Woolite Contamination Recalls 2023 and 2025

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the contamination recalls of Woolite products in 2023 and 2025, focusing on the potential risks associated with household cleaners harboring bacteria. Participants explore the implications of such contamination and compare it to past incidents with other cleaning products.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Debate/contested, Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express surprise that household cleaners could harbor bacterial infections, contrasting this with their assumptions about products like bleach.
  • One participant notes that modern detergents are typically formulated to be neutral, unlike historical lye soaps, which had higher pH levels.
  • Another participant mentions that soap is also susceptible to contamination, referencing academic sources to support this claim.
  • A humorous anecdote is shared about a coworker mixing Clorox and ammonia, leading to dangerous emissions, which highlights the risks associated with improper use of cleaning products.
  • A later reply suggests that the emissions from mixing these substances are likely chloramines rather than chlorine gas.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the implications of contamination in household cleaners, and multiple viewpoints regarding the risks and chemical properties of these products remain present.

Contextual Notes

Some claims rely on assumptions about the safety and formulation of household cleaners, and there are unresolved discussions about the specific types of emissions produced from mixing cleaning agents.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in household safety, cleaning product formulations, and the chemical interactions of cleaning agents may find this discussion relevant.

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It never occurred to me that a household cleaner could harbor bacterial infections. I suppose I've always assumed they were like bleach, which is used in all epidemic outbreaks.
 
jedishrfu said:
It never occurred to me that a household cleaner could harbor bacterial infections.
Old times lye soap had ph around 9-11, as I recall. But these days most of the everyday detergents are kept around neutral, with extreme care that it won't be aggressive enough to harm skin or clothes. Very different.
 
Not directly related to this topic:
Chemistry is Fun, NOT!

I had a coworker, an electrical engineer, who once told us how he used Clorox and ammonia to clean a toilet, thinking they would work much better together. His wife, a nurse, could have killed him when she found out.

Mixing the two resulted in a puff of chlorine gas, but he survived both attempts on his life and remained married.

and now, back to our regularly scheduled thread.
 
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gack! real bad emissions - prob chloramines rather than Cl gas