Anonymous
Like GardenWeasel said washer machines stink at washing clothes. Not enough agitation and definitely not enough water to do a good job.
I have had good results using just vinegar and allowing the clothes or towels to soak (towels are horrible).
I set the clothes to soak in the hottest water I could use and added about 1 cup of white vinegar and let them soak, pushed them around a bit and let them soak some more. Eventually the water got mucky when the vinegar broke through the soap film. I rinsed the clothing, again in hot water a few times then put them through the wash cycle with no soap at all. If the water is soapy with bubbles or a hazy film, keep washing til the water is clean.
I found the worst thing to use is fabric softener and dryer sheets. While I hate being a human lightening rod taking the clothes out of the dryer, it is better than having so much gunk left on the clothes.
There are a lot of sites you can read about it and some of the different options for stripping fabrics, like bleach, Dawn, prepared enzymes packets. It’s up to you how you do it.