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Thread Number: 46426
Sears Ultra Plus Stain-Fighting Formula Detergent |
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Post# 677460 5/5/2013 at 16:05 (4,031 days old) by Frigilux  (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Picked up a box of this today while in Mankato, and tried it with a smallish load of casual short-sleeve shirts, summer shorts, and socks. Very little sudsing during the wash, just a few bubbles in the first rinse, and (as shown here) no suds at all in the 2nd (final) rinse.
The version in the orange box (fewer enzymes) was tested by Consumer Reports and found to be around the middle of the pack for HE detergents. It scored a 61, compared to powdered Tide Ultra Plus Bleach Vivid Bright + White HE which was the top-scoring detergent with an 82. I figured the Stain-Fighting formula (with more enzymes) would do at least as well or maybe a little better than the version CR tested, so that's what I purchased. I'll give it the ultimate test with medium-sized load of very stained kitchen whites later this evening. This Sears detergent is cleaner rinsing than even Amway's SA8 or UK Persil Bio powder. I can't recall the last time I saw absolutely no suds at all in the 2nd rinse due to having mechanically-softened water. Excuse me for a moment while I go dance on the rooftop! 
This post was last edited 05/05/2013 at 19:45 | ||
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Post# 677461 , Reply# 1 5/5/2013 at 16:07 (4,031 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Post# 677557 , Reply# 2 5/5/2013 at 21:47 (4,030 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Just pulled a medium-sized load (about 2/3 maximum capacity) load of whites from the Frigidaire front-loading washer. I purposely stained a flour sack dish towel with chocolate syrup, raspberry syrup, mustard, barbecue sauce, and ketchup. The bar mop (on the left) has a pizza sauce stain. It should be noted that these stains were all relatively fresh, having been applied only a couple of hours prior to washing. There were some cloths and towels and a chef's apron with dried-in stains in the load (which has been accumulating since Friday morning) but this wasn't what I'd call a severe test.
I used two scoops of Sears Ultra Plus Stain-Fighting Formula detergent. No liquid chlorine bleach was used. Cycle: Sanitize, heaviest soil option; extra rinse option. Cycle time: 1 hour and 47 minutes. 
This post was last edited 05/05/2013 at 22:04 | ||
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Post# 677558 , Reply# 3 5/5/2013 at 21:51 (4,030 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Here's the "after" photo. The pizza sauce stain on the bar mop was the only thing left behind. All other items (each inspected individually, of course) were completely cleaned. So, a somewhat reserved thumbs-up for the Sears detergent. Again, absolutely no suds in 3rd (extra) rinse, despite having doubled the normal dosage. I'll be sure to stain some bar mops, wash cloths, and flour sack towels tomorrow and let them dry for the next load of whites, which is usually washed on Wednesday or Thursday night. That will be a tougher test. I'm pleasantly surprised by the outcome, especially considering no LCB was used.
I'll have to wash a few loads using the Sears detergent in the Immersion Care, where there is a far greater quantity of water to dilute the washing solution. The water will be substantially cooler, as well. Others at AW who have used Sears detergent and noted the clean, clear rinses weren't exaggerating! 
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| Post# 677585 , Reply# 4 5/6/2013 at 00:54 (4,030 days old) by StrongEnough78 (California) | ||
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| Post# 677620 , Reply# 5 5/6/2013 at 07:58 (4,030 days old) by mich (Hells Kitchen - New York) | ||
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Post# 677661 , Reply# 6 5/6/2013 at 12:32 (4,030 days old) by RevvinKevin (Tinseltown - Shakey Town - La-La Land) |
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I have only used the Sears detergent in the orange box so far and have been pleased with the results. I have a water softener as well and have good results with rinsing also. I'll have to keep an eye out for this one in the green box when ever I figure out they're having another sale. Thanks for the heads up!
