How to Slay the Laundry Dragon + Make Washing Easy

For some, doing laundry is a great escape (didn’t Tina Fey make a joke about doing chores to find alone time as a parent?). For others, it’s a necessary evil. Either way, it’s an inevitable and possibly endless part of our daily routines because we all need clean clothes. So much so, that it adds up to the average American household doing 400 loads a year. That’s a lot of washing!

Happily, our new 4-in-1 Laundry Packs will make this job easier. Not only will you avoid exposure to a long list of harmful chemicals, but you won’t have to spend extra time or money on adding additional product to the mix—cleaning, stain fighting, brightening, and softening power are all conveniently packaged within one pod. Simply toss one pod and go. It’s all you need to effectively get the job done.

To get you started, here are some tips and tricks for making the most of our 4-in-1 Laundry Packs.

At first use, knowing exactly where and when to pop a laundry pod can sometimes leave you scratching your head because there are so many types and models of machines. Whether you have a front-loading, top-loading, or an HE machine, we recommend tossing the pod in the washing drum first, then adding the clothes. Piece of cake!

After you choose a method, follow these simple steps for dreamy clean clothes:

• Be sure to set the machine to the appropriate load size based on the amount of clothing in the washer. This is especially important when highly absorbent fabric like towels are being washed.  Too little water can prevent the pod from fully dissolving, and your clothes might not be rinsed properly.
• Don’t overstuff the washer with clothes. Trust us, it really won’t save you any time because you’ll likely end up having to re-wash things or maybe even damage your machine.
• Follow clothing manufacturer laundering instructions.  Warm water offers the best cleaning and pack dissolvability results.
• Use one pack for average loads and two pods for extra large loads.
• For extra brightening and stain fighting, add the Oxy Boost pack. For more heavily soiled clothing, use two packs. To remove excessive odor from clothing, such as cigarette smoke or perspiration from exercise wear, add the Oxy Boost pack(s) for extra deodorizing power.

A note for fans of cold-water washing: If you’re having issues with the packs dissolving in cold water, this can happen for a few reasons. One, you have hard water. Two, your machine agitator isn’t working properly. Or three, you’re overfilling your machine. All of these can compromise the dissolvability of the powder, which would be the case for all laundry pods, not just Honest ones. However, we hope you use ours!

If you were previously washing your clothes in cold water using liquid detergent, you may not have been aware of the above issues because you can't tell that the soap isn’t working—your clothing simply absorbs it and you never know the difference. With powder packs, though, you can really see when something is awry. Also try adding your clothes first, then tossing the pod on top. Or placing the pod into the powder dispenser (not the liquid one). A quick fix of the underlying problem is all you need to keep washing in cold water. Thanks for saving energy!

When to wash: While babies and toddlers create copious amounts of laundry (sorry, just stating the facts), older kids and adults leave much less to launder (thankfully!). Here are some basic rules of thumb:

• Sheets – weekly
• Bras – every 3 uses
• Blankets – once every 3 months
• Shirts – after each use
• Jeans – after 3 uses
• Pants – after 2 uses
• Sweaters – after 3 uses
• Socks – definitely after each use

One final tip: For the absolute best laundry results, get a little help from everyone to lighten the load (pun intended)! With our non-toxic laundry packs, your children can easily participate in chores and learn about responsibility—and you can breathe easy knowing they won’t come in contact with harsh chemicals or spill on the floor! Toddlers also can help match socks, fold small towels, and put some things away. Older children and adults are perfectly capable of even more. Working together means more time for everyone to have fun!