Laundering our clothes is the most traumatic thing most of us do to them.
I’ve gotten better at doing laundry since I first started. I grasped the basics pretty quickly: Separate colors (though I’ve since learned many folks don’t). Load the machine. Add detergent. Hit start. Dry. Fold. Put away. (That last step sometimes being the hardest.)
In my early independent laundry days, it was simply about getting laundry clean, and these basics will do that.
But over the years, laundry and I have gone next level. Not only do I want laundry to be clean, but I want my fabrics to look as close to new as long as possible. However, the more I learned about ingredients in conventional laundry products, the more I realized I was exchanging one problem for another in using them.
Enter laundry boosters.
Table of contents:
- What is a laundry booster?
- The problems with conventional laundry boosters
- Natural laundry booster basics
- Laundry booster rundown
- Laundry boosters to avoid
- What laundry boosters can be used with Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap or Sal Suds?
- What I use for my own laundry
- Frequently asked questions about laundry boosters
What is a laundry booster?
Laundry boosters work in tandem with your regular detergent to elevate its effectiveness. They may increase stain removal or brighten, soften, or deodorize fabrics.
Thanks to laundry boosters, I can whiten any once-white-now-gray running socks you want to throw my way. I can remove all the oopsy chocolate you drop on those new lemon-yellow pants. I can get mud, blood, grass, and mysterious goo off of any washable fabric.
And then there was the test no one wants: a friend of mine experienced a house fire, and every bit of fabric in her house smelled of smoke. Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds and baking soda alone tackled all of that, cleaning and removing the smoke smell from clothing, towels, sheets, pillows, rugs, and curtains.
The problems with conventional laundry boosters
There are many laundry boosters on the market, and their advertising promises all manner of odor-enhancement and softness. But I have looked into their ingredients and long-term effects, and they aren’t good. The enduring fragrances in conventional laundry products (have you seen the ones that promise fresh scent for three weeks or more?) host numerous allergens, contact sensitizers, and hormone disrupters. And when it comes to conventional fabric softeners, they rely on coatings deposited on fabrics for their softness. These coatings build up on fabrics, resulting in dinginess and shortened fabric life.
Instead, I’ve grown familiar with older, once-common, low-cost alternatives. Nowadays these types of laundry additives get called “green” or “low-tox”, but they used to be just the norm. I’m talking about baking soda, washing soda, and the like. Not only are these oldies-but-goodies effective, but they also avoid the quagmires of residues and fragrances endemic among conventional products.
Not only are these oldies-but-goodies effective, but they also avoid the quagmires of residues and fragrances endemic among conventional products.
Natural laundry booster basics
Many of the low-tox laundry boosters look alike: they’re white powders. However, even though these white powders look alike, they are not the same. Let’s get to know the differences between them, which to use when, which can and can’t be combined, and even how they interact with the products I use and recommend for laundry from my family’s product line: Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds Biodegradable Cleaner and Pure-Castile Magic Soap.
First, some starting points:
- Laundry boosters are all chemical compounds. However, don’t confuse the word “chemical” with “toxic.” Chemistry is nothing to be scared of. Doing laundry is essentially an exercise in chemistry. That means that laundry boosters each have a chemical makeup and certain chemical properties, such as pH, dissolvability, reactivity, and rinseability.
- Natural laundry boosters don’t all get along with each other. Don’t mix them. You cannot assume that if one booster does one thing, and another does another thing, you can use them together and expect them to do those tasks side by side. Or if they both do one thing, putting them together will enable them to do that even more. That’s not how chemistry works, and you may be creating reactions you didn’t intend. Read on for what can be combined and what can’t.
- Choose the fewest and least intense additions to achieve the results you’re looking for. Adding too many things to your laundry can generate a number of negative consequences. You may be wasting product and money by adding things unnecessarily. You may be overdoing it on your fabrics and shortening their lifespan.
Let’s get to know the range of natural laundry boosters and discuss a few that shouldn’t be used as such.
