Do Soap Nuts Work on Super Dirty Clothes?

Well, I experimented to find out!  When someone asked me if soap nuts would clean really dirty work clothes (from working in the septic business), I have to admit, I wasn't really sure. My own husband works with appliances/recycling and has a particular talent for getting his clothes especially dirty and smelly.  So I figured if I ever wanted to know, I would just have to experiment and see. 

 

BEFORE Soap Nuts

 

Super Dirty Work Clothes

So this picture is very typical of how really dirty my husband's work clothes get. And before I started using soap nuts, here is the procedure I would follow to try and get them clean with regular detergent...

 

Laundry Procedure With Regular Detergent:

 

Work Clothes After Regular Detergent

1. Pour maximum amount of detergent in the wash compartment and in the pre-wash compartment.
2. Add bleach to the bleach compartment.
3. Select:  "Hot" wash, "heavy soil" and "pre-wash".

All this resulted in a 3 hour wash, after which the clothes would come out just "okay", but with permanent stains and sometimes bleach marks too.  I never pre-treated stains and never added fabric softener or dryer sheets.  Considering how seriously dirty they started out, I figured this was as good as it would ever get.

Experiment With Soap Nuts

So I wanted to put soapnuts to the test with really dirty clothes, but I also wanted to make sure I kept my procedure as similar as possible to my laundry procedure with commercial detergent.  Here is what I did:

1. Doubled the amount of soap nuts from .5oz. to 1oz.
2. Added bleach to the bleach compartment.
3. Pre-soaked wash bag of soap nuts in small bowl of hot water for 3 minutes.
4. Selected: "Hot" wash, "heavy soil", "pre-soak", "deep clean".

I had just gotten this new washer and it has "pre-soak" instead of "pre-wash" like my old machine and all those selections resulted in a 2 hr. 23 min. wash versus the 3 hour wash with my old machine, but they are both front-loading HE washers.  I did not pre-treat stains and did not add any fabric softener or dryer sheets.  So I think I accomplished my goal of keeping my procedures as similar as possible.  (You can read more on soap nuts laundry instructions here).

AFTER Soap Nuts

 

Soap Nuts Really Work!

Wow!  I am impressed, aren't you?  Soap nuts far surpassed my expectations.  Even though I was committed to using soapnuts with my regular laundry (after seeing the results with my daughter's school uniform), I thought I was maybe going to have to continue with my "regular detergent procedure" for my husband's really dirty work clothes, but I was wrong!

CONCLUSION: Soap Nuts DO Work on Really Dirty Clothes

 

The results of the experiment are clear:  Soap nuts definitely worked as well (in fact, I think even better) than the regular laundry detergent did!  And I don't know about you, but I strive to use as natural, healthy, and good-for-the-environment products as possible, but the bottom line is, they also have to work! 

 

So now I know there is no reason to have to continue buying regular laundry detergent just to get my super dirty clothes clean, because soap nuts can get the job done.  Plus soap nuts are also more economical than regular laundry detergent and they're 100% eco-friendly... what more can a person ask for?  

 

So here's what I've decided to do with my really dirty clothes...I'm going to run 2 different wash bags:

• One 1oz. bag of soap nuts for my husband's really dirty work clothes

• One 1/2oz. bag of soap nuts for my regular laundry

 

Tell me what you think of my experiment with super dirty clothes below!  

 

(Or you can click here to learn more about soap nuts for laundry)

Soapnuts - Before & After Pics

Can you actually wash your clothes with these things?...YES!...with:  

NO DETERGENT

&

NO FABRIC SOFTENER

In fact some of you have gotten some sample laundry bags like the one in the picture.

What Are Soapnuts?

The little muslin bag in the picture above contains about a half ounce of those brown acorn-looking things, called soapnuts. The official name is sapindus mukorossi, the latin root, sapo, meaning 'soap'.  In fact, it is the outer shells that contain high levels of naturally occurring saponins (or "soap") that act as a natural detergent.  The trees that produce the soapnuts originate primarily out of India and Nepal where they have been used for centuries to gently and effectively clean their fine fabrics.  They have also been traditionally used in Ayurvedic medicine as a treatment for eczema and psoriasis.

These soapnuts are 100% natural, certified organic, completely biodegradable, from a renewable and sustainable source, and require no fossil fuels or chemicals to produce!  They are extremely gentle on skin and are a perfect solution for people with sensitive skin, babies and those with chemical sensitivities to regular detergents.

Do you want to see some before and after pictures of my daughter's school uniform shirts?  Check it out...

 Here you can see the prominent tomato sauce stain on the shirt before I washed it with soapnuts

And here you can see how awesomely it came out of the laundry after I washed it with soapnuts! 

And the SMELL...it came out of the dryer with the freshest, hung-outside-on-the-line-all-day smell ever...and all without chemical detergent or fabric softener!  It's hard to believe they can come out smelling like so much fresh, sweet nothingness like they do, considering the smell of wet soapnuts is like a milder version of apple cider vinegar (not all that pleasant), but somehow they do!

How Do Soapnuts Work?

The natural saponins in the shell are released when hot/warm water hits them, turning them into a natural surfactant (surface active agent) or detergent that circulates in the water, which breaks down the surface tension in the water, freeing dirt, grime and oils from the clothing and rinsing away in the rinse cycle.

One bag lasts 4-7 washes, depending on the temperature and hardness of your water, after which you just replace them with new ones.  And since they're 100% natural and biodegradable you don't have to worry about them polluting the ground or water.  I do still pre-treat any stains as needed with a stain remover, but then that's it.  Just toss the bag in with the laundry, remove it to air-dry when the cycle is finished and put the clothes in the dryer.  And soapnuts are perfect for HE (High Efficiency) washers that require low sudsing detergents. 

Soapnuts:

• anti-microbial properties
• anti-fungal properties
• hypoallergenic
• gentle on fabrics; effectively clean, naturally soften
• multitude of other household uses (counters, floors, sinks, windows, dishwasher, carpets, jewelry, pets, handwashables)
• environmentally safe

Of course for me, the most exciting feature of all has to do with their potential and promise for use in personal care products.  I've been working on a foaming handsoap and a 2-in-1 cleansing hair conditioner...stay tuned!

Please comment below and tell me what you think of soapnuts.  If you have tried them, we'd love to hear how it went.  Or if you haven't tried them and think they sound like something you would like to try, let me know that too!

( Learn more about soap nuts at skinkissednaturals.com website)