In 1993 the U.S.A. took Trisodium Phosphate out of both laundry detergent and automatic dishwasher detergents.
They have been replaced with Zeolites, a very poor substitute.
They are beginning to remove them in the U.K. now, even though there has been no evidence of ill effects to lakes and streams after the water has gone through the treatment plant and the small amount of phosphates have been been weakened then mixed with millions of gallons of water.
They are nearly undetectable and do not build up over time. They are less than 10% of your laundry detergent no more than a table spoon in 3/4 of a cup.
TSP worked with detergents,surfactants and enzymes to remove oil,grease and sweat stains out. But more importantly it kept the oils suspended in the water,not allowing it to reabsorb back into your cloths making them dingy.It also softened water helping surfactants to relive surface tension making it possible for stains to be lifted out . If you find this happening and your cloths don't look white anymore and all the oxygen bleach / hydrogen peroxide and optical brighteners fail. Don't dump chlorine bleach in as the last hope.
Use a good brand of laundry powder with enzymes,not liquid for 2 reasons 1. you are paying for high water content. 2. Enzymes are chains of amino fatty acids that break down in just 1 to 3 months in liquid sitting on the shelf.
Powder needs warm water to dissolve in the wash,hot is unnecessary but I still use hot for underwear ,socks,towels and bed sheets. for a large load 3/4 cup Tide+bleach it's Tide powder with Oxygen bleach all in one, then I add a tablespoon of Trisodium Phosphate or TSP at 99% you can get at most hardware or paint stores and even Conner's baseball whites come out clean after sliding on the infield made from red clay and crushed red brick not to mention grass stains. Laundry powder can last for years if kept dry in a sealed container. Once it cakes up from moisture it's worthless.
I know most everyone is groaning by now if you have read this far but a good pair of Mizuno baseball pants is $45.00 + 10% sales tax. He plays and practices 3 to 4 days a week min.
So I had to find out what works and wanted to pass it along.
https://www.triplepundit.com/2014/01...ry-detergents/