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June 24, 2016 by: Marla

How to Wash & Care For Cloth Diapers

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Inside: find out how to wash and care for cloth diapers to keep them looking like new! This post provides step-by-step instructions, including my favorite products to make cloth diapering a breeze.


Cloth diapers. Where to begin? After you finish answering every random stranger’s mundane questions (so, like, you reuse the diapers?) you can begin to fully embrace the awesomeness that is cloth diapering.

When my husband and I first made the decision that we would without a doubt use cloth diapers on our unborn child (in the baby aisle at Target two years before said child was even more than a thought) I had no knowledge of this non-disposable world.

So, two years, a wedding, a move across state lines and a house later, here we are. Poop and all. And boy does that little girl poop.

how to wash and care for cloth diapers

What I didn’t know about cloth diapering is that there are SO many ways to do it, and of course, so many wrong ways; and being the OCD person that I am, I wanted a foolproof routine for this messy endeavor. Except, and mommyfriends will warn you about this, as soon as you have that precious pooper, your brain (for lack of a better term) poops out on you.

As in, forgetting that the letter ‘V’ belongs to the alphabet.

Forgetting what day it is.

Forgetting your name, etc.

Now here I am with these annoying pocket diapers (why?) and a sinkful of soiled diapers, and the wrong detergent, and I’m like, HELP?

The moral of the story is that with some advice from friends and the internet, piece by piece I got my stuff together and got a routine down that works for my cloth diapers – and – in my opinion, takes the least amount of time.

In sharing this I hope I can help out some fellow new cloth diaper-ers (did I mention I used to be an English teacher?) so you’ll know what to do from the very start, rather than creating a cesspool in your bathroom sink like me. Mommybrain FTW.


Related: Find out which cloth diaper is right for you!


Everything you need to know about how to wash and care for your cloth diapers! Don't make the same mistakes I did - check out this post to make sure you're using the right detergents and laundry cycles! Click for all the info.

 

How to Wash & Care For Cloth Diapers

Step 1: Coffee first. Always.

Step 1 (for real): Get a hands-free trash can. We use this Simple Human one we got years ago as an engagement gift.

Step 2: Get a washable pail liner. We use this Rumparooz one and you can throw it right into the wash with the diapers.

Step 3: Get a cloth diaper sprayer. This is the one we use. Eric hooked it up to the toilet in about 5 minutes. Then spray that poop away and store the diaper in your already set-up pail liner. See how having a plan works, Marla? Some sites say to leave the lid open to let the diapers breathe. I say that makes my house smell like pee.

What I’ve gathered is that you’ll want to wash your diapers about every 3 days so they don’t get supernasty. We don’t have enough diapers to last more than that, so 3 days it is!

simplify cloth diapering | how to wash and care for cloth diapers

Step 4: Check yourself, before you wreck your diapers. Yep. I said it. A girl I met in a mommy group told me about Fluff Love University’s website. They’ll tell you which detergents are safe to use, and also, how to wash your diapers according to which machine you have.

After accidentally using ECOS a few times (who knew it had Fabric Softener in it? Oh wait, it says it on the label!) I consulted Fluff Love’s site and literally went right back out to the store and bought Seventh Generation Free & Clear Ultra Power Plus. I try to do what’s right for the Earth and stuff. I can’t tell you how much detergent I use because I seriously don’t measure. I just pour a little in ‘til it looks right.

Step 5: Laundry day. Side note: before having a baby, Eric & I did our laundry about once a week. Now? If a day goes by that I don’t do laundry, I take a deep breath and have an extra cup of coffee, because you know what? I’ve earned it.

Ready for the wash/dry routine? Here we go.

1. If you use pocket diapers, make sure the inserts are separated from the shells – best to do when tossing them in the pail in the first place.

2. Then throw all the diapers (pee and poo) into the machine with your pail liner.

3. Run a pre-wash cycle with a little cloth-safe detergent (mine is called Quick Wash).

Cold Water. High Spin. Heavy Soil.

This is so there isn’t a ton of poop in your main wash cycle. 

how to wash and care for your cloth diapers

4. Then when that fancy little tune plays to let you know they’re done, open the drum, and throw in a Dapple Laundry Booster Pod. Maybe I’m behind the times, but I just discovered these and so far, they have helped to strip the diapers of the pee-stink. Add a little bit more detergent, too.

how to wash and care for your cloth diapers

5. Run a Heavy Duty cycle on Hot.High.Heavy. Now most cloth diaper labels will say to only run a warm wash, but I’m all about killing germs, so hot water it is.

