I'm sure all brands of laundry detergent are "benefiting" because of using too much of their products per load. It's like Mr. Heinz said about his ketchup, "It's not the ketchup they use that makes us rich, it's the ketchup they they leave on their plate."

And I'm sure there is a magic line inside the cap that is for accurate measuring, not the full cap.

How many people had never used ALL until it came in the concentrated form? Good hook, I'd say.

-Grainlady

You should never use such harsh detergents on you cars or trucks. It can ruin the paint.

I have recently switched to powdered soap. For years i have complained about these little dark speckles that magicaly appear in my cloths. In the cleaning forum i learned that it is caused by too much suds in the laundry soap. So i have switched to powder and i think the problem has been solved.
Lexi7, Why do you mix it first before you put it in the machine?

I just put a dab into my front loader... and everything comes out great.
Going up to the recommended line is wasteful and unnecessary...

Sorry you had to go through that ,Lexi . Bottles can be so hard to open sometimes. I HATE those caps ! One time - I couldn't get a bottle of toilet cleaner open .... I Was so ticked - I threw the whole bottle away. ( I never ever got this mad - but this cap put me over the edge ) You got the double whammy --- hard to open and the cleaner stunk !
I hope you got your money back . I know how you feel .
We live and learn , don't we ?

Ninos the repairman said liquid detergent is better for the washer, but if I wanted to use powder, to mix it with water first. It seems the dust from the powder detergent gunks up the washing machine.
Toomuchglass, thanks for the kind words. Not being able to open stuff or find stuff are two of my pet peeves. I can tell you understand because I have thrown bottles away too. Yes we do live and learn.

Throw something away that I can't open? NEVER! I march it right back to the store and get a refund. I usually ask one of them if they can get it open and watch them struggle until they give up and refund me.

~~Giggle~~ ;~) This tightwad did not leave the bottle in the trash. After I cooled down, I got a pipe wrench and opened the stuff. It saved a trip to the store. I really hate to return stuff, but do when it is necessary.

It seems that all liquid detergent is now packaged in 2x concentrate. I wish there was an alternative.

I've never had a time when I couldn't get a bottle open. Granted, I have used a Channelock on a couple or a strap wrench, but it comes open! :) However my pet peeve is the reverse - when the caps loosen during transit and leak when I'm taking them home! That's why I always make sure the cap is on tight before putting it in the cart and I usually double check while putting it on the belt to check out and even triple check when I'm bagging it!

And personally, I like the idea of the concentrated formulas. Now that I'm more crippled up, the weight and bulkiness of things is far more of a concern to me. Actually, I was hoping to get the 2x version when I broke down and tried Tide this time, but the stench/dye free version was only available in regular formula. It's just the elimination of water so I don't see how it can't clean as well. It also results in less plastic needing to be made, less plastic for the landfills, less cost in transporting it so less fuel used, less labor costs, less room required on the store shelves, it's easier on the backs of those who stock it and easier on my back carrying it home and down the basement, even easier on me each time I grab the bottle to use it. These are all good things IMO. I've griped for years that they should do more of this. I think they could make it even more concentrated and I'd be happy! Wouldn't bother me to use an eyedropper to put a drop of detergent into the washer! And actually, the more concentrated it is, the more that is left in the bottle at the end so they would make more off the people who don't bother rinsing the bottle or diluting it.

I used to dislike powders because it always caked up on me so bad. One of the main reasons I switched to liquid. But I don't notice that anymore. Perhaps they've changed it. Seems to me it's more of a larger granule than what used to be powder and that's the difference. I threw out a lot of powdered detergent in my day! But now, the powders are losing market share dramatically. Won't be many left before long, that is of what's left now. Several stores around here have discontinued powders altogether.

I do have a gripe though about these crazy bottle designs they're using now! They're not well balanced, not very ergonomic and I would sure prefer a squared off plain old bottle with a functional handle if needed. I don't need my laundry detergent bottle to look like a snowman or something. That's one thing I did like about Amway's products. They had a nice square bottle, easy to grip, fit on a shelf nicely and was highly concentrated. Don't know if they still use those bottles anymore or not. While I'm on my oversized "non-compacted" soapbox I'll gripe about ice cream pails too! Make 'em square! Canada has 'em, so get with it US! (end of rant...)

BTW, bravo on the pipe wrench use! As Edgar K.B. Montrose says, there's no problem to large or too small that can't be solved with a couple of well-placed sticks of dynamite... Tempting sometimes, isn't it? :)

Today I bought Gain Powder, for $9.97 it will wash 80 loads. Gain Liquid for the same price will wash only 64 loads. So I am back to powders. I love the lightweight box with the plastic handle. It is perfect for storing things in later.

I've usually used powder (as someone said - cheaper and easier to haul) but got a good buy in liquid at a discount store a while ago, and it seems to work O.K.

Cynic,

I think that some of the people in Canada have square heads, too.

Those squarish tubs are handy - and take up less space in the store and in my freezer. And I need all of my freezer space to store stuff from the garden, these days.

It's a good sized chest freezer ... and almost full.

ole joyful

I basically use powder detergent--the concentrated kind. I don't like the "classic" ones, because they have the unnecessary fillers. However, I use liquid detergent for certain things and I like the Wisk 3x concentrate. It does a great job.

I love powdered detergent. I only use tide with bleach.

I was doing some reading on the 2x versions of the P&G products. They call it "compaction". Gotta get a fancy word for concentrated, I guess.

Anyway, I guess they have actually changed the formulas. The Tide has different enzymes in the 2x and they claim it cleans better, works better on certain stains, etc. The Gain is supposed to hold the scent better and Cheer is supposed to work better too. I don't know, it's what they're claiming. So I guess my assumption that it's simply removing water and plastic was incorrect. So I stand corrected.

BTW Joyful, don't you Canadians have square wheels on your cars too??? :) I saw it on South Park so it must be true!