washing help

Monica - posted on 05/05/2009

I've had success with soaking them in hot water with some bleach - less than the recommeded amount for regular use, then washing with tide free and downy free. the stains come out and it leaves them soft and comfortable. No need to hand wash because the soaking breaks up the stains and dont wash with regular clothes.

Vilate - posted on 03/12/2009

I have a diaper web page that has a list oaf detergents that you can use for cloth diapers,  http://www.niftynappybyvilate.weebly.com   one other thing you want to look for in a detergent is enzymes, they are designed to kill bacteria, but the problem is that your baby's bum has bacteria, so they are trying to "eat" at your baby's skin and can cause really bad rashes.   I use tea tree oil in my loads and I sun the diapers no stains and no smells! 

Debbi - posted on 02/25/2009

When I contacted Fuzzibunz they said not to use vinegar because it'll break down the elastic. They recommended Oxyclean every couple loads. Works well for me. Make sure if you are using Tide that it is the Free version.

Michelle - posted on 02/17/2009

OK now I guess its my turn. I'm in Virginia but know nothing about our water...

We had issues in the beginning and now I think we have it down to an art,

at least for us.

I use Purex its rainforest or something scented, and the I sprinkle baking soda on each row of diapers. Then I do a rinse for about 18 minutes with vinegar.

Once or twice a month we do a long HOT wash with and extra HOT rinse with no BS or vinegar.

You know You can boil the inserts if they smell, but this way we haven't needed to.

As far as stains I just rinse them out before I wash them and in emergency's I lay them in the sun, the sun is amazing!

Hopefully one of us can help.

Its hard at first, but you'll find your way, I'm sure of it!

Michelle - posted on 02/09/2009

first, always wash diapers separate. 

I don't use bumgenius, so I can't speak for them, but I do use cloth diapers and I can't see why you could not handwash them.  I actually hand wash all poopie diapers before throwing in the regular wash. This reduces the chance for stains. The faster you get the poop off, the less likely to stain. I just keep a separate bag next to the changing table for poopie diapers and either when my son naps or at the end of the day I just take the bag down and wash them. I have been working with cloth diapers for years, so feel free to ask me any questions you might have.

Miri - posted on 02/07/2009

I am new to cloth diapering (and parenting lol) and just purchased my first bumgenius 3.0 one size, before I use it, I was wondering whether you can hand wash them. According to their website the poop stains come out after a cold and warm wash in the washing machine. Is this true? Have you found that the stains wash out easily, or are you scrubbing? Also if I am exclusively breastfeeding can I wash the diaper in with the baby clothes, or is it unsanitary? I would really appreciate any reply since I would lik eto stop using the disposable diapers. Thanks!

Michelle - posted on 02/05/2009

maybe try just 1 cup of baking soda instead of detergent. Then rinsing in vinegar again. The smell should go away once they are dry. The baking soda is great for stains. Also you could do a BORAX/ Baking Soda mixture. 

Deborah - posted on 02/02/2009

I have tried charlie's soap, all, biokleen, arm and hammer with baking soda, seventh generation, ...now I am using tide. I tried the vinegar thing a couple times and it made my diapers stinky. I have read a couple of posts about diapers that were getting rough and mine are like that..maybe I use too much detergent...but sometimes I have had my diapers come out still dirty, so that is why I am worried about too little soap. also, we don't have anywhere to hang them outside in the sun...when I started out I hung them inside, but I find that too much detergent is stuck in them and they take days to dry. I even have tried doing 2 extra hot washed without detergent and still have times that the diapers have detergent or something in them that causes leaking and rashes on my baby...it is random...I will try the vinegar again.

Nellie - posted on 01/30/2009

what detergents have you tried using so far?

Michelle - posted on 01/29/2009

I don't live in the Washington area but I do know that with the soap, less is more is the best theory to go by. Also every now and then I do a vinegar rinse, I put vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser.  This "strips" the diapers of any residue and helps with absorption. And then I line dry them since the sun is a natural bleach.