I've gone back to regular liquid detergent. No more Tide Pods for me!

I like detergent sheets. They work well for me

For a real kick, try economical powdered detergent, the old school detergent.

If you think it doesn't dissolve as good as a liquid, put the power in a cup, add some water, and stir. Then add the detergent to the tub.

Never got the pod thing. Is it that time consuming to just pour it in? I never measure and probably use far less than they recommend but it gets the job done. It’s not like I get filthy.

Liquid Tide for me.

Persil is the best liquid, and a little goes a long way.

Same. And sometimes the plastic from the pod sticks to my clothes. I'm going back to liquid detergent.

I still use powder.

I use whatever's on sale. Last detergent I bout was Arm & Hammer that was on sale for $6. Detergent is really all the same.

You're soaking in it!

I'm sticking with my yummy Tide Pockets 🤗

@r2 "If you think it doesn't dissolve as good as a liquid, put the power in a cup, add some water, and stir. Then add the detergent to the tub. "

Well, Granny Clampett, why don't you just make your own lye soap in a caldron out by the CEE-ment pond? 🙄

The pods are designed for people who cannot be trusted with cleaning supplies - children, drunks, and spoiled men who never had to do their own laundry.

I use pods for laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, and coffee!

Hard to find powder now. Maybe the dollar store.

I really notice how clean my clothes get with Tide and my agitation washer.

Powdered Oxydol and you get a free towel.

[quote] I use pods for laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, and coffee!

I was actually wondering whether there was a correlation between Tide pod users and Keurig disposable K-cup users.

The liquid detergents are nearly all water - I’m not paying for a huge jug of water.

Fresh Start was my go to back in the day. They need to bring it back and package it in a paper box to be better for the environment.

r17 wins this thread.

Liquid laundry detergent buyers sure are dumb.

[quote] I never measure and probably use far less than they recommend

R3 that's what they don't want.

Tide pods are for weak, arthritic old people.

Can’t buy powder, no one sells it near here. And whoever recommended Persil, how do you tolerate the scent? It’s horrible.

My favorite detergent is powdered Original Tide. Pods suck.

I've gone back to powdered Cascade for dishes as well.

I buy the large bottle of Tide detergent and it lasts for a long time.

I use Tide powder, borax, and vinegar.

I use old school Tide powder in its giant box. Minimal plastic and water consumption is important to me in a product, and the laundry is the cleanest. Tide is like a vice though, I have to have my Tide!

[quote] I've gone back to regular liquid detergent. No more Tide Pods for me!

Sir, this is a Wendy's.

Persil Powder is best.

I just like the convenience of pods as they are lighter, take less space and easier to trudge to the laundromat. I can't drive and carry my laundry and supplies a half mile in a laundry bag.

Mmm, I love my Tide Pods

[quote]I use whatever's on sale.

You shouldn't do that. Those off brand detergents don't get your clothes as clean. You have to use Tid.

Thanks r11. It's such a trivial thing, but I've wondered why pods are necessary when regular detergent works just fine. Your explanation makes sense.

The only time I use pods is when I'm traveling and need to use the hotel laundry room.

[quote]spoiled men who never had to do their own laundry.

I have an uncle in his seventies who's never done a load of laundry in his life, or washed dishes. My aunt has been doing all of that for him for fiftysomething years. He says he doesn't even know how to operate a washing machine or a dishwasher, as if that's something to be proud of.

Those straight Boomer men really are clueless about basic household tasks. They've been waited on hand and foot by their wives who are basically live-in maids and they take pride in that.

How come the US doesn't have bio detergents like in the UK? I've never seen it here.

[quote]Hard to find powder now. Maybe the dollar store.

I've seen the old fashioned powdered Tide at certain stores. I've never used it but it's still around.

r31 Arm & Hammer costs half as much and gets your clothes just as clean as Tide.

[quote]I've wondered why pods are necessary when regular detergent works just fine.

I would assume that it takes the fuss out of measuring and it's simple and easy for people with busy and hectic lifestyles. If you have 3 kids, and carpools, and meal prep, throwing in a pod shaves a few minutes off a busy schedule.

If it takes you "a few minutes" to measure detergent, you're doing it wrong.

[quote] Arm & Hammer costs half as much and gets your clothes just as clean as Tide.

Reviews usually disagree with that statement. Usually Tide and Persil come out on top because they include the most enzymes and therefore are able to handle most types of stains and dirt. Even other P&G or Henkel detergents are less effective because they don't add as many types of enzymes in the cheaper brands.

I'm fine with liquid detergent. They are flexible in terms of adjusting to the load. If I just wash half a load and use one pod, I feel wasteful. My pet peeve is that all liquid detergent bottles steer you to overdosing. The opening, the cups - they all make you use way too much of it.

