anyone who does home washing knows that sometimes stains are persistent and removal is tough finding the right laundry detergent requires a combination of choosing what works best on your clothes with what your personal preferences are if you have a high efficiency washer then using a traditional detergent can cause excess suds we all need clean clothes and most of us can t afford to pay for professional cleaning laundry detergents can be used to remove dirt and stains from your clothing and they can also leave your laundry smelling great looking brighter clean away stains and keep clothes looking like new there is a range of detergent types available liquid powder and detergent pods personal preference is a huge issue in deciding what brand and form of laundry detergent to use but in truth powder detergent best suits some wash loads whilst liquids or capsules give top results in other situations below are some helpful tips to help you choose the right detergent to efficiently clean your laundry in no time liquid detergent liquid detergent is more effective on food grease or oil soils since it s fluid it can double as a stain pretreat as well choose liquid detergent if you do a lot of spot treating or have a family that specializes in food spills depending on the setting of your water temperature if you use cold wash settings most often liquid detergent is your best bet as powders do not always dissolve properly at lower temperatures great for short low temperature washes as no need to dissolve use as a spot treatment dab liquid onto cuffs and collars then machine wash at once for concentrated cleaning the disadvantage of liquid detergents is that they can t hold liquids for both pre and main wash after the pre wash has finished you have to return to pour in more liquid powder detergent for everyday loads the powder is a great choice measure out how much power you need or is ideal for your loads a general wash day load is effective in lifting out everyday stains as well as ground in dirt if a majority of your family s wash load consists of stains of the outdoor and everyday variety a powder detergent is an excellent choice powder detergents have their disadvantages too it dissolves fairly quickly for short washes and it is easy to spill if not stored carefully and can clump in a damp cupboard detergent scents detergents come with all sorts of scents so pick the one you like unless you have sensitive skin if you have sensitive skin avoid laundry detergents with fragrances because fragrances are common skin allergens fabric softeners and dryer sheets are loaded with fragrance and should be avoided as well to remove all detergent residue from washed clothing rinse your clothes twice and avoid packing the washer too full