@mamapinky, they haven't listed phosphates in the product for years. I just happened to spend a few hours, talking to P&G reps, who we're able to confirm what I thought ;)

Ya I figure p&g doesn't want us people in the US wanting to seek the Mexican detergents so if they don't list the phosphates we won't search them out or spread the word.

Wonder how many people know that the Ariel sold at walmart is just non HE Tide, for a lot less $$

It's not just any TIDE, it's non-ultra Tide with Bleach, in the Mountain Spring Scent. I grabbed a bag for $1.78 on Clearance at Lowe's. ;)

R E A L L Y??? Ariel @ Walmart is non-ultra Tide? With lower dosages, will it still clean in a front loader? Not too sudsy??

Oh Larsi, it's extremely sudsy. We're talking about, old-old Tide here, no suds suppressors whatsoever. Big 3/4 Cup Scoops. Pre-Ultra, 2009. ;)

I love, love, love the stuff for Top Loader washes. It's very nostalgic. But... I haven't tried it in a FL. I know some have used the old-tide, and you could get away with it, with reduced doses. ;)

Take a wiff of it Larsi...you will have to dose carefully. Mich can chime in here lol.

And he did haha

But Yes. It's exactly the same, pre-non ultra formula. They call it "Ariel Clasico Mountain Spring" but it's really Tide + Bleach, Mountain Spring Non-Ultra, Non Screwed Up, lol ;)

Larsi...slow down on that freeway..hahaha

I of course have used Old School Tide Mitch....Remember I am over 20 years older than you :-o Ouch, the hurts saying that, LOL.

It was VERY, VERY sudsy...but the last time I used that detergent, it was in a mustard Maytag toploader that prob used 60 gallons of water, Ha!!!

So just to get this out..I could be Larsi' Mama and Mich's grandMama...omfg...Sparky you are the only one I couldn't have birthed....hahahaha

@Larsi, you may be twenty years older than me... but, I can only wish, and dream of being half as knowledgeable as you are when I'm that age.

With that said, isn't it kinda cool, seeing all those glorious suds (Top-Loader) at times? ;) Even just a little bit? :-)

Yeah. I obviously wouldn't use old, old Tide full strength in a front loader. Oh, the suds... The washer would probably float away... lol.

@ Mitch.... :) Seriously, at 20 years old, you are pretty amazing!!!

@ Mama....you'd be such a fun Mom. OMG....we'd be searching the house...closets and chests just looking for things to wash, to try out our new laundry products! LOL

idk....do they have Wal Mart in Calabasas LOL Let me know Larsi, I have a Wal Mart right down the road from me...and it has Ariel ;-)

I really just assumed all of you guys knew, about the secret tide hiding in the Ariel. ;) lol

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Ariel-USA-Laundry-Detergent-150-oz/23116465

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Ariel-USA-Laundry-Detergent-63-oz/23116464

Check your store's location, before you go. It goes in & out of stock, where I am, constantly. ;)

My Ariel powder is medium blue with blue specks. Not white with blue specks like Tide.

So far I LOVE the scent. It's a bit strong at first but I'm very happy with it. My sheets smell great!

The powder scent is stronger than the liquid but I could use this for life & it's affordable.

I'm going to donate my 7 jugs of Sun to the dog shelter down the street. I know they wash lots of towels & bedding for the dogs.

M glad you like it Paw, as long as your careful with dosing it works fine in a FL'er...you know that Sun will work fine on throw rugs, and things that just need freshened up, maybe you should hold on to one jug, just a thought.

My local Walmart can't keep the Ariel in stock, it flys off the shelf. I have 2 of the large bags in the closet, but I do have a cookie jar full out, I use it once in awhile, its a better detergent than most store offerings..

Mich, not too long ago before I bought the Queen I did a suds cake in my Roper for the kids to see, they thought it so funny. This is something that's not recommended to do all the time, but once in awhile in a top loader won't hurt anything. I have a wringer comming someday, and next summer outside I will let the kids have a soap cake contest haha.

