Detergent Powder

Laundry detergent, or washing powder, is a substance which is a type of detergent (cleaning agent) that is added when one is washing laundry to aid in getting the laundry cleaner. Laundry detergent has traditionally been a powdered or granular solid, but the use of liquid laundry detergents has gradually increased over the years, and the popularity of liquid detergent now rivals that of solid detergent. Some brands also manufacture laundry soap in tablets and dissolvable packets, so as to eliminate the need to measure soap for each load of laundry. In some countries where washing clothes by hand is more popular, detergent bars are more popular. Recently, environmentally friendly detergents have experienced a surge in popularity.

Dosing balls became popular during the 1990s as a way of promoting liquid detergents. The argument was that some percentage of detergent poured into the drawer of the washing machine was lost in the sump. Putting the detergent into a dosing ball that is placed directly onto the clothes would reduce the loss to the drain. These dosing ball devices became more sophisticated including roller balls, allowing pretreatment. One of the disadvantages of the dosing ball was noise, and some of the more recent examples are coated with softer plastic material.

Ariel first appeared on the UK market circa 1968 and was the first detergent with stain-removing enzymes. It was a high-sudsing powder designed for twin-tub and top-loading washing machines. With the rise in popularity of automatic front-loading washing machines, a suitable low-suds variant was launched in the early 1970s. The mid-eighties saw the range expanding to encompass liquid detergent and compact powder. Ariel can often be found in the US in the super market's Hispanic ethnic food aisle.

Surf is the name of a brand of laundry detergent made by Unilever and sold in the UK, Ireland, USA and many other countries. Surf was introduced in the 1950s after Rinso (the brand before it) failed. Formulations of the detergent and the market segment targeted vary by region; in some countries Unilever also markets Persil detergent (but in others Persil is a Henkel brand). Tide reached the market in the same year as the introduction of the automatic washing machine. These two innovations saved the consumer much time and effort in doing laundry. Prior to the debut of Tide, laundry was washed with soap flakes which provided limited cleaning, dulled colors, and left whites drab. In hard water, soap left a ring of scum around the tub. Tide cleaned better than soaps, and it was mild, allowing it to be used initially to wash dishes as well as clothes.