If you put too many into your drum and jam it full, your nappies won't have enough water to fully wash them and there won't room for them to move around and agitate - nappies need a lot of jiggling to get washed. If you put too few in then this can unbalance your machine so they don't spin properly but can also lead to excessive detergent bubble formation. If you don't have enough nappies to make up a wash add in mucky bibs, muslins or anything that would benefit from a deep long wash husband's football kit was known to go in occasionally!
Step 2. Rinse or Quick Wash Cycle When the time comes to do a wash, put the nappies in the machine and do a cold rinse cycle or quick wash cycle without any detergent. A rinse or quick wash cycle is much better than using a prewash cycle. Modern washing machines are so water efficient they often reuse water from a prewash cycle, whereas rinse or quick wash dirty water is always fully drained away.
This first wash cycle removes any remaining solids and flushes away urine. Main Wash Cycle Next simply run your longest 60 or 40 degree wash depending on your nappy brands temperature recommendation, this is normally a cotton wash and never an ECO cycle. Use an extra water function if your machine offers this. Use an approved detergent for your nappy brand see links below most commonly powder detergent opposed to liquid detergent AND dose appropriately see below for dosage.
Ensure you pay particular attention if your nappy brand requires you to use non-bio or bio as using the incorrect detergent can lead to damage to your nappies and your warranty being invalidated. Recommended Spin speed is rpm. The Nappy Lady believes for hygiene reasons you SHOULD wash at 60 degrees in any of the following circumstances however be aware of any warranty temperature limits:.
The wash cycle should be the longest cycle you can find on your machine and not one of the economy quick washes. These are heavily soiled items so need a long deep wash.
If you have the choice of cotton or synthetics on your machine, the cotton cycle should be used as it uses more water. If you have an "extra water" function on your machine please use it, modern washing machines are ULTRA water efficient which is generally great but when you're washing approx 15 nappies that hold ml each you need a lot of water to ensure they are thoroughly flushed through.
Our guide as a starting point is to read the packaging of your detergent and 1. Find the recommended dose for heavily soiled items, your water hardness and drum size. Using too much detergent can result in residue building up in the fabric which can cause sensitivity, damage to the nappies, smells and leaks.
If after washing they smell unclean this is a sign they've not been washed long enough, wrong dose of detergent used or too many in the machine and or your machine needs a maintenance cycle run.
The first thing we do when we have returns, especially faulty ones, is to sniff the nappies glamorous job being a Nappy Lady.
It is unfortunately common for "faulty" items to be returned reeking of detergent and we can feel it built on the fabric, this has led to refused warranty claims by manufacturers. Using Biological can invalidate some manufacturers warranties.
Ensure you check your nappy brands washing instructions carefully! How to use Biological Detergent Safely and Minimise Damage If you have to use biological detergent as it's all you can find your Country or area or for any other reason then do the following!
Check your nappy warranty if the manufacturer specifically advises AGAINST biological detergent then you will need to accept you will invalidate your warranty and you're using bio at your own risk.
Check the ingredients VERY carefully. This is easier said than done as many just list "enzymes" on the box rather than each specified enzyme. However some of the bigger brand names do list on the full ingredients and actual enzymes used on the box or online. We don't supply a list of Cellulase free biological detergents for the simple reason manufacturers change their formulas. Ecover We DO NOT Recommend the use of Ecover with any cloth nappies as we find it frequently causes skin issues and problems with elastic in the nappies as it tends to build up on fibres very quickly.
Fabric Conditioner Do not use fabric conditioner, as this will affect the absorbency over time. Spin Speed A washing machine with a higher speed spin will reduce the amount of drying needed. However, I would recommend that you keep the spin speed around revs, because higher than this may damage some nappies, or at least make the fabric go tatty. You will know from your own experience of washing your clothes how fierce your spin facility is! Step 4. Drying Nappies In general order of preference, these are the best ways to dry your nappies:.
