For 40 yrs I used an upright washer with the agitator, and had so much trouble with dirty marks left on clothes, so bought a front loading tumble washer 12 yrs ago. I am on my own now so not a lot to clean, but very bit gets washed & I Love it. No more grubby clothes and will never go back to an upright. I would think your fading problem was because of either bleach of some kind in the powder or the fabric needed more pre-washing. Some fabric I was given bled for four washes, ended up throwing it out.