Liquid detergent users?

jlsimon56

We have septic so we aren't supposed to use powdered detergents in our laundry.  I am googling now to read about what detergents to try with CDs and it seems like the popular ones are powders.  Does anyone use liquid detergents with success?  Ideally we'd use the same detergent for everything (diapers and clothes, etc.).  Are there any additional steps to take when washing with liquid vs. powder? 

Thanks!

anthos21

I use country save powder for all of my laundry including my diapers, but i bet the liquid stuff would work just as well. you can get it off of thier website countrysave.com or off of amazon if you want to buy in bulk

xpedite

I use powder with my septic, and so did my mother. This is new to me!

MermaidNM

I use Charlie's liquid.

julygal

I have read (but can't find it now to back it up) that liquid is more prone to build up.  My parents have been on a septic for over 15 years and they always use powder detergent.  I haven't ever heard that before.

jlsimon56

Thanks for the replies.  I didn't know it either, until the home inspector said it when we bought our house last month.  He also said NO to those flushable wipes, and to the disposable diaper inserts (I asked about those though).  It's a brand new septic and I don't want to "ruin" it.  DH prefers liquid detergent, I prefer powder (we wear a lot of fleece jackets, and I don't like how the fleece feels after being laundered with liquid detergent - I was thinking fluffy CDs might get that same feeling though).  Thanks for the rec for Country Save liquid, I am off to google some more.

VABride2008

We use Allen's Naturally detergent in our front load washer.  It can be used in top loading as well.

OctGirl80

jlsimon56:

Thanks for the replies.  I didn't know it either, until the home inspector said it when we bought our house last month.  He also said NO to those flushable wipes, and to the disposable diaper inserts (I asked about those though).  It's a brand new septic and I don't want to "ruin" it.  DH prefers liquid detergent, I prefer powder (we wear a lot of fleece jackets, and I don't like how the fleece feels after being laundered with liquid detergent - I was thinking fluffy CDs might get that same feeling though).  Thanks for the rec for Country Save liquid, I am off to google some more.

 

The main concern over powder detergent in a septic is that it can clump together and cause clogs . Consider it like making hot chocolate and not stirring it well enough. You get a clump of powder/mush. Same principal.

 

Even though they say "safe for septics" on the package, flushable wipes, inserts, even tampons are not good to be flushed because of how long they take to break down and could cause clogs as well. Since we had our septic redone about 2 years ago, we don't flush anything more than pee, poop & toilet paper. We have a trash with a swinging lid that fits grocery store bags. It's right next to the toilet and gets changed every 3/4 days. We don't have any stink issues which was one of my concerns when we first started doing it that way.