Difference between bio/non-bio & liquid/powder

[nnibnabs]

I currently use non bio liquid (tesco brand) but its not getting the stains out of my DSs clothes. His white tees get covered in mud at school

I'm now treating the mud stains pre-wash with Vanish spray, but surely the liquid alone should get it out - they always go in wash straight away.

What do you use, or recommend?

And is Bio likely to irritate my DSs skin, he sometimes suffers with excema.

TIA

There was some research published in the last year to which indicated that bio was less likely to cause skin irritation than non-bio. I actually found it better when my kids were in washable nappies as they got bad nappy rash with non-bio. Bio is certainly more effective at getting rid of stains.

Not sure whether liquid or powder is more effective - we use the powder tablets and it works fine.

Bio has enzymes in to remove (typically) food based stains. Bio has to be used at 40C or lower to be effective

Non bio has more chemical detergents. Hotter temps can be used to remove stains.

Bio can cause skin irritation problems - but not always.

I would get a small pack and try one load and see what happens.

I really wouldn't use bio powder for washing your ds's clothes if he suffers from excema.

I soak heavily stained clothes in a solution of bio powder (say 1/4 cup in a bucket or bowl) of warm or hot water (if the fabric can take it without shrinking) for 4 hours. Then rinse in the machine. Then wash in non bio powder with all the rest of the non-stained washing.

The skin irritation is whats stoppped me using it before as he gets soue on inside elbow - where sleeves would sit and rub.

May have to try one wash in bio to see, seem to be going through white school shirts at a rate of knots!

Even soaking in biotex before washhing isn't shifting the grime that DS rolls in on a daily basis!

power almost always contains optical brighteners (aka bleach) which will keep whites white (and bleach colours)

liquid detergent normally doesnt so is better for coloured clothes

If you can find it, try Napisan - either soak before the wash or add it to wash. It's normally in the baby section in supermarkets, not the washing powder section. It's non-bio, amazingly!

Soak the muddy tshirts in cold water first. If you put them straight into hot water it just cooks the stain in.

I was reading the Which report on stain removing products the other day (gosh, I'm so interesting, I've just replied on the dishwasher thread about the Which report for those too!)Any way, it recommended Biotex as the best all round stain remover- but interestingly (or maybe not) it performed better when it was added directly to the washing machine, than if clothes were soaked in it first.

Bio is only a problem for people who are sensitised to enzymes. Non-bio powders can actually be harsher than bio because they need a wider cocktail of cleaners to make up for the missing enzymes.

So if I try bio powder its more likely to get the clothes clean, but may cause irritation? In which case I can stop using it.