I am washing a load of towels with the Sears oxy as I type this. I scooped some out for a friend of mine to try and the scoop measures 1/4 cup. It should have the instructions on the container. I love this stuff!

sshrivastava....I've been using seventh generation (free & clear flavor) for 7 months now. Every great once in a while I will do a load of towels in Charlies Soap but other than 7G & Charlies I haven't used any other detergent in my machine since it was brand new. I haven't noticed a musty smell nor have I experienced any mold. I just took the detergent drawer out a couple weeks ago to clean it and didn't see any mold, but I'm going to take it out again and double check. I do run at least 1 if not 2 sanitary cycles a week, quite a few hot cycles, the rest warm, but never cold washes. I've ran about 4 "clean washer" cycles in the last 7 months too maybe the migh help. I also use a little bit of seventh generations lavender fabric softner watered down to every load except towels. Bio kleen has grapefruit seed & orange peel extracts. 7G has coconut based surfactants, wonder if that could make a difference? Seems kinda weird that it could be a coincidence if you'd never had problems before.

@ livebetter The HE version is not available in Cool Cotton, just Renewing Rain. I didn't like the scent at first either, it had funky and musty undertones. However, the last two bottles I've gone through have smelled much nicer- more flowery. I wonder if a bad batch of this stuff just made it through the supply chain, or maybe storing it under certain conditions causes the scent to change? Here is what I've noticed after using Tide HE Total Care after several washings. Fabrics feel more substantial - almost heavier - and fibers appear refreshed and less aged. I have also noticed deeper color returning to my dark washables that previously appeared slightly faded. There is definitely something to this product when it comes to keeping clothes looking their best. While the effects are noticeable after a single washing, you'll really start noticing the changes after washing several times. Two throw blankets that I've recently started washing in Tide HE w/ Bleach have come back to life. I used to wash these items in Charlie's Soap and various other green or natural products, which has taken its toll. The white areas are dingy grey and the colors appear to have faded. A few washings in Tide HE w/ Bleach has restored the white areas and made the colored areas more vibrant. Darker colors on the blanket also appear richer, perhaps due to the improved contrast when compared to the white areas. For those who have experienced unsatisfactory results with their green and natural products, there's still hope! Wash your items in a good quality detergent like Tide HE and a potent fabric softener like Downy and you will see your fabrics come back to life.

A front loading washer made my life EASIER, not harder! I wouldn't ever go back to a top loader. You have to learn how to use them correctly, just like any new item. But I guess it all depends on whether a person makes the choice to learn how to use their appliances to get the most efficiency out of them. I have no idea why you would think that using a tablespoon of detergent to clean a load is silly. The formulation of detergents in this day and age allow for decreased amounts of detergent. Top loaders use 1/4 to 1/2 the amount that was recommended even 10 years ago. A person used to have to use a LARGE scoop for a regular load-- and the economy sized box of detergent couldn't even be lifted without help! I am sure there are plenty of others on this forum that remember those days :) Please tell me how it is common sense that not enough water is used to rinse properly? If you had researched front loaders and followed the instructions properly, you would find that the decreased amount of water actually rinses MUCH better than a whole tub load of water. That is because the water is forced through the fabic as the drum tumbles and take the soap with it as it does. Compare it to rinsing your driveway off with a hose-- if you don't use a nozzle, the water just runs over the pavement but doesn't rinse it too well but if you use a high pressure nozzle, the dirty water is pushed off of the pavement. I love my FL and love the money I have saved all the way around by using it-- and that doesn't include my time and energy!