OT: Do brand name laundry detergents work better?

[newmomto3kids]

I guess the title says it all, but...I will go on anyway ;)
As I was cleaning the grass and dirt off of clothes today, I was wondering if brand name detergents do a better job getting clothes clean. I am currently using the Costco brand dye free stuff. Mostly because it seems to be a good deal, not because it is the dye free stuff. I have certain things that I must buy brand name (like ketchup, macaroni and cheese, american singles) and have to have Downy Lavender and Vanilla fabric softener (I will go insane if they ever stop making it...). But detergents I have no brand loyalty at all...
So, do they work better and if so, which one should I buy? Summer is coming and I would like all the help I can get.
Thanks guys.

[cdlamis]

The Queen of Clean says that Purex works just as well as the higher end detergents. That is what she uses and so do we! :)

HTH~

Daniella
Mom to Julia 6-13-02
and Isabella 12-18-04

[newmomto3kids]

Thanks!!
I've seen that before, I just might have to try it!
I am sure that I will out myself for not knowing this, but who is the Queen of Clean (obviously not me!! ;) )

[maestramommy]

Consumer reports says that Tide works well, but Kirkland (the Costco brand) is a best buy. We're currently using Tide Cold water liquid. Hope it works better than the TJ's, which didn't do anything.

[newmomto3kids]

Awesome, thank you!!

[g-mama]

I am a Tide user but tried the Costco brand a while back. I couldn't figure out why stains were not coming out until I realized it had to be the detergent. I went back to Tide with much better success, so in my mind, there is a difference. I'm not typically all that brand loyal and will buy generics and store brands but not with my detergent anymore.


~Kristen

Paolo 11-00
Benjamin 8-03
Marco 12-05

[trumansmom]

The best laundry detergent I ever used was Fred Meyer powder with bleach. I bought it because it was cheap and I was single and broke, but I literally had co-workers asking me how I kept my whites so white! I felt like a cheesy commercial! I miss Fred Meyer so much!!

Jeanne
Mom to Truman 11/01 and Eleanor 4/04

[trumansmom]

The best laundry detergent I ever used was Fred Meyer powder with bleach. I bought it because it was cheap and I was single and broke, but I literally had co-workers asking me how I kept my whites so white! I felt like a cheesy commercial! I miss Fred Meyer so much!!

Jeanne
Mom to Truman 11/01 and Eleanor 4/04

[bubbaray]

I actually have better success with the Kirkland/Costco brand than most others. I think it depends a bit on your water, though. I have found brands like Tide or other name brands give us rashes or are hard on the clothes.

DD has super sensitive skin and seems fine with the Kirkland brand.

However, I'm considering trying the Ecover brand. I've heard good things about it and its supposed to be "greener".


Melissa

Maya Papaya!
http://lilypie.com/baby2/040411/3/4/1/-8/.png[/img][/url]

[bubbaray]

I actually have better success with the Kirkland/Costco brand than most others. I think it depends a bit on your water, though. I have found brands like Tide or other name brands give us rashes or are hard on the clothes.

DD has super sensitive skin and seems fine with the Kirkland brand.

However, I'm considering trying the Ecover brand. I've heard good things about it and its supposed to be "greener".


Melissa

Maya Papaya!
http://lilypie.com/baby2/040411/3/4/1/-8/.png[/img][/url]

[cdlamis]

>I am sure that I will out myself for not knowing this, but who
>is the Queen of Clean (obviously not me!! ;) )

I forgot that not everybody knows her- I am sure you aren't the only one. The Queen of Clean is a local celebrity in Arizona that is now known nationally for great cleaning tips. She is awesome and has great books too!
http://www.queenofclean.com/

Daniella
Mom to Julia 6-13-02
and Isabella 12-18-04

[dhano923]

We also use the Kirkland liquid detergent and it works well for us. I haven't used it on DD's clothing yet (I use baby detergent for the first few months) but it's pretty good at getting out dirt, grass, etc from DS's clothing.

