Laundry Tips ? - Allen Park,MI

Hi A.,

Long time ago I changed my Laundry Products because of the wear and tear they did on my machine. I changed to Shaklee"s cleaning products and including the laundry ones as well. I have been using these products since 1984. The colors stay longer and the whites whiter and my machine is not being beat up!! I can send you info if you would like.

Paula Lewis
Northern Nutrition

Something my mother told me years ago and I still do is add white vinegar when washing. A lot of soaps leave residue that does make clothes look dull and adding some vinegar to the rinse cycle helps break that up. I use Seventh Generation free and clear and it seems to do a lot better than the All that I use to use. Google laundry and vinegar and you can find a million uses for it.

Tide has a lot of fillers that cause the clothes to wear out faster nad to fade.

S.

i agree about the shaklee. it neutralizes the chlorine in the water which is what usually causes the fading. i don't know of any other brand that does this.

It could just be the chlorine content in your water. Not alot to do about it unless you get a whole house water filter that filters out the chlorine. If that is possible for you, it's alot healthier too.

Why are you using the Clorox 2? Does your laundry needs always require it? What the heck is an agitator?

I use Seventh Generation, Method (when I can find it~) and gentle, natural detergents as they are not as harsh on the clothing (or your skin later when you are wearing them.). I use a gentle fabric softener in the wash w/ the Downy ball. I pretty much always wash on cold unless I am washing my sheets for my business.

If you require stain removal, try Borox or even Baking Soda. Pre-soak with either and use a bit of Vinegar on the area... you can even use the Vinegar in the whole load if necessary and the wash looks great!

Also - I pretty much line-dry most of my clothing. I think that really helps, too. Once dry, I fluff them to take out the stiffness. So far, all of the laundry is fine~

I use Tide Coldwater for darks and hear Cheer Coldwater Detergent is also excellent. I use oxiclean as needed with this. I use regular Tide for lights and whites, and add chlorine bleach for whites only.

Its the tide tide fades everything I use wisk and my kids stuff doesn't fade i also use downey instead of clorox 2 those two detergents are very harsh.Wisk is your best bet

Try turning the clothes inside out. I do that with jeans and a lot of the nicer clothes. You could also try a different detergent. I was using the Amway brand years ago and figured out that caused my clothes to fade too. I use Clorox 2 for colors and I don't have that problem but I don't put it in every load unless I know the clothes are dirtier. I also have the top loader washer without agitator.

Good luck!

I usually turn the things inside out that are more likely to fade, and I use Amway SA8. I have also used Arm and Hammer and have also liked that. Messege me if you are interested in the SA8 and i can help. Thanks K. S

You might want to skip the Clorox 2 unliss you have something really dirty! It can fade your clothes.

I too have troubles with my laundry and I don't know how to help you with colors but I just found a tip that might help you with whites. You put 1 cup of DISHWASHER soap into the washer with your regular detergent. I tried it yesterday and it worked really well. I even had some items that had a little color and it did not fade any of the color. I used a cheap brand of dishwasher soap in a powder form. We have well water and my whites always get dingy after a few washings and using bleach is kind of a hassle sometimes making sure I just have straight whites.

I turn our clothes inside out, wash in cold and use Tide I NEVER dry our clothes all the way I put them in the dryer on no heat to get some of the wrinkles out for about 8 minutes than I hang them up to dry It's the heat that ruins your clothes and fades them My kids clothes all still look brand new after years of wear I sell all of them on EBAY even after both of my boys have worn them

A.; cloth wears out, so you find a laundry detertgant that makes it last through 50 washes instead of 30? the only way to really preserve clothes is to never wear them, every day use wears on them probably more than your washing machine, things fade and we loose them, its sad and its nice to keep them nice for the next child or for a keepsake, anytime you use bleach or bleach products you are slowly fading your clothes or changing its fabric in some way, what is the purpose for keeping them around longer? i buy cheap laundry detergent with 3 boys and constant laundry, and it is not my concern that they wear out in the wash, they wear out, and thats just it, clothes are not made to last forever, so i really dont know how to help you , i just hope you have a good day and enjoy life, there are much bigger things to worry about than how many washes can these clothes go through before they wear out, so it sounds like you are doing the best you can , keep up the good work, keep being a good mom and working at what you need for your family , enjoy life D. s

Dear A.,
My suggestion would be to switch to natural products, like GET CLEAN from Shaklee. I have been using this for 3 years and would NEVER go back. My clothes have never looked better, never fade or look worn. As a matter of fact, I buy a lot of clothes for my grandchildren at Goodwill and if they have stains on them, no problem. I just soak them for a couple of days in Shaklee Nature Bright, Liquid Laundry and a squirt of Basic H2- clothes come out looking like new!
FYI- Tide and other commercial detergents and fabric softeners all are petroleum based and contain toxic chemicals and fragrances that stay on your clothes and bedding. Your body absorbs these toxic chemicals 24/7- bad idea! Don't just take my word for it- please read what a forensic scientist has to say about laundry detergents and fabric softeners in a great book "The Cot Death- Cover Up?" by Dr. Jim Sprott. He has proven that SIDS is caused by flame retardant mattresses, and a fungal growth that feeds of the nitrogen left behind on the bedding by the detergents and fabric softeners. Switching laundry products to natural like Shaklee eliminates these hazards and also, front load washers no longer smell, and people have less body odor- really! I am a retired health care provider and have studied this for 3 years- I have lots of tips for a green, healthy home and I would be happy to help you get the chemicals out of your home. M.

Two things strike me:

~ are you using the recommended amount of those products?

and

~ are you buying good-quality clothes for your kids?

If you read through your washer instructions, you may be surprised to find that their recommendation for product volume differs wildly from Tide's idea of how much of that you need to buy in a year.

Because I live where we have very soft water, I use 1/8th of a cup (not 1/8th of the cup they include with the box --that's usually a 1.5cup measure!!).

The Clorox is probably doing a lot of damage to the fabrics than is necessary, and you'll find it is much slower if you assess the clothes' need for bleaching before putting it in. Typically, I use it in less than one load a week (don't have kids playing ball in white uniforms)...

If you're buying Walmart-grade cheap clothes, the process of washing at all will pill, fade, distort and dissolve the material.

Probably (with no guarentees) the fabric softener is a non-issue, although it's probably worth mentioning that it is extremely flammable.