Companies spend more than $300 a year advertising laundry detergents. But how do you know if the products live up to the hype?
Consumer Reports wanted to see if Tide Total Care delivered on its promise that even after 30 washes garments look perfect.
Testers washed three brand new cotton dresses 30 times. One in Tide Total Care, another in All Small & Mighty and another in 2X Ultra Tide for cold water.
Pat Slaven then compared the new dress to the washed ones.
"The dress washed with All faded compared to the dress washed with Tide Total Care," she said.
And the dress washed in 2X Ultra Tide for Coldwater looks about the same as the Tide Total Care dress. But that detergent costs about half as much. And the cheaper 2X Ultra Tide for Coldwater did a better job getting out stains in Consumer Reports stain-removal tests.
In all, more than 40 detergents were evaluated. Testers washed more than 1500 of these cotton squares stained with hard-to-clean substances like red wine, grass, blood, and chocolate.
In the end, Consumer Reports named two best buys that will tear through tough stains and save you some money, too.
For conventional top-loading washers, try 2X Ultra Tide for Coldwater.
For high-efficiency front-loaders, Consumer Reports recommends Ultra Cheer Colour Guard 2X Concentrated.
And when it comes to eco-friendly laundry detergents, Seventh Generation Free and Clear rated fourth best among high efficiency detergents
To save more money, wash your laundry in cold water instead of warm. , that can reduce your energy costs by up to $60 dollars a year. The only exception is your sheets -- if you are worried about bed bugs -- they should be washed in hot water.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Chris Olsen
