So many recipes for cleaners, insect control, plant food, etc and all-round-solutions-to-everything specifically recommend Dawn Dishwashing Liquid as one of the ingredients. Can someone tell me just what is so special about Dawn that it is recommended by name? What makes it superior to any other dishwashing liquid?
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Several years ago after the Exxon Valdez oil spill, I was watching a news program when I noticed a bottle of Dawn on the cabinet in back of the people who were washing the ducks, otters and other animals damaged in that debacle. No mention was made at that time of the product, but I figured if it removed oil from ducks, it would do the same for my dishes and pans! Years later I learned Dawn was recommended for such extreme circumstances. I don't know how its particular ingredients combine to do the job...but they do!
I have added some ammonia to better quality dish soap, it cuts oil & grease. I think that is why they recommend Dawn. Dawn label said not to add a bleach to dish soap! Ammonia & bleach don't mix!
Syd
I suspect its because Dawn has the ingredient that is also an engine degreaser which is commonly found in hair shampoos - SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE
They use Dawn because the manufacturer provides it to help clean oil spills, etc. for free as a marketing strategy. That way, when people see Dawn being used, they assume it must be the best grease cutter. It does not have any secret ingredient that it's competitors don't know about.
Ammonia + Bleach gives off chlorine gas which has been used in chemical warfare. Be careful mixing and household products- they mean business!
i want to know the ingredients
Here is what CVS has listed as the ingredients. Keep in mind that this is for the original one and there are lots of different versions for sale.
www.cvs.com/
Yes, but Dawn is made by Procter and Gamble P&G TORTURES animals. Don't let the cute duck commercial fool you.
It has ammonia in it.
Personally, you can take your favorite detergent and add your own ammonia to it!
I don't know the ingredients but it is so highly recommended because it works so well while being safe. I live in Cincinnati (home of P&G who used to make Dawn) I remember a wreck a few years ago where an oil tranker lost it's load.
P&G still makes Dawn
In my opinion, the brand has just become a household name. Like, when you need to blow your nose, you reach for a "kleenex" and when you want an easy dessert you make "jello."
I have read that the original Dawn is the same ingredients as the others except the color is original.
Several years ago my then 3 yr old granddaughter put a whole large jar of vaseline in her hair. Nothing seemed to get it out. They called the 800# on the vaseline bottle and explained their problem.
Dawn is the best for killing fleas also. Put water in a sprayer and spray the yard with it. My cat's come to me every morning and I use a flea comb on them and put a cup with one drop of Dawn and some water. Knock fleas in the water and in seconds they are dead
I read on pet blogs from some people using Dawn to bathe their cats. (It was on a cat site)These gals were using it full strength. While I'm sure using it straight from the bottle won't really hurt your pet, it takes forever to rinse off ! I only use a few squirts in one side of the kitchen sink full of warm water, then rinse him well, of course. My cat is flea-free, and smells nice ! I haven't seen anymore fleas so we only bathe him now every 4-6 weeks to be clean. I'm one of those people who feel a cat does need bathing now and then ! (Others would have different opinions ! lol)
If you wash the animal with Dawn, fleas will drop off &/or be combed off, appearing to be dead. If those immobile fleas are put into a bag you will see that they were stunned, not dead. They will be hopping around before too long. Thus any not removed from the pet will do the same. Dawn is very good for removing fleas from pets, really knocks them down, but they're not dead. When stunned fleas are put into a cup of soapy water they should die due to being in water & also the surface tension from the soap doesn't allow their escape. You can test this all of this
yourself.
It is, but the adult fleas you see are about 5% of the issue.....the other three life stages are in all your fabrics and rugs. Use a preventative on your cats.
Dawn does not kill fleas anymore than any other liquid detergent...
We use it for bathing our dogs. It works wonderfully at killing fleas in not time at all. It is by far my favorite detergent because it works so well as a cleaner and has many uses.
I am a real skeptic about 'brand names'. That doesn't convince me at all, but Dawn is everything it claims to be.
2-3 drops make swishy water for wiping down the kitchen.
I use it to remove lanolin from raw sheep fleece (I'm a spinner etc). It really cuts grease.
Now watered down versions are sold in discount stores and that's a different story. Buy the regular Dawn, full strength. Best if you have Costco, buy the big one and it will last 6 months.
I've heard that Dawn contains ammonia. Makes sense: that would explain why it cleans so well and why it says don't add bleach.
Hope not because then it bleaches what means ot will ruine the color of many thing also announced amonia is BAD.
PLEASE NEVER add bleach and ammonia together bc it make a poisonous gas and is harmful to breathe...It caused my newly married friend to have a miscarriage ...Very sad way to learn not to mix those together so please be very careful when mixing any chemicals together
I'm so sorry to hear about your friend. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us.
Read the contents! There is NO ammonia in the DAWN contents.
Wow! This is an excellent post. I have learned so much from reading all of these recommendations for Dawn. There is no higher praise for any product than the loyalty of its customers. All of these satisfied customers just couldn't be wrong. I've just added a bottle of Dawn to my shopping list! Thanks to you all.
