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Washing the Cloth Diapers
[ Illustrated Washing Instructions:
Pee Only |
Breast-fed Baby Poo |
Solid Poo ]
Most of us know that cloth diapers are really better and gentler for our babies' bottoms. However, a lot of moms
balked at the thought having to clean poo-ey cloth diapers. I remembered attempting to use the mueslin cloth
napkin to cloth diaper my first born more than 10 years ago. It was such a huge effort for us to clean the runny
breastfed baby poo off the napkins despite soaking them in water and Napisan for the whole day. All our good
intentions of wanting to cloth diaper our baby in order to save the earth and our pocket flew out of the window
in less than 2 weeks.
But happy to say that modern fabrics have made this dreaded chore a breeze now. Washing cloth diapers is so easy
now that even busy moms like myself (with 4 kids and no live-in helper) are finding full-time cloth diapering
manageable.
IMPORTANT: Machine-Wash Your Diapers Before the First Use
We cannot stress often enough on how important it is to wash your new diapers and inserts at least three
times before using for the first time. This will ensure the absorbency of the cotton and will make the diaper
"fluff up." If not pre-washed, the diapers will not absorb urine properly because during the manufacturing
process, there is a waxy buildup on the cotton. A great way to pre-wash your diapers is just to wash them with
your regular clothes for 3-4 times. Avoid softeners as they create waxy build up on the cloth diapers that will
cause the diapers to repel water instead of absorbing it. Dynamo detergent contains some fabric softener and
should therefore not be used in washing of the cloth diapers.
If you put any brand new cloth diaper on a baby and he/she wets it, urine will simply bead up and run right out
of the diaper. The machine washing swells and fluffs the cotton fibers maximizing your absorbency. Once this is
done, you will notice that your baby's pee stays in the cloth diaper and doesn't run out the sides.
After removing the soiled diaper from your baby, shake any solids into the toilet. The fleece is great for
releasing anything fairly solid. Remove the insert, then rinse any solids still on the diaper; you may want to
add a squirt of hand soap while you are rinsing the diaper and insert. While not necessary, we highly recommend
the mini toilet spray for rinsing any dirty diapers. Spray gently to dislodge the poo, then rinse off and off to
the diaper pail or washing machine.
To make cleaning up of the cloth diapers even easier, we always use nappy liners. These liners can be
machine-washed if they have not been poo-ed on. For fully breast-fed babies who are not yet eating solids, you
might like to use 2 liners instead of one to make sure you captured the runny breast-fed poo.
We normally wash our diapers at about 60 degrees celcius. You may hang your BumWear diapers to dry
(the sun naturally bleaches out any stains!) or put them in the dryer on LOW heat!
Click on the links below to see how easy cleaning the cloth diapers is:
1. Pee Only
2. Breast-fed Baby Poo
3. Solid Poo
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