Note that you should not dry any clothes in a room used by anyone with a sensitivity to house dust mites, as these love to breed in the warm air produced by damp clothing. With washing, all nappies will get stiffer than they were when new, although it does help to live in a soft water area e. Shaped terries with a stretch agent e. Motherease in them or microfibre nappies such as the Teddy will tend not to go as hard as old fashioned terries. Bear in mind, however, that your baby will not feel the material directly against their bottom anyway, because there will be a liner on top.
Also, as soon as baby wees, the whole thing softens up. AppleCheeks Washing Instructions are found here. Baba and Boo washing instructions are found here. Baby Beehinds Washing Instructions are found here. Bambinex's Washing Instructions are found here.
Bambino Mio's Washing Instructions are found here. Bambooty washing instructions are found here. Bare and Boho washing instructions are found here. Blueberry washing instructions are found here. Bubblebubs washing instructions are here. Bumgenius washing instructions are found here. Charlie Bananas washing instructions are found here.
Close washing instructions are found here. Disana care guides are found here. Easy Peasy - No specific instructions. Ellas House washing instructions are found here. Grovia washing instructions are found here. Kangacare washing instructions are found here. Little Lambs washing instructions are here. Little Lovebum washing instructions are found here. Milovia washing instructions are found here.
Motherease washing instructions are found here. Petite Crown Washing Instructions are on each individual product page on their site. Petit Lulu washing instructions are found here. Popolini washing instructions are found here. Smart Bottoms washing instructions are found here. Thirsties washing instructions are found here. Tickle Tots washing instructions are found here.
Totsbots Washing Instructions can be found here. You'll find all the individual nappy brand warranties in more detail here. Ensure you double check this page before you start washing your nappies so you don't accidentally void your warranty by using the wrong detergent or washing methods. Yes it's fine to dry both of the heater airers like you can find in Lakelands. Bamboo can burn and lead to balding if it gets too hot which is why bamboo should never be dried on a radiator.
General rule is if the heater you are going to dry your clothes on is too hot to leave you hand pressed against it for several mintues like a radiator then it's too hot for your nappies.
I am really in trouble now! Usually my own soda, vinegar and lavender oil but I would never use this comercial stuff. I'm coming from the US. My nappies are stinky after being washed. Is it due to the smaller machines with less water? Please help since I am almost ready to change to dispossable ones.
Hi Dora, Yes our machines over here are far more water efficient than US machines so you will need to wash differently. Do a rinse cycle first and then a long 60deg wash hours long with half nonbio powder detergent. We do live in a hard water area, is it due to this and is there anything I can do to soften them again?
The hemp inserts I use are fine. If this doesn't work then they are unlikely to be saved and you'd need to replace the inserts. Please when you say you don't recommended using calgon for fitted nappy, what can I use instead as I live in a very hard water. We don't recommend any chemicals to soften the water if used directly in the machine as requested by manufacturers. Also think about how you dry nappies.
If you dry in dry heat such as an airing cupboard this can cook the fabric making it even harder. If you dry in moist air like a bathroom or kitchen this drys the fabric softer. Haven't had any issues. That's great. However manufacturers have found issues with ecover so our advice is to not use it as otherwise you will be invalidating a product warranty. I usually don't separate out nappies from my main wash, however I read elsewhere that I shouldn't wash nappies with breast pads, or really anything that will go near baby's mouth.
I'm now not sure whether I should be washing baby clothes, e. What do you recommend? If you're mixing your washing i'd wash them at 60deg but most people do wash nappies separately if washing every other day. You don't want the machine full as you need room for the nappies to be able to move around. If you do wash with other things at least do a rinse cycle first with just the nappies so a lot of the urine has rinsed away. Hi, I'm residing in Ethiopia and the washing detergent choice is very basic.
Ariel and a few other weird ones but all biological. Everywhere I read the nappies are washed in non-bio, are there any where this doesn't matter. Hi Nina, As long as you haven't got bamboo fabric biological is fine. Biological can eat away at bamboo fabric which is why it should be avoided. What kind of cycle on my machine should I use? Something like the cotton setting is 3hrs to 3hrs Many thanks.
