Author Topic: Washing machine Pods versus Powder  (Read 1400 times)

CommuteTooFar

  • Inadequate Randonneur
Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« on: 25 October, 2021, 03:25:43 pm »
Is it actually better to use pods or powder.  I use pods because that is what my mother chose. Now I am responsible for my own washing I am doubting the soap industry. Should I revert to powder to get the same good results at a lower cost.

Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #1 on: 25 October, 2021, 03:31:45 pm »
Surely its just convenience really. We use liquid in a one of those plastic balls you chuck in with washing.
I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that.

Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #2 on: 25 October, 2021, 04:25:25 pm »
Powder is carp and prone to irritating delicate skin. There is always some residue of the powder in the clothes.

<i>Marmite slave</i>

Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #3 on: 25 October, 2021, 04:57:55 pm »
Most of these pods or tablets are far more than you actually need. Take the recommended dose of powder, then half it. Then half it again if you have soft water. Will still get your laundry clean enough.

And what are the pods made off? When they dissolve, do they break down into microplastics? They are supposedly 'biodegradable', in certain conditions, but does that actually happen in the sewage system?

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #4 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:09:09 pm »
We've tried one brand of pod which didn't dissolve in the machine. One lucky item of clothing would come out with a sticky burst plastic bag clinging to it. I think that might have been Wilko's own label. Branded ones work better in that respect at least. But mostly I use Bio-D liquid, made by posh hippies in Hull out of seaweed.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

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Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #5 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:22:44 pm »
I'll be finding out when my current box of tablets (ie. compacted powder) runs out, as a brexit bonus.  Hopefully I won't be allergic to them.

It mostly seems like a gimmick.

quixoticgeek

  • Mostly Harmless
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #6 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:36:40 pm »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll6-eGDpimU

I would imagine there are't too many differences between tablets for dishwashers, vs tablets in washing machines...

I use ecover liquid, the wool/delicate stuff. I have to buy it in 5l bottles as my local supermarkets stopped stocking it in preference to the "no fragrance" version, which while removing dirt, did not leave the clothes smelling clean.

J
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Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #7 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:40:54 pm »
Ah, you're one of those people who associate the smell of "fragrance" with cleanliness.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

  • Timelord
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Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #8 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:46:13 pm »
Wheres I associate the smell of Ecover with allergic reactions.

Mrs Pingu

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Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #9 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:53:19 pm »
Meanwhile I changed to Ecover Zero as I didn't like the fragrance they added to the 'normal' liquid. In fact I'm a bit pissed off the way they stinkified everything up over night.
Pods are a marketing gimmick, pretty sure if you worked it out it would be more expensive than liquid or loose powder.

Agree with the comments about using less than the manufacturer states, it has always been thus and now that modern washing machines are using less water even more so. When we moved house the washing machine we inherited was basically brand new, I had to reduce the amount of soap I was using as I could see some residual suds when it started the drain & spin part of the cycle.
I've also been using about half a cap of fabric softener, again because I don't appreciate my clothes reeking of flowers when they're dry.

Speaking of which, I don't know what they use at the cattery but it normally takes about a week for the cats to stop reeking of fragrance from the bedding they are provided.
Do not clench. It only makes it worse.

Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #10 on: 25 October, 2021, 05:59:45 pm »
Ecover liquid in a ball in the drum here Pcolbeck stylee.

quixoticgeek

  • Mostly Harmless
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #11 on: 25 October, 2021, 06:00:44 pm »
Ah, you're one of those people who associate the smell of "fragrance" with cleanliness.

No. I am one of those people who likes that her clothes smell of something nice...

Wheres I associate the smell of Ecover with allergic reactions.

I am fortunate not to have that issue.

J
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Beer, bikes, and backpacking
http://b.42q.eu/

Mrs Pingu

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Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #12 on: 25 October, 2021, 06:11:26 pm »
Also, I don't get what benefit having the ball in the washing machine brings, surely having a hard plastic item in the wears the clothes out more quickly and generates more microplastic.
Aside from not making the drawer & associated piping all groady with soapy biofilm.
Do not clench. It only makes it worse.

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #13 on: 25 October, 2021, 07:17:07 pm »
Surely its just convenience really. We use liquid in a one of those plastic balls you chuck in with washing.

That's what I use.

I had to chuck out powder I kept under the sink when the water outlet sprang a leak and I've used liquids ever since.

I like being able to vary detergent quantity with the size of the load and its degree of soiling, a flexibililty not offered by pods, capsules and tablets.

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #14 on: 25 October, 2021, 07:27:07 pm »
Ah, you're one of those people who associate the smell of "fragrance" with cleanliness.
No. I am one of those people who likes that her clothes smell of something nice…
I just don't want my clothes to smell musty. A 'delicate' cycle with 'gentle' detergent is usually pongy if there's any pure cotton in the wash.
Wheres I associate the smell of Ecover with allergic reactions.
I am fortunate not to have that issue.
J

I'm OK with fragranced detergents. I want my laundry to smell 'fresh' or of nothing.

Just not musty.

Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #15 on: 25 October, 2021, 07:39:07 pm »
We use loose bio powder for whites, Ecover “unscented” liquid for the rest, both put in the dispensing drawer at around half the recommended quantity. We hate heavily perfumed detergents and don’t possess a tumble dryer so don’t use those revolting scented papers.
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

Mike J

  • Guinea Pig Person
Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #16 on: 25 October, 2021, 07:59:11 pm »
Wheres I associate the smell of Ecover with allergic reactions.

Never tried that one, but did buy surf as it was on offer and it caused me 6 months of allergies before we worked out what it was.

Gattopardo

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Re: Washing machine Pods versus Powder
« Reply #17 on: 25 October, 2021, 09:06:55 pm »
Powder is carp and prone to irritating delicate skin. There is always some residue of the powder in the clothes.

Thought that happened if you used too much powder.