Eugene: Do you think this was a fair test since you doubled up on the recommended dosage of detergent? Sure it's a great test of rinsing, but what about cleaning ability with a "normal" dose? I don't think your load was "that dirty" to justify increasing the amount of detergent. If you were to repeat the test, what about letting the "stains" set / dry for a day or more instead of a couple hours before washing?
Kevin | ||
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Post# 677684 , Reply# 7 5/6/2013 at 14:41 (4,030 days old) by lotsosudz (Sacramento, CA) |
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Sears Green Box Detergent
I originally tried the orange box formula, and it was good. However the last 2 batches, have been the green box, and it is clearly my favorite. I love the stain fighting ability, and it's ability to brighten colors. I think it is a "best buy" for Sears detergent. I would highly recommend it to anyone. Great for soaking in before laundering.
Hugs, David | ||
| Post# 677823 , Reply# 10 5/7/2013 at 04:31 (4,029 days old) by foxchapel () | ||
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Clear rinses . . . The only detergent that rinses even more clear than Sears, is Charlies Soap. On the negative, Charlies lacks enzymes. On the positive, Charlies lacks OBAs. | ||
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Post# 677824 , Reply# 11 5/7/2013 at 04:56 (4,029 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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Kevin--- You are so right; I did put my thumb on the scale with that stained white load. Quite a number of the items in the load had dried stains on them, but not to the degree those loads usually have. The dosage instructions on the box instruct one to use 1/2 of a scoop for small loads, 1 scoop for regular loads, and 1-1/2 scoops for large loads. My expectations were low, so I followed the common practice of "use more for heavily-soiled loads" (advice you see on boxes of Tide) and used two scoops.
I never use more than the prescribed dose of Tide on stained loads washed in the front-loader (usually Line 2 on the provided scoop; occasionally Line 3 for really huge stained loads) or I'd have to run an extra cycle just to get rid of the tenacious suds. My issue with Tide has never been the amount of suds in the wash; it just doesn't go away in the rinses (with softened water, at least). Normally, I always add liquid chlorine bleach to white loads, and the first "test" convinced me that a more judicious dose of Sears detergent + LCB + long profile wash will probably equal a clean wash. It should do very well on its own for the rest of my wash loads. I'll probably continue to use Tide Vivid for kitchen and personal whites---I have about 500 loads' worth of the stuff, LOL!---and the Sears for everything else but blacks. I've been on a quest for very clean-rinsing--but also solid-performing-- detergent for years, and it was right under my nose at Sears the whole time! It's delightful to see nothing but perfectly clear water in the final rinse. This post was last edited 05/07/2013 at 09:48 | ||
| Post# 677825 , Reply# 12 5/7/2013 at 05:01 (4,029 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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Eugene I have been using the Sears Ultra unscented powder for a while now. I have an he machine and use it for the clean rinse feature. I love it! | ||
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Post# 677877 , Reply# 13 5/7/2013 at 08:07 (4,029 days old) by polkanut (Wausau, WI ) |
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 I went to the Sears website and typed in "detergent sale" and I found the 125 washes advanced stain-fighting formula (green box) on sale for $11.99. CLICK HERE TO GO TO polkanut's LINK | ||
| Post# 677879 , Reply# 14 5/7/2013 at 08:56 (4,029 days old) by mich (Hells Kitchen - New York) | ||
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This one is loaded with OxiClean 125lds for $9.99
www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605... However, These Big 180ld boxes www.sears.com/ultra-plus-powder-l... Go on Sale every month or so... These are the ones you wanna pick up. If you need detergent right now, or just want that box, go for it, but 60 more loads... is kinda nice. | ||
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Post# 677903 , Reply# 15 5/7/2013 at 10:39 (4,029 days old) by sudsmaster (SF Bay Area, California) |
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| Post# 677950 , Reply# 16 5/7/2013 at 13:41 (4,029 days old) by foxchapel () | ||
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liquid chlorine bleach . . . . . . will eat up the fabrics, and hasten their deterioration. An oxygen-based non-chlorine bleach is kinder to fabrics and will still help prevent the dreaded mold in HE washers. | ||
| Post# 678015 , Reply# 17 5/7/2013 at 19:16 (4,029 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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Mold I haven't noticed any mold in my washer. How does one know if it's there? | ||
| Post# 678018 , Reply# 18 5/7/2013 at 19:27 (4,029 days old) by mich (Hells Kitchen - New York) | ||
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If your leaving your Washer Door open after Cycles, and using a Good Quality Detergent that rinses out well, you'll probably never encounter the dreaded mold problem..
