Aldi / Lidl detergents - any good?

poppellerant

Debran wrote: »

This is what "Which?" rated best buy detergents:

Highest score is Formil Biological Powder at 77%.
Second comes Arial Original Bio Powder at 73%

Three detergents take equal third place, all scoring 72%:
Sainsbury's Bio Powder
Aldi Almat Bio Super Concentrated Liquid
Arial Original Bio Liquid

No capsules nor non-bio detergents scored highly enough to be rated as a best buy.

Note - powder detergents tend to fade colours more than liquids.

Formil is the brand name used by Lidl and the results don't surprise me. The one thing you need to be careful of doing when using Formal powder, especially with newer machines, is overdosing. If you do overdose, you might find you need a few extra rinses for satisfactory rinse results.

Debran

Well spotted, poppellerant. :T I did, indeed, miss the word "Lidl" from Formil detergent.


I always add a tablespoonful of soda crystals to my washing machine irrespective of which detergent I use. I then only need half as much detergent than is recommended. It also helps to prevent the build-up of limescale, but you are probably all aware of that.

poppellerant

Debran wrote: »

Well spotted, poppellerant. :T I did, indeed, miss the word "Lidl" from Formil detergent.


I always add a tablespoonful of soda crystals to my washing machine irrespective of which detergent I use. I then only need half as much detergent than is recommended. It also helps to prevent the build-up of limescale, but you are probably all aware of that.

Yes and by softening the water, the soda crystals also increase the effectiveness of the detergent. Although I live in soft water area, I still like to run through some citric acid every few months to keep things running nicely.

I should mention that Aldi have had 1kg bags of soda crystals for 75p in store for the last month. I might stock up while they're at this price!

[Deleted User]

we use a 30c 1hour 13 mins cycle for everything, and the detergent thats on offer when we need it, if its around 15p a wash for the detergent then thats my benchmark price.

garrysibbald

cool_dude_2000 wrote: »

Branding is one of the biggest marketing trucks of the modern age.

Think about it. Where do you think all these products are manufactured?

Is there a factory for Tesco own brand soap, and a separate one for Sainburys, and a separate one for Lidl. Where do the big housebrands like Glaxo and P&G make their products?

Years ago I remember when temping on a production line. After a while, the foreman would shut the line, then proceed to change the labels and the plastic moulded packaging to a competitor brand, and then we would continue as if nothing happened.

I've always thought that a comparison website that showed who the suppliers for the supermarkets were would be a great idea... unless one already exists that I don't know about!

Jarviscocker

To all those who say branded detergents don’t matter, why is my Aldi poder for the dishwasher so bad, yet my usual names brand is great?

jaizan

I have been using Lidl washing powders for years and am very pleased with performance and price.