275 Gallons of Tide and Downy

[bja105]

A friend has 275 gallons each of Tide and Downy. Both are second quality, the color is off. He can't sell it, and his supplier doesn't want them back. What can we do with it?

I think I can compost the Tide with sawdust. I have no idea what Downy is made of.
He thinks he can repackage the Tide into gallons and sell it as car wash.
Any other ideas?

I can't believe the detergent would hurt the garden or compost pile. People put grey water into their compost piles and gardens, right? I have a huge supply of sawdust next door. We could also spray it on the fields. It might give the hay whiter whites and brighter colors.

[tinknal]

Umm, why don't you wash clothes with it? It's soap, wash anything. Dishes, yourself, your car.......

[dkhern]

x 2 on clothes washing i cant see it adding anything to compost

[am1too]

Yep it sounds like it could be a very long time berfore you run out to buy more. If you will not use it why would anyone else?

[Otter]

Donate it, get a tax write off.
Animal shelters use huge amounts of those 2 products. So do women's shelters, nursing homes (plenty of not-for-profit nursing homes) - pick your charity.

Or keep it and wash clothes. Somehow, this doesn't seem like a OMG - get rid of it, get rid of it NOW!!! type emergency where I'd be in some huge rush to compost it.

And greywater is a huge step away from gallons of undiluted detergent and softener. Actually the greywater from my washer is, well, grey and not too sudsy. The 1/4 cup of detergent is pretty much lost in the gallons and gallons of water and dirt that comes off the clothes (I have kids and a farm, the dirt can be impressive, in a gross wash-it-again sort of way)

And why can't he repackage and sell it for it's intended purpose? I would totally buy no-name-brand detergent at a good price even if you had to pour it into the washed out milk jugs I brought for the purpose.

And gifts! If he knows anyone even a little sensible, that is a great gift. I got a HUGE thing of laundry soap at my baby shower from a mother of many - that was an awesome gift for which I was hugely grateful. I was still using it when my 9 month old was puking in the center of my bed, and trust me, I was still grateful.

[lemonthyme7]

Tide is expensive detergent. If the only thing wrong is that the color is off I would definately keep it for washing clothes. I know 275 gallons is a lot but you could give some to friends and relatives as well. I don't buy Tide because it costs to much for my budget but I would definately use it if it was free! Ditto on the Downy. I also second the donating.

[fantasymaker]

Yep its bring your jug day at school,church or the local cafe!

[WeasleAcres]

Lol-- we have 6 kids total in this house.. what I'd give for 275 gallons of Tide and Downy!!!!

[arabian knight]

Originally Posted by WeasleAcres

Lol-- we have 6 kids total in this house.. what I'd give for 275 gallons of Tide and Downy!!!!

Ya for sure. For goodness sakes don't just "throw it away". Wow what a catch that is. Detergent and Fabric Softener both together my oh my, what a gift.~!

[Chucknbob]

Send me a few bottles, sell the rest on craigslist.

[thesedays]

Your food pantry would love to have this, if the containers haven't been opened. They never have enough of non-food products like this.

[bja105]

Its in 300 gallon containers, bulk. Sure, we could do laundry with it, but what fun is that?

We were just talking about if it would help our sparse hay fields. I think at the very least we will try a couple of test strips in the fields.

I am also seriously lacking in Nitrogen for my compost, at least Nitrogen I can haul with what I have.

[unregistered353870]

If I remember correctly Tide is mostly sulfates and sodium salts but I'd look up the msds sheet before spraying it on my pastures or compost pile.

[JohnL751]

I don't think you want Tide on your soil or compost pile.
You would have to have six kids or more to have a shot at using it all up, but use it for what it was made for!
I have a million years worth of Joy dishwashing liquid from 1998. I won't live long enough to use it up! Do you know how long even 1 gallon of Joy will last a single man who also has 1000's of plastic forks, glasses and foam plates!
Well maybe only 80 more years.

[TnAndy]

We actually buy a seconds in laundry soap in 5 gallon buckets at a place up in Ky. I suspect it's Tide also but they don't sell it as Tide due to trademark reasons. I guess they have a similar source of the product. Trucker neighbor of ours found it, and he brings enough home for several neighbors. Wife says she can't tell a lick of difference in it and Tide from the store.

Runs 30 bucks per bucket. We fill used smaller plastic bottle to keep in by the washing machine. Figure out the price of a bottle of Tide from the store per gallon, and you'll see what a bargain 30 bucks/5 gallons is.

Based on that, your friend has about 1650 bucks worth of soap, less the cost of what ever containers it was put it.

[blooba]

Tide is mostly ethanol and sodium salts. It actually can be hazardous in large quantities. I used to work at the Tide factory and we had to carry around gas masks and if there was a spill (even one bottle) we had to don our gasmasks. I do not think I would put it on your field. The MSDS says you cant even take it to the dump and large quantities must be incinerated.

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/pdf...1896fd15f4.pdf

I always am alot more careful with laundry soap after working there. Some nasty stuff.

[tinknal]

You might want to check with a car wash owner, they go through tons of soap. Might be able to sell it all at once.

[sherry in Maine]

dang! use it to wash clothes! You're set forever! No more buying overpriced stuff at market!

[trulytricia]

Tide is the best working detergent [and most expensive] on the market. I would not dream of dumping it on the ground.
Friends and relatives.

[lexa]

I am pretty sure that EPA gets wind of anyone dumping detergent instead of properly disposing of it, they could come hard after the person. Some years ago a mobile groomer had a leak in her gray water tank and she had to pay a hefty fine and required to pay for clean up of miles on the road. Why can\t it be donated or given away on craigslist of frecycle? People can bring their own buckets. Anything is better than dumping chemicals that you don\t know much about on the earth.