You can find powdered detergent on Amazon.

@r34, "I have an uncle in his seventies who's never done a load of laundry in his life, or washed dishes. My aunt has been doing all of that for him for fiftysomething years"

That's my dad, he's never been in a grocery store either. He sits out in the car and waits for my mom

But, to be fair, my mom has no clue how a car works, how to pump gas, how to start a lawn mower... It all evens out

When I had to lug everything to the laundromat or to the machines down in the basement, I just put a 1/2 cup or whatever of powder/liquid into a small container. Do pods contain fabric softener? I never use that.

r22=Mariska Hargitay

I think you are only supposed to use a tablespoon of liquid

If I don't buy Duz, how will I finish my set of Southern Traditions smoked glass stemware?

^ To go with your towel set...

There are those in the know about Charlie's Soap and it still comes in a powder. But you can buy the liquid version now as well.

I fell for that “the WEALTHY simply buy the detergent that’s cheapest by the ounce because they all work the same.”

I wound up buying “Ecos”. It doesn’t have a scent and it’s supposed to be greener - you can tell it’s ecofriendly because the bottle is ugly perhaps recycled plastic.

I have to pretreat stains using this stuff and it still takes two washes to fully remove grease. I cook like an idiot. Or, I eat like a pig.

I have to work through 2/3rds of a gallon of Ecos before I crawl back to Tide.

[quote] If you have 3 kids, and carpools, and meal prep, throwing in a pod shaves a few minutes off a busy schedule.

This sounds like consumer frau logic.

I boost all my washes with oxygen bleach - the powdered stuff. In fact you need way less detergent when you combine. Except blacks. They get the special liquid detergent for black. And it REALLY DOES WORK, to slow fading of black.

Women want more time so we can all sit around and discuss emotions, play passive aggressive mind games, and focus all our attention and energy on them.

Some of you people must be real pigs, my clothes don't get so dirty that I need to be some kind of chemist to get them clean

bio detergents

If by that you mean enzymes, yes you heard everyone, we just assume they are there, we have after all passed the knuckle walking stage, despite what you people think.

I'm Beverly Boyer and I'm a pig.

^ You're a slut too, Beverly 🤨

R45. Hilarious. Thanks for the laugh.

I tried Persil, but it has a funny smell. I went back to regular Tide. I refuse to use hippie detergent, anything all natural or earth friendly usually sucks.

I use half Tide liquid / half 70s throwback Lestoil for every load and the clothes always come out very clean. When you unload the washer there is a faint scent of Lestoil, but that vanishes in the dryer.

My Grammy used to use Lestoil. Haven't thought about it in years. Thanks for the memory.

[quote]Hard to find powder now.

I can hook you up.

I knocked pods for the longest time. Now I’m obsessed with the Tide power pods. Not for convenience, but because of the amazing smell. It’s seriously addictive.

Just don't freebase them, r63

R37, very hard disagree. Growing up my parents mostly bought A&H to be economical and save money. The rarer times they bought Tide - I remember using less and the clothes still coming out cleaner (and less stiff / cardboard like!). I loathe A&H detergent.

R64, 🤣🤣 not gonna lie. On more than a few occasions after loading the machine, I’ve stood over the Tide Pod box and sniffed for at least a minute straight.

I use Persil pods for heavy loads and detergent sheets for light loads. I won’t use cheap detergents as you do as R65 said, have to use twice as much or more of the cheap stuff

I use the Kirkland (Costco) unscented. I tried to use powdered, but it just wouldn't dissolve. When I did use powdered, I used some kind of "mountain fresh" scented powder. I think it was Purex. I also used Tide and Dreft, the one for babies.

I like just buying that large jug of Kirkland and not having to buy any soap for a long time.

[quote] I just like the convenience of pods as they are lighter, take less space and easier to trudge to the laundromat. I can't drive and carry my laundry and supplies a half mile in a laundry bag.

This seems like a reasonable reason to use the pods.

r65 detergents have changed a lot in the decades since you were a kid.

I use Method Free + Clear liquid detergent. One bottle lasts forever, and there is zero scent (Method does make scented detergents, though). I occasionally do laundry at my mom's and have left a jar of Method detergent at her place so my laundry doesn't smell like her Tide. It's not a bad smell, but I want no smell.

I think powder works best in the old school washing machines. A good ole solid Kenmore, top loading, with an agitator.

I have a Kenmore, top-load, with agitator. The powder didn't work well.

[quote] I think you are only supposed to use a tablespoon of liquid

Close. It seems to be 2 tblsp which is really a lot less than the lids of those bottles suggest. I use a bit more because of my hard water, but yeah, the required liquid detergent is really low.

[quote]The pods are designed for people who cannot be trusted with cleaning supplies - children, drunks, and spoiled men who never had to do their own laundry.

