washing cloth naps
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Topic: washing cloth naps
Posted By: jack_&_charli
Subject: washing cloth naps
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 10:07am
i'm sure this has been covered before but i'm just too lazy to find the post
how do you ladies wash your cloth nappies? i was wondering if you soak them everytime they are soiled? i only have 2 pockets and a cover at this stage so don't have alot to put in a load at a time. do you soak them if they just have pee or just bang them in the machine?   ------------- http://www.alternatickers.com"> 
http://lilypie.com"> 
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Replies:
Posted By: busymum
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 10:56am
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When they are soiled, I grab whatever is affected by the soiling (ie sometimes just the liner) and put it face-down in a bucket part-full of water until I get around to washing. Then I just lift out everything and put it in the machine. Most of the time everything falls off into the bucket and I flush all that into the toilet. If it's still quite mucky though I'll put it through on a half-wash rinse cycle by itself first.
Then I just add my regular washing to the load. I used to wash the clothies separately but it doesn't seem to make any difference. (I always split my washing into lights/darks so I've never put the nappies in with navies/blues.) All the wet ones just go straight in like that. The whole lot gets a full cold cycle (I have no hot tap) with double rinse, and I use persil. -------------  |
Posted By: nikkitheknitter
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 1:41pm
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With my pockets, I shake whatever needs to be shaken into the toilet, rinse remaining stuff in the laundry tub and then chuck it in my nappy bucket. With wees it just goes straight in the bucket, no rinsing. Then I empty the whole lot into the machine, (usually with other clothes now that Han only uses one nappy a day) and put it on a normal wash with less powder than normal, then give it an extra cold rinse at the end.
No soaking or anything. If there are stains I usually make sure they get a good dose of sunlight to bleach it out. |
Posted By: Two Blondinis
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 1:53pm
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we do the same as Nikki then heavy duty wash cycle with naps and clothes.
I've started adding a couple of drops of Tea Tree oil to get rid of the poop smell (now that she is FINALLY going normally it STINKS!  )------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
 
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Posted By: nikkitheknitter
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 2:01pm
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Yep, tea tree oil is brilliant!
I have found out from a lady on TNN that the NZ Tea Tree Oil (actually manuka tree oil apparently) has much stronger anti-baterial/anti-fungal/anti-whatever-else properties than the Australian stuff (actual Tea Tree oil) So yeah, take from that what you will. And a couple of drops of tea tree at the bottom of your nappy bucket saves a horrible whiff every time you open it too! (I'm a bit slack at cleaning mine out because it can barely fit in the laundry tub!) |
Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 7:49pm
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I soak my cloth flats in napisan and then put them in the machine every morning with the baby clothes and half the detergent. My covers and pockets don't get soaked, they go in as-is. I use the Johnsons liners tho, so that takes care of the 'solids'. ------------- Maya Grace (28/02/03)
 (02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Posted By: aimeejoy
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 9:11pm
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Modern cloth doesnt need regular soaking, in fact it apparently soaks the yuk into them (microfleece anyway, and by regular I mean every day).
I have a nappy bucket with no water in it and just chuck all the wet nappies in there without rinsing, pooey ones into the toilet first then a quick rinse in the laundry tub then in the bucket. All in the machine - cold or warm wash with Ecostore. Every couple of weeks I will give them all a good soak. If you only have a couple of nappies its not worth washing them seperately. ------------- Aimee Hannah 22/10/05 Greer 11/02/08 |
Posted By: busymum
Date Posted: 04 January 2007 at 9:12pm
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Aimee do you think I am "harming" my (pooey) nappies by leaving them in water until later the same day when I deal with the washing? (See my post above for details) ------------- |
Posted By: Paws
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 9:04am
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We also dry pail, we just shake off the excess poo into the loo, rinse in the laundry and dry pail until we wash, wet nappies we just dry pail. We don't soak at all, there really is no need we've found.
For the actual washing, I do a pre-rinse then normal wash with extra rinse at the end and I do it all on hot. Then out into the sun to dry. Haven't had any stains or anything so far.  ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: aimeejoy
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 9:10am
This is taken directly from the care instructions... " regularly soaking nappies in buckets is not recommended as it will soak the yuck right into the nappies. It is ok to soak for short periods"  ------------- Aimee Hannah 22/10/05 Greer 11/02/08 |
Posted By: jack_&_charli
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 9:12am
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thanks for your help ladies! i was soaking them everytime then washing in machine..but in saying that, i've only used them twice
we're still in the explosive poo stage so yeah, does it harm them if they sit in water all day? ------------- http://www.alternatickers.com">
http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: jack_&_charli
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 9:16am
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ahhh thanks aimee! ------------- http://www.alternatickers.com">
http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: aimeejoy
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 11:05am
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Teresa, was also meant to add that if it works fine for you and you are having no problems with the naps, then it it should be fine. If you were soaking in napisan (or something) everyday like with old fashioned flats, then it can break down the fibres in the fleece over time. From what I have read anyway, if anyone knows any different please correct me! ------------- Aimee Hannah 22/10/05 Greer 11/02/08 |
Posted By: lizzle
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 3:03pm
| I soak mine (fuzzis) in napisan. i make a bucket up at the beginning of the day and wash all at night. I know the instructions say not to, but I found the pee smell was overwhelming! I had tried washing with vinegar, baking soda, hot washes, but honestly nothing worked like the napisan! I rinse the pooey nappies befiore putting them in the bucket though. |
Posted By: nikkitheknitter
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 7:28pm
| Yeah, I personally find that cold water washes don't seem to get rid of the smell as well as hot water. |
Posted By: busymum
Date Posted: 05 January 2007 at 7:56pm
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I think so too Nikki... pre-October I was in a house with two laundry taps and did wash in hot. But I hear the alternative for people like me with no hot water to their washing machine is to soak the nappies in hot water before washing, from time to time. Anyone do this? ------------- |