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Since November, at least seven class-action lawsuits have been filed against the makers of Tide, Gain, Xtra and others alleging the companies misleadingly market that products contain enough detergent to wash a specific number of loads of laundry without adequately disclosing that the number on the front label corresponds to small- or medium-sized loads and not full-sized loads.
Most consumers wash the largest load of laundry possible but when they follow instructions for full-sized loads, the products at issue only contain enough detergent to wash half – and sometimes fewer than half – the number of loads advertised on the front of containers.
So, advertised 58 loads of laundry contains enough detergent to wash approximately 28 loads of the largest load size listed.
I can understand the confusion, and how the companies may be taking advantage. The image shown has the stated number of loads requiring less than 2 oz of detergent per load. measuring such a small amount is a problem, and the viscosity and clinginess of the detergent to the measuring cup almost insures that some will either be wasted or too much detergent will be added (to compensate for the amount stuck to the measuring cup).
Some people have taken to tossing the measuring cup in with the wash, which is far from ideal. Rinsing the cup out or pouring directly into a dispenser may be a better approach.
I do have an issue with the packing of laundry into washers for "full" loads that are actually overly full. No detergent or other chemical can do a job when it can have sufficient movement to reach all the fabric and then get whisked away. If clothes don't come clean in such a scenario, it is the customer's fault, not the maker of the detergent.
Interesting.
My detergent has a load number, but it states the qualifier for that number of loads.
Funny thing it, I get WAY more loads than stated on the container.
I never believed the "suggested" number of loads simply because of who was suggesting it. Companies are always going to do stuff like that. Look at the toothpaste ads for the last ~fifty years, where the person slathers a big load of toothpaste onto the brush...when it's recommended you only put a pea-sized blob of it on the brush. They're in the business of selling, after all.
But about the detergent....I just buy whatever's on sale, so it's perfectly normal for me to have to put different amounts of detergent even if the loads are the same size, because some of them are good, and others are...umm, not.
Some people have taken to tossing the measuring cup in with the wash, which is far from ideal. Rinsing the cup out or pouring directly into a dispenser may be a better approach.
.
That's the same as saying this huge box is packed as full as possible with only a couple ounces of product because we can't "see" weight. Or the "serving suggestion" that contains a lot of other items, but nothing from the box. So they can legally tell the truth while lying at the same time.
Measuring cups are generally plastic. There is an affinity that the detergent has for the plastic. Rinse a cup and you may find it takes three or four flushes (or more) to get the cup feeling clean of liquid detergent.
In the wash, when using a small amount of detergent (like the less than two ounces for that load using "Gain") a significant percentage of the detergent isn't available for cleaning until later in the wash, and possibly in rare situations some even makes it into the rinse cycles. If measuring cups were mostly flat like saucers, the action of the fabric would wipe the detergent into the mix quickly. Then there is always having to remember to retrieve the cup before the dryer. Throwing the cup in with the wash works, but isn't ideal.
On a practical level, using a fixed amount of detergent per load may seem easy and fast, but the amount of detergent needed is only partly dependent on the dilution ratio with the wash water. The bigger factor is the amount of soil it will be loosening.
With clothes that I know are basically clean and being washed as much to keep from the place looking like a college dorm room than being dirty, I use a small amount of detergent. With lightly used towels I might even pass the towels in front of the detergent bottle for a blessing and then into a clean water wash, to remove any detergent from previous loads that remains. Conversely, if I have cleaning cloths that have been used for grease removal, I do a prewash or a soak in a utility sink with fairly large amounts of detergent or degreaser.
Because I do this all the time, I have developed a general sense of how much I need to put in my dispenser. The bottom of it is slightly slanted, which makes judging amounts easier, and I no longer deal with measuring out portions. YMMV
If you do measure into a cup, you might try putting a half cup of water into the cup FIRST, and then your couple ounces of detergent. Less of the detergent should adhere to the cup.