I use Dawn & household peroxide to remove wine stains -- works like a charm!
The comment of Dawn being used during the Valdez Oil Spill is true. Here in New Orleans when BP had an off-shore oil rig explode and thousands of oil messed up our whole Gulf Coast, many different kinds of animals were trapped in large pools of sticky oil. When they were rescued, they were cleaned with Dawn dishwashing detergent. I still remember seeing a bottle sitting on the beach during the newscast. I have been using Dawn ever since. I never thought about using it as a spot cleaner. Great idea!
Ok, it may be true, BUT also, Dawn is made by PROCTER and GAMBLE. PROCTER and GAMBLE TESTS ON ANIMALS. Actually THEY TORTURE animals :'( Maybe they made that commercial to aleve their guilt. I try not to buy Procter and Gamble products whenever possible.
it has ammonia that is why it cannot and should not be mixed with bleach.....
You are absolutely correct about mixing chemicals and bleach and ammonia are one as well as bleach and CLR. My mother had a toxic inhalation of the latter while cleaning out her teapot. It burned the lining of her lungs, all airways passages and she almost died. Suffered with the results all the rest of her life having to use oxygen full time and definitely changed her lifestyle.
It cuts grease!
We love Dawn and have found that the store brand of Dawn is never the same. It is a great grease cutter and you don't have to use a lot to wash your dishes.
Ziggee
It is the best spot remover for washables that I've ever found and way cheaper than the traditional laundry pre-spots.
I don't know why, but this is the only dishsoap I can use in the winter, as all others make my skin crack on my fingers. I have very few using Dawn.
Yours is still my question, what is different in the Dawn formula. I'm sensitive to it while I'm not to Palmolive, my personal favorite. It must have some additional caustic ingredient.
I believe that most dish detergents today, including Dawn, have ammonia added. This boosts their cleaning power but makes them less gentle. Perhaps Palmolive is still using their original formula or hasn't included whatever is causing your sensitivity.
Dawn is not a detergent, it's a soap, which is a natural product. Detergents are alkaline, synthetic, and used for laundry/dishwashers.
I too am sensitive to Dawn and do not see why it should be so much better than Palmolive, or others for that matter. It burns my skin. Sure, store brands are not worth the money but Palmolive is the best pretreater and general cleaner I have used.
That's incorrect. Dawn is absolutely a detergent. That's why it's effective at cutting grease.
This NPR report makes it clear that Dawn, like every other liquid dish detergent, IS a detergent, and it contains petroleum.
www.npr.org/
It may burn your skin because it contains ammonia. Perhaps you are very sensitive to it. I've always heard good things about Palmolive as well.
I think that Dawn should indicate exactly what it is made of on the bottle, I have looked at their website and the don't say anything about ingredients....that wouldn't be allowed in Europe.
Years ago I took a cake decorating class. We use a lot of oily products in making the frosting and fondant. Best recommendation ever was by the instructor, who has worked for several impressive cake shops, use dawn for clean up. I have since kept a solution in a spray bottle under the sink for quick clean ups. My husband grabbed the bottle one day and was spraying box elder bugs on our deck...I was amazed when it actually killed them.
I always thought it had some ammonia in it that cuts grease.
The biodegradable surfactants in Dawn will kill bugs, because this Alkyl Polyglucosides refers to modified sugars. It will get in the trachea of insects and suffocate them, particularly small insects," Gary Puterka of the USDA's Agricultural Research Center. "The other mechanism is disruption of the insect's cuticle, causing rapid water loss." It causes the insect to lose water, shrivel, and die of dehydration.
www.livescience.com/
I have over the years tried many dish detergents, but I keep coming back to DAWN, it just plain works better than the rest. I use it for presoaking my T-shirts if I mistakenly get tomato sauce or other food stains on my tops or bottoms. Dawn just simply does a great job on so many different levels. I also use it to clean my windows. Just a little dab does wonders for so many cleaning chores.
they call for it in neem oil plant sprays they say its used to help the oil mix with the water not separated on top like most oils are it. its that that id like to know about.
It's an effective cleaner that won't harm the environment
We recently had a house fire (no one got hurt) and a firefighter recommended washing the clothes in Dawn dish soap to get the soot and smeel out. I prewashed everything in the bathtub using Dawn before washing it in the washer. Worked like a charm. Washed first load in the washer three times, without prewashing in Dawn and the clothes still heavily smelled like smoke.
Try all the other brands, then try Dawn! Before Dawn came out, I was sold on Palmolive...tried all the rest,and it won. It was a year or two after Dawn Antibacterial appeared before I tried it. It stomped Palmolive. I use it for everything. Dishes. Washing down the tub ring. Ingredient in my DIY antifog eyeglasses cleaner. Washing hands before I massage the cat. Even shampoo if I run out of the castile soap. I ain't found nothing it doesn't work on yet.
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