Just off the top of my head, I’d suggest a separate stain remover. I use Miss Mouth’s Messy Eater Stain treater recommended by my DIL (they have a baby). I find it works extremely well. I use a small amount of Seventh Generation no scent detergent because my clothes aren’t too dirty. But I do get occasional stains.

@rebasheba Thanks for the info. I think I will go back to my regular detergent (Sonett) once I receive it in a few days.

One thing I observed -- the detergent I use (Sonett liquid) leaves a sticky residue in the machine that builds up over time. The way I remove it is by running a cycle with Affresh. However, I don't see that kind of residue building up with Dr. Bronner's.

Why are you using a product that causes residue?

Soaps cause residue unless the water supply is 100% softened. That's why synthetic detergents were a boon to laundry.

Because it's the best I've found in terms of clean ingredients while also being very effective at stain removal. Our water is very soft. When I last checked (2018) it was 24 ppm or 1.35 German degrees of hardness. I just checked now and it's showing 22 ppm for 2023. The product says no need to use a softener until the hardness is 4 German degrees or about 72 ppm.

But that isn't 100% softened which is why you're getting residue.

Are you sure it's not because of a certain ingredient? I use tabs in the dishwasher from the same company and there's no residue. I am thinking of giving their powder a try for the washing machine.

I'm not familiar with Sonett but perhaps you could use a little less per load.

Also, I think that some residue is just part of the deal with liquid detergents (as opposed to powder, which we can hardly find here in the U.S. anymore). My washer instructions say that using cold water and/or liquid detergent leads to buildup and requires the sanitize cycle periodically to clean.

I think I read a comment here many years ago where someone mentioned ALL ”green” detergents tend to leave a residue (not sure if they were talking about liquids only or both liquid and powder). Since I don’t use anything other than green ones I just accepted it. I wash mostly on hot setting, rarely on warm, and never on cold. And I use Affresh once in a while to remove the build up.

Dr. Bronner's makes a version called Sal Suds that is detergent made for household cleaning/ laundry vs. the soap that is in regular Dr. Bronner's.

@littlegreeny Yes, I'm aware of that. But even the regular soap lists laundry as one of the uses. Anyway, after having used it for a week now (I run a small load every day), I think I prefer my regular detergent (Sonett). However, Dr. Bronner's is a decent option for emergencies when I run out of Sonett since it's easily available in a travel size.