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Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Washing Cloth Diapers

Washing routines vary according to where you live, hardness of water, etc. but I will share my simple routine that has worked for some time. I have probably tried EVERY washing method and too many detergents to count, so I consider myself an expert when it comes to getting Fuzzi Bunz clean! These instructions are for Fuzzi Bunz diapers, but in my opinion, they are the toughest to get clean because polyester tends to hold onto smells. So you can do this with any other diaper and should find it easy and effective.

First, when you remove a wet diaper from your baby, you will need to shake the insert out of the pocket. Put both into a covered pail. If the diaper is poopy, dump the poop into the toilet. If there is sticky poop on the diaper still, you can swish it around in the toilet. I recommend getting a spray hose connected to your toilet line that you can use to spray off diapers. This is not only much easier, but your husband can get involved with the diapering process by getting out his tools and doing something mechanical! Don't have a husband? Well, it's actually easy enough for anyone to do it! You can buy these on-line or you can get the parts at Home Depot and do it yourself.

When it's time to wash the diapers, set the water level on the appropriate level (probably medium for one diapered child, large for two diapered children) and run them through a rinse cycle. After this, run a long hot wash. Put in 1/2 the recommended amount of detergent. The only detergents I can strongly recommend are Sensi-clean and Allens Naturally. I alternate these two to help keep detergent build up down. Do not use All Free and Clear or Melaleuca. Both of these caused the fleece to repel and caused leaks. There are others that will as well, and if you start having leaks out of the blue it is probably your detergent. Also, detergents with strong perfumes will hold in stink.

You may want to rinse out the diaper pail, but it is not necessary every time.  When it is finished washing, run a short hot wash/cold rinse cycle with nothing added to help rinse out any leftover detergent. After this cycle, remove a few diapers and smell them. If they don't smell clean, rinse again. Rinse until they smell clean. You may need anywhere from 1-3 rinses.

If your diapers don't seem to get clean, you may need to adjust your water level. If you have too much water the diapers will just float around in the machine and not benefit from the agitation provided by the correct level. If you are washing less than 12 diapers, you may need a "small" water level. But more than 18 diapers will require a "large" water level. It depends on your machine, and the best way to judge is to open up your washer and watch what is going on.

If your baby is exclusively breastfed, you don't need to do anything with the poop; just dump the entire soiled diaper (shaking out the insert) into your pail. Once you start your baby on solids, you will need to do a little more because the poop will start to smell at this point, and solidify...you will see...LOL.

Washers require maintenance in order to prevent scum build up. If you notice a bad smell in your washer when you remove your clean clothes, it is time for maintenance! Here are instructions on how to do this.

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