How-to guide
Tip the beads straight into the empty drum before you add clothes, then add your detergent as normal and run the cycle. Use roughly half a cap for a small load and a full cap for towels or bedding. Never put beads in the detergent drawer — they can block it.
Reviewed July 2026 · By the Xtra Kleen team
Open the machine before loading anything. The beads need to hit the base of the drum so water dissolves them from the start of the cycle.
Use the pack cap: about half a cap (roughly 10g) for a small or lightly worn load, and a full cap (roughly 20g) for towels, bedding, gym gear or a full machine.
Pour them directly into the empty drum, not into the detergent drawer and not into a dispenser ball. Beads in the drawer can clog it and never reach the wash.
Add clothes on top of the beads, then dose detergent as usual. Scent beads are a fragrance booster, not a detergent, so they do not replace your wash powder or liquid.
Any temperature works. Warm water dissolves the beads faster, but they are designed to release fragrance across a standard cold or warm cycle too.
An Xtra Kleen 300g pack gives roughly 15 washes at a full 20g cap or around 30 washes at a light 10g dose. Most households sit somewhere in between and vary the dose by load: less for shirts, more for towels and sheets.
The range comes in three fragrances — Floral Bloom (item 322664), Lavender Fields (322671) and Ocean Breeze (326792) — all in the same 300g pack size.
Keep the pack sealed in a dry cupboard — humidity makes beads clump. Store cleaning and laundry products out of reach of children, and check the pack label for the full directions and warnings. If you need the Safety Data Sheet for a specific item number, email martin@pjsas.com.au.
Directly into the empty drum before you load the clothes. This applies to both front loaders and top loaders. Never put them in the detergent drawer or a softener compartment, where they can clog the dispenser instead of dissolving.
No. Scent beads are a fragrance booster only — they contain no cleaning agents. Always dose your normal laundry powder or liquid as well, or the load will smell fresh without actually being clean.
Yes. They are designed to dissolve across a standard cold or warm cycle. Warm water simply dissolves them a little faster, so on very short cold cycles add them to the drum first so they get the full wash time.
Scent from in-wash beads is generally noticeable in stored linen and clothing for several weeks, depending on dose, fabric and how the load is dried. Thick cotton such as towels and bedding holds fragrance longer than thin synthetics.
More answers on the Xtra Kleen FAQ page.
