Fresh as a Daisy?

[nickuk]

Tesco have really started to push budget brands recently, and they are now selling 2.55kg boxes of `Daisy' washing powder in the standard biological and colour variants. Curiosity got the better of me today, and I bought a box of the biological for £2.35. Also bought some matching Daisy `Peony' FS, would have been churlish not to....

All I can report so far is that the powder is just plain white, but flows nicely and there are no clumps at all throughout the box. My first impression of the scent of the powder in the box is`cheap' and a little disappointing (surpise surprise) but hopefully it might be one of those which washes away. To me it smells a little like disinfectant.

Anyway Will post back with findings. All of their other budget stuff seems pretty good so far, and I wouldn't describe myself as having low standards!

Has anyone else stooped so low as to try Daisy powder yet?

 

[MrX]

If you want good cheap washing powder, I'd suggest you try Aldi or Lidl, both of their main-stream washing powders are excellent and smell like, eh washing powder!

Tesco's ownbrand powders smell 'strange'

 

[rolls_rapide]

Daisy powder

What colour are the boxes? I've only seen the pink box and as far as I understand , it doesn't have oxygen bleach in its formulation.

Safety data sheet:

http://www.plp.co.uk/ingredients/MS...al Safety Data Sheet - Daisy true colours.pdf

 

[nickuk]

Hi Mrx, thanks for the reply.

I have never tried Aldi or Lidl powder, could you give me advice on which particular brands within these stores stand out? I would probably guess at starting with Lidl's Formil Bio powder. I think that David (2DrumsAllergy) has mentioned that one previously.

Daisy powder, FWIW, left no scent and the peony FS left a very pleasant smell though I doubt whether I will have a long term relationship with it. Can't comment on Daisy's cleaning yet. Tomorrow is serious wash day so I'll report back.

My wife has just returned home from shopping with Persil Small and Mighty too which she got for £1! It's on offer at £2 in Tesco and we had a £1 coupon. If anyone who reads this post will speak to Kirk soon, can they give him a poke as I know he's partial too......

Nick

 

[kirk280980]

Thanks for the heads-up, Nick!

Will be sure to check that out the next time I'm near a Tesco. Even at £2 a bottle (no coupon here), it's still half the price Sainsbury's are charging at the moment. For some reason it isn't showing up on the Tesco home shopping website yet, but perhaps they're busy carrying out an update as we speak.

mrx,

I haven't tried Tesco concentrated powder yet, but am currently using the Sainsbury's equivalent as my daily driver for the time being. Pretty sure it's exactly the same stuff, only in different packaging. Rather like the scent myself - reminds me of something I used to use back in the 90s, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is... maybe Surf? My memory is failing me!

 

[lavamat_jon]

I've seen the Daisy brand, not been keen to try it myself but may well be tempted to try! Unfortunately (or not you could argue) there isn't a Tesco within walking distance here, so I do all my shopping at Sainsbury's but I may look out for some when I'm back in Lincoln this weekend. Quite liked the Tesco concentrate powder myself - got some from our local Tesco Express when I ran out of bio once (our local Tesco Express is next to useless and doesn't sell any powder other than Tesco own, you've probably noticed that Kirk/Darren if you've been in) and it did clean well. Mum's bought the Sainsbury's bio tabs a few times and they were good too. Though, there are a few things (and I say only a few) which the own brand stuff can't quite touch but on general laundry cleaning and whiteness is certainly acceptable.

Kirk - have been tmepted to buy the concentrated Sainsburys stuff, but didn't want to commit myself to 50 washes. I presume you still shop at the Lincoln branch? Just left there after working there 3-4 days a week on checkouts for almost 2 years. Not sure if I'm crazy enough to go back for Christmas yet!

Jon

 

[nickuk]

Rolls_Rapide - Hi, yes I know the one you mean. Large purple box, colours only... it's now changed in our stores to smaller boxes and you can also get the `green' one, ie fully loaded bio/whites powder. I guess it changed about 3 weeks ago? I notice that Daisy powder is produced in the EU, but heaven knows where it originates from. On the box it says `for more information see www.ukproductinfo.com, if that helps. The softener is another mystery - it's UK produced but it doesn't look or perform like a McBride.