Laundry booster rundown
In this list, I’ve included the different laundry boosters I’ve seen among low-tox, green, or natural additions.
| Common & Mineral Name | pH | What It Does | How to Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baking soda (Sodium bicarbonate or bicarb) |
About 8.3 | Gently brightens, whitens, and deodorizes laundry. It is the finest and gentlest of these powdered laundry boosters and a good first option. | HE machine: Add ¼ cup (~70 g) per large load. Standard machine: Add ½ cup (~140 g) per large load. Sprinkle onto fabrics at the beginning of the cycle before starting the machine. |
| Borax (Sodium borate) |
About 9.5 | Whitens and deodorizes fabrics while softening hard water, which can help soap work more effectively. It is more intense than baking soda. Avoid breathing the dust, and rinse skin well after contact. | HE machine: Add ¼ cup (~30 g) per large load. Standard machine: Add ½ cup (~60 g) per large load. Sprinkle onto fabrics at the beginning of the cycle before starting the machine. Works best in warm or hot water. |
| Washing soda (Sodium carbonate) |
11–12 | Fights stains, brightens dingy fabrics, and softens hard water so real soap, such as Castile soap, can work more effectively. It is more intense than baking soda or borax and can be harder on fabrics. Water softening is unnecessary with a detergent such as Sal Suds. | HE machine: Add ¼ cup (~65 g) per large load. Standard machine: Add ½ cup (~130 g) per large load. Hard water or extra-soiled fabrics: Use 1 cup (~260 g). Sprinkle onto fabrics at the beginning of the cycle before starting the machine. Works best in warm or hot water. |
| Oxygen bleach (Sodium percarbonate, a powdered combo of hydrogen peroxide and sodium carbonate) |
Varies by product; generally alkaline | Releases oxygen that breaks the chemical bonds of stain compounds. It fights stains and brightens dingy whites. After releasing oxygen, it becomes washing soda. Always spot-test on colored fabrics. | For stains: Sprinkle directly on the stain. Spray with my GIY* All-Purpose Spray (1/2 Tbsp. Sal Suds in 2 c. water/7.5 mL in 500 mL water) or a 1:1 mixture of Sal Suds and water. Let sit for 20 minutes, gently rub the fabric against itself, and then rinse or wash. For dingy whites: Add a scoop to the washer and soak for at least 20 minutes, or longer—an hour or more, if needed—before washing as usual. *Green-It-Yourself, my spin on DIY or Do-It-Yourself |
| Distilled white vinegar (Acetic acid solution at 5% acidity) |
About 2.2 | Softens fabric fibers and helps remove odors without coating fabrics in residue. Unlike the powdered boosters, vinegar is acidic. Keep it separate from alkaline boosters so they do not neutralize one another. | HE machine: Add ½ cup (120 mL). Standard machine: Add 1 cup (240 mL). Pour it into the fabric softener compartment so it is released during the rinse, after the other cleaners have been washed away. |
All of these substances are available to purchase in bulk packages. I buy baking soda in 13.5 lb bags and vinegar in gallon jugs.
One final “booster” to mention: Soaking
I realize this is not a substance to add, but I cannot leave it out of my list of booster recommendations. Hands down, soaking remains the single easiest, most effective, and most underappreciated way to boost the effectiveness of your detergent and your other laundry boosters. Soaking gives water and detergent a little more time to grab hold of grime. Even water alone can loosen substances from fabrics.
You can either pre-soak stained or grubby items in a bucket or sink ahead of time, or, if your machine has the option, set your load to soak for 20 minutes, an hour, or even more, before it begins the wash cycle. As with most things, it is possible to overdo it: leaving an item to soak for days can impact dyes, corrode metals, and even fester. So be sure to use some moderation when it comes to soaking, but I highly recommend it as an easy way to supercharge your laundry cleaning.
Laundry boosters to avoid
Over the years, I have seen many different recipes and combinations suggested as laundry boosters. Some are great, and others aren’t. Let me give you a rundown of what NOT to add to your laundry.
