which laundry detergent do you use?

[aarealskei]

I have asked this question on several occasions and have done lots of research on the various products on the market. Just today, I asked one of the attendants at Whole Foods which laundry detergent do most customers purchase and he was not able to tell me. I have tried seventh generation and, today, I purchased Ecos. In an effort to not spend a mini fortune on laundry soap, I thought it might be nice to put together a poll to see what is most popular on this board. I also suggested to the attendant at WF that perhaps they could post more information regarding cleaning products to better help their customers in making decisions. After all....don't the supermarket brand detergents and various products advertise on tv, etc? Maybe this thread will generate enough responses to help one another make wise, less costly decisions when it comes to purchasing laundry detergent. Maybe something like this could be done for all cleaning products, too.

Thanks for all responses. OH...it would be nice to know if some people have dirtier laundry than others (ie grass stains from sports, "children" stains, etc.), that way, we can all see what works best for various types of soiled clothing.

[Flower]

I'm all for Sun & Earth! :up:

[freemouse]

I buy bulk from the HFS, it comes from a bucket so I am not sure if it has a brand at all. The stuff smells coconutty and is the only thing my skin can tolerate.

[epski]

I vary between Seventh Generation and Planet, so I voted for 7th G and Other.

[Christy]

Oxyclean. My husband's a mechanic, but the clothes aren't that dirty. I don't use the Oxyclean for cold wash loads, but use OrangeClean. (Oxyclean doesn't dissolve too well in cold.) I get them both through their "Clean Club" (www.greatcleaners.com) which ships them on a schedule you set (i.e. every 90 days) so I don't pay shipping.

[kpickell]

I buy a brand called "Sun" but I assume it's different from Sun & Earth, so I voted Other. It says "not tested on animals" on the label (which is why I buy it over other brands), but I don't know if it's vegan or ecofriendly. I buy it from Big Lots because it's very cheap there, but they also sell it at Dollar Tree and Wal-Mart.

[scareyvegan]

i like shaklees stuff somewhat

christy, is oxyclean vegan????
and does it work pretty well?

nothing seems to get my mechanic uniforms clean... well they get clean, just incredibly staind
mine get pretty damn dirty

[Christy]

I'll have to check when I get home and get back to you. I couldn't find any ingredient lists on the site.

[Artichoke47]

I just bought Ecos yesterday, so I haven't used it yet, but my clothes rarely have a single stain on them. :)

[natalie]

I always buy Ecover.

[missleigh]

I usually use Seventh Generation, but it really doesn't get heavy stains out. Luckily, I don't have lots of heavy stains. Ha.

[aarealskei]

I buy a brand called "Sun" but I assume it's different from Sun & Earth, so I voted Other. It says "not tested on animals" on the label (which is why I buy it over other brands), but I don't know if it's vegan or ecofriendly. I buy it from Big Lots because it's very cheap there, but they also sell it at Dollar Tree and Wal-Mart.

Kpickell - would you be so kind as to share the ingredients in you Sun detergent? I live close to a Big Lots and two Wally-Worlds and I would love to save some money. I just need to be certain that the Sun stuff doesn't have anything in it that might cause an allergic reaction to my hubby and daughter, who can both be sensitive to some detergents.

[dotnetdiva]

Most of the health stores and even regular grocery stores around here sell mostly Seventh Generation, so I would think that's a pretty widespread brand, but yesterday at my local HFS I noticed a new line they carried called Ecocover, so now I'm trying that. My laundry is never very dirty either.

[scareyvegan]

i need someone with horribly dirty laundry to tell me which is best!!!

my uniforms look like hell
i cant figure out why we wear ultra light gray shirts

[inkie]

We always have super dirty laundry with six kids in the house. I work at a fast food place, my brother works at a grocery store and my dad builds roads. Always messy smelly and gross in general. Right now we are using a mix of All free and clear (probably not too eco friendly or even necessarily vegan) and oxiclean. Works pretty well and gets the clothes clean. It would be nice to know of a eco friendly vegan laundry soap that works really good though.

[Christy]

There are not ingredient listings on the following products:

OxiClean
OxiClean Laundry Detergent
OxiSoft Fabric Softener
OxiClean Automatic Dishwasher Detergent
OrangeClean Liquid Laundry Detergent

On the laundry detergent box, I found this:

"Contains Sodium Percarbonate, Sodium Carbonate, and Odor-Fighting Enzymes."

and

"Color safe, chlorine free, dye and perfume free, phosphate free and is safe for septic systems."

bold - also in OxiClean

I emailed them from the website asking for the listings.

[Christy]

Here's the response. The bolded items are ones I use. "Detergents", "Propellants", "Preservatives", "Solvents", etc. are a bit vague, eh?




Thank you for taking the time to email us.
I have included a listing of the product ingredients. We also have ingredient listing on all of our Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) which can be found online on our website www.greatcleaners.com. The products you have listed do not contain animal-derived ingredients.

