My clothes are so dry and scratchy (even after using the Calgon water softening liquid in every load) and regular fabric softener harms the fibers of the clothes so I don't want to use that, so.. any advice/experience?
Anyone tried it? I've read you can use white vinegar in place of fabric softener and that it helps with hard water buildup on the clothes?
Vinegar can be used to de-kalk appliances, so there is certainly logic there, but how it would work in a wash remains to be smelt seen.
You can buy water softening stuff in Migros and Coop to add to the washing powder. Not as cheap as vinegar, but it is designed to do the job.
She already tried that.
It works well as a softener, and surprisingly there is not even a hint of a smell of vinegar on your clothes afterwards.
Wow- great. What is your experience using it on dark clothes?
Anyone know which compartment of the washer to put it in? With the main detergent or in the (what I assume) is the fabric softener compartment- labeled "Veredler"/"Revitalisant" on the apt. building's washer..
It's supposed to work wonders with laundry.. I love to use it for other cleaning as well.. my problem is that I haven't been able to find the big jugs of plain white vinegar here... any tips???
I heard New Asia Market in Zurich has it.. I'm going to check it out today or tomorrow! Will report back..
I've had no problems using it on any clothes, all colours!
You only need about an eggcup full, and put it in the fabric softener compartment. Good luck!
I get the vinaigre de nettoyage in litre bottles ( well actually the plastic bag refills which are cheaper) in the COOP.
It's in their oecoplan range I think.
If we go shopping to France I buy it their as it's a fraction of the cost here and I use it for lots of cleaning jobs.
Do you use it instead of or as well as fabric softener?
i use white vinegar as well but add a few drops of lavender oil and everything smells goooood
It is great for dark clothes, as it helps prevent bleeding. Turning clothes inside out also helps, as does using a "color catcher."
I put it in the fabric softener compartment, but not every load. Just every so often.
Using household vinegar when washing towels seems to increase their absorbency and makes them a bit less stiff if you dry them on the line.
Thanks, I saw that she tried Calgon, but Migros and Coop have their own stuff which works for me.
I've added about 1/4 cup to a load of towels that had been used by some wild cats. They slept on them last winter and the smell of cat pee was quite bad but luckily it took cat pee smell away.
The tip to add drops of lavender oil is a great idea, thanks for that Amaraya!
I use it too instead of softener. As Debra said, your clothes won't smell of vinegar at all.
I understand it's very good to help avoid calc buildup in the washing machine.
Don't worry about dark colours. In fact, when I bought a red jacket last month, I soaked it in water with a cup of vinegar to help fix the colour, so it won't run (away? )
Cheaper and better than softener, and the difference on towels is amazing.
The tip about the lavender oil was very good. I'll try that next.
Thansk for the tips...where do you find your lavender oil?
I buy it in Manor, where they keep the sauna stuff, close to the bathroom section. (you know where I mean, I can't explain myself better today )
Well you didn't specify that it was their own brand in your post so it wasn't obvious that you'd seen the calgon reference.