Laundry detergent 'expiration' dates

[kenmoreguy64]

I am not sure if this has been discussed on here before or at much length, but I raised a question for P&G today about laundry detergent expiration dates. I got an interesting answer.

What started the issue is several fold, but I noticed on a bargain brand detergent bottle at a local grocer recently that an expiration date was PRINTED on the neck of the bottle. It said something like April 2012, and another was June 2012. I know I've never seen that before.

So, I asked P&G - they said "Yes, detergent has a shelf life of one year from date of manufacture." They said that it won't hurt to use it when older than that, but that it may not be as effective. I am shocked!!! If that's true, I have a whole lot of stock pile that is "out of date".

Do the experts here agree with that? I know I've used old detergents and had no issues with it. Seems like most people think it never goes bad, but again, I am curious what our crowd says.

Finally, and the second reason why I called P&G - has anyone noticed a grayish or brownish haze on an agitator after using liquid detergents? I don't mean white residue, I mean something gray or brown. Seems like detergent a few years ago was very prone to leave these deposits and I've seen it in several machines with white agitators.

I am very curious to hear what you have to say on this!

Gordon

 

[revvinkevin]

Expiration dates?? PISH!

 

 

I never pay ANY attention to ANY expiration dates on ANYTHING... canned goods, meats, anything dairy and I don't care if it's a few days or a few weeks past the date.   Sometimes it might seem to have an "off" flavor, but it's probably just my imagination.... so I eat it anyway.  

  

So Gordon I wouldn't care how far past the expiration date something is... especially laundry detergent, just use it and add a little more if you think it's not working well.

 

Kevin

 

[3beltwesty]

In humid areas THE SEAL becomes more of an issue. The boxed soap with time becomes more clump like. It is worse with a smaller box, since the surface areas to volume is higher.

Having a shelf life marked on a product cuts returns.

I have used 5 cent testors 1/4 oz paint from the 1960's and it is still goods once mixed.

I have had in the south unopened soap boxes with clumps, the seal was not perfect.

I have seen wher one picks up a plastic bottle of stuff and it got stuck to the shelf, and the bottle broke too!

Look at what degrades your beer, paint, milk, soap, film, developer, grease, butter and reduce theses factors.

 

[dj-gabriele]

Well, if the detergent is enzyme based, after some time those won't work anymore so you get a "non-bio" detergent.

Same if the detergent is liquid and contains oxygen bleach, actually hydrogen peroxide. That has a quite short shelf life of around 18 months so you're going to lose the bleaching action of the detergent!

Otherwise the surfactants almost ever degrade in standard storage conditions, that's why old detergent usually works all right, it doesn't contain hydrogen peroxide nor enzymes!

But it's loaded of surfactants and phosphates!

 

[launderess]

Oh I Don't Know

As detailed in a previous post here in the group, just the past weekend did several loads of wash with a box of "Gain" detergent that by all accounts >20 years old. Everything came out fine.

P&G does toe the line about detergents and other laundry products having a shelf live of about one year. This is one of the reasons you see a date code on the packet. Being as that may one finds this applies more to liquid laundry detergents and fabric softeners.

For instance one purchased two bottles of Downy "Free" fabric softener (had coupons for free P&G products), and began to use one while putting the other in my stash. In about several months the opened bottle of Downy began to turn into a clumpy mess, almost like spoilt milk. Contacted P&G and was told the same thing; products only have a shelf life of one year.

Now I don't use fabric softener that much, nor in great amounts so one bottle can last well over a year or even two. Therefore am not thrilled with paying for product that will "self destruct" in a given amount of time.

 

[hunter]

is it a cya thing?

I wouldn't think that powders would have a shelf life AT ALL. They might lose their scent, if scented, but if kept dry I cannot imagine it. (I do live in a dry climate though -- if I was in (say) South Carolina where it is very humid it might still clump up).

Liquids could separate after a time.

But it may also just be CYA. If you keep a bottle of detergent for three years, and don't like the results, the maker can just say 'it is expired, that is not our fault.'

In canned goods, BYU has done extensive research and found that the life of canned goods is WAAAYYYYY longer than the printed on expiry date. The texture/flavor/etc. may suffer, and some vitamins will decline.

