Laundry.......do you sort? Favorite detergent? Fighting stains, what's your secret?

[LadyLocust]

So, what is the best prescribed detergent? Serious question.

I don't think anyone answered this. When I purchased supermarket detergent, I used Cheer - free (no scents).
I make my own now for really dirty things & for normal washing I just use soap nuts and Mg. pellets. I will show links. I haven't purchased laundry products in ages. I really like being able to get many loads from these things and not having to continue to purchase them. I also use vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser. There is no residual smell. When our drier dies which I am not wishing for in any way, I will probably not replace it as I usually hang our clothes.

Soap Nuts:
https://www.amazon.com/Soap-Nuts-Be...UCwTuumFAryCMfuEj71cIFrm61ZZpiohoC-L4QAvD_BwE

Mg Pellets:
https://www.amazon.com/200-300-natu...agnesium+laundry+pouch,hpc,164&sr=1-1-catcorr

 

[Tim Horton]

Always having done my own laundry, even when married, I don't own any clothes that can't go in the washer as ...everybody in the pool... Sheets, shorts, T shirts, jeans you name it.. I never had anything like ..new jeans.. that had to be broken in to launder with everything else.. But then I also don't get upset if ..for instance.. T shirts aren't the whitest..

I've always used regular Tide detergent.. Regardless of the local water where ever I lived and gotten by well.. I always buy the big family size bottle of Tide liquid on sale..

I'm sure most ..laundry snobs... would consider me a heathen or slob...

 

[Heartbroken]

The Tide has never bothered you with smell, skin irritations, etc?
I don't what it is but I find Tide poisonous. Like I can't even hug someone who washed their clothes with Tide without getting very ill. And if I happen to walk into a laundry room where it's been used I have breathing issues that get scary.
It is so dangerous to me it makes me wonder how anyone can use it.

 

[LadyLocust]

The Tide has never bothered you with smell, skin irritations, etc?
I don't what it is but I find Tide poisonous. Like I can't even hug someone who washed their clothes with Tide without getting very ill. And if I happen to walk into a laundry room where it's been used I have breathing issues that get scary.
It is so dangerous to me it makes me wonder how anyone can use it.

We used to use it when showing sheep if they laid in poop. It was the best for getting that out of wool. It is some of the harshest chemicals. The other one that gets me is the fabric softener scents. Most people are nose blind

 

[Pearl]

I can smell people's clothes, (cigarettes, alcohol, etc.) a mile away!! They have NO clue!!

 

[Weedygarden]

I used Amway for many years. I knew people who were distributers.

Now I am using ECOS that I get from Costco. Daughter prefers the TIDE smell, except recently decided to use ECOS. There are 225 loads in one jug. That lasts me about a year.

I like having the dispensers in my current washer. I couldn't quite figure out how to use fabric softener without it. I didn't have a dispenser for it previously.

Vinegar actually is supposed to remove odors. I like to use it in combination with baking soda. Together they really do remove odors.

 

[CrocDundee]

I buy the cheap, generic supermarket brand for $5. I'm the one stuck with buying toilet paper, paper towels, dw detergent, laundry powder and the electricity bill. Now, the oven thermostat crapped out so the plumber has to get the part and replace it....and the 5 day Oyster holiday starts tomorrow. But...yeah...the cheap stuff works just fine.

 

[Amish Heart]

Fighting blood stains quite often now with husband's health and he takes blood thinner. Peroxide works real well, keeping a bottle in the laundry room.

 

[Pearl]

Fighting blood stains quite often now with husband's health and he takes blood thinner. Peroxide works real well, keeping a bottle in the laundry room.

You've had your own share of blood shed lately!

 

[MoBookworm1957]

You all realize if you didn't wear clothes, you wouldn't have to do laundry at all

That was a picture I could have done without today.
Thank you very much.

 

[sonya123]

since I posted the original post, we have upgraded! Got a new very expensive washing machine ( expensive because it does not have a lock and minimal electronics) and husband put in a new line from the kitchen to make a faucet outside that has enough pressure to hook a hose to run the washing machine. It's still work, we have to set it up and put the faucet and hose under the house in winter so it doesn't freeze. I still use the old washing machine to wash the barn clothes the way I did before ( filling it with a hose and forwarding through the rinse cycle)

 

[sonya123]

Fighting blood stains quite often now with husband's health and he takes blood thinner. Peroxide works real well, keeping a bottle in the laundry room.

didn't know that, does it work better than bleach? I have bloody goat towels at the moment ( from helping dry off the babies)

 

[Ekatarina]

Since I dont wear fancy clothes ...everything goes in wash machine
*Old Dutch laundry detergent* morning breeze / Javex bleach cold water only

Btw I have no white clothes

I do socks all together
Jeans all together
T shirts all together

Bra = hand wash let dry in bathroom

My cats blankets and pillow cases *separated*
Cold water - Javex bleach - laundry detergent Old Dutch

When its breezy I like my clothesline otherwise its my dryer

 

[Mountain trapper]

I can smell people's clothes, (cigarettes, alcohol, etc.) a mile away!! They have NO clue!!

It's a good thing that cigars don't smell.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Years ago the wife kept whining about wanting some help around the house. So I hired a full time live in housekeeper and imported her from Thailand. I guess she really meant she wanted me to help with the house work.