Everything altogether
With the best of intentions, some recipes are following the maxim, “If some ingredients are good, then more are better.” I have seen recipes that combine every single one of the above white powders. This is not a good thing. Even though all of the above ingredients can be used in laundry, they should not all be used together. Besides the potential for reaction between vinegar and the rest, using all of the above white powders is overdoing it. This is excessively harsh on fabrics and will shorten their lifespan. If you’re going to use baking soda, there is no need to use borax. If you’re going to use oxygen bleach, there is no need to use baking soda. Just use one white powder as a booster at a time.
Epsom salts
Epsom salts are magnesium sulfate and have many uses in therapeutic personal care remedies. However, Epsom salts are an acidic salt, which means when they dissolve in water, they create an acidic solution. When you combine these with many alkalis, such as any of the powdered laundry boosters I’ve mentioned above or with a real soap like Dr. Bronner’s Castile Magic Soap, they will react. They will neutralize each other and provide no benefit. Epsom salts do not have a cleaning benefit to laundry.
Table salt
While we’re on the topic of salts, let me also take table salt out of the laundry scene. Table salt, or sodium chloride, does not have a benefit when added to laundry. Instead, salt water degrades fabrics, fades colors, and corrodes metals, such as those found in zippers or buttons.
What laundry boosters can be used with Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap or Sal Suds?
All of the laundry boosters in the chart above, plus soaking, can be used with Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Magic Soap or Sal Suds. The key is to use the least intensive method needed to get the load clean and avoid combining multiple boosters.
What I use for my own laundry
For 5 loads out of 6, I use Sal Suds alone. Sometimes for fun, I’ll use the Pure-Castile Magic Soap on sheets, in which case, I might add vinegar for fabric softening in my hard water, depending how hard the water seems. If a load needs extra scrubbing and whitening, I’ll add the baking soda. Super simple. For stains or general dinginess, I keep oxygen bleach on hand.
Since once you wash your laundry, you’ll need to dry it, apply the same tenets as I recommend here: be gentle, be mindful. For more details and ideas for how to dry laundry that’s best for your fabrics and avoids fabric softeners or dryer sheets, hop over to my article about drying your laundry.
Frequently asked questions about laundry boosters
Can I wash my laundry with only these laundry boosters?
No, laundry needs a soap or detergent in order to get clean. Soap and detergent, which are both surfactants, have the ability, through the powers of chemistry, to grab hold of oils and grime in a way that no laundry booster can.
What is the difference between baking soda and washing soda?
Washing soda and baking soda are different compounds. In chemical terms, washing soda is sodium carbonate, and baking soda is sodium bicarbonate. While they are one syllable apart, that little “bi-” gives them different chemical properties. Both are alkaline, but baking soda has a lower (i.e., milder) pH. Baking soda absorbs odors and provides gentle abrasion on grubby loads. Washing soda softens water and provides a more intense boost to more extremely grubby loads.
What can I use as a natural fabric softener?
Vinegar softens fabric fibers and can be used in place of conventional fabric softener. Another low-tox fabric softening option is throwing 4-6 wool dryer balls into the drying load.
Castile soap and vinegar shouldn’t be mixed, so why is it okay to use vinegar in the rinse cycle?
When added to the fabric softener compartment of the washing machine, the vinegar is dispensed during the rinse cycle, after the soap has been rinsed out of the fabrics. There’s no mixing of the two in this process.
Can I use apple cider vinegar (ACV) instead of white vinegar in my laundry?
Stick with white vinegar. Not only is it less expensive, but ACV has a lot of sugar in it. It also has a naturally occurring color which might make laundry dingy over time. Its higher cost offers no additional benefit for this use.
Further reading
- How to Pretreat Laundry Stains with Dr. Bronner’s
- How to Do Laundry with Dr. Bronner’s
- What Can You Mix with Castile Magic Soap?
- What You Can (and Cannot) Mix with Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds
More on laundry and laundry boosters in my book, Soap & Soul: A Practical Guide to Minding Your Home, Your Body, and Your Spirit with Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, available now in hardback on DrBronner.com or at your favorite bookseller, and as an eBook and audiobook (read by me!) from wherever you download or listen.
