u/240_Worth_of_Pudding

Wondering what everyone thinks about this?

Great deal on this mower! I'm finally going to pull the trigger.

STPP comes up around here every so often, usually when someone with hard water discovers it and wonders why their detergent suddenly seems to work so much better.

I get it because I've used STPP myself, and it is fantastic.

I eventually stopped using it after learning more about its environmental impact, but strictly from a laundry-performance standpoint, I completely understand why phosphates were used for so long.

So, let's talk about what STPP is, what it does, why it disappeared from household detergents, and what I'd use instead.

First, what is STPP?

STPP stands for sodium tripolyphosphate. It's a detergent builder.

A builder doesn't really wash your clothes by itself. Instead, it creates better conditions for your detergent to work.

One of the biggest problems with hard water is calcium and magnesium. These minerals interfere with detergent performance and can contribute to deposits on fabrics and inside the washing machine.

STPP binds those minerals and keeps them from interfering with the detergent.

But that's not all it does. STPP also helps keep removed soil dispersed in the wash water instead of allowing it to settle back onto fabric. It provides alkalinity, helps control certain metal ions, and generally improves the performance of the entire detergent system.

In other words, STPP became popular because it does several jobs extremely well.

A little history

Phosphate builders became common in synthetic laundry detergents during the 1950s. By the 1960s and 1970s, phosphate-based detergents were everywhere.

Then the environmental problem became impossible to ignore.

Laundry wastewater eventually enters wastewater treatment or septic systems, and some of that phosphorus can make its way into rivers and lakes.

Phosphorus is a nutrient. Too much of it in a body of water can fuel excessive algae and plant growth. When that organic material dies and decomposes, oxygen levels can fall. This process is called eutrophication.

As phosphorus pollution became a major water-quality concern, states began restricting phosphates in household laundry detergents. Manufacturers reformulated, and conventional household laundry detergents in the U.S. eventually became essentially phosphate-free.

This is an important distinction:

STPP wasn't removed because it didn't work. It was removed primarily because of what happens after it goes down the drain.

What replaced it?

There wasn't one magic replacement.

Modern detergents use combinations of sodium carbonate, zeolites, citrate, polycarboxylates, and other builders, chelants, and dispersants to accomplish many of the jobs STPP once handled.

That's really the problem with finding a direct substitute: STPP does several things at once.

Can you still use STPP?

Yes, where its sale and use for laundry are permitted. It's used alongside detergent, not instead of it.

And speaking from experience, it works extremely well.

I noticed the difference when I used it, particularly with hard water. I stopped not because it damaged my clothes or washing machine, but because I learned more about the environmental consequences of routinely adding phosphorus to wastewater.

For me, that changed the calculation.

So, should you use it?

Personally, I wouldn't use STPP as an everyday laundry additive.

The issue isn't what happens inside your washing machine. The issue is what happens afterward.

Every time you use STPP, you're adding phosphorus to wastewater. How much ultimately reaches the environment depends on your wastewater treatment system and local conditions, but excess phosphorus reaching waterways can contribute to eutrophication.

For me, the extra laundry performance isn't worth that tradeoff.

So, what's the best substitute?

For a practical additive you can use at home, my choice is trisodium citrate.

Is it an exact replacement for STPP?

No.

STPP is a more multifunctional detergent builder, and citrate doesn't reproduce everything it does.

But citrate handles one of the main reasons most people want a separate builder in the first place: hard water. It binds calcium and magnesium so they interfere less with the detergent; it's soluble and easy to use, and it doesn't add phosphorus to wastewater.

It's also important to remember that you're not asking citrate to do everything by itself. A good modern detergent already contains its own combination of surfactants, builders, chelants, dispersants, enzymes, and other ingredients. The citrate is simply giving that system some extra help with water hardness.

That's why I'd rather use a good modern detergent with trisodium citrate than try to recreate a phosphate-built detergent at home.

And what about washing soda?

Washing soda, or sodium carbonate, is also a builder and can absolutely help with hard water, but it works differently.

Rather than sequestering calcium the way STPP does, carbonate can cause calcium to precipitate as insoluble calcium carbonate.

That doesn't make washing soda bad or useless. It just means it isn't a direct substitute for STPP.

If my main goal is controlling hard-water minerals, I'd choose trisodium citrate.

Thank you for reading, and I hope this clears things up!

"Via TMZ, Kelce was named in court on Tuesday as one of the victims of Siddarth Jawahar, who bilked investors out of more than $35 million.

Jawahar was sentenced to 11 years in prison and ordered to pay more than $31 million in restitution.

Kelce’s losses weren’t disclosed."

Please comment before chatting. I'll go first if you're a confirmed trader.

Dreame has reorganized into the Dreame Group, transitioning from a single-focus cleaning brand into a boundaryless ecological enterprise with four main business groups.

New Business Structure

• Dreame Brand Business Group: Focuses on indoor cleaning and whole-home smart appliances.
• MOVA Brand Business Group: Focuses on outdoor garden and lawn-mowing robots.
• NAVEE Brand Business Group: Focuses on personal short-distance transportation.
• Robotics Business Group: Focuses on embodied intelligence and advanced future robots.

Expansion Areas

• Home Appliances: Expanding into large appliances like refrigerators, smart TVs, and kitchen tech.
• Automotive: Venturing into concept electric vehicles and the automotive sector.
• Lifestyle & Retail: Exploring diverse fields including trendy toys, coffee, and tea beverages.

 

Fellow Z60 owners, what settings are you using for things like suction power, mop water level, cleaning pattern, carpet settings, obstacle avoidance, and dock/self-cleaning?

Any settings you’d recommend changing from the defaults? Also, are there any features that are better left off?

Thanks!

I'm looking to purchase one for my bedroom, but I'm apprehensive because they are advertised as being quiet. Do they get much louder at the higher speeds? All of the videos I can find have people talking over them while in use or directly in front of the fan.

No autograph copies =)

I have a project I'd like to have done on a helmet. Please DM me with a link to your work. TIA!

I ask because all of the others I see for auction are 3x as much.

I bought an extra Top Gun: Maverick & Goose Helmet Set solely to trade for the JAWS shark bucket and the JAWS tin bucket. I prefer the "Help Shark" bucket. If I can't find a trade, I'd be willing to sell them. I'd need to sell them for enough to cover the costs of the JAWS combo. No more, no less. If anyone is interested in trading, lmk!

Also, to the person who was looking for a Maverick for Father's Day, I called a theater that I will be driving by tomorrow morning. They said they'd hold one for me. If they actually do, I'll grab it and send it to you. No upcharge, just pay me what I paid for it and the shipping. I'll let you know if I get it tomorrow!

I grabbed two Maverick buckets as the Goose bucket was sold out. Hoping to trade with someone for the Goose.