Laundry Detergent: Totally Unnecessary

[Heineken]

I've stopped using detergent when I do my laundry. I wash it in cold water, hang it up to dry, and it comes out as clean and fresh-smelling as if I did it the way society programs us to do using plenty of expensive, harmful detergent and other additives.

Get out of the detergent habit. Save $$. And help the environment, your septic or municipal water system, and those poor bunny rabbits in whose eyes the soap makers test their nasty chemicals.

One the many simple little steps you can take to reduce your dependency.

[Chicken_Little]

I've stopped using detergent when I do my laundry. I wash it in cold water, hang it up to dry, and it comes out as clean and fresh-smelling as if I did it the way society programs us to do using plenty of expensive, harmful detergent and other additives.

Get out of the detergent habit. Save $$. And help the environment, your septic or municipal water system, and those poor bunny rabbits in whose eyes the soap makers test their nasty chemicals.

One the many simple little steps you can take to reduce your dependency.

But what about those stubborn stains like red wine or curry?

[frankthetank]

Heinken~ good timing

Today were sunny and near 40F so i decided to plunk a small load of stuff in my "washing bucket" Just cold water, nothing else. I've also noticed this. We own a fancy washing machine, and the wife is the only one to use it. I like hand washing my stuff and hanging it out. We've also haven't used the dryer yet this year, EVERYthing has been hung outside to dry (stuff tends to freeze on occasion, but it thaws when brought inside!)...

If you get to the stain quick enough, put cold water on it. I got a bunch of blood out the other day.

[Merlin]

Consumer Reports studied laundry detergents several years ago and reached a similar conclusion. In their tests, plain water did "nearly as well" as water with detergent. So, it's not just your opinion or impression -- it's scientific research!

[Chicken_Little]

it sounds crazy but i'll try it. i need really clean white shirts for work though.

edit to add - i'll probably try reducing the amount of detergent by half first and go from there.

[emersonbiggins]

I got a bunch of blood out the other day.

[Merlin]

it sounds crazy but i'll try it. i need really clean white shirts for work though.

edit to add - i'll probably try reducing the amount of detergent by half first and go from there.

Now I'll regress to anecdotal, personal experience. In my opinion, plain water may work OK for removing ordinary soil (not the ground-in, I've been working in the garden variety). But it certainly doesn't cut the greasy body dirt you'll find on shirt collars and it won't clean the oil stains out of the mechanic's uniforms. I think we have to be realisitc in our expectations here. Anything that dissolves grease or makes water wetter will get laundry cleaner.

[Madpaddy]

I've been using alot less than the recommended amount of detergent but some stains like banana (kids clothes) or marker does not come out unless I wash it in 40 deg C with detergent. I take the point that if you take the dirty item and soak it in cold water straight away the stains would probably come out but with 2 kids I'ld be glued to the sink.

On holidays, I always hand wash my clothes and use soap and the clothes are definitely fresher and cleaner than from a machine. Must try it using no soap next time.

BTW, jocks and socks probably need more than cold water to kill unpleasant bacteria, although if the clothes are dried in the sun the UV will most likely do the job.

[mekrob]

OMG. More conspiracy theories? Geez fellas, get a life. You and your wacky theories based on hard evidence.

[Madpaddy]

Try cold water on this,

[green_achers]

Oh, the joys of parenthood! I sometimes forget.

I have found that with almost any household or personal product, you should start with a small fraction of the recommended amount and add only if the results aren't good enough. I think there are at least three reasons manufacturers exaggerate the amount you will need.

1. The more you use, the quicker you will use it up and need to buy more.

2. They want for there to be the maximum chance it will work well, and you will want to buy more.

3. Detergent and soap works differently in different water hardnesses. It takes a lot more detergent to have the same effect in hard water as it does in soft water. So they recommend the amount they know will work in the hardest water.

My favorite is toothpaste. Advertisements always show a huge choking gob on the toothbrush, but you really only need a small spot, if any. About half the time, I just brush with the toothbrush and nothing else. Sometimes, just baking soda.

[TommyJefferson]

I've stopped using detergent when I do my laundry. I wash it in cold water, hang it up to dry, and it comes out as clean and fresh-smelling as if I did it the way society programs us

No soap? Blyech.

You must never get sweaty and dirty.

How do you get the body oils out of your hair when you bathe?

How do you lubricate your skin when you shave?

[Chicken_Little]

I've stopped using detergent when I do my laundry. I wash it in cold water, hang it up to dry, and it comes out as clean and fresh-smelling as if I did it the way society programs us

No soap? Blyech.

You must never get sweaty and dirty.

How do you get the body oils out of your hair when you bathe?

How do you lubricate your skin when you shave?

amazing how humans were able to survive on the planet for so long without detergent or shaving...

[kanman]

Eco balls.

That's a product, not an anglo saxon riposte.

[Aaron]

I've stopped using detergent when I do my laundry.

Ewwww....

Rotting oils from your skin embedded in your clothing... forever.

Ewwww.....

[Heineken]

Come on, Aaron et al. Be reasonable.

I do manual labor outdoors almost every day, and I swear that the clothes-washing approach I described works adequately.

We are so fixated on getting out every last stain and having "whites" that glow in the dark. We are infected with this fixation by advertising, the office world, and our mothers.

The point is to get clothes clean, not spotless.

The attitude of "out, every damned last spot" is a madness typical of our society, and boy do we pay for it.

[Chicken_Little]

Come on, Aaron et al. Be reasonable.

I do manual labor outdoors almost every day, and I swear that the clothes-washing approach I described works adequately.

We are so fixated on getting out every last stain and having "whites" that glow in the dark. We are infected with this fixation by advertising, the office world, and our mothers.

The point is to get clothes clean, not spotless.

The attitude of "out, every damned last spot" is a madness typical of our society, and boy do we pay for it.

for outdoor work, great, but in today's office environment, i think i'd quickly be branded as an undesirable employee with personal hygiene and possible mental issues.

I'd certainly tell them detergent wasn't necessary, right before i was marched to the front entrance by building security.

[Barbara]

Any stupid mother as I am knows that the best way to mark FOREVER your clothes with spots is to put them in cold water.
Cold water will glue any oily spot on clothes.

Come on, put some soap (half the dose) use 40° water (low energy) and live happily and good smelling.

[frankthetank]

Ok... I'll step it up a notch. I put some clothes out last week (dirty..yes i do make clothes stink..) on the ASSUMPTION it was going to rain. I was therefore going to let mother nature wash AND dry my clothes... (it never did rain, clothes are still hanging!)... I wonder in the tropics if they use detergent? I'd think they'd have the stinkiest balls of all.

UV rays do kill lots of stuff and the outdoors make your clothes smell REALLY nice...i get complements.

[WildRose]

Barbara - I did not know about cold water and oil stains. I couldn't figure out why I couldn't get the cooking oil stains out of my shirts.

Heineken - Are all types of detergents harmful to the environment? Some claim to be enviro-friendly. I always use phosphate-free, scent-free detergents.

Something else we can do is decide to not wash our clothing as often as we do. My 20-year-old daughter convinced me to go along with this. Pants are worn several times before washing; with other items it depends on how sweaty/dirty they actually are. In our house, each family member has a bath towel that hangs on a hook in the bathroom and once every week and a half or so they're washed. This saves water, energy and laundry detergent.