Cleaning: the power of dish soap

Self-tutoring about everyday cleaning products: the tutor mentions the amazing power of some dish soap.

I was doing mechanics’ chores over the weekend – very dirty work. I was using some microfibre towels to keep the work area clean; afterwards, they were so dirty, with grease and debris, I was afraid to put them in the washing machine. Yet, I didn’t want to throw them out.

I decided to soak them in a pail of water to which I added a few generous squirts of dish soap. My idea was that soaking in the soapy water would degrease the towels enough so they wouldn’t mess up the washing machine.

I let the towels soak in that pail of water and dish soap for three days. Today I went to check on the towels. One by one I pulled them up out of the water, wringing each one out.

The towels looked like they’d already been washed. I could hardly believe how clean and vivid their colours were. Afterwards, I inspected the water in the pail: it was grey from dirt. The soap and water had worked together to degrease the towels.

To me, it goes to show how powerful everyday products can be, that we probably take for granted. That’s a great thing about capitalism that perhaps we’ve also come to take for granted: when there’s high demand for something, the market tends to find a cheap, effective solution that just keeps improving.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.