Tide Stain Release: Laundry Tide Soap for Messy Kids

If you have kids than you're probably familiar with Robert Munch's book Mud Puddle. I know the story is fiction but sometimes it seems pretty close to reality, my reality, when my kids come home in their once clean clothes covered in dirt and mud and grass and who knows what. It probably doesn't help that I'm not one to pre-treat the stains on my kids clothes. Maybe that makes me lazy but I just don't have the time or foresight to think that far ahead. With 3 kids I seem to be constantly doing laundry so adding to the already teadeous task just doesn't interest me.

Then I heard about Tide Stain Release, a new product from Tide. This product is designed to work in your wash, with your regular detergent, to remove every day stains like grass and ketchup. So I had them send me some samples to try for myself.

Tide Stain Release can be used in standard top load or high efficiency front load machines and it comes in three formats, depending on your preference:

Powder (420g & 756g)

The lid has a built in meansuring cup. Just measure and add with your regular detergent as per your washing machine's instructions. I like the compact container, but there are two things about it I don't like. All the instructions are written on the plastic wrap versus the container itself. Once I removed the wrap I also removed the instructions. That may not be too terrible once you know how to use it (I mean, I don't read the instructions on my regular detergent). The lid itself is held on by small catches on the side. I've knocked it off by accident a few times when moving things in the cupboard.

Liquid (1.08L & 2.04L)

Like the powder form, you can measure the amount you need within the lid. Add the liquid along with your regular detergent as per your washing machine's instructions. If your high efficiency machine has a pre-wash compartment, then add the liquid here. The nice feature with the liquid is you can use it to treat really stubborn stains by pouring a little on the stain directly before putting in the machine. I didn't have any leaking issues with this lid either and I stored my container on it's side.

Duo Pac (10 & 18 pacs)

These in-wash booster pacs are designed like those you see for dishwashers, a small plastic pack containing both liquid and powder agents. They are designed to dissolve quickly in water without leaving any residue. With standard machines, you just toss in the water with your detergent. You don't need to wait for the Duo Pac to dissolve before adding your clothes. For High Efficiency machines, just toss the pack into the clothing portion of your machine and add your clothes on top.

I have a High Efficiency machine and love using the Duo Pac. It's so easy. Just grab a pack and toss into the machine. And there was nothing left of the pac or detergent in my machine at the end of the wash.

So what about the test? Well, I'm fortunate to have children who are very willing to provide clothes to test. For example, my oldest daughter came home in her once pristine white tights with dirt and paint and grass and even grease. Garbage in my mind, but I thought I'd give the Duo Pac Tide Stain Release a try:

Okay, so some of the grease is still there, but I don't know anything that can get out heavy grease. But what did amaze me was how everything else came out. No paint, no grass, no dirt. The tights actually looked white too. So maybe testing with the grease stain wasn't fair, so I did a test with standard stains like red wine, dirt and grass, and blood (my daughter lost a tooth):

With just the Duo Pac the stains were removed. I didn't pretreat anything, just tossed the Duo Pac in with my regular laundry. So maybe now I will be able to remove some of those stains in the future instead of just tossing things in the garbage.

GIVEAWAY

Don't just take my word for it. The folks at Tide want to give one of our Everything Mom readers a Tide Stain Release gift pack (consisting of 2 containers of the powder format, 2 containers of the liquid format, 2 containers of the Duo Pac as well as 2 containers of Tide detergent. A $50.00 Cdn value).

If you're interested, just leave a comment telling us what you would like to see Everything Mom review in the future. We're always looking for suggestions. We'll randomly pick a name at midnight (MST) Thursday, October 22. Don't forget to leave your email in the space provided so we have a way of contacting you if you win. Contest is only open to Canadians, sorry.

* Product provided for review

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Posted by Michelle in household product reviews on October 07, 2009

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Comments

0 # newfiehun 2009-10-08 00:10

I'd love to see you review some nut-free products in the future. I have a son who's allergic to peanuts AND tree nuts. Thanks!

Tide Stain Release: Laundry Tide Soap for Messy Kids