I'm going to make this as simple as I can. This routine is VERY no-nonsense. Anyone can cloth diaper with a very low budget. There is no need to buy fancy, overpriced cloth diaper detergent and I would suggest you don't... it doesn't work as well (if at all) anyway.
Please feel free to ask me any questions you may have regarding this topic.
What diapers do I use?
Pocket diapers with cotton, bamboo and microfiber inserts, cotton and bamboo prefolds, and flour sack towels. We use Flip, Econobum, Diaper Safari and fleece WAHM (work at home mom) diaper covers.
How often do I wash diaper laundry?
I wash every 3-5 days. Ideally, you don't want to go more than 3 days but you CAN, and it'll be ok.
What is the basic routine you use?
Pre-wash or rinse and spin or speed wash. Whatever your washer has. COLD WATER.
I have both of the latter but find that a quick wash with NO detergent works best for 4-5 day diapers, otherwise I use a rinse and spin.
Once that is done, I wash with Tide to the second or third line (depending on level of soil and amount of diapers) in HOT water. I only use enough water to create a diaper stew. Not so much that the diapers barely run on each other during the wash. For my washer than is "Normal Soil" as opposed to light or heavy. Do what corresponds to your washer.
I add an extra rinse most times.
I also add a soak before the main wash if the diapers are especially poopy and haven't been washed in 4+ days. These variables work for us and while you may need to tweak your routine, it's a good place to start.
How do you dry your diapers?
EVERYTHING that goes into the wash load, gets dried in my clothes dryer. I don't take anything out. I dry cotton prefold, microfiber pocket inserts, waterproof diaper covers and fleece all together in one load. The diaper pail liner, too. Seriously, no nonsense here. Why make things hard on yourself.
OH and I wash and dry my wet bags in with the diapers as well.
What detergent do I use?
We use regular HE Tide detergent in the orange bottle in any scent (not Free & Clear or the yellow bottle version-but we did try that and it was OK).
How much detergent do I use?
I used the recommended amount for the main wash. Usually that is to the second line, but sometimes I go to the third line if I know I haven't washed in over 4 days and it is an especially dirty, large load. Basically, I use common sense. Why would I fill the cup to line 2 for a load of my own (less dirty) clothes, but use 1TBSP for diapers that were literally full of crap? Do you think that is logical or makes any scientific sense? No? That's because it doesn't. I've been down that road and trust me, learn from my mistakes, it doesn't work. The end result is a load of diapers that not only smell like a dirty fish tank but that you have to take the time to wash AGAIN. Don't waste your time. Do it right first.
Do you add anything to the wash load?
I usually do not. Usually. Every so often, if I feel like there was a particularly high amount of #2 diapers that week and I didn't have time to wash every third day, I will pour 1/4-1/2 cup of bleach in (ONLY use bleach that clearly states it kills 99.9% of this and that like staph, etc or you're just whitening your diapers, not cleaning them extra well). This is more for peace of mind than anything, or if I think I'd just like to see whiter diapers, but in most cases, if I want to bleach out stains, I do a bleach soak in our bathtub and it is much more effective. That can be done in the washer, too but it's easier for me to do in the tub and doesn't hold up my washer that day.
I do not add anything else to the wash. Ever. No vinegar, softener, etc. Why not? Because there is absolutely no need to. Really.
Where do I store my dirty diapers until wash day?
We use a Sterilite kitchen sized trash can with a diaper pail liner inside. We do NOT use the lid. Why? Keeping the pail closed will cause the diapers to stink tenfold and believe it or not, the stench creeps out and terrorizes the entire room. When air is allowed to circulate, this doesn't happen and there is no smell unless there were particularly poopy diapers left in there for over 3 days. Just be aware. The best way to avoid this is to wash every third day and rinse poopy diapers immediately.
The pail liner gets washed each time you do diaper laundry, thus keeping the pail clean. I typically don't follow my own advice and wash every fourth or even fifth day, depending on how busy we are that week. This is partly due to being 25 weeks pregnant and unable to actually lift a full pail to carry it to the garage to wash it. If I don't remind my other half to take it out for me, it gets put off for that day.
