A money-saving hack for hard water

Ever feel like your detergent is working overtime for lacklustre results? It could be your water, not your detergent. Hard water is loaded with minerals like calcium and magnesium, which latch onto detergent, dulling its cleaning power. 

An easy way to improve your washing is to add laundry booster, water softeners or more detergent. But that can get expensive quickly, especially if you are using a premium detergent.

Here’s a hack that most people miss: budget powder detergent is an excellent, wallet-friendly water softener.

More affordable than a dedicated water softener

It might seem like buying a dedicated water softening product is a better option. This is definitely possible, but unless you’re buying in bulk, the retail cost is higher than a budget powder. 

Budget detergents pull double duty as water softeners

The base of powdered laundry detergent is sodium carbonate (washing soda). It binds to those minerals in the water so that the detergent can do its job. Most powder detergents on the Australian market contain at least 30% sodium carbonate; in some budget detergents, this is as high as 60%.

The lowest-price detergents at Coles, Woolworths and Aldi retail for $5 per 4 kg, that’s a paltry  $1.25/kg. This makes them a cheaper source of sodium carbonate than Lectric Washing Soda.

Don’t skip your regular detergent

Looking at the price, you might be tempted to go all in with budget detergent. Why use two detergents when the budget option is so much cheaper?

The truth is, these products don’t clean well. Although marketed as detergents, they are little more than water softeners in disguise. If you only use a budget detergent, you’ll be left with embedded dirt, grime, stains and smells.

Combining them with a quality detergent ensures you get a blend of surfactants, emulsifiers and enzymes that effectively remove dirt and grime.

How to make the hack work

So you want to soften your hard water, save money and boost the cleaning performance of your go-to detergent – all with an easy-to-buy, supermarket option. Here’s what you need to make it work.

1. Know your water hardness. This tip is only for people who live in hard water areas. It won’t benefit you if you have soft water!
2. Nab a budget powder. Down Under, Coles Simply Lemon, Woolworths Clean Laundry Powder and Aldi’s Almat powder are all solid choices. In the US, Arm & Hammer plus OxiClean and Costco’s Package Free The Simplest Laundry Detergent work well for this.
3. Make it a dynamic duo. Pair that budget powder with a regular dose of your preferred detergent to boost performance without doubling the expensive stuff.

“But how am I supposed to fit a whole metric cup of detergent into my machine’s tiny detergent drawer?” 

The answer is simple: skip the drawer. You can add detergent directly to the drum, either straight in or inside a small washable container for delayed starts.

Be the laundry legend

While it lacks strong cleaning power, every scoop of that lemon-scented bargain powder acts like a water softener – at a fraction of the cost of washing soda or premium detergent!

That humble $5 box of powder has just become the star of your laundry routine. 🌟 Cleaner clothes, fresher nappies and more cash in your wallet. No gimmicks. Just a clever application of laundry science.