@pinpoint22 and lavamatjohn
Surveying the shelves of Swedish supermarkets, it seems to be 50-50 split between powders and liquids. My friend in Stockholm seems to prefer 2X liquids, probably for being easier to tote home from the market, but they never use the dispenser drawer for liquids, they know better.
For bringing it home on the plane, powders are safer (duh) and no liquid would be allowed on board in cabin luggage. Even in checked luggage, if a box of powder breaks it's a mess, but not as bad as a leaking bottle. I encase any detergent boxes in a gallon-size (3.8 liters) zip-lock bag for safety. For my upcoming stay in London this spring, I will probably buy some UK Persil and bring it in my cabin bag, since luggage is now limited to one checked piece in Economy up to 23 kgs/50 lbs. Overweight (between 50-70 lbs/23-32 kgs) bags are charged an extra $60 (although if you use this charge to cart back an additional 20 lbs/8 kgs of purchases, you can also look at it another way: you could never ship the goods on a same-day basis from UK to California for $60, so maybe best to pony up). On this particular trip, I upgraded to Business eastbound (three bags allowed) but return in Economy (one bag allowed). BA allows the same luggage allowance on the return, even if the return is in a lower class cabin (i.e. Business outbound and Economy return gets two bags in both directions). But as far as I know, American Airlines does not extend this courtesy to returning Economy passengers.
I agree with both of you re: moldy washers. My FL is in my garage (never freezes here). In a summer heat wave, the temperature inside the garage can exceed 90 F/32 C, but I have never had mold issues in this five year old machine. Basically, the door is NEVER closed unless the machine is in use. I didn't learn this from a manual. I learned it from 30+ years of observing what friends in Europe (and their parents) did---doors were always ajar. I also wipe the gasket dry after the last cycle of the day. I suspect that issues with washer mold in the USA are the result of inexperienced buyers---most of the time, it's their first FL---keeping the door shut instead of ajar, and not keeping the gasket dry. I think the user manual mentions wiping the gasket dry, but no mention of leaving door ajar.
I suppose someone using only liquids and cold water could have mold issues too, but most US FLs have onboard heaters and the buyers often make use of Hot or Sanitize cycles. But these hot cycles won't prevent mold in a washer not allowed to dry out by keeping the door ajar. I believe a majority of washers now sold in US are FL, but there are so many older TLs still in use that the majority of washers in US homes are still TLs. It will take another decade or so of predominantly-FL sales before FLs become the majority. At the same time, most FL owners are currently on their
<span style="text-decoration: underline;">first </span>FL, and as such as still making mistakes with respect to proper care of the machine. Moreover, most ads show the machines with the doors closed (often in a room off the kitchen, with designer built in cabinets, etc.) so buyers assume they can shut the doors (to make it look better) just as in the advertisements. Also, buyers with small children may have to keep the doors closed/locked. The ideal setting for a FL in a home with small children would be an enclosed laundry room with a locking door, so that the FL door can be left ajar with the room door secured. However, if the laundry area is in a garage or pantry area off the kitchen (or in a mud room without a locking interior door, etc.) then it's more difficult to leave the door ajar.