Thank you r11. This made me laugh really hard.

Do you have Ariel washing detergent in the USA? Here in the UK it’s one of the most popular brands.

Which one works best for beating your clothes against a rock down by the river?

I think Europe's Ariel detergent has the same cleaning ingredients as Tide in the US. There is Ariel in the US, but it is the same they have in Mexico which is different from Tide/Europe Ariel. I love Europe's Ariel. It has a nice smell.

The old gay I live with got the sheets, they go in first because they stick, I found this out by having white detergent pieces all over the clothes, I prefer the pods.

I always use original, unscented liquid Persil, R22; yes, their scented formulas are attacks on the olfactory system.

[quote]The old gay I live with got the sheets

You shouldn’t talk about your father like that.

OP, you don’t mean laundry, right? This is just what you’re huffin’ these days?

[quote] If I just wash half a load and use one pod, I feel wasteful.

As well you should... all that water and energy spent on what, three underwear and a pair of socks? Wait until you have a full load to wash.

I guess I'm the only DLer who makes his own powdered detergent?

I started making it about a dozen years ago.

When I put together my detergent ingredients, I make a year's worth at a time. Takes about an hour or so.

[quote] my detergent ingredients

What are they, r84?

I used to live in a shitty building. Not so shitty that someone would steal my laundry out of the basement laundry room, but potentially shitty enough that someone might steal my big jug of liquid detergent. So with pods I could bring laundry down with the dog and then go directly out to walk the dog while the wash cycle ran. Without having to go all the way back up to my apartment to put the detergent away. Seems like an extremely minor convenience now, but it felt like a big improvement at the time.I don’t know why I still using them, though. Pretty stupid.

R85 --

Arm & Hammer Washing Powder, 20 Mule Team Borax, shredded and granulated laundry bar soap (various brands like ZOTE, Fels Naphtha, or some Asian laundry soap ), and Kroger brand oxygen bleach powder.

I use a Mouli to shred and granulate the bar soap.

I dump all the ingredients in a big plastic container that originally held some Halloween pretzels packets.

Put the lid on and shake to blend. Easy work to make enough detergent for a year's use.

Thank you r87

R86 you could bring the detergent down in a paper cup or in small plastic container.

I use pods for dishwasher but I combine a tide unscented detergent with a special added scent. I'm a diva when it comes to laundry but I'm just doing mine and occasionally my husband. If I was doing laundry for a whole family I'd take the easiest route.

There was a chemical type smell in my glassware when it came out of the dishwasher so I looked up a homemade detergent recipe and it works great: like R87 I use 1 Tbsp Arm & Hammer Washing Powder, 1 Tbsp 20 Mule Team Borax, and a Tsp of Citric Acid Powder.

For a while, I put an open bowl of vinegar on the top shelf but I read somewhere it could screw up your pipes. Maybe the citric acid will too but it makes my glasses sparkle more than they ever did before.

For laundry, I used to use pods but have switched to Unscented Beyond Laundry Detergent Strips because usnews said they were the best. I feel better about not using the huge ass liquid detergent bottles but I liked it for treating spains. I'll probably keep some around just for that (or the Spray N Wash stuff but there's the bottle problem again.)

We aren't going to solve the plastics problem until the government makes businesses use more glass, metal and cardboard containers, like they used to.

* STAINS, not spains (but I think I need a holiday)

@r84, "I guess I'm the only DLer who makes his own powdered detergent? "

Yeah, Granny, you're the last of a breed 🙄

OP has stated his boundaries.

Only the poors do laundry. I simply wear everything just once, then buy new. My discards are ceremoniously given to my fatter servants knowing the clothes will never fit. Their anguished disappointment is delicious every time.

My God stop with the make your own shit, like make your own sausage shit, just stop, no does this.

[quote]Wait until you have a full load to wash.

Does that apply to jacking off as well?

[quote]The old gay I live with got the sheets

Stop taking him to Taco Bell.

The pods are one of the evil sources of microplastics in the environment, and an avoidable one.

[quote] The pods are one of the evil sources of microplastics in the environment, and an avoidable one.

And liquid detergent was a harmless agent when washed into water systems.

Making my own laundry detergent is very rewarding for me, akin to when I donate one morning a week at my local food bank.

Thank you for the celery, R101. It costs 6.99 at QFC.

I'm still using LUX.

I’ve gone back to DUZ

Those HE machines are picky bitches. I wouldn’t put powdered soap in one, but to each their own.

Many of the bodegas and Hispanic grocery stores sell powdered detergent. I was in one yesterday with big buckets of Tide powder.

I use liquid Tide, whichever iteration is on sale at Ollie’s. I’ve been traveling so I bought some Hex sample packs and they’re great too.