Google Bio Flim or Mold in HE Washer/Machines. A LOT of interesting posts show up. I think LIQUID Detergent is the BIGGEST culprit in Smelly bioflim/mold buildup in Washers, along with "COLD WATER" cycles.. | ||
| Post# 678094 , Reply# 19 5/8/2013 at 04:21 (4,028 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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Stubborn Stains My elderly mother is in a nursing home at present for rehab. I opted to do her laundry. A sweater came home with a beet juice stain that was about two days old. I applied Shout and threw it in the wash with Sears Ultra. Sweater came out with no trace of the stain. I was impressed. | ||
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Post# 678109 , Reply# 20 5/8/2013 at 06:49 (4,028 days old) by Yogitunes (New Jersey) |
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the one little scoop per load is neat, mentally coming to terms that one little scoop is enough for a load, that part is a little hard, and this same scoop is for a 20 gallon TLer as well as a 3 gallon FLer.....aside from that, this stuff works really well....I prefer this green box with the double enzymes....
I mis the 5 gallon bucket....you could find it on sale for around 19.99....and somewhere around the useage of 320 loads.....I know it was close to the idea, you could do one load a day for almost a year on one bucket, for 20.00!....you could not beat it.... we have been over the mold issues back and forth, you either have it, and you WILL know that you do, or you don't.....and it has come down to your individual laundry practices....I don't go by the idea of leaving the door and drawers open, I never have, and never had an issue.... contributors to mold in machines comes from COLD washing, liquid detergents and softners, and non use of bleach in any given load... oddly enough, you can tell some people wash only in cold, you can smell it on their clothes and linens, sometimes the home will smell from this as well....and they don't know it.... I get a little confused on ones thinking, wash clothes with body oils and residue in cold water.....yet they will wash greasy dishes in a dishwasher with hot water....IMHO...cold is OK for some things, others require warm/hot to remove certain stains and odors......otherwise, why have a water heater?... detergents are supposed to have gotten better over the years...but I think COLD POWER and CHEER of the 70's worked best in cold water.. | ||
| Post# 678121 , Reply# 21 5/8/2013 at 08:21 (4,028 days old) by foxchapel () | ||
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We really should keep quiet about Sears Ultra . . . . . . because as soon as anything becomes popular, the formula gets changed to "new and improved" which generally trnaslates to "worse than the original." | ||
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Post# 678145 , Reply# 22 5/8/2013 at 11:21 (4,028 days old) by sudsmaster (SF Bay Area, California) |
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I used to buy Sears Ultra Plus in the bucket at Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) back when Sears owned them. Now Sears/Kmart has sold them off, OSH is now private again. It appears to be an improvement. But anyway, those buckets appear to be history. I still use the ones I have to mix in about 1/3 by weight STPP.
