Expensive Detergent Better?

[westtexman]

It is according to this ad . . .

 

[chestermikeuk]

And There We Have It!!!!

Ariel, Better than most!!!!

Happy washing, Mike (getting out the Kenwood Chef, mixing a large load of cake, medium agitation, low heat...lol)

 

[frigilux]

I use Mexican Ariel and find it does a great job. I think it would come in 2nd pitted against US Tide With Bleach in stain removal, but I love the wild Ariel scent much better.

 

[oxydolfan1]

Latvian, eh? Very hot ad...

 

[frigilux]

Someday we'll have to introduce them to audio and the motion picture, LOL!

 

[launderess]

Depends

On what one is laundering.

For badly stained/heavy soil levels, then top shelf detergents like Tide or Persil get my vote. For lighter soil loads with little or no stains, then a middle or bottom shelf detergent is fine.

Top shelf detergents contain the most complex chemical systems which deliver reliable cleaning and stain removal from wash load to wash load. This is why year after year Tide with Bleach and several variants are at the top of Consumer Reports detergent picks. Middle detergents may have some of the complex chemicals, and lower shelf none or maybe "yesterday's" chemical complex.

Have some Ecolab detergent in my stash, which is mainly phosphates, washing soda, and surfactant. Truly a bottom shelf detergent as even Ecolab has better products. However as this detergent is designed for commercial laundry use doing linens and towels it does serve that purpose. One assumes commercial laundries would add bleach (oxygen or chlorine), to deal with stains if any, but the high alkaline level, along with phosphates do their job of dissloving skin oils/greasy dirt (the main soils of bed linens and towels), well enough. Problem is this detergent like other non-enzyme detergents requires hot (140F+) water to really be effective.

L.

 

[zipdang]

Personally, try to use eco-friendly detergents (Ecover, Bi-O-Kleen, Seventh Generation) whenever possible, as they don't contain OBAs and are less toxic to aquatic life. For the most part they work fine for everyday laundry. That said, I agree with Laundress; conventional products like Tide get my vote when heavy duty cleaning is needed. But I have to wonder: will there ever be a truly heavy duty eco-friendly product?

 

[launderess]

Problem with "eco-friendly" detergents is by eliminating so many modern chemicals including types of enzymes, polymers, bleach activators, and so forth one pretty much is back to square one with bottom or middle line detergents. Worse yet some eco-detergents contain various types of soap. Soap generally is not great for modern laundry of today's textiles.

Have used "Bi-O-Kleen" and a few other eco-detergents, but only on linens, towels or other lightly soiled laundry. Found the product just would not shift stains and muck detergents like Tide tackled wihout batting an eye.

Another problem facing all detergents, is the trend away from high alkaline pH levels to near neutral. Tide liquids, and P&G's new "Professional" line of laundry products are all neutral pH, as many other top shelf and some middle shelf products. Once you stop using high levels of soap, washing soda, phosphates and other builders to help break down grease and oils, you need something else. That something else is the myraid of enzymes found in better detergents. Enzymes that work in cold, hot, warm,and cool water temps allow the lower pH and reduced reliance on harsh chemicals found in today's better detergents.

Years ago a basic detergent could deliver good results, depending upon laundry practices, but those detergents contained all sorts of chemicals either banned or frowned upon, such as phosphates, NPE, petrol chemicals (like naptha), borax, and so forth. Remember also most used to be mainly cotton or linen fibers done in hot or even very hot water. With so much man made fibers and lower wash temps, it takes a very complex detergent to deliver clean and sanitary laundry load after load.

 

[oxydolfan1]

After trying several environmentally-friendlier detergents, I have given up on them....they simply are not effective in my particular type of water.

I'm particularly disappointed in the Ecover offerings, since I actually have tested many of their other products, and have found some excellent ones, that even surpass their "Big Toxi" counterparts (examples are their floor wash vs. Murphy's, window cleaner vs. Windex, and limescale remover vs. just about anything...)

I'm NUTS about Ecover's fabric softener as well, but it is very expensive.

Less expensive detergents?

I've had outstanding results with Costco's Kirkland HE liquid and powder knockoffs of Tide (don't try the liquid in a front-loader at home, though!)

I was flabbergasted at how well Ajax liquid (blue bottle) works in my water.

