We use detergents because they contain surfactants, which are molecules designed to help reduce surface tension in water.  If your filtered water already has reduced surface tension, you don’t need to use as much detergent. Pretty cool, right? 

A common miss-understanding about water and detergents is: more detergent = more clean.  Not true.  In fact, adding more detergent can cause your clothes to become stiff, scratchy or even miscolored.  Why?  The more soap, the less likely your washing machine will be able to get it all out in the common rinse cycle. The residual soap (and the dirt stuck in the soap) gets trapped in your clothes.  Over time, this can make your clothes start to feel and smell gross. 

What about fabric softeners? Sure, fabric softeners can help mask the negative side effects of chlorine or using too much soap, but are they actually solving the problem?  Fabric softeners don’t get rid of the extra soap or dirt build-up, instead they just coat clothes with an extra layer of chemicals to make them feel softer. 

I have sensitive skin, so I’m a big fan of avoiding chemicals in my laundry.  Washing clothes in filtered water helps protect sensitive skin against chlorine and other possible contaminants.

If you’re like me, you’re now itching to start doing laundry in clean filtered water.  (Literally itching, because you’ve just realized your “clean” clothes are probably still pretty dirty.)  Just remember, to make sure you look for a system that actually filters your water and isn’t just adding salt.  A lot of water softeners aren’t filtering water, they’re just adding salt - which means you would be washing your laundry in chlorinated, dirty, salty water.