As unbelievable as this sounds, I have never bought laundry detergent :o
Before I marreid I never did laundry
When I did start doing my own laundry, I just used whatever was available.
Last year our old house was being emptied out so my parents left alot of the household items with me, one of which was hte soapā¦
Okay so having just finished the last drop of it, I went down to target to buy someā¦and oh my god, the choicesā¦just overwhelmed me!
Do I buy a different detergent for whites? One for colors? Do I get the liquid soap or the boxed powder kind? Does it matter what kind of machine I have? (I dont have my ownā¦I use the buildingās laundry machine).
How do I know if I might be allergic to some kind of detergent?
and how long do detergents normally last? The container usually says good for 72 loads, um I usually do laundry about once a month, so it stretches out for quite a while..
So far all the detergent iāve used, my whites are never white enough, either the stains are too deep set or the detergent isnāt doing its jobā¦
Hmmm...I use Tide.Have always used that..the liquid form because that is what goes in my machine and I think most of the laundromat machines also use liquid detergent.
They used to have the regular kind a few years ago but now I only find the concentrated liquid at Bjs (that is where I buy it).
I have always used the same stuff for colored and whites.I have never had any issues.Also I think I tend to use a little less detergent than it says on the bottle because it is not that I am washing heavily soiled clothes etc.
Allergic to a detergent...hmmm...might be a possibility...You can never know unless you try.I use Dreft for my daughter's laundry.That is supposed to be mild.maybe you can try that as well.
Also there are a few out there some of which have Febreze and some have Downy in 'em.I buy the fabric softener separately so I just get the regular laundry detergent.
I just use the cheapet one available. If you do find that you are allergic to some, Purex and All are good options. Also, using a little less detergnet in each load helps. I use the same detergent for White and colors. But I was them separetley. If there are stains I spray the stains with "Shout", which is a pre treatment thing. If you do the laudry once a month you can afford to buy expensiveones like Tide.
Depends on how much you want to spend. If you are using the building's machine, then it can't be the one that requires any specific type of detergent.
You can use the same detergent for all colors, but you might want to buy a pre-wash treatment spray for stains and collar/cuff dirt. Also get a bleach for the whites.
I use the concentrated liquid that you put in a ball inside the drum but that's in a front loading machines. It's easy to measure out depending on your load. I often use a small amount because I do some quick washes for just a few clothes that aren't dirty but just a bit smelly. Fabric softener too that goes in at the same time too.
As for the coloureds and whites, I think the same detergent is fine but we have two different kinds of oxy stain removers for whites and colours... they are supposed to remove stains and boost the colours and it definitely works for the whites. Also have an oxy pre-wash spray for collars.
I have other detergents for hand washing silks and wools. For the knitwear you put in the machine, I would use only a little or no fabric conditioner as it ends of make the clothes limp.
I think temperature is the most important thing for keeping your clothes looking good. When I used to do everyone's laundry at my parents home, the boys school shirts needed to be washed relatively high (and with a pre-wash) to get all the muck out. But if I was washing mine, my sister's and my mum's cotton/linen shalwar kameez, 30-35Ā°C is fine and the clothes last longer. You do tend to do more loads if you're separating everything not only by colour but also by the type of fabric.
Here we have "non biological" detergents for allergies... we've always used that kind because my mum always said my dad was allergic to the regular stuff. Don't know if it's true but it works fine.
I take my clothes washing very seriously. I'd always clash with my mum coz she'd do things like put the clothes in too high a temp or put clothes in the dryer that I wanted to air dry (again, fabrics last longer, less risk of shrinkage and less creases).
