Non chemical clothes washing

tizwaz

Wondering if anyone uses soap nuts to wash their clothes? Any advice welcomed, just trying to ditch the chemicals and be a bit more natural.

worn_out_mum

We tried soapnuts a couple of years ago, personally we didn't get on with them, they struggled to get our clothes clean but then dh has a manual job and I have three boys who love getting muddy. We use ecover now and it manages to keep the nappies white. Hth

Linda32

I have used soap nuts before. They don't get dirty clothes clean as they do not have the same active ingredients that washing powder does. I think though, by using these and the action of the washing machine you will manage to freshen up clothes that have just been worn for a day.

thriftwizard

I use them some of the time; they are fine for light & normally-soiled clothes & bedding. I do find that, like bar shampoo & conditioner, they tend to "build up" a bit, so you need to run a wash with "normal" detergent every now & then to kind of clear the pipes a bit.

We're in a very hard water area, so I also find it best to run a normal 2-rinse wash, then an extra last rinse without the soap-nut bag & with vinegar in the conditioner drawer.

They don't do too well with my middle son's Tough Mudder kit, though... but then even a "normal" detergent struggles with that!

tizwaz

Thanks peeps! Got some coming from amazon so I'll give them a try, going to get some vinegar and bicarb too.
My washer is fairly new and I run a hot wash occasionally as recommended and cleaned the filter, but sometimes the odd wash load has a smell to it that doesnt seem "clean", I have to wash it again but dont know what is causing it-hoping these more natural methods will help x