I recently bought a bag of Charlie's Soap. My 2 daughters, 18 and 19, haven't done any wash with it yet. But I am sure they will use more than the "recommended" tablespoon per load. They alreadsy use waaay too much shampoo and conditioner. I have a bottle of conditioner that says to use a portion the size of a quarter. I think my girls use one-quarter of a bottle of the stuff each time they shampoo.

Yes, the conditioner is the worst, I buy a quart size bottle of the good stuff (they like Pantene sleek and shine). It is gone in a few days. And the towels??!!!!

Go to Big Lots....buy a big bottle of Suave and pour it into the expensive bottle...be careful to match the colors.
As for the laundry, try to get them to put a teaspoon of something like palmolive dish soap into the washer with the good soap. A teaspoon won't be enough to mess up the good detergent but it will suds like mad.
Or give them the story of how suds actually inhibit the agents in the detergent from doing a good job cleaning.
Linda C

Being teenagers they'll believe whatever they read on the internet (even if you quote it they'll still believe what they read and not you, I have gone trough 2 teens already!). Find some articles on the net on the dangerous chemicals in regular detergent and also some on how suds don't actually clean. Hopefully that will work!

When my daughter was a teenager I had to be clever. I would dilute the shampoo and conditioner with water.

Thank you all for your helpful tips!

If they keep using that much, why are you supplying it? Tell them that if they want to use that much shampoo/laundry soap then they need to purchase it themselves. And if they do want to use that much in the washing machine, tell them they need to go to a laundromat; too much detergent is the death of washers. Call any appliance repair shop, they will back me on this. The residue clogs up the system and ruins it. The washer can last from two years to 20 years, depending on the care.

They are out of the house, on their own, they should be buying their own cleaning supplies.

A lot of the problem is the bottle itself. I notice with the big bottle of shampoo I bought that it is a challenge to get only as much as I need and not 3 times as much.