Kirk - glad you saw the message about the S+M. Hope you manage to get some bottles. Is it just the Sainsburys `bio' powder for whites you're using? Haven't been to JS for ages. You say you think it's the same as Tesco - just to let you know (incase you didn't) Tesco powders and tabs (don't know about this Daisy stuff) are now made by Persan, the largest detergent producer in Spain. Does this concurr with the JS product or are they still McBride, do you think?

Here is a pic of the products in question, and the machine about to start some whites.

 

[nickuk]

Hey Jon, since you're here - I finally found my 5 seconds of TV Fame on Anglia Tonight this evening LOL -and was broadcast at 4 minutes 53 seconds if you follow the link, after an advert the programme starts playing automatically. Think it's updated every bulletin, so probably won't work after this evening.

Had they lowered their lenses whilst filming me in town this afternoon, they could have filmed the Daisy Detergent hanging on the back of the buggy! Don't mention the excessive head nodding, please. I shall attend to that particular bad habit at once.

http://www.itvlocal.com/anglia/

 

[nickuk]

Hmm, just tried that link and it crashed my computer! Ah well, you're not missing much anyway.

Jon and I used to share some discussions (and laughs) about local news networking and stuff. I'm really interested in transmitter / aerial type stuff and often do work for myself / work / friends sorting out reception problems etc.

Now I've thrown my own thread totally off topic. My brain is just a constant stream of random thoughts. Will report on the Daisies tomorrow.

 

[2drumsallergy]

Hi Nick,
I have not tried the Daisy Bio as yet but I recall reading on the Powder and Liquid Products Limited website that their Daisy powders contain Sodium Tripolyphosphate. This can only be a good thing as far as cleaning goes.
I look forward to your reports on this product.

David

http://www.plp.co.uk/

 

[spoodles]

The Daisy softener is made by PLP too.

I think PLP specialise in cheapo products only!

 

[lavamat_jon]

Nick

Your kitchen looks really nice, those Classixx machines are quite, well, classy too. Interesting to see the synthetic spin speed is 1000 - it was always 800rpm on the Bosch we had. Congrats on your 5 seconds of fame! Have to say I listen to Moyles in the morning - only because he annoys me so much it forces me to get up and turn the clock radio off! My old college in Lincoln is in one of the camera shots on the opening sequence on Look North, that's my claim to fame LOL.

By any chance does anybody know who makes the new Sainsbury's tabs? I don't know if they're McBride, but now they're a strange octagon shape. Not just that but the liquitabs now come in plastic pouches rather than plastic tubs.

Jon

 

[kirk280980]

Hi Jon,

Yup, still pop into the Lincoln branch occasionally, but never did manage to spot you in there - so if you do come back for Christmas, let me know and I'll be sure to keep an eye out for you and say Hi!

As for the Sainsbury's concentrate powder, it is indeed a pity that it only comes in the 4kg size, and I can see how that would put many off trying it. For the price, however, I eventually figured there wasn't much to lose by giving it a go. Having tried it on some truly filthy laundry (work uniform, cleaning cloths and mop heads), everything came out spotless, so it certainly does the job. Another thing I like is that it's very low sudsing, even at higher dosages and wash temps. While I do still like my Persil Small & Mighty and will continue to use it as before, this has now become my powder of choice.

Hi Nick,

To start with I just bought the Sainsbury's colour concentrate, to see if I liked it, before stumping up for the bio variant as well. Comparing the two, the dosing instructions and list of ingredients were identical to those on the Tesco packaging. It doesn't give me the severe oversudsing problems I've always experienced with McBride products either, in fact quite the opposite.

Only way to be sure is to ask though, so I've sent an e-mail via the detergentinfo.com website requesting more details. Not sure if they will be willing to disclose the manufacturer's name, but it's worth a try. If/when I get a response, I'll post their reply here.

 

[nickuk]

Update

Hello again.

David - yes, it does contain STTP which is one of the reasons I bought a box. I'm a big fan of it.

