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hi ladies
Just had my baby shower and was lucky enough to get some tots fitted.....was wondering what the 'rules' are when washing mcn's for the first time?
Do i wash more than once?
Is hot water an essential when washing or is cold just as good?
Do the nappies have to dry before washing again?
Is any kind of washing detergent fine? Or is powder a no no? Or liquid a no no? What do you use?
Thanks in advance...... slowly setting up for the new arrival.
Hi Bugalug - I'm not sure on the rules of washing but I washed mine 7 times (drying between each wash in the drier). I'm not sure about hot or cold water but I know that most detergents "can" harm baby's soft skin. I used Lux Soap Flakes which are lovely smelling but that got quite expensive at $6 a box and 1 cup of flakes per wash so now I'm using "Aware" which is also about $6 a box but you only use 3 tbsp per wash. Also, softener is a no-no as it decreases the absorbency of nappies.
In general:
When pre-washing, a normal wash with extra rinse is fine. Some people don't bother with extra rinse on pre-washes, but it does help to prevent residue build up.
Microfibre only needs one pre-wash. So does cotton. Hemp and bamboo need more (about 4 for hemp and 10 for bamboo until they reach full absorbency), BUT, you can do one or two prewashes and then use them, just bear in mind they won't be fully absorbent. Shouldn't be a problem for a newborn though. They don't need to dry before washing again. Avoid using the tumble dryer as much as possible - sun drying sanitises and removes stains, tumble drying will weaken elastic and isn't good for PUL. Inserts are fine in the dryer though.
Cold water is fine. If you find your nappies are getting stinky, a hot wash every now and then will help. My bub is 7 months old and I've never done a hot wash. I use a normal cycles without a pre-wash and with an extra rinse, but I have a little squirt so all my nappies are rinsed before drypailing.
Detergents should have no enzymes, optical brighteners, bulking agents/fillers, and some nappy manufacturers recommend no fragrances either. I use aware powder for sensitive and find that it doesn't leave residue, but gets nappies clean. Use half the recommended amount of detergent.
HTH!
Dayl - how did you find the soap flakes? They are not recommended for cloth - they leave residue. :)
But having said that, some people use things that aren't recommended and it's fine - can have a lot to do with water hardness.
I can't help you with advice on the cloth nappies ... as I ended up using disposable :rolleyes:
... But all my friends recommended machine washing the bub's clothes in " Lux Flakes " as it's gentle on bub's skin.
I washed my daughter's clothes, towels, etc ... in Lux Flakes (always firstly dissolved in boiling hot water) until she was 18mths old.
BACK THEN I found dissolving only 1/2 (half) a cup for an entire full load was enough :dance: & during that time washed in warm water. I always put her clothes in a lingerie bag to keep them looking good (no fluff). You can get a pkt of 3 from BigW for about $8 !!
NOW I use about 1 cup of DUO laundry powder (dissolved with boiling hot water) for a full load of her items in cold water.
( I did try washing her clothes in a little bit of Dynamo liquid just before she turned two & she broke out into a terrible rash :()
My older sister washed all her son's clothes in WATER ONLY when he was a bub. She used no powders or liquids ... and she said his clothes always came out of the washing machine clean :) (he had very sensitive skin)
smiles4u - Lux flakes are ace for clothes, but no so much for nappies because they leave residue which decreases the absorbency! :)
Hey Suse! I found them to do the job quite well but like I said, I only used them for a few months before I started using Aware. The lady I bought them off recommended Lux especially (???).