@wis75 - pods are good for college students. 
I like the Tide pods, very convenient!
I was a Tide user for decades but decided to try Costco’s Kirkland brand unscented and it worked just as well. I still use Tide’s Advanced Power, Bleach alternative for white’s. I find that Tide has a very mild scent. It’s amazing how strong the smell can be for some detergents. My sister and a co-worker must use the same detergent and I really don’t like the smell.
I’m a Tide powder user. I used to use Tide liquid with our ancient top loader.
I vowed never to use Wisk again years ago when it dyed a pale pink silk blouse of mine blue.
I am very sensitive to scents, so wife uses liquid Arm and Hammer (free of perfumes and dyes). I bought some borax (20 mule team borax) to use as ant killer, and she started adding that to the laundry mix to fortify the detergent.
I went on “strike” several years ago because Tide was getting so expensive. I tried others but I noticed that clothes really were brighter with Tide!!! Just like in commercials!
There are some product brands ingrained in the American Psyche- everyone knows them even if we use others. Tide, Band Aids, Kleenex, Coke, Crayons (Crayola)… Sorry to hijack this thread but it got me thinking.
Off topic; Is there a detergent you can use to wash colors and whites together? My houshold is dwindling and separating colors and whites doesn’t fill up the wash machine much.
My MIL was a Wisk user and she is now using All free and Clear. I am odd man out but I don’t like liquid detergent. I use the powdered Tide from Costco. My D likes the Costco pods. My S uses a liquid Tide that smells like Fabrezze. I hate the smell of his clothes. When he lived at home after college I would sometimes re wash his clothes to rid my house of the dreaded smell.
I always use unscented and sensitive skin products - hate scented stuff! Mostly Tide Free but using All Free and Clear right now. @iglooo If I’m washing darks and whites where the darks might cause a problem, I use Color Catchers. These are great to send to college with kids who don’t have time or size of loads to separate laundry.
Wow–so many replies! Thanks, everyone. I guess I’ll just experiment with some unscented options, Tide and Persil to start (the Persil Sensitive Skin claims to be dye-free, perfume-free and hypoallergenic) and avoid the environmentally friendly options that “seem to just redistribute the dirt more evenly”–bwah!
I had a bad experience with Color Catchers. All the color didn’t get “caught” and I ruined an item. So I still sort, even though some loads are very small. Has anyone seen the commercial for a washer that has a mini-washer at the bottom just for small loads? I can’t recall the brand, probably one of the premium European ones, but what a great idea!
I haven’t had really dirty clothes to deal with since my kids grew up. My challenges usually come from my failure to bother with an apron while cooking. And I’m a big fan of using Oxiclean powder to get out stubborn stains, which I use in my own way regardless of the directions. I throw a good sized handful of Oxiclean into a basin of warm water, stir to dissolve, and soak the item, or the stained portion of it, overnight. I’ve worked miracles that way, and the fabric has never suffered from the highly concentrated solution.
I haven’t used real bleach for years. I guess H’s underwear could be whiter, but who’s looking?
Liquid Tide, less than suggested, in two 20+ year old top-loading machines. Use Shout on stains on tablecloths & napkins, but everything else seems to come clean.
I buy it on sale at grocery store b/c I do not like the giant Costco container. I buy just about everything else in life at Costco, but not Tide.
@Iglooo , buy the shout color catcher sheets. They really work! DS would never dream of separating the colors from the whites, aND he still has white clothes thanks to these.
I always used Cheer Free and Gentle powder for clothes until my grocery store stopped carrying it. I switched to Tide Free and Gentle powder. Seems to work fine. I use a Spray n Wash stick for stains.
For whites, towels, bedding or extra dirty laundry I use Tide with Bleach powder and add Oxyclean powder.
I am a fan of Woolite liquids.
Nothing but unscented products comes into my house. Tide Free and Clear does a great job. All Free and Clear does a decent job. I hadn’t thought of Wisk in decades. That’s what I grew up with my mom using.
Tide free and clear. And then I run the laundry through a second time–the entire cycle–with NO detergent at all. Otherwise, I itch. (Oh, and I use about 1/4 the suggested amount in my front loader.)
We mix colors and whites…except for colors we know are not color fast…but really…there aren’t that many of those in our house,
We use All…unscented.
Tide just got too pricey, sorry…but it did.
My clothes are clean.
When the kids were little, the super Tide was amazing, no matter how they mucked up their clothes. But yes, got more expensive.
Gave away my Persil, hated the scent and it really clung. Days later, I’d smell it on a shirt. What a waste.
For spot bleaching whites, anyone else use the Clorox bleach pens? Great.
But back to topic. Add me to the All and Arm & Hammer Free and Clear versions.
A friend introduced me to color catchers a while a go, and I bought a package. They really do work, although sometimes you have to use two. I’m not using them at the moment, though.
They are definitely something that I would send to college with my kid. And great for those who have to use laundromats.