Washing machine advice, esp for cloth nappy users

[nannyl]

Hello.
(going to post this else where too so sorry if you read it twice)

We are expecting our 1st baby and i am determined to use cloth nappies & wipes (I LOVE them, have used them loads while nannying, prefer them to disposables and i know which ones i like etc)

In my last house i had a fab John Lewis washing machine... i LOVED it (and 5 years ago it was a which best buy). Washed a 40c cotton load in about 1hour 7 mins, 60C 1hour 12mins, and delicate cycles were shorter still; also had a 30 min quick wash setting . I think it was 5kg (it may have been 6kg) but it was fab and i loved it... and it had a timer. (oh how i miss my timer)

Now i have moved in with OH and use his machine. We have a Baby on the way , and OH has a 4 year old machine and i HATE it. The drum is just so small.... Its a REAL squash to get in our kingsize bed linen, and the drum is so much smaller than my old machine.
a 40C wash is 2.5 hours and 60C is nearly 3 hours . There is no timer either (I line dry as much as possible so i miss not coming down to a washing machine that has just finished to hang out straight away)
Even the quick wash (officially only for 1kg of lightly soiled stuff is nearly an hour!)

Have convinced OH that its probably a good idea to get a new washing machine before baby comes.

I hope to only wash the nappies every 3rd day. (as a nappy addict i already own 75 size one nappies ) so i want a machine with a drum big enough to fit them in, wash them well and for it not to take all morning. (Will still have all the rest of the washing as well of course, and in (hopefully not too much time) would like 2 or 3 children, so i figure good to invest in a new machine now

If you have a really large machine how many nappies can you get in the machine? (i will have mostly shaped sized nappied) If you use cloth and have a small drummed machine do you wish you had a bigger drum?.

Do you love (Or hate) your washing machine, or feel that yours is better (or worse) than a friend who also uses theirs to wash cloth nappies?

Also what spin speed do you think i need. (I hope to line dry as much as possible, as i do anyway) I guess 1200 isnt enough? is 1400 better, or are the faster spins worth the money.

OH can get Miele machines (& a couple of other brands) at trade price through his company. I really would like a miele and have only herd good things about them, but in reality his trade price is about the same as seeing one on a really good special offer, so still quite expensive, and OH doesnt really want to spend that much. could probably twist his arm, if everyone raved about theirs

If you have a miele how many nappies can you fit in?

TIA

I have a 6kg washer and i can fit 3 days worth of nappies in from my 11mth old. We use pocket nappies and AIO through the day and sized nappies and wraps for night time. We also use washable wipes and liners.

We have a 1200 spin and it does us fine, we dont have a tumble dryer so its importaint that they are well spun and ours does the job.

As you will be rinsing to get rid of wee smells, washing then having extra rinses at the end to get all the detergent out, an extra rinse option is a life saver!

HTH

i have a 6kg washer/dryer and it has a timer (fab!). i wash the nappies on a 60 degree 2hr 20min wash every 3rd day with one baby and every 2nd now cause i have 2 in nappies. i only half fill the drum, 2/3 at a push to get them properly clean. my wash usually has around 10 aio's (doubled up inserts for toddler), a few prefolds, couple of wraps, all the wipes. it has a pre wash and rinse and spin which are great if the nappies are sitting around a bit longer (rinse and spin if not doing a proper wash for a couple of days) or if the baby clothes need an extra clean - our 30 degree wash only takes 1/2hr so i sometimes pre wash to get at the stains. i try to line dry as much as possible but sometimes tumble dry a bit to soften them as i have hard water. also, do you know only to use a tiny bit of detergent - i use 1/4 recommended dose.

i have a 6kg Bosch (one of their cheapest ones, it was around £350)

it's just fine. I can't honestly tell you how long a 40 degree cycle is (that's what I normally wash my nappies on), but it certainly is less than 2 hours, prob less than an hour too tho i often put it on a prewash too

i do 2 nappy washes a week

Did I read that right you have 75 nappies! Thats keen! We survive on 19 ( one less since one went awol at nursery!)

