Ariel Laundry Detergent...What's your opinion?

[bugsyjones]

Yeah, I've taken interest in Ariel brand detergent. Primarily the general purpose type in the blue packaging.

What do you think of it? How does it perform? Powder? Liquid? Whites? Colors? Stain Removal? Scent? What current U.S. product is it closely comparable to? Tide causes an itchy rash. Does Ariel?

It's unavaliable where I live (at major stores at least). I use a top loader with warm water usually. I rarely use cold. Sometimes hot.

Thanks!
~Tim

 

[polkanut]

Check any Mexican grocery stores in your area.

 

[polkanut]

We use Ariel Oxi-Azul, and it does a great job on our whites. For colors, we use Sears detergent in the orange box, Foca, or Roma.

 

[bugsyjones]

I found a place I can get it, but I really would like some more input before I buy.

How does it perform?
Powder? Liquid?
Whites? Colors?
Stain Removal?
Scent?
What current U.S. product is it closely comparable to?
Tide causes an itchy rash. Does Ariel?

~Tim

 

[peterh770]

It is a great detergent, if you can abide by the scent. It is much more pleasant than any flavor of Tide, IMHO.

The liquid is more strongly scented than the powder. I'm apprehensive about using it on dark colors, but they do make a color formula liquid in a purple bottle. Also, the scent of the color formula is different.

It is a GREAT stain remover, especially if you soak in it for 30-45 minutes before a normal wash cycle. It is loaded with enzymes. Rinse thoroughly to prevent any itching.

I find it much less sudsy in my Miele than any Tide product, including Tide HE. I use 1/4 cup of the powder, or about a half capful of the liquid (up to about where the cap brim is).

I do not like Ariel With Downy. The smell is funky and I don't think it cleans as well.

If you are shopping in a Mexican tienda, see if you can get Viva, which I think is even better. If you are really lucky, you might find a rare detergent called Lirio, which is outstanding (but sudsy).

 

[polkanut]

Viva is awesome! It is loaded with phophates, and does a fantastic job on everything. I have some lavender Viva that I use on my bed linens once in awhile, and it doesn't leave a heavy lingering scent at all. We use powdered Ariel, and it works great for pre-treating, just make a paste out of it, and rub it in. Add the balance to the tub. Great results for us every time.

 

[bugsyjones]

Update

An update on my experience with Ariel detergent.

I purchased Ariel 'Oxianillos' powder, Ariel with Downy, and the Oxianillos liquid. If I understand correctly, this is a general purpose detergent. The Ariel Color liquid was only in cases of 6, so I opted not to get any.

I got small packages to test them all out. First, I read the instructions carefully, or as well as I could translate Spanish. The powder had a warning against using it on some color fabrics as the colors will bleach out and to test it. So I did.

I took a pair of 100% cotton black socks, and a bright red cotton shirt. I put a small amount of the powder and liquid in separate basins and let the items soak. I experienced NO color loss at all. No color bled into the water either. So I figured it was worth washing a whole load.

I washed towels in the liquid and color clothes in the powder. Both times, I had superior results. At first, the fragrances seem, to me, almost offensively strong, but after washing and drying, the clothes have a very fresh clean smell, and only the faintest hint of Ariel's fragrance. It wasn't perfumy like alot of U.S. detergents. In the color load, I usually pre-treat stains with clorox 2 liquid. I decided not to on this load with Ariel powder. To my amazement, stains that I thought would need special attention disappeared! I also washed a load of whites. I generally use bleach, but did not this time. Just hot water and Ariel powder. Clothes came out WHITE and any stains, especially perspiration stains were GONE! I wore a shirt I washed to test for any itchiness. None.

I'm sold now. I will use Ariel for as long as I can get it!

Thanks to those who recommended it and for your input.

~Tim

 

[sudsman]

Tide causes a itchy rash !

It or any other detergent will do so if too much is used and not rinsed WELL! Dont get me wrong heaven forbid I ever go to bat for P& G (profit & gain) but Tide is very easy to over use and if overused will not rinse well and that is what cause the itchy rash. Cheer and ALL will do so too. A cup of vinigar in the last rinse will stop that all together.

 

[MrX]

The Ariel brand originates in P&G Europe. Although, clearly it's being used in lots of other markets now too e.g. South America, I would doubt that the formulations are the same.

P&G Europe launched Ariel in 1968 as the first biological (enzyme-containing) laundry detergent to hit the shelves.

It originally came as "Ariel" (high-suds formula for top loaders) and "Ariel Automatic" (low-suds version for front loaders).

By the 1970s the high-suds version was vanishing as front-loaders were the de facto standard for washing machines.

Automatic was akin to "HE" branding in the US these days and most detergents called themselves XXXXX Automatic, right into the 1980s even though most of them had long since dropped their non-automatic versions!

Ariel & Tide are P&Gs international "Billion dollar detergent brands"

But, the formulations and scents vary considerably from market-to-market for both products.

Ariel as sold in the UK and Ireland has a kind of citrus/pine very 'refreshing' fragrance that's quite hard to describe.

It went through a period of being a bit over-powering, but it's kind of back to some level of normality again and in general it smells quite nice.

It's not floral, and heavy like some cheap brand detergents.

In general, Ariel, at least in its European formulation, is an absolutely excellent detergent. It has never yet failed to produce good results for me.

Then again, nor has Persil.

The only detergents I've ever had a major issue with are store brands which have produced rather 'dull' whites or failed to remove food splashes fully.

Ariel and Persil both remove absolutely everything even in very short washes. The majority of my laundry is done in an Easy Care or Mixed Load cycle which runs at 30C and the entire cycle takes around 45 mins.

Only towels and bed linen goes on long cotton cycles.