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he detergent

16 years ago

I am buying a new top loading washer that uses less water & is energy efficient. I understand that it uses he detergent. I have stockpiled lots & lots of Tide with Downy and Arm & Hammer frangrance and dye free detergent when they were on sale and BOGOF. Does this mean that I can't use the detergent that I already have tons of on hand?

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Comments (5)

dadoes
16 years ago
You can try using reduced amounts of it. Depending on your water conditions and typical washloads, that may not be enough detergent concentration to clean very well, or you may still get too much sudsing which causes trouble with the machine trying to handle it.
alohamillion123
16 years ago
I occasionally will use regular detergent w/ my HE washer but you will get many many suds and if you reduce the detergent enough to avoid this (IMO) there is not enough detergent to clean properly. But then again, i have young kids so my clothes may be dirtier than yours LOL

You may want to check w/ the store you purchased your detergent from to do an even exchange for the HE soap. I had no problem doing that at a regional store.

Good luck and hope you like your HE. I love mine!
Stacey =)
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Sharon wrote: My son can't handle Tide Free because it has enzymes. For his laundry, I use liquid All Free and Clear HE and the Charlie's Soap pretreater to treat the stains. Works fine for me, and he's a mess maker! I haven't found the All F&C HE in powder yet, but I'm just thrilled to finally have it at all. For years I had to use small amounts of regular All F&C, which didn't work well because it created too many suds. My laundry-life has been much easier since they came out with the HE version. ;-) Sensitivity issues are often due to poor rinsing. Your skin reacts to the detergent residue in the clothes. If there were no residue, there would be no reaction. The solution isn't necessarily to stay away from enzymes, which do a heck of a job cleaning, but to stay away from poorly rinsing detergents, and to reduce the quantity of detergent used to the proper level that cleans sufficiently and rinses well. Tide is notoriously poor at rinsing, so it's not surprising that enzyme residues are a cause for problems. I think you may be alright with Bi-O-Kleen, Ecover, or even Sears if you dose it properly -- 1 to 2 TBS, no more -- and use a machine with at least 3 rinses.
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You will usually need more detergent with hard water, but it depends on the how dirty the load is and what cycle you select. Dadoes usually has great advice. I don't use STPP so I couldn't say.
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In my Miele FL I use about 2-2.5 tablespoons of power. Speaking of boxes, Miele detergent box comes in a flip top that is sealed until pushed open for the first time. Inside is a nice functional "purse string" closure on a plastic bag, that contains the powder. I don't rebox this product, but other boxed powders I do. I get air tight containers and put the powder in along with a cut out of the name of the detergent and instructions, from the back of the box. I personally cant stand the goo of drippy liquid laundry detergent. It always seems to drip onto the outside of the cap and part way down the bottle when I try to recap :/ I use a "for darks" liquids for my very darks/blacks. My "Jeans" cycle requires liquid too.
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As long as the water, feels slippery... I think you're fine. For what it's worth though... any "Ultra" or "2x" Liquid Tide I've ever used in a Top Loader wasn't big in the Suds Department. There's nothing wrong with using a Low-Suds detergent, in a Top Loader. The problem is... when you use a very heavy sudsing (high dilution, non-he) detergent, in a front loader. Although... if you're careful dosing, you can use *some* non-he detergents just fine.
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parrot_phan
16 years ago
Here's my rule of thumb:

If the non-HE detergent is liquid, don't try it. They tend to be really foamy. There is is one exception: regular Liquid All Free & Clear, which some of us use at a half dose in our FLs.

Many of us FL owners regularly use powdered detergents that are not HE. I've used 2-3 Tbl. of powdered Tide or Cheer Free for years in my FL with little suds. I have always wound up with very clean laundry.

Oddly enough, with my water/machine/laundry setup, I get less suds with the non-HE powders than when I've used Tide HE in liquid OR powdered form.

As always, your mileage may vary.
carolj79
16 years ago
Be careful about using non HE deetergent, it may void your warranty with your machine--check the warranty. I have the Whirlpool calypso, not a front loader but requires HE detergent. Also, if you have teens, they will not bother to reduce the amount of regular detergent when throwing in a load of wash. I have found that Gain HE and Tide HE are by far the best HE detergents. Sorry about your stockpile of non HE detergent but maybe you could donate it to a local food pantry, use for bridal shower gifts when you give towels or grad gift for kids headed for college.
mayguy
16 years ago
I use the Tide HE powdered type, and my clothes come out much cleaner than the old top loader that I had.

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