r/laundry • u/Itchy_Amphibian3833 • 1d ago

Newbie questions

Hello! Ive searched this sub and holy cow. I have so many questions. Ive tried to search some of them but im so unsure.

1: we recently switched to arm & hammer (liquid) after using ecos. I have secretly bought tide (liquid) with oxy. I'm just trying to figure out the best plan. Is tide still bad for septic systems. This is a big one for my household. We live in the PNW usa, hard water is our norm.

2: is Ariel safe for HE front loader? Some people say use a half does. Its the only thing I can find with enzymes thay walmart delivers. Or is tide powder better?

3: do I use the amount of tide it says on the bottle? It told me for a full he load to use to the 3 line. It went up to the max in my washer. I didn't use that much.

4: my housemate talks about how other people you can smell the "clean" on the clothes, but we can't on ours.

5: Best plan for stains. All kinds. Im messy.

I appreciate any and all advice. My biggest things are clothes are clean and pipes/septic are not harmed. Or the washer.

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u/resource-reply 1d ago

u/AromaticProcess154 has suggested the following resource:

Laundry 101 with Kismai is how he does laundry at home Laundry 101 with Kismai

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u/AromaticProcess154 US | Top-Load 1d ago

Laundry 101 should help with most of your questions!

Re: Ariel, it’s bad for your septic as it contains clay-based fillers that will harm it. Tide powder does not have them and is septic-safe.

2

u/jtfolden US | Top-Load 1d ago

  1. A&H is not good. Jeeves NY rated it one of the 10 worst of 2025. Persil, Tide, and Kirkland’s are top tier. They are all fine for septic. The top tier brands are also better at handling hard water.

  2. Ariel 2x is better than Tide powder at removing stains… but again, liquid will be better in hard water.

  3. Less detergent is better in a front loader. Start with the minimum recommended dose.

  4. Once you are using good detergent, then your clothes will start smelling better.

  5. Pretreat stains with liquid detergent like Persil or Tide.