Caring for Cloth Nappies

[expatinscotland]

Another novice question here!

What washing powder/liquid is best for Tots Bots and Rainbow Bots?

DD2 doesn't have sensitive skin, so I can use a bio washing powder.

What about fabric softener? Is this a no-no w/these nappies?

Am using Motherease Airflow and Rikki wraps.

non bio is best
I use persil
no fabric softener as it makes them less absorbent and they will leak if you use it!

yikes!

can i use vinegar in the final rinse w/a few drops of tea tree oil?

must tell DH not to add softener. he's such a great bloke, though, he's going to a Real Nappy demo next week w/the girls! :)

yes white vinegar in the final rinse makes them softer. I put tea tree or lavendar oil in to make it smell a bit better.

i usually put it in the fabric softener drawer - the vinegar, that is - with sheets and towels to freshen them.

I use Persil non-bio too. I use less powder than I would normally and put some soda crystals in with it. It freshens them up and is an extra for sanitising. I put a slosh of white vinegar in the softener drawer which helps to soften them and strips any buildup off the nappies. I also think the vinegar is a good idea, being acidic, to discourage any thrush that might be lurking.
To be honest a small amount of conditioner doesn't seem to have been a problem. It does reduce absorbency of the nappies slightly but that is usually put right at the next wash. The more conditioner the less absorbent the nappy. I've done it when I've been on autopilot putting stuff in the dispenser drawer.
However, the wraps don't suffer for being washed with conditioner and it can help as obviously I don't want the wraps to be absorbent. So I put them in with the normal wash and don't use the soda and vinegar if I wash them with the nappies.

Didn't mean to make that complicated because it isn't really.

I'd use non-bio for nappies, even if your dd doesn't have sensitive skin as she won't have had contact with anything down there before (presuming you've used disps up to now?). I switched from Fairy non-bio, to shops own though (Tesco) with no problems.

I'd wash wraps in a normal clothes wash with fab cond. unless they are actually dirty. They don't benefit from a 60 degree wash.

powder or liquid?

i have to use the liquid stuff for DD1, cuz her skin is sensitive, so i have a lot of it to hand.

I know that tablets aren't a good idea, but I haven't read of a difference between powder and liquid for the nappies.

However, I think I did read somewhere that the washing machine benefits from powder over liquid, but I could be making that up! :)

I always used powder as it was easier but then recently cleaned out my machine's filter - it was gross loads of slimey gunk caused by the liquid, so I've now switched to powder and that works really well.

I dont use fabric softener at all and tend to use fairy or persil non bio powder..never had a problem at all.

I use tots bots and find they are a bit 'crunchy' once dry unless I give brief blast (30-40 mins) in the tumble dryer before hanging them over the banisters to dry!

Have you tried soap nuts? That's what I use, with a few drops of lavender oil in the rinse for a nice smell. Soap nuts are funny things; they are literally nut shells which you put in a litle bag in the wash and somehow they release soapy foam and actually work! They also leave things soft with no resudue, so great for nappies.