Has anyone found using less detergent does *not* work for them?

[SaucyCranberry]

Hello--long-time lurker, first-time poster.

The last several months I have tried the suggestion of using less and less than the amount indicated on the directions of dish soap, dishwasher soap and laundry soap. I tried half, even down to a tablespoon with regular Tide liquid and Arm & Hammer deterget and Cascade complete for the dishwasher.

Perhaps it is our hard water (because even with a water softener that we keep filled, I get some ugly rust stains in sinks and tubs), but using anything less was a big flop. My dishes from the dishwasher had to be rewashed, same with the clothes. The stains stayed in and they did not smell fresh. By request of the hubby I'm using the "normal" amount again.

Anyone else? I feel like a frugal failure on this. Thanks in advance for your experiences!

[monkeymia]

I have found that halving the dish detergent makes it harder to wash (hand washing) but I find that clothes detergent works wonderfully for me.

How about a scoop of Nappy San or the equalivant in the wash when doing the clothes.

[sdrjeolsen]

I found that adding a booster to the laundry helps. I use powdered Borax, just a tablespoon per load. Since it is so much cheaper than detergent, it is worth it to me to buy and take the extra step to add it. Good luck.

By the way,

[baxjul]

I don't have a dishwasher, so I can't help you with that. But, for the laundry, my dh gets extremely dirty at work. I use 1/2 the amount of laundry soap, and it seems to work very well. Sometimes if it is really dirty, I'll add some washing soda or Borax, or even Biz laundry booster along with the soap.

[acidcookie]

I don't think the small amount of laundry detergent works for me either. My clothes aren't dirty but they don't seem as fresh and I feel like I have to wash them more often! I use vinegar in the rinse cycle (with the Downy ball since the washer is in another building and I'm not waiting around for the rinse cycle) and it hasn't seemed to make a difference. Maybe I will try borax. Where can you get that?

No dishwasher here so I can't comment on that.

[Jamauk]

I use about half the amount of detergent, but add about half a cup of baking soda to the laundry. I get a great big bag at Costco and just keep it with my laundry soap.

My clothes seem just as clean and I've noticed since adding the baking soda, if I don't get them in the dryer right away, they don't get a musty smell, they still smell fresh.

I use the full amount of dishwasher soap and I'm horrible about using too much liquid soap for hand washing, but I absolutely HATE washing things by hand , so its my little bit of rebellion - waste waste waste...tsk tsk tsk!!

[Missy]

Ive had good luck with the borax too (find it in the laundry supply section, in the two stores i get it between the dryer sheets and liquid fabric softener.)

i add 1/4 c of borax
1/2 amt of liquid detergent

and it all seems good.

That said, I don't have hard water. And I can't say as I would know what ti do to offset that. If you feel more comfy using regular amount of detergent, go for it. No need to be militant about savings if it makes us miserable, or our families miserable. Don't worry about that. There are several other ways to shave $$ off this and that in our every day.

Welcome to the village and thanks for jumping in!!

fyi, if you are looking for borax, here's an image...

[Marie78]

We have hard water too in the apt. I live in. When I use the washer here I find myself using a cap full of laundry detergent. When I wash laundry at my mom's I half the amount of detergent that I use and I don't notice a problem, I don't think she has hard water though.

[forHISglory]

We have really hard water (guess its a blessing; supposed to be good for teeth and bones.....), but it is hard to get clothes clean and fresh without using the recommended amount of detergent. I also use Oxy-Clean in my laundry. Without it, clothes start getting an orange tinge from all the iron in our water.

I put baking soda in my dishwasher to aid in cleaning. In fact, as soon as I put away the clean dishes, I sprinkle the baking soda into the bottom of the appliance. With just the two of us, I don't run it very often, and the soda helps to keep odors down between washes. And it helps to boost the detergent, also.

With our situation, I figure it is more frugal to use the whole amount of detergent than have to spend electric and water to do it over again.

[SaucyCranberry]

I really appreciate the suggestions and everyone's anecdotes. Because I do want to make the cost-reducing benefits of this happen. My kids are dirt magnets--my DD more than my son! DH has two, sometimes three, sets of clothing each day, between exercise with his cadets, uniforms and civilian wear. Then there's my still-potty-training puppy...I'm always doing laundry and easily do a load of dishes per day, too since we eat three meals a day here most of the time.

It really adds up.

I have a fabric softener dispenser that came with the washer--I suppose I could use vinegar in that like a Downy Ball.

Love the baking soda ideas, especially for the dishwasher. Maybe adding some vinegar into the little spot for a rinse agent would help as well?

I'm such a bad hand dishwasher, I let the water run and just never feel like my dishes get as clean. (Spent a few years in d/w-less base housing so I do appreciate my d/w). I swear I'm that person they cite in the articles that say it uses less hot water to use the machine. I sort of daze out when I stand at the sink.

I wonder if between the whole house filter and fridge filter we're even getting any of the benefits of this especially hard water? The previous owners of my home put in a water softener as well--and still using all three our water never feels "soft". (I've been in some hotels and stayed with friends where the water almost felt slimy). I'm grateful for them though--I'd probably be jackhammering rust stains and scale in all my sinks!

[SaucyCranberry]

.

With our situation, I figure it is more frugal to use the whole amount of detergent than have to spend electric and water to do it over again.

This is a big reason I asked the question--in my case, if these new ideas don't work out, I think I'll too look for other ways to reduce costs. Because I cringed with each rewashing. At least I'm a night owl and intentionally run my machines after midnight, so there's some minor savings for off-peak hours.

[pip]

I know what you mean about the hard water. We have well water with a high iron content and it never improves much even with an iron filter and softener. Our tubs/toilets/sinks frequently get stained and it's just the way it is around here. I've tried using less laundry detergent, and the clothes don't often seem fresh, so I add a bit more to the wash. I do use cold water with laundry, so I tell myself that is helping to save.

[acidcookie]

Oh yes I meant to say that our water is really hard. For fun once in my old apt. down the street I send it off for testing with this free kit I got. They told me my water was an 8 on a scale of 1-10 on water hardness. Does make it tough to clean!

[Brat]

I have tryed to use less but it seems that things don't get clean and have to rewashe then so not really saveing..I wash in cold only and hang everything out to dry...I am useing rain water to wash cloths in..have a collection system that I use for Laundery and watering the garden and things. So it isn't hard water really. Just have to try some other was to save...

[PB&J]

I use about 3/4 of the usual amount. I have 2 boys who play outside almost every day and they get DIRTY. I have found that if their stuff is really grubby, I put in detergent, clothes, let the washer fill up and then shut it up. Let the clothes soak for about half an hour, then continue the load as usual. They come out very clean, even in cold water.