Cloth Diaper Care
One of the most important things about cloth diapering is maintaining proper care of your baby's diaper stash. When not properly cared for diapers may become leaky, have lingering smells and even cause reoccurring rashes. The good news, diaper care is very simple! Here are our suggestions:
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Use ONLY additive free detergents. This means detergents free from oils, perfumes, dyes, softeners & bleaching agents. One of our favorites is Charlie's Soap.
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Use only ½ the normal recommended single load amount of detergent per wash
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Always use the largest wash setting for your washer, to allow for thorough cleaning
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No Bleach, Fabric Softeners or Dryer Sheets
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No Diaper Rash Ointments without using a liner
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Hang Dry whenever possible - this will lengthen the life of your diapers! When drying in the dryer, we suggest only using low temp settings. Be especially careful if your dryer is heated by gas, as these type dryers tend to get much hotter and can easily damage the materials of your diapers.
This is our regular wash routine with a top loading or HE washer:
We use a dry pail, meaning our diapers aren't soaking while waiting to be washed. We rinse soiled diapers and place them in the diaper pail. On wash day we do the following:
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COLD Rinse cycle - using cold water for initial rinse will help prevent stains from setting in.
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Hot Wash/Cold Rinse cycle using 1/2 scoop Charlie's Soap
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Additional Rinse Cycle
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Hang Dry – We LOVE to hang our diapers outside to dry when possible, and this offers a natural sun bleaching, as well as, naturally freshens them.
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An occasional soak prior to washing using Oxy Clean can aid in freshening and whitening. Thorough rinsing suggested following any soaking method.
EASY! EASY! EASY!
Prepping Diapers for FIRST USE
Your diaper(s) must be "prepped" before using. Do this through a normal machine WASH & DRY cycle. Washing will prepare the fabric to function as it is designed to and drying will help seal any needle holes in the waterproof PUL from sewing. **Note - some prefolds and fitted diapers may require multiple washings for initial prepping. **
WHAT IF?
Now, IF something (or someone!) accidentally does slip up and require your diapers need a little extra TLC, here's what to do:
Test your diapers for repelling. You can do this by running a small amount of water on the inside of the diaper. If the water doesn't absorb, or wick through easily when pressed, they may need to be stripped.
To Strip your diapers of residues effecting their functionality, we suggest scrubbing them with a grease fighting dish soap like Dawn. Then wash them through your machine several times, without any added detergents, on the largest/hottest load setting. Re-test them and repeat as needed. ** use caution if your washer is HE. Dish soap will need to be thoroughly rinsed before placing in HE washer.**