Some varieties of Gain powder are very good, although they may not qualify as "less expensive" to many a household's budget.

I think Arm & Hammer powder might be pretty good if you aren't concerned about internal washer residue buildup and aren't overly concerned about fading. Fragrance is almost nonexistent.

Under that, I'd rank the Surf ("Spring Burst" only-the "Active Oxygen" one makes me break out) and Purex with Softener liquid as decent choices.

I'd advise strongly against products like Xtra and Sun, which in my opinion are little better than water alone. The only store brand that is decent IMHO is "Stop and Shop" liquid, which is another liquid Tide lookalike.

The best thing to do is keep a decent, affordable all-purpose detergent that meets your needs for most lightly-soiled items, and trot out the big guns when you can see (or smell) when it's needed!

 

[sudsdudeshane]

my 2 sense

I agree with oxydolfan about Xtra and Sun liquid. (Lousy Products) If you want a good inexpensive liquid, My vote would be for Trend and Ajax liquid. Here in O-Town you can buy both for around $2.00 a bottle.
Personally, I am not giving up Tide with Bleach Powder no matter what..Its worth the extra $$$.

 

[exploder321]

Any Tide product, i don't care which formulation it is, makes me itch... Period.. I have gotten several nasty under arm infections as well from using tide...
I miss Fresh-Start.. Does any one else remeber Fresh-Start???
I love'd that stuff as a kid (when i was two I put some in water and drank it.. you can guess where mommie took me that day, straight to the ER)Do they still even have it around? I have a bottle someplace that i can sniff....

I now use Wisk HE and think it works wonders.. Before i've used Arm and Hammer, Airel, Wisk and Sears (which is very hard to find here)and they all worked quite well. I really wanna find Arm and Hammer HE and try it, but can't find it here (not even at Wal-Mart)

 

[launderess]

Fresh Start is still around,but can be hard to find. Try using Google for any of the various online sources for ordering, but shipping can be dear. If you really like FS you'd better order soon as CP sold off the brand, and once the NOS CP stuff runs out you'll have whatever the new company decides to produce.

L

 

[zipdang]

I agree with everything posted above about eco-friendly products not measuring up to conventional top-shelf counterparts. Fortunately, the majority of my daily laundry (chinos, button-up shirts) is in need of freshening more than deep cleaning, so I try and use the mildest products I can, reserving the Tide for laundry that really needs serious help.

As far as Fresh Start goes, it's still widely available in this area, and so far every bottle I've checked still has Colgate-Palmolive's name on it. Not sure how long that will last.

 

[exploder321]

Thanks.. Can i use it in my front loader???

 

[launderess]

Actually, come to think of it, perhaps the "lower" detergents that are mainly washing soda, phosphates, borax and surfactant cause less allergic reactions than many of today's new chemcial cocktail detergents. Do know after using Tide "Simple Pleasures" the darn scent came of on my ironing board, and still resides there despite the cover having been laundered in very hot water. Now if the fragrance rubs of on an ironing board, that means the residue can also easily come off on skin. Used only a small amount, and my Miele does 5 really deep rinses.

 

[exploder321]

I just sent CP a letter regerading it.. I will do some more hunting.. What grocery stores is it available in?? Wonder if i could buy it from them??

 

[zipdang]

Exploder321, are you questioning the availability of Fresh Start? If so, in the Portland metro area we have it in most larger grocery stores, although I have not seen it in Target. Fred Meyer/Kroger carries it, so you might try your local version of that chain. Also, our Winco stores have it (formerly Cub Foods), and always have it priced at under $5 per 44-load bottle. IIRC, it produces next to no suds, so it would probably work well in your front loader.

 

[oxydolfan1]

At 5 bucks per 44-load bottle, maybe it's too much of a value for the customers, for the stores to sell it to us around here!

 

[mrsalvo]

I think it depends on ones water, hard or soft, at how effective the detergents clean the clothes. I have really hard water at my house, so much so that I have a build up of calcium in my washer tub, it looks like the tub is chipping away. I have to run a cycle in my dishwasher with just Lime A-Way in the soap dispenser
once a month so that my dishes don't have that white residue on them...and I use Cascade Complete when washing dishes.
So what works great in one area of the country may not be so good in another.