I bought a bag of Tide boost plus bleach pods today and will report back when I try them. On the back of the bag for TL's it says to start the machine, add detergent and then clothes and put the pod on top of the clothes. I will add them when I put the detergent in and let them dissolve before I add the clothes.

You know what sparky? I would think with such an evolution in the world towards being energy efficient, and cost efficient, all washers that are not HE, would have a feature like that. Saving the water to use again. Water is an issue that is only going to grow. California in a drought, and fresh water supplies dwindling. Tom Selleck is apparently bring fire hydrant water back to his ranch, because of the droughts. Water is a precious resource, and I try to do my best with conserving it.

Beaglenc, I think larsi uses those, and likes them, I would be interested in your review as well.

I did some whites today. Just towels, a fitted sheet and some other stuff that I wash at 140F. Used five tablespoons of Lidl's Formil Ultra Plus powder and one tablespoon of water softener. No suds.

Whirlpool, is it ok not to have any suds? I thought that if I had no suds, then I didn't use enough detergent.

I've been aiming for at least seeing bubbles in the water as it splashes around on the glass door. Sometimes I have about 1/2"-1" suds at the water level. Am I using too much detergent? Sometimes I don't have that many suds.

I use about a 3.5 tablespoons of the USA Persil powder, and about 1 tablespoon of STTP. I have a Miele and will run my white towels at 140*F. They always come out clean. I'll run a pre-wash, extended wash time, and an extra rinse, with these towels. They are very grimy with farm dirt and oil.

Beaglenc, did you try the Tide Boost? What did you think?

Enduring, I'm sure Whirlpool will be along, but thought I'd give my 2 cents worth..you don't need suds to clean the clothes, if your clothes are comming out clean and fresh smelling than your fine, if you want to test if your using enough detergent, stop the washer and feel the water, it should feel slippery, but you would neef to do this in a load without the stpp, by the way I love stpp.

mamapinky0, I haven't tried to open my front loader when it is running. Can I do that without it emptying? I'll have to try opening when I do my next load, and without the STTP.

I know others that open theirs, but best to ask Sparky or Larsi first.

I'll look at the manual too.

The point of my post was more to show how much detergent I can use (with water softener) and not have suds-o-rama.

Yes, visible suds are - more or less - just a sign of excess detergent that isn't used/needed during the wash. This wash load contained one towel that had soaked up olive oil every day over the four days. It had big yellow stains on it. Stil, it came out clean.

Enduring - you can open your Miele as long as the temp is below, I think, 130F, And, of course, unless it's spinning or the water level is above the door seal.

Alex

So I'm brand new to this TSP and STPP stuff - what exactly is the formula I want? I read this whole thread, but now I'm confused! My husband's tshirts get gray after about a year. I would love to keep them white white. I have a front loader. Right now I use Tide Pods and Tide Boost with bleach pods. Sometimes Clorox gel bleach. And Downy liquid softener. My washer has sanitize (not sure what temp that is) and extra rinse if I want it.

The correct one is STPP...which is the same phosphate used in laundry detergent years ago. You can only order it online, it can't be found in hardware stores. TSP is used to clean driveways, it forms a kinda cloud of dust in the wash water that settles onto your clothes, its hard on fabric and washers. You can order STPP (Sodium TriPolyPhosphate) on Amazon. I normally order 20 pounds for 40 $ and get free shipping. But you can order lesser amounts. I premix mine in the POWDER detergent of my choice at a ratio of 1pound STPP to 2 pounds detergent. it cannot be premixed with liquid, but can be used with liquid, nor do you have to premix at all, its just more convenient for me. Feel free to ask whatever questions you have, everyone here know my secret love affair with STPP lol

I Forgot to ask do you know what your water hardness level is ??I

I do not know the water hardness level (although I do have city water). How do I find that out? Also, if I use STPP with liquid HE detergent, what ratios?

You can call the city water department and they should be able to tell you your water hardness.

I just found this: "Hardness levels for treated drinking water vary depending on the time of the year, averaging 105 parts per million or 6.0 grains per gallon." Is that what you were asking?

yes, I believe that is the number you want.

