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What’s the difference between liquid and powder laundry detergent? It’s not just the obvious
(theconversation.com)
Well shoot. Been paying for water
this post was submitted on 11 Nov 2024
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I'll tell you one difference that the article probably didn't mention. If you get the liquid on your clothes and then go stand under a black light at a nightclub, you can see everywhere that the detergent touched, despite them having gone through a full wash cycle. I discovered that through experience, and felt humiliated. So, I immediately switched to powder and stuck with it.
For a while, I considered buying the liquid stuff, because the powder wouldn't always dissolve and then sticked to my clothes.
Using less powder certainly helped, but I also found out that it's legal to dissolve the powder in water beforehand.
I just put some hot tap water and the powder into a glass jar, and give it a shake before I pour it into the washing machine.
Some is wet, other is dry
Powder also might contain zeolite, which you probably don't want to put into to your washer.
Why is it bad?
It can accumulate into clothes and inside the washing machine. Over time it can start to smell and damage bearings and heating elements. Those problems probably only come with constantly going over the recommended dose though.
If you're using the full recommended amount of detergent as listed on the container, you're already fucking up.
Zeolites replace phosphates in detergent. Is that bad? Aren't phosphates more harmful in wastewater than zeolites?
As I understand it, some zeolites can be aluminum based, and there's some research to show a connection between breast cancer and some aluminum products (deodorant being the largest source). But from what I've read these connections are tenuous, and mostly related to aluminum in deodorant being absorbed and having estrogen-like effects in the body, and the relationship of estrogen to breast cancer.
Why, pray, do I not want to put zeolites in my washer?