laundry liquid

LindaJane47

Dear all

I have long been trying to reduce my use of laundry liquid as I have very sensitive skin. I used to be able to use Persil non-bio but a year or so ago they changed the formulation and it doesn't agree with me at all!!

So, I wonder what all of you do to keep your laundry fresh and clean smelling??

I've found I can use a tiny fraction of the recommended amount of liquid on my own clothes and on bedding, but hubbies clothes smell a wee bit off now

Infinitely better if I can dry stuff on the line, but I really need either to find a liquid that doesn't upset my skin or further reduce my use of the one I have now....

any tips would be gratefully received!

Linda

Rainy-Days

I have tended to use Fairy non bio liquid for my delicate stuff and I did buy the laundry cleanser when it was on offer in Morrisons some months back, which helps allot with killing off bacteria which causes the unpleasant smells.

Failing this, for anything such as woolens I only ever use Lakeland's Wool wash which is a natural liquid wash with a really fab smelling lavender scent to it. It's not cheap though, but a bottle of that lasts me a long time.

http://www.lakeland.co.uk/23002/Lakeland-Lavender-Wool-Wash

clyndu

I use surcare, which is for sensitive skin and was recommended by my midwife.

Seakay

Halo is very good, espec the sports version, for getting sweaty smells out.

http://www.halononbio.co.uk/

It is good for sensitive skin, is non bio, eco friendly and available online and from upermarkets (eg Sainsburys)

Callie22

It's not the cheapest option, but I can really recommend Violet's Laundry products. They're designed for really sensitive skin and I've been massively impressed with the cleaning power - our clothes have lost that 'fustiness' that they seemed to be getting with normal liquids etc.

nursemaggie

I would recommend you use white vinegar in your last rinse it removed all residue of detergent from your clothes. Since we have used vinegar my son no longer suffers with eczema.

I find using a liquid leaves not just clothes smelly but my washing machine smelly too. I stick to powder and now use Ald! which is similar to Ariel. I did find that liquids were really bad for my son's eczema.

FairyPrincessk

Adding vinegar to your wash can help, as can using a hotter wash cycle. I keep my detergent use down, but if things start to get smelly I'll add a bit more, wash things that can stand it in hotter water, do a vinegar rinse and then do an extra rinse to help get any remaining soap out. It is usually only towels that I struggle with, although sometimes the gym kits will need a bit more.

mtbbuxton

Have you ever tried soap nuts?
http://www.inasoapnutshell.com/id20.html

I've no personal experience of them myself, but friends with allergies use them successfully. The link I've posted takes you to a page to order a sample from, but there's lots more info on the page and I'm sure lots of other suppliers too.

I used a version of ecoballs when my son was younger and had severe eczema. http://www.johnlewis.com/ecozone-hypoallergenic-antibacterial-ecoballs-1000-washes/p164897 Again, available from many other suppliers.

M x

LindaJane47

Dear all

Thank youso much for the very useful replies!!! I bought some used eco-balls on ebay for £4 and am going to trial those until my skin calms down - then try the other suggestions you've made

Thanks again

Linda XX

Ben84

As far as I can tell, eco balls are a bogus product. I remember Which? magazine tested them and found them no better than using just water. People can be fooled however. Water actually does do a lot of the cleaning, the detergent is only there for oil based dirt, so many people are finding things come out cleaner and assuming they're doing something when they're not. I was fooled for a while by some, but after a while I noticed the clothes were getting dull and not so fresh. They also won't protect your machine from lime scale build up, which is another important thing detergent does. I use ecover powder, it seems to suit my skin, but someone can have a reaction to any ingredient, so experiences may vary.

Anyway, I find liquid rinses a lot easier, but doesn't clean anywhere as well as powder. You can however reduce use of whatever detergent you're using if you find out how hard your water is (your water company web site should tell you somewhere), and then use soda crystals as directed on the packet to replace some of the detergent. They take over the role of water softener and you can use the 'soft water' dose for detergent. I find soda crystals rinse pretty easily, so that should mean less detergent residue left on the clothes. Programming the machine to do an extra rinse should help a lot too. Modern machines are very stingy on water use and leave a lot of detergent on clothes I find. The problem gets notably bad when you have really hard water like mine and need about a coffee cup of powder in every wash! I actually replaced my modern water saving machine with a Hoover Electron from the 80s because it just wasn't working. Another thing, detergent works better as the temperature goes up. I find 60 gives vastly better results than 40.

If you have different washing requirements however, I guess you can just separate the clothes in to two different washes and do different things?

LindaJane47

Hi Ben

so far so good with the eco-balls, but I take your point and was very sceptical

anyhow, my skin has indeed calmed down, but I am so impressed with the things that we are going to continue with them except for really mucky stuff. I've found they work really well on my gardening gear, but suspect our whites will go grey pretty quickly......

Hubbys smelly clothes are actually coming out smelling better.... I wonder if there was a build up of non-rinsed detergent on them as we have a water saving machine too. They used to have a sort of sour, sicky smell - really unpleasant!!!

Hoover electron - we used to have one of those - excellent machine. It only broke down in about 2002 (???) and we've had 2 modern ones since then