HOT water, Biz blast pack with Enzamix added to Tide Simply Fresh and Clean blue label (LOVE that scent) then add Clorox for the last 5 minutes of wash cycle. Just started adding fabric softener to rinse cycle and a dryer sheet. Big no-no but was tired of rough towels. Also like to use Gain with Oxi because of the great scent!

The Refreshing Breeze scent Tide Simply Fresh uses, used to be the scent of one of Era's that was discontinued a few years ago. I just can't remember what Era called it back then. It is a very light, clean scent. Anyone else remember it and what Era called it?

Debbi, you have hard water that will sure cause dingy whites, you would definitely benefit from STPP. STPP will soften your water and allow the detergent to work, you will also use less detergent. I don't know how much water your washer uses so I can't tell you how much to use..do you know how much water your washer uses? I recommend, stpp, tide with bleach powder, and tide boost paks. I would allow the whites to soak awhile, overnight if possible in the hottest water. This process may take a few times, but once you get the dingyness out you can keep it out.

Everyone here has different formulas and systems that work, none of them are wrong. Good luck and let us know how much water your wash cycle uses.

PS everyone..I would have recommended BIZ but not after Larsi's adventures with it lol

Pink--How much STPP do you add per load compared to detergent?(ounce wise) . Remember too that dingy whites are also caused from poor rinsing.

Sparky Sudsmaster who wrote the book dang near on using STPP and believe me he's a real expert recommends 1part stpp to 2 parts detergent by weight ..so if you use 10 pounds detergent you use 5 pounds stpp...if your adding it seperatly i'd add 2 tablespoons in a He machine wait till wash starts, don't add detergent yet, and feel the water..it should feel slippery, if not add a bit more till its slippery, than add detergent you won't have to do this all the time just the 1st time to get the amount correct for your water amount..remember to reduce the amount of detergent as the stpp makes detergent work harder < I think that's why people have oversudsing and rinsing problems using stpp. In a traditional top loader i'd start with 1/4th the amount of detergent you normally use again feel the water before adding detergent, add more a little at a time till slippery than add a reduced amount of detergent. Sparky stpp only causes rinsing issues when people don't reduce the detergent, otherwise it aids in rinsing...really as far as the amount of detergent goes its trial and error at the beginning, but it will be less than you use with stpp.

Last sentence should read Amount of detergent will be less than if you didn't use stpp

Well I meant the rinsing thing just generally, not meaning you would need more rinsing if using STPP, although if I used it with an allergic child I would be a bit worried afraid it might cause problems there--more rash than breathing but I guess it doesn't.

Sparky I do 2 rinses on my asthmatics clothes, the 1st with stpp as it will strip all residue, than a clean rinse to be sure everythings gone. But the rest of the laundry I try to avoid extra rinses with this water hog.

The boys fitted sheets blowing in the wind...sorry folks I'm picture practicing lol

Thank you Maylingsmom...I ju ssh t discovered how easy it is to post pictures, hopefully I don't get carried away lol

MPink- You do know that hanging out the asthmatics clothes is one of the WORST things you can do. They get full of all kinds of stuff on the line. This I know for a fact cause I have already been there. Dryer dry all their clothes. If its something you are afraid of shrinking just hang it inside. Not being bossy or preaching at you, just know this for a fact.

I've never heard of STPP. I came on here looking for solutions to old, dryer set sweat stains on whites. So that can only be ordered online?

Sparky, I'm sorry when I said my boys sheets I ment my 40 year old ( here due to serious lung issues) and my 34 year old here due to divorce and he won't be here too long, but ya no matter their age their still my boys lol...ya I know chips can't be hung outside, never and you can see by the pic were dang near in the woods, pollen everywhere. I dry all his things in the dryer except a few good outfits that I hang indoors. I have to be careful about everything...our central A/C died so were running window A/C's since he can not handle humidity, there's a switch on them to use outdoor air or recirculate indoor air I never use the outside air, since it will suck all the allergens into the house. Sparky I didn't think you were being bossy, just sharing some very good information, thank you.

mamapinky0 are you the one who uses sttp? linnea56 is looking for info

Linnea, if you go to amazon and type in sodium tripolyphosphate which is sTPP you will find it. I just ordered 20 pounds for 40 dollars no shipping fee. They do have smaller bags, but not sure if it will be free shipping..yes it can only be ordered online...it is not a detergent, but will aid your detergent to work better and because it aids the detergent and d oftens the water it will give amazing results with laundry. .let me know if you order and I'll do my best to walk you thru the steps of how to use it.