LOL always1stepbehind!!! Needless to say, we do NOT have a Walmart in Calabasas, ha ha ha!!! There is one a few miles away in Canoga Park,and I find it to be one of the most traumatizing places I have ever been to! :-o LOL

All this talk of Ariel-I thought i'd throw in that they have Ariel pods at my walmart. They are tide original scent pods-no doubt about it. I used em up on throw rugs, kitchen towels and my mopping towels(i use an old fashioned T stick with a clean towel on it AKA a "cuban mop", one of the many tricks ive picked up from my Cuban friends down here in sfl) It's a very clean way to mop your floors as you use a clean towel each time and very cost effective, but i digress, Anyway--also a big Ariel fan here! I havnt used it in a while though, I may have to pick up a small bag the next time im at Wally World. (which is not very often)

Am I the only one, who pictures Larsi putting on a big hat, and sunglasses, before stepping out to go to Walmart? Lmao.

Laris...we all know how he loathes WalMart.

And while I have the option of at least five stores near me, I do only go to one that's less (how to say this)...urban? I'm not talking about race either.

There are nice WalMart's in nice towns and there aren't.

@Larsi Absolutely right about Walmart. I don't patronize them either. They treat their workers shabbily. Their overseas vendors aren't anything to write home about either. I do like Target.

Our only option here is Wal-Mart. I needed something from Kohl's this weekend, so we made the hour plus trip. It's in the same shopping center with a Target, so I insisted we stop in. I have to say, I was actually a bit disappointed in their laundry selection as far as powder goes. I think I saw only 2 kinds, and no boxes of Cheer powder - they only had it in the liquid. I thought my selection at Wal-Mart was limited, but we have many more than I saw at this Target.

Yeah aa62579...My closest Target was pretty disappointing in the laundry aisle also. Nothing much different than the standards (no really off brands).

The WalMart I frequent had more than my local Target.

There doesn't seem to be much powdered detergent available wherever I've looked-CVS, Walgreens, Target, Kroger, Food Lion, and Lowes.

For what it's worth, back in 2011 Target introduced a new concept called "P-Fresh" which, to make this short, is the idea, of adding Fresh Groceries & Produce to more stores.

When Target decided to try this concept, they only had about 40% of the space they needed, and had to find ways to cut aisles, and limit selection. And Powder Detergents & Pet Food we're one of the first things to get chopped.

Anyhow. If you guys have a Super-Target in your area, which, is a two entrance, super store with a FULL Grocery section. I think you'll be absolutely shocked at the difference in the detergent aisle. I mean, my own store had like a million Powder & Liquid options, and even hard to find things like bluing & Ecover bleach.

Walmart in Topeka has a Marketplace store I believe it's called. Just groceries, cleaning supplies, meds and very well stocked aisle of detergents. I had stopped going to the Supercenters until they opened this. Completely different vibe in this store and it is clean as a whistle.

This shocked me! I just ran a load of FILTHY jeans. I went to put the jeans in after filling TL with what I thought was HOT water along with Ariel. Nope it was cold so I just let the load agitate for 10 minutes, soak for 1 hour then finished the cycle. The jeans are spotless. Not sure why my washer does that every now and then. I usually can catch it when the water is filling. But I am fighting a lovely horrendously god awful, I'd rather give birth without anesthesia and be lit on fire in my front yard dental problem. Anyway that's impressive!

@Jean: so sorry you are having dental problems, but I do love your description!

Jean..I am SO So sorry you are having dental probs. Dental issues are the worst for me. Serious, almost any body problem is better than the mouth!! Feel better. I almost peed (sp?) my pants, reading your pain description!!!!

Pain is not a strong enough word! I've had 2 kidney stones and gave birth to my 10 pound 5 oz. son without a whiff of painkillers. But this was that I-damn-near-saw-God kind of pain. Whoever brought antibiotics into the world is a saint and I love him and I would do his laundry forever if he was still alive. Sorry for the threadjack pawprint. So proud of you for trying the Ariel.

