Product Review: Bio-Home Dishwash Liquid

Product Name: Bio-Home Dishwash Liquid (500 ml)
Manufacturer: Lam Soon Edible Oils Sdn Bhd
Price: RM6.49 from Cold Storage, RM5.50 from Isetan Supermarket
Rating: 4 ½ stars out of 5

(By Guest Contributor Ee Lynn)

To me, looking for the biodegradable, eco-friendly dishwashing liquid that is ‘just right’ is an endeavour highly similar to Goldilocks’ attempt to find the right bed and porridge and what-have-you. ‘Good Maid Bio’ is supposed to be 100% plant based, but I am not convinced, on account of its surprisingly low cost, its strong cloying fragrance and its garish neon colours. Fruit and veggie waste enzyme is too watery and too stinky for me, and I am not persuaded by the science, or lack thereof, of homemade enzymes. Ecover and Ivory are both too watery and too expensive, and I refuse to pay RM12.99 or thereabouts to have a bottle of runny soapy water flown to me from halfway across the planet just so my kitchen runoffs do not kill toads and little fishes.

Imagine my surprise and delight then, when I discovered a locally manufactured brand of eco-friendly dishwashing liquid that is affordable, easy to use, and of just the right consistency. Resembling a bottle of handwash, each 500 ml bottle of Bio-Home Dishwash Liquid comes with a handy pump dispenser, thus eliminating the need to tip the bottle over each time you need a squirt of washing-up liquid.

I immediately liked the fact that it is produced locally, thus cutting down on the fuel miles each bottle had to travel. I also like its packaging, which makes it easy to use and which incidentally reduces wastage, because you are less likely to pour too much out when using a pump dispenser. I like the fact that it is free of dyes, because dyes are wasteful and have no real purpose except to make a product look appealing. I simply love its lemongrass and green tea scent, which is a welcome change from the conventional lemon-lime scent used in washing-up liquids. I like the fact that it is concentrated enough, so I am not just paying for a bottle of water with a dash of soap in it (I have been using my first bottle for over a month now, and despite the fact that I am a cleaning freak, I have not even used a quarter of a bottle).

But does it work? The label says that the product is Biodegradable, Eco-Friendly, Easy Rinse and uses Natural Ingredients. Apparently it is also made entirely of plant-based biodegradable surfactants, and carries the Singapore Green Label. The label further proclaims that it does not contain any phosphates, SLS (Sodium Laureth Sulphanate), synthetic dyes, caustic agents or animal-based ingredients, which is good enough for most of us.

Fortunately, this handy little bottle of washing-up liquid really does live up to its promise, in my book. I poured some of the leftover liquid (after washing up with it) on my Epipremnum pinnatum to see if they would survive. The plants thrived. I left a dab on my wrist to see if it would affect my already sensitive skin. It didn’t. I felt nothing and forgot all about it. I cleaned the sink with a little of the liquid and rinsed everything off using only one mug of water, so it really is easy-rinse. I used it for more than just doing the dishes with, to see if it would hold up against scrutiny, and it did. I rubbed some, full-strength, on a coffee stain and a grease stain on my t-shirts to see if it could clean and degrease effectively. It did. I added some to my biodegradable soap powder to clean the bathroom with, and everything came out spotless and smelling faintly of lemongrass. I diluted a squirt of it in a bottle of water and used it for general cleaning, and it managed to pick up dirt and remove spots and stains without leaving a soapy residue. I collected some of the soapy water in a basin while doing the washing-up and soaked some empty glass coffee jars in it to remove the labels and coffee residue. The labels and residue came off easily with a little scrubbing the next day (note that I wasn’t using Bio-Home full strength, but as leftover from washing up). I squirted a little of the dishwashing liquid on the washcloths and scrubbed the cloths hard to clean, degrease and deodorise them, and it worked a treat, too.

If I have any complaints about the Bio-Home Dishwash Liquid at all, it is that 500 ml doesn’t go very far and the manufacturer should produce larger bottles to refill the original one with, to cut down on packaging and waste. It would also help if the manufacturer were to include a full list of ingredients on the label or at least the website, to allow consumers to make an informed choice in order that we do not fall victims to greenwashing.

All things considered, I would rate the Bio-Home Dishwashing Liquid 4 ½ stars out of 5.