Over the years, I have seen for myself what soap and detergent manufacturers have known for years: people are just as attached to their brand of detergent than smokers are attached to their brand of cigarettes. The concept of brand loyalty is one I know well, and I know that advertisers spend billions making sure we stay with our brand, or try to make us switch to a new one, whatever the product may be. In the case of detergent, there is something else I’ve discovered: they more or less all do the same thing. This is why I always opt for the least expensive option, in the confident knowledge that my clothes will be acceptably clean. This is why I almost always buy the Purex Dirt Lift Action at Costco.
Purex Dirt Lift Action (150 loads) 6.92 liters
In this instance, I bought the Purex with the ‘After the Rain’ perfume. I honestly can’t tell the difference between that and another one, but it smells clean and fresh. Good enough for me!
Like most modern laundry detergents, Purex Dirt Lift Action contains no phosphates, which are terrible for the environment, and the container is made from 25% or more of post-consumer recycled plastic.
The first thing to know about Purex is this: it is supremely affordable. I always buy it on special at Costco, and this time was no exception. The regular price for this jug of detergent is $14.99, with a $4 instant rebate. Each container contains 150 loads, more or less, so the price per load is a very affordable 7.36 pennies. Even if you’re more generous than you should with the soap, you could ramp this up to a dime a load and it would still be a good deal.
Each Purex Dirt Lift Action container contains 6.92 liters of detergent, which is quite a bit. This means that the container weighs somewhere between 15 and 20 pounds, so you don’t want to be moving around a lot. It’s enough of a pain just to get it home. Hopefully you can have a setup where you can have the container just over the washer, and just hit the spout button to pour directly into the washer. I know that’s what I have, and it’s great.
When it comes to performance, the Purex Dirt Lift Action really works. Even though I always use cold water, even if the container does not specify it, I feel like I get maximum results at a minimal costs. Stains come out relatively easily, and colors don’t bleed. I generally don’t even have to sort clothes. It helps that we mostly wear dark colors.
The Purex website specifies that all Purex products will work in cold water, even if they do not specifically mention it. Since 90% of the energy consumption of a load of laundry is the energy required to heat the water, cold water laundry is really a no-brainer. In addition, this version of the Purex Laundry Detergent is specifically formulated for High Efficiency machines, which mine is, but will work on all types of machines, even the older, water-hungry ones.
All in all, I am very satisfied with my budget purchase; the Purex Dirt Lift Action (150 loads) I buy at Costco is extremely affordable, and works with all types of dirty clothes and stains, from jeans to shirts and socks and everything else in between. Obviously some stains require pre-treatment prior to the wash, but that’s the case no matter the detergent you’re using. If you’ve not tried Purex Dirt Lift Action yet, do your wallet a favor and give it a shot.