Tbh I have a regular sized Whirlpool that can fit fourteen nappies in, I find if you dry pail them too long the ammonia smell takes over after about two days in warm weather.1200 spin is fine. I also use the 30 min cycle x 2 (cold wash then hot wash) rather than a longer wash which works ok

thanks for all the tips.

Yes have 75 size one cloth am an addict and got carried away!!!!
friends nappies, then others, then just had to have these, then was given those etc.... and suddenly i have enough for triplets, or even quads!

Oh well, i wont have to stress about getting them dry fast enough and will sell some on when i establish my favs that fit and work for my baby the best.

was aware of the detergent situation, but thanks anyway

like the idea of 2 30min washes. Do you put detergent in both washes?

I follow the mn guidelines I was given and only out detergent in the cold wash and then do a hot wash without!
Tbh

I had plenty of cloth diapers too (25) and found that I had to wash them every 2 days - if not, the ammonia smell got unbearable and couldn't be removed with just one wash. We always had problems getting the machine full enough - two adults and one baby simply didn't produce enough laundry. So the most useful feature was that our machine could also run a half program.

I found in the end that cloth diapering was too much work and gave up after 2 years (when you have absolutely no free time even the minutes spent rinsing, soaking, programming the machine, line-drying and folding add up). Giving up clothes diapers, I think I gained an extra 30 minutes free time every day. We also started to get mold and mildew problems in the bathroom because of too much laundry drying inside.

Newborn poo is bright yellow so you'll probably have to line dry the nappies in the sun (we started soaking them in the sun before washing) or accept permanently yellowish-stained nappies.

My brother had a Miele but he didn't like it and gave it to his in-laws. It was hugely heavy and while they carried it out, it scratched their parquet floor really badly. I have a Bosch and I'm very happy with it.

When I was pregnant with my 1st child, I made several expensive and insane purchases that I now regret. TBH, I'd spend the extra money on something way more fun or helpful - a vacation, lots of restaurant dinners, a cleaner or babysitter - not on an expensive washing machine.

I wouldn't really fancy having more than 2 days of dry pailed nappies.

I think I got around 8/9ish large nappies. Going back to the tiny ones I think I was pushing 24 in a load. Our washing machine at the time was also cheap and pretty old, so can't think how awful your OH's must be!!

We're not using them atm, because I had to put DD into disposables over winter (not enough drying space in the very cold house) and she won't wear them now! She's two and pulls them off, but isn't remotely ready for potty yet, grr.

Got a tumble dryer now though so will try again with next baby.

I have a 7k beko machine. For about £250 it's very impressive. I have shedloads of nappies but maybe wash every 3rd day right now, I find the younger the baby the less smelly things get. My 6 year olds bedwetters positively stink! but my newborns can live in the bucket for a while. (I do drop teatree in the bucket I like the smell) I do tend to wash towels and other similar things to make up a full load though.

I have the cheapest most basic Miele and would never have any other brand. I use the 'water plus' function for nappies, which uses extra water in the rinse. I can fit 15 nappies in with plenty of room to spare (I use BumGenius pocket nappies) but that is the most I ever put in as I only have 25 so I do a wash every other day (DD now 11 months).

thanks for all the tips
very helpful

I also have a basic miele and the water plus function is fab. i fit about 20 terries in a wash.
The run times are average i would say but it is only the basic model and they get quicker if oyu spend more.
I love my miele.

Agree with lots of the above - be aware though that if you use a half wash load cycle it may not add enough water to rinse the nappies properly and you may get detergent build up will will make the nappies smell awful.

Also machines that weigh and adjust water levels to match the weight may not add enough water - you may be able to override this function - otherwise add a soaking wet towel to the wash will will add weight.

Can't recommend any machines though as we have a nappy laundry with a 10kg machine and I do all mine there :)

Miele are definitely the best (according to which) but are so expensive in comparison. Bosch and AEG are also very good and a lot cheaper. I have a AEG with the large drum size (fabulous) it is also the quietest washer on the market. It's on at the moment, can you hear it? Neither can I.