I love uoir website, so helpful. Hi Trisha, The cotton Nappies needs a lovely long wash to ensure they are thorough clean. Hi, thanks for tbis article, super helpful. I dry my prefold on a rack with a dehumidifier which I leave on all night. Would that do amy damage to them? Another question, is miofresh ok to use in every wash for the prefolds and covers?
Hi Nicoleta, Yes it's fine to use a dehumidifer to help dry the nappies it really does make drying washing quicker. Yes you can use the miofresh each time, it's not normally needed for the wraps. I am washing my nappies in fairy non bio powder every other day with a scoop of mio fresh using a cotton wash with a pre rinse and extra rinse after but recently they have started to have a wired smell.
Not sure how to describe the smell but it doesn't smell like urine! I normally line dry them but if it's raining I dry them indoors on an airer sometimes with 10 mins in the tumble drier to freshen. Do I need to change anything in my wash routine to stop the smell? I'm getting bald patches on my bamboo bamboozles and boosters.
Some are old but some have hardly been used. There is no logic as to which one will form bald patches next! I'm getting concerned now and would like to get to the bottom of what's causing it so I can stop it from happening again.
I only use surcare non-bio. I do a 20 minute cold pre wash, then a 3 hour wash at 40 degrees. We don't have a tumble drier and line dry where possible. My wash routine hasn't changed over the years, some of the nappies that my ds1 used for 2 years are still looking good whereas ones only used maybe 10 times have patches.
Any suggestions as to what I'm doing wrong please? Hi Tara, Balding on bamboo and cotton can have a number of causes. Exposure to heat can damage the bamboo structure such as drying on a radiator or in a tumble drier on high. Another reason we have found is the child having really strong teething wee.
One of my children had this and it was so strong and acidic it wore away fibres. Hi, I bought some of my nappies pre-used, is there anything you recommend I should do before using them for my baby? I read somewhere about bleaching them first, but if this isn't necessary then I'd rather avoid it. Would a standard 60 degree wash with normal non bio do the trick or should I add some napisan as well? Hi Nicola, Don't use napisan on modern nappies it will damage the fabrics.
Normally we find when this happens it's the baby has started teething as teething wee really smells strong. Make sure you are washing at 60deg and i'd do a strip wash which means do a long 60deg wash with a full dose of detergent followed by another long 60deg wash WITHOUT any detergent. That gives them a lovely deep clean. Hi, also Ive read that if you live in a hard water area I shouldn't do a pre wash to avoid miserable build up, is this true? We don't recommend a prewash cycle as modern machines are so water efficient they often reuse this water in the main wash and with nappies that initial water will be now full of urine so we want it down the sink.
You should use a dose of detergent equivalent to your load. We recommend using regular detergents that are powerful, easy to come by and cost effective as opposed to 'cloth safe' detergents. Usually the detergent you use on your clothing is fine. Powders clean better than liquids in both Consumer NZ and Choice Australia detergent testing, even in low temperatures. Liquids are good for short wash cycles, but with nappies you will always need to use a long cycle. Powders also contain more water softeners so help bind to any minerals in your water.
If you have particularly soft water or issues with too many suds, you could switch to a liquid. If you have a front loader only use a detergent that specifies it is for a front loader, some high efficiency top loader manuals also recommend a front loader detergent.
These will enable you to clean your cloth nappies with less effort, less cost and at a cooler temperature. People sometimes have concerns about what is in mainstream detergents. You can read more detail about ingredients here , for cleaning cloth nappies we are most interested in surfactants and enzymes.
Surfactants - They are your main cleaning power! They have a water loving end and a dirt loving end, they attach to the dirt and disappear with the water during the drain and spin, taking the dirt with them! If you don't have enough surfactant, some dirt will remain after each wash. Surfactants will not build up, as they are attracted to water not fabric.
Surfactants are formulated in a lab and are expensive to produce, some 'cloth-safe' detergents contain little or no surfactants. Enzymes- They consume dirt, and are the reason that 'high performance' and standard detergents do much better in testing in both the New Zealand Consumer testing and the Austrailian Choice testing.
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