JLA chemist Lucy Cripwell talks us through the differences between the everyday laundry detergents you’ll find on supermarket shelves, and the specialist products available from JLA.
Even if you deal with detergents day-in, day-out, you might still wonder how commercial detergents actually differ from domestic products. While it’s generally understood that commercial detergents are beneficial in professional settings, the ‘why’ is less talked about.
So, why is commercial laundry detergent better than domestic detergent?
1. Commercial detergents are specialised for larger commercial machines ensuring a more effective clean
Commercial detergents are specially formulated to cope with the high demands of a professional laundry set up, from enhanced stain removal to controlled foaming, using commercial detergents will prove more beneficial than domestic detergents in a professional setting. Whilst the presence of some suds in your machine isn’t a problem, too much, and the mechanical action of your washing is compromised – domestic detergents can cause excessive foaming in larger commercial machines. This excessive foaming will negatively impact your wash quality, and could potentially even cause damage to your machine.
Stain removal is another key part in achieving excellent wash quality, commercial detergents contain active ingredients that can effectively clean and remove the tough levels of soiling seen in a professional environment.
2. There’s a much broader range of commercial products for different requirements
As domestic washing machines are designed to be used within the home, domestic detergents are generally enough to sufficiently tackle these day-to-day dirt and stains. Commercial machines, however, deal with much more varied laundry from a mixture of environments, sometimes even communal. This means commercial washing machines are more likely to handle heavy soiling and hard-to-remove / complex stains, such as oil and grease. It’s because of reasons like this a broader range of specialist products are needed to give a higher performance of washing.
For example, certain industries rely on powerful emulsifiers to remove oil and grease stains from their linen. If these garments are cleaned solely with a domestic detergent, these types of stains might not be removed correctly. This can lead to safety risks, as when oil and grease are not effectively removed from linen in the wash process, there is a risk of a fire when the linen is placed into a tumble dryer. In a similar way, those in the healthcare sector rely on a greater selection of commercial products including destainers, to provide superior wash quality.
3. They give an added layer of reassurance
We (and manufacturers like us) work closely in partnership with our customers to not only get the results they need, but formulate products that are kinder to the environment. Both JLA and our chemical manufacturers are accredited to ISO 14001, which means our customers enjoy the assurance that all our raw materials and packaging materials come from sustainable sources, and that our products have minimal impact. We believe in reformulating products for the right reasons, backed by the latest in scientific research, and will continue to seek new ways to improve them.
Another way commercial detergents can offer reassurance comes from the specialised detergent auto-dosing systems which are available. Auto-dosing accurately and automatically dispenses the correct dose of commercial detergent into your washing machine. Some further benefits to auto-dosing include protection to staff as there is no need to manually handle and dose chemicals. Plus, reduction in waste that can come from user error or spillages which can further minimise cost and energy use.
Glossary:
Suds – foam made from soap and water
Emulsifiers – laundry additive to improve the removal of grease and oil from fabrics
Destainers – laundry additive to enhance stain removal
ISO 14001 – an internationally agreed standard that sets out the requirements for an environmental management system
Auto-dosing – commercial laundry detergent dispenser – an automatic dosing pump specially designed for commercial washing machines
