foaming
Having re-traced my thinking, I remember the issue of excessive suds was the reason I ended up on the Surcare: it's a very low-sudsing detergent (powder and liquid). It's not that I object to the sight of suds in the wash, but I don't want the drum half-full of foam given the potential for leakage on my machine.
Surcare powder itself actually isn't too bad at all, depending on what you want it to do. It's absolutely fine for anything where you need general cleaning, especially in hotter water - e.g. sheets and towels. Loads with trickier stains or those washed at lower temperatures need a helping hand with some stain remover. It does contain optical brighteners but has no perfume: this is where it can be a bit of a scary prospect. What you get, however, is laundry that smells clean in a soda and oxygen bleach way; in fact, it's a refreshing experience especially if you've dried things outside, and you can slip between clean sheets without wondering whether all that perfume you'd normally get is actually a bit on the toxic side!
Overall, I do quite like the idea of washing with a reduced cocktail of chemicals which is why I keep coming back to the likes of Ecover, Surcare or Method. I can't pretend, however, that they're as effective as mainstream premium brands. The idea is perhaps only to bring out the bigs guns when they're needed!