I suspect 'use by' dates in detergents are just cya for the manufacturer.

 

[mattywashboy]

Just in my experiences while I was traveling around America. I used a lot of vending machine boxes of detergents in the many laundromats around the US. I ended up buying a bottle of Gain with matching Softener just to save my coins.

One thing I always noticed is when I bought Downy fabric softener from the vending machines, they came in small sachets and 99% the liquid had gone brown and clumpy and stank. Even in the sealed sachet. So i guess some detergents do have a shelf life...

 

[dirtybuck]

I'm sure everyone already knows this, but with can goods, if the top of the can is puffed up while in storage, GET RID OF IT IMMEDIATELY! That's a good indicator that botulism may occur if you eat the contents.

I've also heard to avoid buying dented cans, as the same thing might occur.

 

[launderess]

Fabric Softeners

In many cases are emulsions of fats and oils, so it is no wonder they go "off" after sitting for awhile. Stuff simply separates out like salad dressing.

 

[roscoe62]

Expired

Believe it or not they do, at least that is what P&G has told me, and if the product is opened you're better off using it up in six months so I don't hold extra's anymore, simply because there is always a sale some where. P&G told me that the production date on the bottle / carton will give you the month and year it was made. I have a habit to check the code when buying it on sale now, P&G has their reason(s) for it and everyone can judge for themselves based on their own experience. One could also conclude that these expiry dates could also be like the recommended dosage printed on the label, using more means buying more, sooner.

 

[hunter]

Canned goods

Good point, don't use dented cans if theybare puffed, or cans that are bulging at all. Thanks for saying that: I was just thinking shelf life.

 

[3beltwesty]

As I already mentioned, the shelf life of many consumer products depends on the package size. A smaller item has a higher surface area to volume than a larger item.

A cube of "1" on a side has a surface area of 6 and a volume of 1 A/V=6

A cube of "2" on a side has a surface area of 24 and a volume of 8 A/V= 3

A cube of "3" on a side has a surface area of 54 and a volume of 27 A/V= 2

***A SMALLER ITEM has a higher ratio of surface area to volume than a larger object.

This means the packages plastic or paper seal, it's plastic container matter.

This is why an old 6 oz coke cola in a glass bottle can be fresh 2 decades later, and a 16 oz coke poor in 6 months due to being 1/2 flat ie low in co2. The plastic breathes and the pressure drops with time. The self life of a 3 liter PLASTIC bottle of coke cola is higher than a 2 liter; higher than a 1 liter, higher than a 1/2 liter bottle.

In diet colas and plastic small bottle has a real short shelf life.

In laundomat dinky coin machine boxes of detergent, the box is very small. In humid areas these tend to absorb moisture and cake.

Many common detergents are just in cardboard boxes, some are sort of coated/sprayed. The seal is not perfect like a 1960 glass coke bottle; it is porous cardboard. This is why some folks on boats have powedered soaps in ball jars; or use liquids, the moisture makes the product cake up.

No matter what expiration date is on a product; some will whine about the date. There really is no perfect date. Most do not understand how stuff degrades, thus their brains want a black and white answer.

Even a bottle of iodine for cleaning a cut /wound has an expiration date. If old the mix gets stronger due to loss of the other stuff.

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Update -

It basically sounds that the expiration date on this old Tide I bought is merely a guideline as long as it's been kept dry, etc. I decided this weekend that the best way to find out its usefulness is to try some, so I did three loads in the belt-drives.

My single most noticeable observation would be that it has lost much, but not all, of that great Tide w/Bleach scent. It worked beautifully, the water had that "slippery" feel to it that powders seem to make. My whites were nicely white, sheets came out nice and fluffy, and my towels smell nice and clean though not strongly of detergent. So, NO COMPLAINTS whatsoever.

During my call with P&G, I found out how to read their date codes. It turns out that one box I got was made in January, 2001 (can you believe it was on a shelf after ten years!!!), two were made in late 2001, and the other two were made in 2004. Oddly, one of the 2001 boxes seems to smell the best. It was probably burried amongst all the others.

Overall I am glad I bought it and am glad this stuff didn't go to waste.

Gordon