Hi, I have also recently discovered Ariel with downy. I found some at a local mexican grocery store and it had that customs sticker on it saying that the product was not an authorized product of the US manufacturer....IOW it has phosphates....and that is exactly what I am looking for. I have never seen my laundry get so clean and be so soft.

I have bought about 12 bags so far and am planning on going back to get as many bags as I can get. The Ariel with downy is the only one that has that special sticker, I wonder why? The regular Ariel definitely has water softener in it; I can tell by the slippery feel to the water when soaking.

Anyway, I loved reading all of your comments.

Jody welcome to the wonderful world of Phosphates. I love Mexican Ariel, with or without Downy. It would be a good Iidea to keep your detergent in a airtight container, since your buying in bulk, I recommend you keep the unopened bags in a dark damp free place.

I also buy tons of this stuff, I haven't found anything it won't clean and everything smells so great after its washed. Good luck and happy washing lol.

Yes, I have poured all the detergent in these big plastic kitty litter jugs. Each of them holds about 20lb of detergent.

My only complaint is that while the detergent smells great in the bag, the scent pretty much washes out. When I get the clothes out of the dryer, the scent is very faint. When I was using Persil I could smell the scent a week later as soon as I opened my closet. The scent of my Purex lasted a long time too.

Did you get the little bags of Ariel with Downey? I didn't see those in the big bag. But I'm in love with it too! The laundry room smelled so good. I was outside working & could smell the Ariel smell coming from the dryer exhaust vent while tumbling dry.

Yes, I got the 900g bags of Ariel with Downy. Personally, I really think the regular scented Ariel smells better than the one with the downy.

I haven't opened the big bag yet. Can't wait!

I found the Mexican Ariel. It's blue with blue specks like Paw described. I picked up a 2 kg bag for just under $6. There was a larger bag but I wanted to try it first. I already have a load of white sheets going :-)

pawprint, have you opened the big bag yet? I like the Ariel with Downy but-to me-it smells like tobacco. That Ariel Original powder is wonderful and I wish they'd make a candle out of it. always-yay! you will fall in love! Just be careful with the dosing!

Jody-that sent does wash away darnit. Very little to none left when it comes out of the dryer.

Yeah Jean that is the only down side I have found to the detergent so far. I love how it cleans and my towels have never been softer, but I do love a scented detergent. I used to get compliments on how my clothes smelled when I used Purex.

@jean I have a regular ol' top loader washer. The bag says 250mg which is close to a cup. I thought that sounded like a lot of detergent...I used a plastic cup from one of my liquid detergents so I'm not really sure how much I put in. How do I figure out what is a good amt to use?

I have a top loader as well-large load I would use,depending on soil level, a tad less than one half cup. I have water that is a bit on the hard side. When I used the manufacturer's dosage the suds were insane!

Hi my laundry geeks...dosing Ariel ..hmm, large loads in traditional top loadertry 1/3'rd cup..feel the water after it starts agitation, if it feels slippery you added enough..if its still to sudsy decrease it a bit at a time, making sure water is still slippery. Any time you use a non HE detergent you will most likely have some suds unless you have hard water or heavy soils.

Always, congrats on finding Mexican Ariel.

I know some of you like s scent on your clothes, but if your washer does s good job rinsing there shouldn't be s scent left, so you will have to rely on FS for the scent. I know bummer, expecially when Ariel smells terrific. Lol

Yeah, I thought the dosing on the package was WAY too much as well. I use between 1/4 and 1/2 cup per load depending on how dirty the clothes are. I can't imagine using 1 cup.

Hi, all! I just found this thread. So could you would you really use Ariel from Wal-Mart instead of Tide with Bleach for whites? Ariel is much cheaper but I don't wanna mess up my glorious whites. Or is Mexican Ariel Oxi something, better? I'm sorry I'm so dense but this topic is so much fun:)

And also, if Ariel from Wal-Mart is really Tide with Bleach, than it's not good for colored clothes?