š§½ Sano Sparkāthe only dishwashing liquid that works!
I donāt know whatās wrong with this planet, but Iāve tried all dishwashing liquids available in the German supermarkets and all dishwashing liquids available in the Romanian supermarkets, and the only one that really degreases is Sano Spark!
Maybe the water is too hard in both Leonberg and BraČov, but this is not an excuse for all major brands of house-cleaning products to sell crap thatās ā5-15% anionic surfactantsā (the exact value is a trade secret, as if it were nuclear rocket science, but I suspect itās 5.1%), some cheap fragrance, and a thickener meant to mask the fact that the product is about 90% water!
Now, Sano Spark claims to have ā24% active ingredients,ā split (according to the declaration mandated by law) into ā15-30% anionic surfactantsā and ā5-15% non-ionic surfactantsā; so maybe 17% anionic plus 7% non-ionic, or something like that.
Side note (thanks to Claude):
- Anionic surfactants have a charged head group, such as a sulfate (e.g., sodium lauryl sulfate) or sulfonate, paired with a counter-ion like Naāŗ. In water, they dissociate: the surfactant becomes a negative ion, and the sodium floats free. They tend to foam a lot and clean very well, but their downsides are sensitivity to hard water (calcium and magnesium ions can make them precipitate as scum) and a tendency to be harsher on skin.
- Non-ionic surfactants have a head that is polar but uncharged, usually because itās made of many hydroxyl or ether groups (e.g., polyethylene glycol chains). Since they donāt dissociate into ions, they arenāt affected much by hard water or pH, are generally gentler, and foam less.
Back to Sano Spark, its history is quite peculiar. Sano is an Israeli company, but it has manufactured most of its production in Romania for a long time!
They certainly still manufacture in Israel, but this is for the local market. Apparently, in 4 flavors.
On the global market, though, the products are labeled in English and Romanian because theyāre made in Romania, and theyāre literally the same products one can find in Romaniaās supermarkets! In the United States, there are 4 flavors, and the same is valid for India:
However, there are actually 6 flavors or fragrances (the official website for Romania is down, so I canāt link to them). They can be found online, e.g., on eMag, but DO NOT order from eMag if youāre in Romania! Some people complained that they received an extremely diluted product! Go to a supermarket or a discounter: Carrefour, Mega-Image, Penny; even LIDL recently had it (I donāt know if it entered its regular line of products or if it was a āseasonalā offer).
You wonāt find it in Germany, though. In theory, the EEA is a common market, and Germany is a democratic capitalist country, not a Nazi one. And yet, their importers and distributors are extremely nationalistic, to the extent that most European brands (say, most French ones) are impossible to find in Germany, whereas they can be found throughout Eastern Europe! Enter a Romanian pharmacy, and youāll find drugs made in France, Italy, Slovenia, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland, even Britain. Not so in a German Apotheke! Using āfree marketā and āGermanyā in the same phrase would be absurd. But, of course, the sheeple arenāt even aware of that! Give them beer, the Bundesliga, smart TVs, cars, and holidays in the Mediterranean, and theyāll be happy! Especially now, when marijuana has been legalized.
Either way, should Romania ever cut ties with the fascist, genocidal State of Israel, I know which would be the major loss for everyone who still washes their dishes by hand!