I do vary the dosage based on load size and amount of soiling. Really dirty work clothes require significantly more detergent. Two to three scoops for a really filthy large load. 1/2 scoop just for a small load of mostly clean things. I monitor this via the sudsing - looking for just a hint of suds. I think the Blue box version is Oxyclean also dissolves better in cold water, but I couldn't swear on it. What's the difference between the green box and the orange box? I *think* the orange box doesn't say "HE" on it, but it appears to be the same product as the HE labeled version. | ||
| Post# 678194 , Reply# 23 5/8/2013 at 17:50 (4,028 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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foxchapel You're right! | ||
| Post# 678218 , Reply# 25 5/8/2013 at 19:48 (4,027 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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Lisa, I have a suggestion: Set a longer wash time on the laundry and select an extra rinse. Also, although one scoop should do of the Sears detergent, try using a little more detergent than you normally do. See if that remedies the problem. | ||
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Post# 678242 , Reply# 27 5/8/2013 at 21:38 (4,027 days old) by aamassther (Hendersonville, NC ) |
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Ammonia | ||
| Post# 678457 , Reply# 30 5/9/2013 at 20:08 (4,026 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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Yay, Mike! | ||
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Post# 678468 , Reply# 32 5/9/2013 at 22:47 (4,026 days old) by aamassther (Hendersonville, NC ) |
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Post# 678474 , Reply# 33 5/10/2013 at 00:11 (4,026 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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Liquid ammonia 
Is basically a gas in water suspension. This explains why persons gasp (and rightly so) because the fumes are ammonia gas going into the air.
That being said the stuff is fantastic for cleaning through grease and oils. Basic chemistry 101: alkaline substance + fats/oils ='s soap. Use an ammonia, water and washing up mixture in a spray bottle to clean the inside of convection oven. One just sprays down the interior and (quickly) closes the door. After awhile the grease just wipes away. Ammonia along with other alkaline substances will remove blood stains. Indeed before enzymes took over that chore commercial laundries and others treated blood stains with ammonia before laundering, or added the stuff to the wash wheel. Such alkaline substances including lye were part of the "break" used as the first cycle in doing white laundry loads in commercial settings. Break literally does what it the word says, "breaks" the soils/oils from textiles to make the subsequent washing cycles easier. | ||
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Post# 678479 , Reply# 34 5/10/2013 at 01:46 (4,026 days old) by sudsmaster (SF Bay Area, California) |
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Ammonia solution is actually classed as a weak base. It is really ammonium hydroxide. It's weak because only an extremely small fraction of the chemical dissociates into ammonium and hydroxide ions. It is nowhere near as caustic as sodium hydroxide (lye), but it is corrosive. Don't ask me how it does that, but the corrosive part of its nature probably accounts for its ability to attack protein based stains. And even though it is a weak base, it will also work to saponify fats and oils, presumably because as the dissociated ions do the saponification, more ions are produced by dissociation from the surplus of non-dissociated ammonium hydroxide.
Personally don't care for the aroma of ammonia solution, so I don't use it for cleaning, but I have a use for it, because it repels raccoons. A few half gallon bottles located in strategic places seems to do a pretty good job of keeping them moving. | ||
| Post# 678483 , Reply# 35 5/10/2013 at 02:36 (4,026 days old) by stan (Napa CA) | ||
Corrosive to | ||
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Post# 678489 , Reply# 36 5/10/2013 at 05:48 (4,026 days old) by polkanut (Wausau, WI ) |
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We've used ammonia for years because it is the only thing that will get rid of the perfume residues in my wifes clothing. Some of the perfumes that she uses can linger quite awhile in laundered garments w/o it. We buy the cheap stuff at our local farm supply store, and it's just as good as any expensive brand. This post was last edited 05/10/2013 at 10:24 | ||
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Post# 678497 , Reply# 37 5/10/2013 at 06:41 (4,026 days old) by Yogitunes (New Jersey) |
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Ammonia is not so bad with the scents added....pine or lemon....
I prefer Parsons Lemon Ammonia....if has a great scent when cleaning, not the typical harsh ammonia smell and I guess I am used to it, from home use to working in a laundry, the powerful aromas don't seem to affect me all that much any more...while others would gag at the mere scent... another thing with chemical cleaning over years, I never wore gloves all that much, and not the fact that it can strip oils from your skin, I just happen to have the cleanest nails....but worst of all, my fingerprints have smoothed over, their there, just hard to scan them....who knew | ||
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Post# 678501 , Reply# 38 5/10/2013 at 07:07 (4,026 days old) by Frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie) |
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My mom called in a cleaning lady every couple of months to help with "overhaul" cleaning (which happened regularly at my house) and she used ammonia. A very young Frigilux would bolt out of the room from the smell. Mom, on the other hand, used bleach to clean so I was used to that scent. I use bleach to clean the bathroom and kitchen to this day; and for laundry, of course.
