I have used A & H baking soda in the wash for years, with great results. It doubles the whitening power of liquid chlorine bleach, which means I can use half the recommended 'dosage' of bleach when I wash really dirty white clothes and towels.

I also use baking soda on my guys' stinky clothes they wear for outdoors work. It does a great job of deodorizing them.

I have noticed it also softens water, which should be a boon for those who live in hard-water areas. Overall, it's a great detergent cleaning booster -- the most inexpensive I can think of.

I buy it at a local warehouse store in huge plastic, resealable bags which last several months. (I also use it for other things besides laundry.)

Thanks Mara!

I also use it for many uses around the house and I think it's great. I finally decided to give it a try in my wash. Wanted to hear what other people had to say about it... thanks for sharing.

I also use Charlies and tried using bicarb a few times and didn't really notice a difference either.

Where I did notice a difference was using it with other detergents. I tried a cup of bicarb with Oxydol liquid and it made it much more sudsy than normal. The cleaning ability seemed about the same.

Overall I wasn't impressed enough to incorporate it into a regular washing routine. I'm finding that Charlies plus STPP or TSP is working the best.

reeree, I should have mentioned, I don't use Charlie's Soap. I mainly use Sears Ultra Wash Stainfighting formula and Tide w/ bleach and TotalCare -- all HE formulas.

I have used baking soda for years, with various detergents, with great results. Hope it does the same for you.

thanks Mara,

I always liked A&H and I am sure it is a good laundry boost with Charlies even though I haven't noticed a difference.. I have two little 5 pound maltese. I keep their hair very short for the summer and they get a bath once a week...... even so, when it gets really hot they start to get a little stinky... I washed their beds with charlies and A&H and they came out really fresh & clean.. so I am sure it's doing something. as always, the cleaner, the better :) Thanks!

The only time I add Arm & Hammer baking soda is for some of my hand-knit sweaters. It helps soften the stiff/prickly "organic matter" you can find in some natural yarns.

-Grainlady

ree ree, hi, how are you? I lost your e-mail address when my computer crashed and hadn't been able to get in touch. Glad I ran into you here.

I use to use Baking Soda when I used other detergents and needed extra cleaning power, but I stopped when I noticed it turned something I had to a different color. I guess it reacted with the detergent I was using, I don't know. It scared me though so I never put it in again.

I now use Persil detergent and don't have to add any type of bleach, whitening or other boosters to wash any of my laundry.

Hi brutusus!

I will PM my email to you again... we have to catch up. I haven't been on here a long time... I pop on every now and then, glad your here.

I always wanted to try Persil... I have been using Charlies for a few years. I usually never add anything to it either, but wanted to see if there was a difference with A & H... when needed I add Nature Bright by Shaklee...I love it..it's amazing in getting out stains and gives whites a boost.

I will talk you you later!

Here is a link that might be useful: Nature Bright Laundry Booster and Stain Remover

reeree, do you still have my e-mail address?