Since our last move from a city to a suburban area that still has well water, I've been noticing a decline in my washing machine's effectiveness. Stains were a little more reluctant to come out, the laundry didn't quite smell as fresh as I liked (I generally use the "free" versions without scents/dyes), etc.

Having grown up in a rural area with very hard well water, I was used to this and tried a variety of remedies from eco-friendly DIY options and products to simply adding more detergent, but nothing really made a difference. In fact, I found that adding more detergent sometimes meant the wash didn't rinse thoroughly enough. I have a front-loading High Efficiency machine, and you have to dose those fairly carefully anyway.

Recently I saw Tide Boost on sale at my grocery store and thought I'd give it a try. On the very first load I noticed an improvement in my laundry. It didn't remove any set-in stains, but my whole load definitely seemed fresher and cleaner than in the past (I used my regular detergent in the normal way and the normal amount - my regular detergent at the moment is Tide HE).

You throw the booster pack into the washer drum, add your clothes, and then your detergent in the usual way (straight in for top loaders, in the little drawer for front loaders). It's early days yet and I want to do several more loads before I decide whether to buy another package, but at this point the visible difference I've noticed has given me a very favourable first impression.

Even better, you can buy it in a variety of scents or, in my case, free of scents and dyes. I really appreciate these scent-free products because it makes me feel a little better about using them on my family's clothing and in my septic system!