Martin: No fingerprints? Now's the time to rob that bank, LOL! | ||
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Post# 678616 , Reply# 40 5/10/2013 at 19:37 (4,026 days old) by polkanut (Wausau, WI ) |
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I would suggest using ½ cup of non-sudsing ammonia along with your normal amount of detergent. The ammonia shouldn't bother anyone with skin allergies because it will be a well-diluted solution. My wife has sensitive skin and she's been using it in the laundry for over 20yrs with no ill effects. DON'T, under any circumstances, use detergent that contains bleach when using ammonia in the wash cycle. Also, use the hottest water possible for the type of fabric you're laundering. If you're concerned about any lingering ammonia residue, do a 2nd rinse. | ||
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Post# 678617 , Reply# 41 5/10/2013 at 19:37 (4,026 days old) by aamassther (Hendersonville, NC ) |
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| Post# 678623 , Reply# 42 5/10/2013 at 20:03 (4,025 days old) by teknikleespekng () | ||
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Cool! Thanks for the info. I dont use any detergent w/bleach added but its a good reminder. Do you add it right to the drum before you start the load or into the detergent dispenser? | ||
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Post# 678638 , Reply# 43 5/10/2013 at 21:34 (4,025 days old) by aamassther (Hendersonville, NC ) |
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Post# 679918 , Reply# 44 5/18/2013 at 13:41 (4,018 days old) by ovrphil (N.Atlanta / Georgia ) |
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Sears Ultra Wash with Oxyclean
This thread took me to our nearby Sears, out of curiousity to just try something else, and buy the
Sears Ultra Wash w/Oxyclean (sale $12.99 /reg. $19.99). Equipment: Maytag LA482 washer/LDE482 Dryer Following the instructions on box: 1.5cups for a large-exlarge(nearly full) load, cold wash, dark colors (I temper the cold by allowing some warm water to start the filling process) Clothes get clean, no fragrance- seems fine. But, compared to Ecos liquid we used, the Ultra Wash has some noticeable differences: undissolved wash powder cyrstals are left in the wash filter(a pinchful) and greater lint yield in dryer. 1) Would harder water be the culprit? ...thinking of trying Calgon, set temp to cold/cold again for colored items and see if all the crystals dissolve. 2).From the two loads of wash done, there's greater lint collection- is this a sign that the Ultra Wash w/Oxyclean is too aggressively cleaning our clothes and breaking down the fibers? Thanks for your opinions...insights..jeers or passivity. It's all in a days wash. :-) 
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Post# 679946 , Reply# 45 5/18/2013 at 16:26 (4,018 days old) by Yogitunes (New Jersey) |
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I notice a lot of times the SearsUP does't disolve well in cold temps, its best to disolve it in a jar of hot water, then add to the machine.....
as not to mix bleach and ammonia......I use the bleach dispenser for the ammonia as well....seems to hold the correct amount for the machine.....I love the smell of Parson's, but you only smell it for a short time while washing, at the end, nothing remains, and I don't add the extra rinses!... Ammonia is a great kick for your detergent for colors when bleach is not allowed!... | ||
| Post# 679951 , Reply# 46 5/18/2013 at 17:21 (4,018 days old) by retromania (Anderson, South Carolina) | ||
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Clear Amonia I clean the top of the stove with it. It's great grease cutter and doesn't streak. I mop with it also. Mama cleaned with sudsy amonina. When I moved to my own place I used that, but about broke my neck! Also, seems like I had to rinse a lot more with the sudsy formula. Anyway, a great economical product. | ||
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Post# 679967 , Reply# 47 5/18/2013 at 19:16 (4,018 days old) by sudsmaster (SF Bay Area, California) |
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