Best Laundry Detergent – from someone who knows

Over the years I’ve done a lot of laundry for the shop.  I once stood in line at the coffee shop Sunday morning after a particularly busy week and exclaimed loudly “EVERY single sheet I own is DIRTY!”  I realized immediately realized how funny that would sound out of context.  My friends who worked there laughed, knowing that I often say “my LIFE is laundry”  As a massage therapist, a busy work week means loads of sheets, blankets, towels, and pillow cases.  A lot of laundry is a good thing, because it means I’m having a lot of work.

I always know when it’s laundry day for my next door neighbors.  A cloud of Suavitel wafts past my front porch and continues on down the street.  It’s a smell I enjoy, because I love my neighbors and I associate the fragrance with being home, sitting on the front porch watching the sun set with my tribe.  My grandma was also a fan of fabric softener.While I enjoy the good feelings associated with these popular laundry products, I do so from a distance.  They all make me itch.  I break out in hives if I forget and use a scented detergent, softener or dryer sheet.  I started using unscented EVERYTHING in my 20’s, and when I opened my massage business I obviously did the same for my shop laundry.  While a fragrance might invoke fond memories of home or childhood, it can just as often invoke itching.   Below I’ve listed some of my favorite detergents, along with the pros and cons of each.

Costco Kirkland Institutional Laundry Detergent
200 loads/$17.21 – about 12 cents/load
Pros – Unscented, good price, bucket is a great size for reuse
Cons – Some folks can’t handle powder, and often use too much, only available at Costco to members

Method Laundry Detergent Refill
85 loads/$19.99 – about 23 cents/load
Pros – Great spill-proof, idiot-proof, easy to lift, measured pump packaging, easy to transport concentrated refills, unscented, available at Target
Cons – Somewhat more expensive than powders

Nellie’s All-Natural Laundry Soda
1101 loads/$124.95 + $15 (shipping) – about 12 cents/load
50 loads/$9.99 – about 20 cents/load
Pros – Very concentrated, great price in bulk, minimal packaging, unscented, available in handsome reusable tin or giant bulk 5 gallon bucket
Cons – May not be available in your area

Miscellaneous tips:

Use a pair of tennis balls in the dryer when drying down comforters to help fluff up the feathers.Sort laundry by category.  If you are doing several loads it is easier to do all pants in the same load.  Not only do they dry in roughly the same amount of time (why burn up your t-shirt waiting for the jeans to dry?) but it makes folding and putting away easier.  Fewer categories to sort just make the process easier.

DON’T OVER LOAD!  If your clothes take FOREVER to dry, and come out wrinkly, chances are you have too many clothes in the load.  The dirt needs somewhere to go, fabric needs to be able to agitate, and there is actually a point of diminishing returns in your dryer.  We appreciate that you want to conserve water and electricity, but making your washer and dryer work TOO hard is not the way to achieve this.

Line dry when you can, which is more often than you think.  Grandma’s fluffy, full of fabric softener towels do have an emotional draw, but they use a LOT of energy.  The dryer in your home is probably the number one consumer of electricity in your home, so skip it whenever you can.  I’ve started using tea towels to dry off after bathing.  They are very absorbent, 100% cotton, air dry quickly, and take up hardly any space.  I bought eight about a year ago and they all fit neatly on the tiny shelf above my 100 year old tub.  I don’t miss downy-fresh terry cloth at all, and I use a lot less energy washing and drying them.  Yes, they are smaller, and I certainly don’t walk around the house in one, but they are even better at keeping wet hair out of the way.  It’s a positive trade off.

What are YOUR favorite tips and tricks?  Know a great way to save time?

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