Dear Home Ec 101:
So, uh, how bad is it if I add a little liquid dish detergent when I’m running out of laundry detergent? I swear my momma didn’t raise me this way.
~Bubbling in Beaumont
Heather says:
Chances are, if you have some laundry detergent to add to a load of laundry you probably have enough. However a very small amount of dishwashing liquid, not dishwasher detergent, would not cause harm, provided you are using a top loading machine..
Anything more than a small amount would cause excess foaming which may spill out of your machine and onto the floor. This may be mildly amusing on a sit-com, but as I don’t have someone else to clean up the mess, I would be less than thrilled.
Laundry detergents have chemicals that act as stabilizers to prevent foaming. Dishwashing soaps lack these properties allowing the mounds of bubbles we are familiar with.
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Actually, I have used washing-up liquid in my front loading wachine machine. Usually when I have run out of washing powder and can’t be bothered to grate up some soap mixture. I use the very cheapest liquid (Asda Smart Price) which doesn’t really foam much and just squirt it two or three times into the dispenser. My risk – but so far, so good. Sometimes I just run the machine with washing soda; sometimes with nothing added – depends on what’s on the washing….
I lurk on some cloth diaper sites even though I don’t CD. Many women on there use 1 tablespoon of dawn on there diapers (front loaders) and they say they do not have any problems.