You can store your diapers in a wet pail (usually a lidded 5 gallon bucket with water in it) but this is both a drowning hazard for young curious kids and extra mess to clean. I don't want to deal with poopy water, sorry. No thanks. But if you want to, I hear it can be a good choice for some people.
How many diapers do I wash at once?
How many do you have? I have about a dozen pocket diapers with 2 inserts each. I wash all materials together. There is no reason not to unless you have a legit case of OCD. I also have about 40 prefold and flour sack towels (also called flats, btw) and nearly 20 diaper covers. If they were all dirty at one time, I'd wash them all in one load. This may SOUND like a ton of diapers but if you see them in there, they barely fill half the washer and when they're all soaking wet, even less. If you have 24 prefolds and 3-6 covers, that is obviously still one load, just a tiny load.
I do not throw anything else in with my diapers (ie towels or clothing). I may wash poopy diapers but I have standards, ok? hah
What if they get a stench?
The way I wash my diapers works for us. We have hard water (not very hard, but still hard) but do not use a softener of any kind (Calgon, water softener system, etc) other than the softening agents found in Tide liquid detergent. Your water softness or hardness can change the way you wash and that is something to consider. Softer water would need less detergent and harder water would require slightly more, hence one of the reasons I fill the cup to line 3 sometimes. The diapers could have been sitting dirty for too long. This happens to me once in a while if I wait until day 5. But not always. Waiting this long to wash is not recommended but it certainly does no harm in my experience. It's just easier to keep up a steady routine if you plan to wash every third day or even every second day if you're washing for two, which we will be doing come May.
You can try a bleach soak for stench. This has worked for me twice and I've only had the stench issue twice. It also worked for a friend (I helped her do it) once, and she's only had this issue once.
How do you do a bleach soak?
Wash the stinky diapers.
Put them in your pail and bring it to your bathtub.
Fill your bathtub will cold water either halfway or almost full (3/4 full), depending on the amount of diapers you need to soak.
While it's filling, add 1/2 cup of bleach (MUST say it kills 99.9% of staph, etc) to a half full tub or 3/4 cup to 3/4 full tub. This is easy.
Make sure it mixes up well, use a plastic stirring spoon.
Add diapers one at a time, making sure to push them under and spread them out.
Let them soak at least 30 minutes but I usually let them soak 1-2 hours.
This will remove most if not all stains, and all stinks.
Ring each diaper and wash as usual.
VOILA! Clean, smell-good dipes again!
How else can I remove stains?
You could use Shout! or another laundry stain removal product. You could also lay them out in the sun. Neither of these are a perfect solution but both do work. I don't have time to sun diapers and I don't like how they get sorta hard after being in the sun drying. This COULD be because I live in the desert and it's so dry here, but I'm not sure. I've never tried sunning in another climate. It's ust not for me but some people swear by it.
Honestly, I just live with most minor staining until I decide I want them gone, then I do a bleach soak and it fixes most of that problem.
Rinsing your poopy diapers out as soon as you change the baby is the best way to avoid the stains, paired with a frequent wash routine.
What DON'T I need?
You do not need any of this:
Drying rack (unless, of course, if you have no clothes dryer)
Wool (or any other kind) dryer balls
Diaper sprayer
Spray Pal
Clothes pins to hang things to dry (see drying rack)
Special Cloth Diaper Safe Detergent
Also, there is no need to wash separate loads for each child, if you are diapering more than one child, unless there is a yeast rash. See your doctor about that rash and bleach ALL the dipes. But realistically, if you are washing your diapers thoroughly, with enough detergent, and they're getting clean, there is no need to separate the loads.
Please, if you have ANY questions about washing, just ask me. I'll either help you by offering what I know from experience or I'll point you in the right direction where someone else can give you a logical solution or help you troubleshoot the issue. I HOPE THIS HELPED!
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