas, images via Samsung]