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Ariel Power, you mean? ...that was just put out in the interim before they launched the gel, probably so they could have something equivalent to Small and Mighty on the shelves. A shame really - it was quite nice stuff and had the more subtle perfume the ordinary liquid used to have in the...

Maybe I shouldn't admit it but your rinses look much like mine do (and have done for most of the past 15 years). Unfortunately I can't find a final rinse shot in my files.   I can't say I have much problem with clothes being stiff from what I'd term as detergent build-up, except perhaps with...

You're right... I don't think anyone ever has come up with the definitive answer as to why today's detergents cause foaming into the rinse. No doubt there is some residue that isn't being rinsed away, but then again fibres are absorbent and difficult to rinse totally clear of detergent. Indeed...

Perhaps you should define what you interpret as clean rinsing? I realise it's an issue very close to your heart, but since detergents haven't moved on much from all the discussion you've initiated previously, and taking into account everyone's input on it, we might be at a loss as to how to...

Ebay ...or second hand shops/house clearance places will be your only hope, unless you have some way of trawling the backs of people's undersink cupboards! Is it the cloth-type ball for powders you want or the hard plastic ball for liquids? I can't remember whether the Arielette was for...

Time to heat? In theory (as ever on this subject, much to my chagrin), it would take somewhere between an hour and a quarter and an hour and a half to get to 60C. This is based on the stated energy label consumption of 3.84kwh for the cottons 60 cycle: knock off about 0.3 kwh for the motor's...

25000 hours' life? If you did a load a day and it took an hour for a cycle, you'd have (25000/365 =) 68.5 years' use!

I seem to recall this top loader was launched alongside their slim-depth (42cm) 9lb load washing machine to cater for the "awkward space" market - i.e. narrow gaps or shallow worktops (bearing in mind quite a few people would still have had 50cm deep units in their kitchens then). I remember...

Too much heat Tumble drying doesn't tend to make for pleasantly pefumed laundry at the best of times, but the higher the heat setting you use, the less perfume will remain. It's my understanding that American dryers use pretty fierce heat - probably similar to launderette dryers here - and all...

Thank you! Brummybear - many thanks for being so obliging and for posting a video clip! But 34cm wide? Really? That's tiny! Is that just the top opening? I would have thought the bowl's diameter would have been at least 40cm and hopefully more. The whole point of this is that I'm really trying...

Look at the ingredients... Powders will probably contain zeolites which have been the standard water softening agents for many years now. You should be quite safe as long as you don't skimp on quantity.   Liquids are a different kettle of fish. It's been mentioned somewhere here before they...

10 times as much? ...now then, let's not exaggerate! When tested for the energy label, apparently consumption was 170l water and 3.84 kwh electricity for a 4.5kg load on 60C cottons. Give the old lady her dues: it's more like only 4 times more expensive. And I don't think it needs 4 times as...

Aeons ago, when we bought my Hotpoint 800 spin WM12, the saleswoman said something along the lines of "they do say faster spin washers wear out faster"...so, perhaps it's a commonly held belief that slower spins will save wear and tear on your machine. Consider also the fact that the Hoover...

I've heard adding a dry towel or two to the load is useful when your load is very small, helping to prevent disproportionately long drying times. Other than that, surely adding unnecessary bulk would just encourage creasing?

A Hoover Electon, you say? ...Considering you'd have got 4 x 25 litre rinses and a diluting cool-down out of that on a normal cycle, it would have been a travesty if rinsing had been a problem! Still, at least if you do get the 9506, you'll be well on your way to 4 deep-ish rinses that should...

Does anyone have... ...a stash of, say, Persil Automatic from 25 years ago? I'd love to see if it was everything people seem to want to rave about. My childhood recollection of washing powders was that they did terrible things to clothes...PE kits 20 shades lighter by the end of the year...

Almat bio powder clumping in the drawer? Yes, yes and yes! My Mother uses it and it's abysmal in that respect. You can even pour a kettle of boiling water over the clump and it still won't completely wash out. I had a look in the dispenser one day and thought she must have terminated a load at...

foaming Having re-traced my thinking, I remember the issue of excessive suds was the reason I ended up on the Surcare: it's a very low-sudsing detergent (powder and liquid). It's not that I object to the sight of suds in the wash, but I don't want the drum half-full of foam given the potential...

The last few weeks have seen me using a bottle of Ecover gel; I have to say I quite like it - it's the first gel I've tried. It makes a nice base detergent and the fragrance is pleasing - surprisingly lingering in fact. Like any liquid it will do nicely for darks but you need to build it to wash...

I had a couple of tubs of the Simply Bio soft tabs a few years ago when they came out; the formulation was phosphate based and they smelled very pleasant. The performance was adequate. I felt they left the clothes a bit rough after a while compared to other powders. Then, about 18 months ago, I...