Spoodles, I don't know if PLP actually make the products or buy them from other sources - as the powder states it's made in the `EU' whereas the conditioner states `UK'.

Jon - actually the machine is a 1400 so the second light down is `1200', which is the synthetics spin. It does default to 800 but I tend to change up a gear.

Right, I've done one load with it. Used 150 ml - `Hard water light soil'. Was a bit too much as it turns out. Used `Easy Care 60 + Aqua Plus.' Is a 45 minute wash, 800 spin, then 3 decent rinses all with 800 interim spins and finishes off with a 1200 spin.

Wash:

 

[nickuk]

Cool down at end of wash:

 

[nickuk]

Rinse 1:

 

[nickuk]

Sorry, these pictures look all blurry, don't know why...
Rinse 2:

 

[nickuk]

Rinse 3:

 

[nickuk]

Finished:

 

[nickuk]

3 items which were quite bad: a toddler's white sock, a t-shirt which had chocolate ice cream and pizza stains (Pizza Hut yesteday yay!) and, ahem, some white underwear with the usual staining. Sorry.

 

[nickuk]

So there we have it. I don't really think the pictures do justice to the spotlessly clean items - I was really very pleased with the result. It was as good as anything else I use. The washing had no identifiable scent left on it at all, just that really clean lovely smell. This may be a good detergent for someone who likes a particular fabric softener scent and doesn't want that scent clashing with the detergent.

Anywayone who knows me will have predicted my gripe: the rinsing was not good enough. It did the usual thing of rinsing clear but with a head of suds. I know this isn't a problem, but I don't like it. Notice too how there are more suds the clearer the water rinses. P+G detergent does this too. To my knowledge, there is only one bio/bleach detergent which rinses as it ought to (drinkeable water, no suds at all) and that's Persil Gel Tabs. But they have a range of other drawerbacks.

So there we have it, a top notch budget detergent.

The FS, buy the way, smells good but is way too gloopy and not very dispenser friendly.

Cheers everyone,

Nick

 

[spoodles]

Seems like for the price, it did pretty well then! It's only about £2.50 a box isn't it? As for the gloopy conditioner, I find some Comfort and Lenor variants can be like that too - not many of them, just certain flavours.

I wonder how good the colour version would be at cleaning and protecting colours? I'm always wary of buying cheap colour detergents, as I doubt they protect colours as well as Ariel or Persil colour.

Not to go off topic, but did anyone see that BBC programme a few months ago where they put products' claims to the test? One was Ariel's washing at 30ºC - it was proven to work but they tested against supermarket brands and although they generally cleaned most stains OK, when examined under a microscope the fibres were damaged by the supermarket brand powders. They lacked fibre protection ingredients, meaning clothes wear out a lot sooner than with a more expensive brand. That was never something I'd considered but I wonder if anyone on here who uses Tesco/Sainsbury's etc. stuff, has found that to be a problem?

Simon

 

[paulc]

Simon, I've found that supermarket own brand and some cheaper detergents are quite harsh on clothes causing "bobbling" even on less vigorous washes. Plus often I've had to re-wash things washed in cheaper detergent so its a false economy in that respect.

 

[2drumsallergy]

Lidl Formil Bio

Hi Nick,
The Daisy Bio certainly did perform well, no doubt the Sodium Tripolyphosphate greatly enhances its cleaning performance. I will definitely be trying some Daisy Bio!

I believe one of the the best value detergents on the market is without doubt Lidl's Formil Bio Powder, it cleans superbly, rinses cleanly and leaves the laundry smelling clean with no scent left behind. I don't know who makes it but it is made in Germany. I have used Formil Bio for a number of years now and it has not caused any fiber damage to my laundry, in fact I have noticed towels washed in Formil have a softer feel then Ariel or Persil Powder leaves (I don't use any softener on my towels). Talking of softness Lidl's Doussey Concentrated Fabric Softener is also excellent; made in Germany, it softens very well, is not gloopy and comes in a range of pleasant scents which are not overpowering.

I would value your (Or anyone's) opinion on Formil Bio; I think you would be very impressed with its performance and clean rinsing.

