Do you own a high-efficiency washing machine?
One problem that you will face is that your machine will not rinse with enough water to clean out all the suds left from regular laundry detergent. You are also putting your washer at risk of leaking and causing damage to electrical components within your washing machine.
You definitely want to go with a specialty high-efficiency laundry detergent if you own high efficiency washer good otherwise, you will be setting yourself up for disaster. The premium for the detergent will cost much less and what you end up paying for a washer repair. Find a brand with great reviews too, because a lower quality HE laundry detergent soap will also be problematic.
The cost of repairing a high-efficiency washing machine can be very expensive. If the leak does cause damage to electrical components, chances are the computer within your washer has failed. The replacement of a control board or any similar electrical part can easily run into the hundreds of dollars range.
Unfortunately, the damage is often not noticed right away and tends to lead to excessive wear or damage to other parts as well. You could be in for a double whammy or find yourself in a better position if you just replace your washer. To save a few dollars on soap, it's certainly not worth skipping on the specialty detergent.
However, if your washing machine is leaving leftover suds it might not necessarily be a result of using the wrong detergent. This problem could be caused by simply putting too much detergent or it might be the result of a fault in a different washer part as well. Take the time to troubleshoot this issue if it still occurs with high-efficiency laundry detergent.
Is water in your washer too cool and not warm enough? The reason usually has to do with your home's water supply and not the washer itself. However, newer washing machines often come with temperature sensors too. These sensors have specific default settings which might, or might not, provide the temperature level you desire. However, another issue might be to blame - sometimes an obstruction of the water inlet valve can restrict hot water intake. If this is the reason for your colder-than-normal washer water, you can fix the problem by clearing out the valve and cleaning the screen.