How do you wash your cloth diapers ?

NappiedTruckDriver

NappiedTruckDriver

Padded Truck driver
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  1. Diaper Lover
  2. Incontinent
Now that I’m getting more and more in to cloth diapers , what tips have you got for washing them ?
 
I rinse mine while I am taking my morning shower. Since I only do a load of laundry ever 4-5 days. This helps keep the odor under control until they get the the washer. I wash my diapers with the white towels using the Cotton/towel setting. i haven't found any one detergent that is better than the other. Most web sites will tell you not to use fabric softener because it decreases the diapers obsorbtion ability. I like my diapers to be soft and have not any problems with leakage.
 
Rinse them out when you take them off, or otherwise put water and vinegar in your diaper pail. Wash them every 4 or so days. I used some vinegar as a "pre wash" detergent, which helps with the smell. I personally used Dreft detergent, which is better at getting out urine too. Also expect that sooner or later you will need to boil the diapers in a large pot of water. This will boil off any built up ammonia that doesn't get removed with washing. Otherwise, built up ammonia will literally begin to burn your skin.
 
I will rinse mine out and store them in a bucket until I have a load ready. Then it is a double rinse in warm-hot water with powder laundry soap. Hang to dry.
 
I wash mine asap. Super wash the whole load. I guess I should add doing a load every other day is not an issue in my house.
 
Since I don't have access to a washer and have plenty time my overnight diaper has
been rinsed out and soaking in a pail of hot water and Arm&Hammer with Oxi Clean.
Later on I will rinse it out in the shower, then hang outside to dry in the sunshine.
 
I don't have but about ten cloth diapers and I soak them overnight in oxy clean, and when it's time to machine wash I do them in the gentle cycle with some woolite.
 
First, I rinse soiled ones in the toilet immediately after use. Then, once a week or sooner, if the diaper pail gets full I put all my used diapers in the washer, pre-wash cycle using cold water and detergent. Then Regular cycle hot/warm rinse. Do a second rinse and then put them in the dryer.
 
I use the ecoables and I just put them in the wet bag in the morning. Then once a week I throw them in the washer. I do a full load on hot with no detergent to rinse them then throw in the covers and the wet bag and wash them on warm with an extra rinse.
 
I have about 18 contour cloth diapers and rinse them after use and hang them over my shower chair to drain. Then they're stored partially dry in a plastic tote and held for once a week laundry. I wash with Tide powder and Borax as I have hard water. My washer has a repeat rinse option which I usually use but about every 4th wash I do a wash with one rinse and repeat the wash with GroVia Mighty Bubbles Laundry Treatment for Baby Cloth Diapers which seems to really help with buildup. Would like to be able to use a clothes line but I'm stuck with using my dryer for now.
 
I am lucky to split my time between Palm Springs Ca and Denver Co. Both are low humidity places. So after I rinse my diapers in the morning, I hang them to dry in the bathtub. Once dry, they go into the laundry to be washed when I have a full load. I just use Tide on hot. Works for me.
 
More often than not, I'll just wash my cloth diapers (prefolds) the day I use them, in which case I don't bother with any pre-soaking or any of that. They just go right into the wash with run-of-the-mill All Free & Clear detergent. (Very seldom am I dealing with messy diapers either.) You'll note that some of the big sellers of baby cloth diapers, like Green Mountain, have begun recommending just regular old big-name detergents (All, Tide, etc.) instead of Rockin' Green and the other fancy stuff they were pimping for so long. Apparently those were more trouble/money than they were worth. I never bothered with them. The All stuff works great, and is what we used when our kids were in cloth diapers.

I have an LG "high efficiency" front-loading washer/dryer set, and I use the "cotton / towels" setting for washing diapers. If my vinyl or PUL pants need washing, they go in with the diapers. The vinyl pants don't go into the dryer, of course.
 
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Well I had success today in the washing stakes , gave my diapers a cold wash no powder first and even then there was suds on the rinse cycle only a little bit
Then I did a 60degC cotton wash with only half dose of non bio Lidl’s soap powder
Bobs your uncle diapers came out white and smelling of nothing
I have a Zanussi Lindo 100 7kg load 1400 rpm front loader washing machine
 
Ammonia buildup means a wash routine issue. Stripping should only need doing, if something in your diaper needs killing, most commonly, yeast, unless you know you have ammonia. Stripping can also be done when buying used. Use enough detergent, even in your prewash. Usually about half the amount required for a heavily soiled load, as the prewash, and a bit more than required for a heavily soiled load, in the main wash. More if it's an eco friendly actual detergent, or unless something has changed, a free and clear. If a detergent says, "just use less in an HE washer," it's not HE safe, even if it says so.
 
Oh, and rinse appropriately. I get a lot of my information from Fluffloveuniversity.com. There's so much science about detergents and creams there.
 
Looks like I've found my best way to wash my diapers :)
1st put on rinse cycle
2nd, 60degC cotton wash with half measure of non bio powder
3rd another rinse cycle
4th 1400rpm spin
I have done 2 loads to date this way 3 diapers at their stuffers each time
 
Today’s lesson! Make sure you empty washer of all diaper and stuffers before washing new dark blue bedding for the first time
 
DanielW said:
I did that with some blue dustcloths - turned my plastic pants a lovely light blue
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