Bar of Oranges:
Orange Oil, Vegetable Oils, Glycerin, Purified Water, Honey, Cocoa Butter, Lecithin, Aloe Vera Extract, Vitamin E, Fragrant Essential Oils (fragrance), FD&C Yellow #5

Kaboom Eliminator Instant Stain Remover
Water, Solvents, Detergents, Propellants, Fragrance

Kaboom Porcelain, Tile and Grout Restorer
Water, Organic Acid Salt, Polymer, Fragrance, Bitrex

Kaboom Shower, Tub & Tile Cleaner
Water, Organic Acid Salt, Polymer, Fragrance, Corrosion Inhibitor, Bitrex

Kaboom All Purpose Stain Remover
Water, Detergents, Sodium metabisulfite, Sodium Sulfite, Fragrance

New Life for Wood
Beeswax, Linseed Oil, Orange Oil, Turpentine

Orange Breeze
Water, Paraffin, Napthenic Solvent, Fragrance, Fatty Alcohol Esters of Methyl Methacrylic Acid, Sorbitan Sesquioleat, Propellants

Orange Clean Degreaser & Multi-Purpose Cleaner and Orange Cleanâ Super-Concentrate
Water, Orange Oil, Detergents

Orange Clean Foam
Water, Orange Oil, Propellants, Alcohol

Orange Clean Kitchen & Bathroom Wipes
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil

Orange Clean Dishwashing Liquid
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil

Orange Clean Dishwashing Liquid-new 25 oz 2002
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil, Sodium Citrate, Dye

Orange Clean Liquid Hand Soap-Foaming
Water, Anionic and Nonionic Surfactants, Propylene Glycol, Preservative, Citric acid, Skin protectant, Dye, Orange Oil, Fragrance

Orange Clean Liquid Laundry Detergent
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil

Orange Clean Multi-Purpose Floor Cleaner
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil

Orange Clean Scrubbing Cleanser
Water, Silica, Detergents, Orange Oil, Glycerol, Dye, Preservatives

Orange Clean Window Cleaner-New in 2002
Water, Detergent, Polymer

Orange Eliminator
Water, Solvents, Propellants, Fragrance

Orange Glo Polishing Cloths
Water, Polymer, Orange Oil, Surfactant, Emulsifier, Preservative

Orange Glo Wood Cleaner & Polish
Petroleum Distillates, Silicone Oils, Orange Oil, Dye, Bitrex

Orange Glo Wood Cleaner & Restorer-Aerosol
Petroleum Distillates, Silicone Oils, Orange Oil, Propellants

Orange Glo Wood Floor Polish and Cleaner and Wood Works
Water, Acrylic Polymers, Detergents, Fragrance

Orange Go
Petroleum Distillates, Silicone, Orange Fragrance, Water, Wax

Orange Grove
Orange Oil

OxiClean Active Stain Remover
Water, Surfactant, Polymer, Solvent, Hydrogen Peroxide

OxiClean MultiPurpose Stain Remover
Sodium Percarbonate, Soda Ash, Silicate, Detergent, Polymer Water Dispersible Pigment (blue)

OxiClean Instant Spot Remover Wipes
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil, Citrate, Fragrance, Preservative

OxiClean Spot & Stain Pre-treater
Water, Detergents, Orange Oil

OxiClean Laundry Detergent (15# bucket)
Sodium Carbonate, Detergents, Sodium Silicate, Sodium Perborate, Enzymes

OxiClean Laundry Detergent (OxiWash)
Detergents, Polypeptides, Oxi Clean

OxiClean Toilet Tabs - New- Spring 2002
Sodium bicarbonate, Sodium Bisulfate, Sulfamic Acid, Sorbitol, Sodium Perborate, Surfactant, Enzymes, Dye

OxiClean OneStep Dishwasher Detergent
Detergent, Sodium Tripolyphosphate, Sodium carbonate, Sodium Silicate, Sodium Perborate, Enzymes, Fragrance

OxiClean Dishwasher Detergent (OxiShine)
OxiClean, Detergents, Polypeptides, Salts, Fragrance

OxiSoft Fabric Softener
Surfactants, Fragrance, Dye

Orange Clean Powerful Paste Cleaner
Water, Quartz Flour, Detergents, Orange Oil, Dyes

Slick Shield
Detergents, Silicone, Water

Orange for Hands
Water, Detergents, Glycerin, Orange Oil


Monalisa Finley
Corporate Consumer Care Specialist
Orange Glo International
Phone: 1-800-781-7529
Fax: 303-740-5402
Email: Monalisa.Finley@greatcleaners.com

[scareyvegan]

do they test on animals?

[Christy]

Not according to this (http://www.greatcleaners.com/ogi_retail/ogi_content/shop/ogi_faq.asp).

[RichBeBe]

I/we use Trader Joes brand

[scareyvegan]

christy, youre the best!!!

[Christy]

No problem!

[WonderRandy]

my roommates and I chipped in and bought a 5 gallon bucket of BioKleen (the cheapest one we could get in bulk). We had to special order it from the HFS I work at. thank the gods for my 20% discount! it was like $65 AFTER my discount, but it will last us forever! it's ultra concentrated, 1 oz. per load (although we found that it takes a little more to get the laundry really clean). It was critical to us that we get something that was ecofriendly, as our washer is outside and drains directly onto the ground, and something that was gentle, as I am allergic to harsh detergents. the Bio Kleen covers all our needs.

[SallyK]

I use Seventh Generation. I'm fairly happy with it, although I don't know if you'd like it considering how heavily soiled your clothes are. I keep a big stack of rags in my kitchen to wipe up my toddler son after meals and snacks and they get really gross. I wash them with the Seventh Generation stuff and they look clean but they don't smell clean. I will have to figure out a way to solve this problem.

I try to stay away from the conventional products because as Christy's list showed, they are filled with petrochemicals.

[icicle]

i use something called mountain green.. it works well and smells nice.. ! www.mtngreen.com