Mythbuster

Q Doesn’t really work, does it?
A It does now. Even the Good Housekeeping Institute has given its stamp of approval to the stain-removing powers of two leading brands. With today’s technology and 20+ years of rigorous research, the ecological formulas are now equalling the washing power of the market leaders.

Q Look, I wash at 30˚C – isn’t that good enough for you?
A That’s really sound practice, great for cutting your carbon footprint – but it won’t reduce your water pollution.

Q OK, but it’s only phosphates, isn’t it? And aren’t they being removed anyway?
A Some manufacturers have, but not all, and not from all their ranges, either. Opinion over phosphates is divided, but they’ve been accused of contributing to ‘eutrophication’, the excessive algae growth in water that suffocates life. But there are other nasties in conventional powders, ones that don’t biodegrade for ages, if at all – energy-intensive petroleum-based chemicals, for instance, many with unknown or under-researched environmental and health impacts. Completing the dodgy chemical cocktail are a bevy of potentially skin-irritating and cancer-implicated synthetic enzymes, perfumes and colourants. The best eco- detergents are natural, use only plant-derived ‘surfactants’ (cleaning agents) unenhanced by phosphates, and are indisputably biodegradable…

Q And still leave my whites looking dull!
A Yes, that is still an issue for the eco-cleaners – as Which? magazine admits. That’s because they generally refuse to use ‘optical brighteners’– the trickiest chemical of the lot. It’s these toxic, non-biodegradable fluorescent whitening agents, capable of causing mutations in bacteria, that give that dazzling illusion of spotlessness. It may look cleaner, but it actually isn’t! If you think your whites need a lift, household borax works pretty well, or you might try Ecover’s natural laundry bleach – consisting entirely of percarbonate, the most ecological bleach besides sunshine.

Q I suppose that freshly washed smell is just a delusion too?
A Afraid so. Those synthetic perfumes we already mentioned are just an ‘aesthetic’ additive, and not a very healthy one. In 2004, biologists at Stanford University found that they can damage the ability of both human and animal cells to eliminate toxins. Taking no risks, products such as Ecover non-bio are fragrance-free; others, like Nest Laundry Powder, rely on natural essential oils.

Q All right, all right, I’ll pay up for the greenstuff.
A Better that, surely, than paying out endlessly for the environmental costs of the polluters? But do shop around. Aquados Simply, reputable enough to be used in New Zealand’s Antarctic research base, promises to match market-leader prices at 20p a wash. And if you’re feeling more adventurous, you might even manage to halve your laundry costs with the compostable fruits of the Indian/Nepalese soap nut tree. – Irma Allen

24 October 2007

Irma Allen