[Tondi G]

We were loyal to SURF powder. I love the scent and it is always cheaper than Tide. I just tried out the ALL small and Mighty liquid and liked it very much.... it also takes up a lot less space on our little shelf in the laundry room! I find that if I have some clothes that need a little extra stain fighter I put a scoop of Oxiclean in the load and it does the trick!

I've heard that liquid works better in soft water and powder works better in hard. don't know if thats true or not???

~Tondi

[bcky2]

we do tide here also, i find that it does get my clothes cleaner. i have used purex but nothing was getting clean for me, and we were getting rashes from it. every time i shop i want to go back to the cheaper stuff but i know that it just isnt going to cut it for us. with the tide i can also use less then what they call for :) if the cheaper stuff worked for us i would be using it in a heartbeat, i hate the price of tide. now fabric softner, that is one place that i wont go cheap. there is a one and only fabric softner for me :)

[newmomto3kids]

Ok, because I am such a dork, I think I am going to run my own little experiment...Tide vs. Costco. I think I will try Purex vs. Costco too, just for the fun of it. I know, I know, my idea of fun is seriously skewed.
I will keep you posted (in case anyone is as dorky as me ;) )

[starrynight]

I use Purex all the time but I still consider that brand name, just the cheaper one. I know the stuff from places like the dollar store work awful and I usually don't like generic grocery store brands but the albertson's good day one works ok, doesn't smell as nice as other stuff but it works.

[kransden]

I like All Free and Clear. I also am trying Method from Target and it seems to be working ok too.

Karin and Katie 10/24/02

[kelly ann]

I use both Kirkland/Costco and Tide. The Kirkland detergent gets put in the washer and Tide is used to hand treat the hard to remove stains (I put it right on the clothes along with stain remover).

However, DDs poopy stains are so much harder to remove than DSs poopy stains...what's with that????

[JTsMom]

I think it probably depends on the clothes you are washing too. For example, DH's work clothes are REALLY grungy, and washing in a cheaper detergent- like Purex- doesn't get them clean. If I was washing towels, Purex might do the trick.

I only buy Tide these days b/c I don't want to mess around re-washing stuff if another brand doesn't do the trick. BTW, Consumer Reports says that Tide POWDER is the best, not the liquid, so that's something to consider as well.

[Dcclerk]

Yes, as a matter of fact, I am. ;) I look forward to hearing about the results!

[niccig]

I use Tide Free powder. I tried going back to normal but I couldn't handle the smell and DH got a rash. I agree with the PP about the cost - it's expensive. Every now and then, it's considerably marked down with the supermarket's club card. When that happens, I stock up. I've got 8 boxes in the garage and won't need to buy detergent for sometime. Hopefully by then, it'll go on sale again.

Nicci

[bcafe]

We like ALL small and mighty too. Love the smell!

[pampamz]

We use Kirkland right now because I thought I would give it a try...normally we are faithful liquid Gain users...I might go back to it, we'll see when this Costco size vat of Kirkland is through. I don't mind the Kirkland brand...

[pampamz]

...I've used my liquid detergent to treat stains and DS's shirt ended up with a blue stain on it from the soap...did I goof???

On that note -- what do you guys find to be the best stain remover???
DD is a bit of a spitter still and her tops are getting ruined despite my efforts w/Shout...

[babymama]

In late 2004 or early 2005 (can't remember) Consumer Reports tested and reviewed laundry detergents. They named Costo's generic brand (Kirkland Brand) laundry detergent as the best value.

Lydia
Mama to Santiago, my 2 yr old monster
and new baby girl, Solana, born 12/26/05
I'll figure out how to update my avatar someday!

[babymama]

Cooks Illustrated did a test of stain removers (kitchen stains), and they recommend OxiClean.

You can go over to the america's test kitchen website (google america's test kitchen) to look up the methodology - which is quite thorough.

Lydia
Mama to Santiago, my 2 yr old monster
and new baby girl, Solana, born 12/26/05
I'll figure out how to update my avatar someday!

[crl]

Cara,
When we were remodeling our kitchen about 4 years ago, I spent a lot of time at www.gardenweb.com 's forums and a bunch of posters there did complicated laundry detergant tests. If you like that sort of thing, they may well still be going at it.