David

 

[paulc]

formil bio

David, I will certainly give Formil a try, I have used the Liquid in the past....it seemed quite good but asda is nearer than Lidl so I went back to brand names.

 

[washdayisfun]

Hi Nick

Thanks for posting this thread. I myself have used the Daisy for colours (Couldn't help it..It was in a bright pink box so had to be done!..lol). I was impressed with it apart from the sudsing issue. I have very soft water and sudsing is a complete nightmare for me.

I have yet to try the Green biological version but that is going to be on my list soon.

Im currently using Tesco Bio Tabs (Good cleaning but awful smell) and Lidl Formil colour tabs (Good cleaning and smell nice).

I also tried a few of the different Daisy fabric conditioners but like you found them very thick and I was having problems with gloop left in the dispensor.

David

I have used formil bio and colour tabs before and was impressed with them. Ive yet to try the actual big box powder as I tend to go for tabs over powder but im always changing my mind.

Im currently using Aldis fabric conditioner which I find is very good. Its not thick and it all gets washed out of the dispensor. Does a good job of conditioning aswell. They have changed the fragrances again though and there is a new line up. They are nice but I liked one particular one of the old line up.

I do not go for the major brands anymore as I just can't afford to pay the prices they want these days. I always now buy cheaper products. It can be supermarket own brands or I go for Lidls or Aldis. Have never tried the £1 boxes of "Clean & Fresh" yet..Anyone tried them? They used to have a different name but can't remeber what it was.

Mark

 

[washdayisfun]

Forgot to add the picture!

These are my current detergents and softeners. As you can see there is an Ariel excel gel in there. I ONLY purchased this because it was on offer. Will not be paying full price for it!

Mark

 

[nickuk]

Hi everyone

Thanks for your responses. I really am becoming more and more keen to try these Formil products. I'm a fan of tablets too actually Mark, without really knowing why.... but I'm sure like many people I tend to use one tablet unless it's a particularly large or dirty load.

I have the Tesco bio tabs too and think they're great. They're not bad rinsers are they clean as well as the major brands IMO, but the formulation has recently changed down here, the phosphates having now been abandoned. I really don't mind the smell of them! And I LOVE the yellow 2 in 1 smell, without going into the whole `2in 1s' debate.........

Well it's off to LIDL then. Thanks for telling me about the ALDI softener being good. Aldi is on the other side of town so I may well try the Doussey from LIDL first, the one David says is good. Have you tried that one Mark?

I'm enjoying how this thread is evolving to celebrate the budget detergent. I have never really tried them before, but at age 33 (and a life long detergent addict) there is honestly no `top' brand detergent that I'm 100% impressed with anyway. I really feel that the FORMAT you get is far more important than the brand, in so much as if you know the strengths and weaknesses of powder vs liquid, bio vs non, regular vs colour etc then you'll get good results. I kind of feel that the brand is just a choice based on issues such as scent (or lack of), brand image, dosing practicalities etc.

Thanks again.
Keep it coming guys!

 

[nickuk]

Sorry, Mark, I assumed you were a different Mark I already knew under a different user name...

But it looks like you are a new member....

WELCOME!!!

 

[washdayisfun]

Hi Nick

It is me....I dissapeared but have returned!

The Tesco tabs up here have changed to the no phosphate ones but I managed to scrabble around and find the last 2 with phosphate amongst all the others. I have tried the yellow 2 in 1 and did like the smell so will use them again. I still use fs though with them as I just like using it especially for it cutting down any last suds in the rinse. They do clean like you say very well.

I haven't used Asdas tablets or powder for a long long time simply because Tesco is down the road and Asda is in another town so can't comment on what Asdas detergent is like. I do remember them being more expensive though than Tesco.

I used lidl softner ages ago and haven't used it since so can't remember how it performed.I remember it was a red colour though. Will wait and see your results as I still have lots of softener at present as you can see from the pic.

What ingredients am I looking out for in the budget brands? What does Sodium Tripolyphosphate do? I have no idea really what to look out for and what different things do. All I know to look for is phosphate and bleach!

Mark