Another point I missed in my post is that the water quality of your tap water can make a large difference in how much detergent is needed. If the detergent is working against the pH of the water and mineral content, it won't be as effective. Comparing amounts of detergent used online is mostly pointless, because of variations in water and the way various machines work.
Measuring cups are generally plastic. There is an affinity that the detergent has for the plastic. Rinse a cup and you may find it takes three or four flushes (or more) to get the cup feeling clean of liquid detergent.
In the wash, when using a small amount of detergent (like the less than two ounces for that load using "Gain") a significant percentage of the detergent isn't available for cleaning until later in the wash, and possibly in rare situations some even makes it into the rinse cycles. If measuring cups were mostly flat like saucers, the action of the fabric would wipe the detergent into the mix quickly. Then there is always having to remember to retrieve the cup before the dryer. Throwing the cup in with the wash works, but isn't ideal.
On a practical level, using a fixed amount of detergent per load may seem easy and fast, but the amount of detergent needed is only partly dependent on the dilution ratio with the wash water. The bigger factor is the amount of soil it will be loosening.
With clothes that I know are basically clean and being washed as much to keep from the place looking like a college dorm room than being dirty, I use a small amount of detergent. With lightly used towels I might even pass the towels in front of the detergent bottle for a blessing and then into a clean water wash, to remove any detergent from previous loads that remains. Conversely, if I have cleaning cloths that have been used for grease removal, I do a prewash or a soak in a utility sink with fairly large amounts of detergent or degreaser.
Because I do this all the time, I have developed a general sense of how much I need to put in my dispenser. The bottom of it is slightly slanted, which makes judging amounts easier, and I no longer deal with measuring out portions. YMMV
If you do measure into a cup, you might try putting a half cup of water into the cup FIRST, and then your couple ounces of detergent. Less of the detergent should adhere to the cup.
Another point I missed in my post is that the water quality of your tap water can make a large difference in how much detergent is needed. If the detergent is working against the pH of the water and mineral content, it won't be as effective. Comparing amounts of detergent used online is mostly pointless, because of variations in water and the way various machines work.
I adjust the amount of detergent for the size of the load and the amount of soil, too. I think in tablespoons, not ounces. I drop the cup in the washer so it sits upright where the water will hit it as the tub fills. The clothes do not come out soapy.
Measuring cups are generally plastic. There is an affinity that the detergent has for the plastic. Rinse a cup and you may find it takes three or four flushes (or more) to get the cup feeling clean of liquid detergent.
In the wash, when using a small amount of detergent (like the less than two ounces for that load using "Gain") a significant percentage of the detergent isn't available for cleaning until later in the wash, and possibly in rare situations some even makes it into the rinse cycles. If measuring cups were mostly flat like saucers, the action of the fabric would wipe the detergent into the mix quickly. Then there is always having to remember to retrieve the cup before the dryer. Throwing the cup in with the wash works, but isn't ideal.
On a practical level, using a fixed amount of detergent per load may seem easy and fast, but the amount of detergent needed is only partly dependent on the dilution ratio with the wash water. The bigger factor is the amount of soil it will be loosening.
With clothes that I know are basically clean and being washed as much to keep from the place looking like a college dorm room than being dirty, I use a small amount of detergent. With lightly used towels I might even pass the towels in front of the detergent bottle for a blessing and then into a clean water wash, to remove any detergent from previous loads that remains. Conversely, if I have cleaning cloths that have been used for grease removal, I do a prewash or a soak in a utility sink with fairly large amounts of detergent or degreaser.
Because I do this all the time, I have developed a general sense of how much I need to put in my dispenser. The bottom of it is slightly slanted, which makes judging amounts easier, and I no longer deal with measuring out portions. YMMV
If you do measure into a cup, you might try putting a half cup of water into the cup FIRST, and then your couple ounces of detergent. Less of the detergent should adhere to the cup.
Another point I missed in my post is that the water quality of your tap water can make a large difference in how much detergent is needed. If the detergent is working against the pH of the water and mineral content, it won't be as effective. Comparing amounts of detergent used online is mostly pointless, because of variations in water and the way various machines work.
Y’all think too much.
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