[daniele_ut]

We use Kirkland Brand Liquid, the Fresh Scent one, and like it just fine, but we had some powdered Tide in the condo where we vacationed last week and i liked the scent much better, so we may try it next when we run out in a week or soo.

Consumer Reports did their last tests in October 05 and for some reason the issue is sitting on my desk. 6 of the top 10 were Tide products.
1. Tide with Bleach Powder
2. Tide Cold Water Powder(tested in cold water)
3. Tide He Liquid
4. Kirkland Signature Ultra He Liquid BEST BUY
5. Tide with a touch of Downy Powder
6. Tide with Bleach alternative Liquid
7. Ultra Plus with Oxi Clean (Sears) Powder
8. All Stainlifters He Liquid
9. Tide Cold Water Liquid(tested in Cold water)
10. Great Value Ultra Mountain Fresh (Wal-Mart) BEST BUY

For stain removers, I've tried them all and recently have gone back to Zout (not the spray, the liquid in the purple bottle). It gets out nearly everything. OxiClean worked ok, but it's time consuming to soak and it's messy. The OxiClean premixed spray didn't work well at all. Shout does ok.

[nicoleandjackson]

Cara--

We've had good luck with the Kirkland dye-free lately. We used to use All, then All Free & Clear (to help with DH's allergies) and washed DS's stuff in AF&C as well from the day he came home from the hospital. Kirkland is cheaper and works just as well. I have not been able to use Tide since developing an allergy to their perfume in high school (I can't even ride in the same car with someone who washes their clothes in it!)

For stain removal, I second the PP's mention of Zout liquid. When DS was little, I used Totally Toddler stain remover for formula/spit-up/poopie stains, and that worked great too (gentler than Zout, and smells fantastic). It's at BRU in a white spray bottle with a pink label (not to be confused with the All and Dreft rip-offs! :))

Nicole
Mommy of Jackson 4/30/02

http://b5.lilypie.com/nD9Jm5.png

[JulieL]

Beware of powder! I used powder forever and kept getting these like bleach stains in our clothes. A good friend (Reeca ;) ) told me the powder can remain clumped up causing those stains. So if you use powder make sure it's completely desolved first then wash. I havn't used powder since, and wala the weird stains went away. But then agian I had no clue what I was doing when I got married, I had lived a good part of my life with a bachelor father - and he wasn't domestic either ;)

[JulieL]

I LOVE ZOUT!!!!

[newmomto3kids]

Cool, thanks!!
I am almost scared to check it out as I tend to get addicted to these sorts of things :)

[newmomto3kids]

Funny, because I have noticed blue stains on things before and drove myself crazy trying to figure out where they came from. Hmmmm....I wonder.
Whatever you did *wrong*, I must have done too.

[calebsmama03]

I think detergents work differently based on your local water? I wanted to point out a few things I didn't see mentioned (if you search Butts there may have been a discussion on this some months back - I know there was one on MDC) Most detergents today (even cheap ones) have optical brighteners in them. While they help to keep whites looking brighter, they build up on your clothing (they are actually a form of dye and you can see them under black light). Brighteners actually make dark clothing look dingy and faded! I thought it was a bunch of hooey but decided to try an experiment because I'd recently had several new red shirts get faded with a few weeks. I used my regular detergent (all free and clear) for lights and used my diaper detergent (Sportwash) for my darks. After 2 months the difference was quite noticeable - not only were new things not fading out, but formerly dingy/faded looking items seemed brighter again! Now I only use Cheer dark formula for my dark loads. I know there are other brands that are free of brighteners but I haven't looked it back up to see which ones they are. Just reading the package will not tell you since the mfrs are not required to list them.



Lynne
Mommy to C 3/03
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_emerald_18m.gif[/img][/url]
And Miss Purple, 5/05

[AddiesMom]

I truly think the machine has a lot to do with it also. When I lived in an apartment my clothes looked dingy, I had a hard time getting stains out and anything with a draw-string got wrecked. When we moved into a house we got a Bosch front end loader. We used Tide before and now use Tide HE Free, but the clothes look so much better and are lasting longer! The washer also has a 2 hour setting that I use for things like the tablecloth after a gathering and it gets it spotless!