 

[Bluedanube]

We have an O3 unit hooked to our cold water line for the laundry. We have had that a couple of years and it really helped with odors and using less bleach in general. Also it works best on cold so we aren’t using as much hot water either. I have had a hate hate hate relationship with most laundry detergents over the years due to sensitive skin. I started using Hey Sunday laundry strips a year ago. One piece for my clothes, two for regular menfolk clothes and towels or other bulky things. If there’s a particularly gross operation happening, 3 strips. We use a lot less soap now and it’s a subscription thing so I don’t have to worry about running out when no one tells me. I don’t break out, the clothes are clean, and they smell really nice. I think they work as well as any liquid or powder detergent I’ve ever used. Just make sure they go in the bottom of the wash bin first and you don’t even have any residual soap scum or sticky pod things. No plastic being wasted is a bonus if you’re into that. Also, I learned long ago that if I refuse to buy bright white clothes, I have a lot less chance of an outbreak of OCD. Also, two months supply is literally an envelope on the shelf instead of a whole giant bucket. Means more room for canned goods!

 

[Amish Heart]

Yep, peroxide takes blood right out, better than bleach. Bleach still tends to leave a dark spot and it smells. But I use bleach on other stains.

 

[Ekatarina]

Yep, peroxide takes blood right out, better than bleach. Bleach still tends to leave a dark spot and it smells. But I use bleach on other stains.

Bleach and soap is good for my dog and cats blankets and sheets

But indeed peroxide take blood away ...
or you just can burn clothes with blood

 

[Weedygarden]

I've tried shouting at stains, never works!!

I have a bar of soap, I don't remember the name brand. I keep it in a dish with a dedicated tooth brush just for stain removal. I get the toothbrush wet, get some of the bar soap on it, and scrub the stain until it seems gone. Then I toss the clothes into the washer (edit!).

I have tried many kinds of stain removals. Spraying something on doesn't really work for me.

 

[Magus]

I spray organic stains with Hydrogen Peroxide ten minutes before washing; it destroys blood, grass, and some grease stains. it does zip for axle grease and motor oil, however.

 

[Ekatarina]

I spray organic stains with Hydrogen Peroxide ten minutes before washing; it destroys blood, grass, and some grease stains. it does zip for axle grease and motor oil, however.

I agree hydrogen peroxide soak works well then soap and cold water

But .. if you really want to rid of clothes with blood you
set a big fire outside in a bin and throw those clothes in it keep the fire alive
until no more clothes..gone LOL

 

[Magus]

Nah, I have several pairs of perfectly good khaki cargo pants that are soaked in deer blood.
And paint.
and motor oil.
and cheap makeup (don't ask!)
But otherwise perfectly good, if I keep adding stains, soon they will be camouflaged!

 

[GreenAndSwirly]

I use whatever brand of scent and dye free soap is cheaper at the time.
I do not sort but my husband does. I don't have time for all that . During the summer I use my washboard to wash everything except jeans cuz my hands just can't handle that anymore. Otherwise I use a laundromat or a wringer washer, depending on how much time I have and what items I'm washing. At the laundromat when I drive them I use the special pet dryer sheets to repel dog hair.

 

[UrbanHunter]

I have 2 of those 3 bag sorting racks, I sort by color and fabric. Whites (like Tee's), Whites (dress shirts), nice fabric colors, towels, dark socks and slacks, my jeans and heavy shirts, and stuff that is just terrible (cleaning rags).

I use powder detergent (no scent) and Oxyclean on most loads, usually with warm water. I use hydrogen peroxide on blood stains and rinse with cold water before washing.
Some stains I pretreat with a spray, I use a laundry bag for my wife bra's (they go in with the whites) and they never see the dryer.

I'm good about doing the laundry, just don't ask me to fold. I do hang up dress clothes, the wife's dresses, and her bra's.. everything else goes in clean hampers.

My hunting clothes gets it's own treatments.

If I am working on a car, the wife has requested that those clothes never see our washing machine, some of those greases can stain other things.

 

[TENNGRIZZ]

Borax , Lye soap and or pine tar soap. clothesline when weather is appropriate. Dryer the rest. I wash my stuff All together. I never touch my wifes stuff. lol

 

[Tirediron]

Stains are a badge of honor . when My shirt is stained it means either i was fixing something, wrecking something, made my head bleed again, or need to either eat neater or wear a bib.

 

[ginnie6]

I use the cheap grocery store stuff. It works and I'm not paying an arm and a leg. Dh works out of town and he does his own laundry. He likes Gain or Tide pods. I hate the pods. They never dissolve completely for me and I go to put on a shirt only to find it glued together with the remnants of the pod. So he buys his detergent and I buy for the rest of us. He wants fancy he can pay for it lol. For stains the best thing I've found is Dawn. It has taken out any stain I've tried it on. For blood though I'd use peroxide.

 

[Ekatarina]

I agree hydrogen peroxide soak works well then soap and cold water

But .. if you really want to rid of clothes with blood you
set a big fire outside in a bin and throw those clothes in it keep the fire alive
until no more clothes..gone LOL

LOL I forgot
dig a 8 feet in ground throw lots of powdered limestone
plant a white pine and cross your fingers

 

[elkhound]

well i guess i am a laundry heathen....i dump it all in machine...pour some tide in and pull the button....get it out and dry it...easy peasey ! i dont care....lol

 

[elkhound]

I agree hydrogen peroxide soak works well then soap and cold water

But .. if you really want to rid of clothes with blood you
set a big fire outside in a bin and throw those clothes in it keep the fire alive
until no more clothes..gone LOL

you pyromaniac !

long ago when i was younger,dumber and much faster and braver i had a friend...after work she invite me over for fun times...we get a gallon of gasoline and matches and blow up ant hills in her yard....lol...ant hills were then holes in yard...it was so much fun !