Calgon Water Softener Powder, 40-Ounce

Got this for my daughter in Northern Louisiana where she has hard water with a lot of iron. Her towels were turning orange. Next up to turn orange would have been her blond hair! (She got a shower filter). I used the Calgon to concoct a homemade laundry detergent,...and a fabric softener concocted of Calgon and vinegar.I washed her towels here at home when she came for a visit. The towels went back to cream color. Her 'color' clothes were fine. Now, I attribute the majority of this to the homemade detergent. But the Calgon softens up her hard water, is sort of a 'whitener' and keeps the iron away. The detergent alone wouldn't have 'softened' up the water enough. And you need to add the Calgon to the rinse cycle also, to remove the iron from the fresh rinse water or you're just putting iron back on the clothes.I also put a concoction in my dishwasher. Dishes come out squeaky clean with no residual griminess. AND no 'cloudy' glasses. I have heard that it's the sand like substance added to commercial dishwasher detergent that blasts off the food, and there is also bleach added. That's why those coffee mugs you have your kids photo's put on eventually get worn off, from the 'sand', and turn brownish..because of the bleach. Don't know at all if this is true. But I like the idea of just giving my dishes a quick rinse while the food on them is still 'soft', before putting them in the dishwasher, and using less harsh detergents.I am not able to find this powder form on my store shelves. They have the liquid form, but if you are making your own detergent and softener you need to use liquids all the way through the mixture or powder all the way through. I bought powder agents to make my detergent, hence this powdered Calgon. (For the rinse cycle, it's ok to make a jug of powdered Calgon & vinegar..give it a good shake, and pour into a "Downy Ball"...though I prefer the liquid Calgon for the rinse because it's just easier to get mixed/incorporated).

We were having a stink problem with our cloth diapers. Turns out we have the bad combination of hard water plus a high efficiency washer--both of these things mean that our diapers don't get rinsed out as much as they should so the ammonia smell from urine builds up over time.As for the high efficiency washer problem, we've solved this problem by "tricking" our washer into using more water by putting a couple of wet towels in there with the diapers.And as for the hard water problem, we've solved this problem by pouring a tablespoon of Calgon into each hot water cycle (we do a cold rinse first, then a hot water cycle with detergent and the Calgon, then a cold water rinse again). We couldn't be happier to have gotten rid of the stink problem.As a bonus, now that we know we have a hard water problem, we've also started using the Calgon in our dishwasher and our dishes have come out much cleaner and with less built-up and cloudiness.

Many years ago I could get this product when washing my clothes in hard and high mineral water. This product softens the water so my clothes (colors or whites) come out far cleaner. I also add one cup of white vinegar and one cup of baking soda which helps to remove 90% of various stain.I have only one cone complaint. That is the bottom of the package is not sealed properly and the product seeps out at pretty good rate, which means I am not getting what I paid for. Now I keep both cartons in the package until I get home. Then I set the plastic bag with the Calgon on the table and cut both sides to the bottom. Then I take a long strip of shipping tape and wrap it around the bottom of each box.Then I take all the Calgon that seeped out into the plastic bag,hold it over a measuring cup so I can put it back it the boxes thus getting everything I paid for.I only do this because the product is so good. I hope the manufacturer reads this and does some about making the bottom of the carton airtight.

i can not live with out my calgon. i hate to wash dishes and i do have a dishwasher. but for stubborn burned on food on any plate, pan or utensils it is great. just put in a small amount in the sink with soap and water put in what ever you are washing. go clean off the table come back and it is a miracle everything just rinses off. on really burned on food put hot water soap and calgon in pan. sit over night and in the morning your miracle happens. also good in washer and great in the bathtub. i have also put itin the water when i use my carpet cleaner. the carpet comes out a lot cleaner.. it is hard to find in our area except the liguid and i like the powder so i ordered it from amazon.

This more-than-$1 per ounce is stupidly expensive. This is a rip-off. For some reason, I thought they must be big boxes, but no, they are 40oz each and are about 7 x 9".You can buy the liquid in cases from WalMart (order it) for MUCH cheaper.

The product is everything is says it is, and it does everything it is intended to do.If you live in a hard water area like we do, I feel that it is a "must" to use in the laundry. Even though we have city water, the city gets its water from a well, so softening the water makes the laundry process much more effective and efficient.But, we find the liquid to be more to our liking. This is nothing more than a personal preference as both products accomplish the same end.