The Small But Mighty Laundry Hack That Makes Everything Less Sticky

Start Trying This Tip Today

• What: Laundry Detergent Trick
• When: Pregnancy to college
• Why: Easy, free, simple
• Where: At home

Since the advent of liquid laundry detergent and the high efficiency hype that goes along with it, my laundry bottle has gotten out of hand. Until now. I’ve recently discovered a simple trick to solve the sticky mess of the bottle cap. Much like my peanut butter storage trick, this laundry tidbit proved to have big benefits with almost no effort.

For years, we’ve been lugging heavy bottles of detergent into our house, and measuring the liquid into the included clear plastic cup that doubles as a lid. Our new house doesn’t feature a utility sink, so to rinse the cap, I’d have to take it, often dripping, into the bathroom. Needless to say, that rarely happened. After I got sick of the sticky mess that comes from replacing a cap with soap residue on the bottle, I thought I’d solved the issue. I put the bottle on top of my washer so the soap empties directly into the correct compartment.

But it turns out there’s a much easier solution printed right there on the cap. My friends, it has changed my perspective on liquid detergent and laundry detail in general. When you finish measuring the soap, simply toss the plastic cap into the washer with your load of laundry.

It doesn’t matter if you have a top loader from multiple decades ago or the fanciest front loader money can buy. This trick works wonders. The cup comes out clean and soap free, and goes back on without a hitch, even after a high temperature wash cycle. If you forget to take it out when moving clothes to the dryer, don’t fret. It can survive a trip there as well. As an added bonus, all the detergent goes into the washer, instead of sending some down the drain.

Start using this simple trick today to make your laundry room less sticky and more efficient to boot.