My diapers are doing just fine, thank you, sir. Some sites say to add an extra rinse, some don’t. I add it if I feel the diapers need to get extra clean.

how to wash and care for your cloth diapers

6. After they’re all clean, I run them on Tumble Dry Extra Low for 60 minutes. We used to air dry, but then one day when I walked into my kitchen and the table and chairs were covered in cloth diapers, I said, enough is enough, and threw them in the dryer. I suppose a drying rack would work great too, but I need less to do in my life.

So there you have it. If I can save one mommy out there the frustration that comes with getting cloth diapering down to a science, while, you know, caring for your little human, then I’d say that’s a win.

Note: This post contains Amazon Affiliate links. I only link to and recommend products that I love and actually use myself. 

What tips & tricks have you discovered while cloth diapering?

 

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Comments

  1. Savannah (@HowHesRaised) says

    July 9, 2016 at 2:19 PM

    Haha, this was hilarious!
    I’ve been cloth diapering now for 15 months, and I love it soo much! I, too, went through the crazy phase where I had NO idea what I was doing, but when my diapers started smelling like a barnyard-even AFTER I washed them, I got really concerned. I actually almost even gave it up. But Fluff Love University saved me! Your routine looks very similar to mine (: Thanks for sharing <3

    • Marla says

      July 9, 2016 at 7:27 PM

      Thank you! I figured I would at least try to save another new mom the hassle of trying to figure it all out from scratch! For something that seems pretty simple, there’s actually a lot to know!

  2. Doris says

    September 8, 2016 at 9:05 AM

    I don´t use cloth diapers but still it was great to read this article… thanks for sharing.

    • Marla says

      September 8, 2016 at 8:16 PM

      🙂

  3. Brittany says

    April 9, 2018 at 2:08 PM

    One thing you might mention is that with exclusively breastfed (EBF) or formula babies, you don’t have to wash off the poo. Only when you start introducing food do you need to add this step. Of course, one could put those handy dandy little flushable liners in and you don’t have to spray them off, but I’ve never used them. (And I am skeptical of how “flushable” they are)
    Fluff Love University is THE BEST!!

    • Marla says

      April 9, 2018 at 2:15 PM

      Hey Brittany! I am obsessed with Fluff Love’s website! I also tried out the “flushable” liners but it ended up just feeling like an added expense – like if the point is to avoid disposables, why add a ‘disposable’ element? I have read that before, too, about not spraying off diapers before starting solids, and both of my kids were/are EBF, but personally, I always just felt better about cleaning them off before throwing them in the wet bag! I think it also depends on how efficient your washing machine is 🙂 Thanks for reading and sharing your tips!

  4. Jenna Norris says

    September 5, 2018 at 7:54 PM

    Expecting overwelmed momma to be (first timer.) I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your expertise and scientific method while including your adorable humor. I began second thinking cloth diapers after the overwhelming differing information out there.. But you brought me back to the bright side. The planet and myself thanks you?

    • Marla says

      September 5, 2018 at 8:05 PM

      Hi, Jenna! Thanks so much for commenting and sharing! I’m glad you found this post helpful. I also went through the same thought process and honestly made SO many mistakes at the beginning that I knew I wanted to write this post to share how cloth diapering can actually be easy! Best of luck 🙂

  5. Betzy says

    October 5, 2018 at 9:40 PM

    Thank you so much for this post! I have the exact same washer/dryers so YAY I can pretty much follow this exact routine. Only question I have is, with this routine, does it really matter what the water hardness is in my home? That’s what’s got me all discombobulated.

    • Marla says

      October 6, 2018 at 10:13 AM

      Hey Betzy, glad you found it helpful! I think you’ll find it really easy to wash your diapers in this machine. To answer your question, yes, hard water will cause your diapers to become scratchy over time. To combat this, you can use something like these Dapple laundry pods in the main diaper wash (https://www.amazon.com/Dapple-Natural-Laundry-Booster-Fragrance/dp/B00KTGQNH4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538835112&sr=8-1&keywords=dapple+laundry+booster+pod) which help to soften the water. I believe a scoop of OxyClean powder in the main diaper wash will also work the same way.

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