And softens the water....something wrong with my fingers here folks..lol

I will order the 2 lb. package (for more money, but just to try it first). I use Tide packs with Tide Boost in my darks. I also use Mrs. Meyers liquid for delicates, linen sheets and towels. Can I continue using those brands? How do I use the STPP?

Debbi you can use whatever detergent you want with STPP ..do you have a full fill traditional top loader or a HE machine?

Oh sorry - forgot to mention that. I have a Front load HE machine (GE Adora). My water is 6.0gpg.

I would start with 1 tabelspoon stpp...can you add it to the load first and open the door to feel the water?? If you can go ahead and add the stpp after it starts action open and feel water if it feels slippery its good if not add one more tabelspoon stpp...can you do this first??

I don't think I can open the door with water in there. I can pause or stop, but it drains before it unlocks.

Debbie try one and a half tabelspoons stpp and 1/4 the amount of detergent you normally use...watch for suds..this way you can increase the detergent 1 teaspoon at a time till you find the amount good for you.

There's a few here that use stpp and have FL'ers..you won't hurt anything using the stpp, once upon a time tide had 50% and more stpp in it. Oh boy those were the days.

What's the purpose of stpp? And why should anyone use it in additional to laundry detergent where there are already so many chemicals?

here is a link from the FAQ page on the laundry forum.

What is 'STPP' ??

ETA: some of the information is dated, for example it is stated that auto dishwashing powder contains stpp, but I don't believe that is true these days.

OH good..thanks enduring I couldn't figure out how to post a link using my phone. I don't tjink me and electronics get along lol

I don't think the "link" option is available on the smart phones. I only have the option to post a "Photo" or a "Houzz Photo" on my iPhone. I have to be on the computer to have the link and video options.

My way of keeping my whites white. I use Purex Triple Action fragrance free liquid laundry soap. I use plenty of soap and do a double rinse. They are shockingly white.

Bleach kills enzymes. Biz is an enzyme based detergent. Using Tide with bleach along with Biz will cause the enzymes in the Biz to be ineffective.

I use Biz and STPP (sodium tripolyphosphate light density from Dafna sold on Amazon or EBay). I have a top loader and I use a 1/2 cup Biz with 2 TBS of STPP. I use Biz over Oxiclean because it has a higher concentration of the active ingredient (sodium percarbonate) along with multiple enzymes. With any enzyme based detergent it is important to note that they must be used in warm water, not super hot. Enzymes work by digesting protein based stains over time. So, soaking is highly recommended for best results.

I should also point out that the STPP has to be mixed or agitatated immediately. Otherwise, it will clump and will not dissolve properly. I take a cup and fill it halfway with hot water and immediately stir in the STPP, then add that to the washing machine.

I should've mentioned also that I use 1/2 cup Biz + 2 TBS STPP for large loads and half of that for small loads. I use white vinegar during the rinse.

For dishwashing, I either use Cascade Platinum pods + 1 TBS STPP (main compartment) Plus, 2 tsp STPP and a squirt of Dawn blue or 1 tsp Lemishine in the pre-rinse compartment. Just as effective but cheaper option: Target Up & Up dishwashing powder 1 TBS + 1 tsp citric acid or Lemishine + 1 TBS STPP (Main compartment). In the prerinse compartment, use 2 tsp STPP with a tiny squirt (approx. 1/4 tsp) of Dawn ultra blue.

Enzymes are perfectly safe when used with Tide with Bleach powder.....unless you ment tide detergent along with adding chlorine bleach??

Enzymes are also safe with normal hot temps anything below 140F should be fine.

Washing machines that have a *timed* chlorine bleach dispenser release the bleach later into the wash period or into the first rinse so detergent enzymes have time to work.

All frontloaders that have bleach dispensers are timed.

Toploaders with bleach dispensers are NOT all timed. Some immediately drain the bleach into the outer tub so it doesn't contact the clothes loaded in the inner drum until it mixes and dilutes with the water filling into the tub ... but there's no effective delay to accommodate detergent enzymes.