[donna]

Those new washing machines with no agitators don’t use enough water to use softener.

[zeestephen]

Re: “Those new washing machines with no agitators don’t use enough water to use softener.”

Exactly!

They barely have enough water to use detergent.

The machines at my apartment house “wash” for like seven minutes.

Then they “rinse” and “spin” for like 30 minutes, also with almost no water.

My clothes get more wear and tear in one machine wash then they get from me in six months.

[Original Lurker]

I hate those HE washers. The DO NOT clean my clothes.
The only workaround that helps somewhat is to soak the clothes overnight in Oxyclean.
I start the clothes with Oxy like I’m going to run a regular wash cycle but power off the machine before it starts the rinse cycle. Adding a bucket of water at the start helps, too.
It may take several Oxy soakings to get *most* stains out.

My clothes get really dirty tending my vegetable garden.
You can’t believe how badly tomato plants stain your clothes.

[polymuser]

Those new washing machines with no agitators don’t use enough water to use softener.

And if a top loader, they don't clean clothes, either. Stupid product.