Cloth nappies - a few questions

[sapkot]

I have recently started trying cloth nappies on my lo. I have a few questions -

1. Alternative to fleece liner - I used fleece liner but it seems to irritate my baby's skin. She got a rash, which went away in 2-3 days after I stopped using fleece liner. I've heard of silk liners. Anything else?
2. Please suggest some bamboo &/or cotton nappy brands. I have tried a few but all seem to have fleece liner inside
3. Prefolds / Muslins - Are they good for keeping the baby's bum dry if I don't use any liner on them?
4. Washing - This is how I wash the nappies. Please tell me if it is ok.
5. So I remove poop from the nappies. Rinse them under cold water / sometimes use soap to remove stains. Then every other day I wash using non-bio powder at 60 degrees for a 40 min cycle.
6. Then every few days I wash at 60 degrees, non bio powder longer cycle
7. Is this ok
8. Removing stains from nappies - I know stains is not dirty but I would still like to remove stains.
9. I soaked all the nappies in oxy powder for an hour. Then washed them on a normal cycle
10. Is soaking in oxy powder ok?
11. Drying nappies - I have a mix of nappies & most say it's safe to tumble dry them on low settings. I do that & then line dry inside house. Is that ok? Have you tumble-dried nappies? If yes, have they been ok in long run?

So sorry for so many questions. But there's so much stuff on the internet that it feels daunting. I hope some of you who use cloth nappies regularly can help me.

Thanks in advance a lot

Oops, not sure what happened to all the formatting. Hopefully, it's readable

You can get thin disposable liners which might work. Tumble drying isn't great as it can damage elastic etc over time,plus of course energy use. An underwear hanger (a frame with lots of clips) is very handy. I did a 30 degree wash with miofresh nappy sanitiser. Sunlight is amazing for stains, just hang out for longer than normal when the sun is out. The nappylady website has some great tips on care. I used totsbots which didn't have fleece but they may have changed. You may find separates (rather than pocket or all in one types) are less likely to have fleece.

I had a problem with fleece liners but found it was because I wasn’t using enough detergent. After strip washing it was better. Have you tried disposable liners? They manage a few washes but obviously not 100% waste free.
What kind of nappy do you want? My favourite all in ones are Motherease Unos which wick away moisture but aren’t fleece. Favourite two part is Bamboozle stretchies with Motherease airflow wrap.
How old is LO? I would only use muslins on a tiny baby. Muslins are bamboo or cotton so will feel wet to touch. No experience of prefolds.
I would wash nappies for MUCH longer. I don’t rinse the poo off as I go along. Obviously flick any major solids in the loo but don’t do any kind of rinsing afterwards. I dry pail. Then wash every 2-3 days. 30 minute cold rinse cycle in the machine (some people prefer to do a cool quick wash of an hour ish). Then 2.5 hour cycle at 60. I wash my nappies on a much shorter cycle than many people.
Sunlight for stains. The sun bleached. I have used oxybleach but tbh it’s a lot of hassle and can damage the nappies. I’ve never had a problem the odd time I’ve used it but I don’t make it a regular thing.
I never tumble. If I can’t dry out in the sun then I hung indoors, they can take a couple of days to dry, it depends on the brand, but never been an issue.

Based on your wash description I would imagine that the fleece liners have ammonia build up. Remember they are the dirtiest thing you will ever wash.

Blimey, I though cloth nappies were a thing of the past !
Thirty years later and I still have some that I use for washing the car and other jobs.
Can I ask if you are a SAHM OP ?

@blockpavingismynightmare I think cloth nappies have made a cult like resurgence and very different from the terries we were in! I know you didn’t ask me but I’m intrigued by the SAHM comment? How does that affect cloth nappy use? (FWIW I work full time and use cloth.)

I don't think oxy powder is recommended for nappies. If they're washed correctly there shouldn't really be any stains. I would recommend the nappy lady website or CCN (clean cloth nappies) websites for advice.

For washing they usually say a rinse which can be cold rinse and then to use the longest non-eco cycle (usually cotton's cycle) at 40 or 60, so it uses plenty of water and get the nappies really clean. You need to make sure the machine is filled what is called "loosely full". If you only have, say 6 nappies in there, they won't get cleaned properly because they need to rub together to clean. I used to bulk it out with clothes and things like flannels, tea towels, hand towels. Nothing too big.

You can get disposable liners, but it is surprising that fleece ones gave irritation as there's nothing in them. Is it possible the liners weren't washed properly so we're still a bit soapy as that can cause irritation.

I really liked tots bots nappies, you can use any liner.

I have two friends who cloth bum. One is a teacher, the other is a nurse in a GP surgery. Neither are SAHMs but somehow manage to keep on top of the laundry... I'm hoping I can do the same with current pregnancy 🤞🏼

Cloth nappies have had a big resurgence for environment and cost reasons. There are a lot more options, good cleaning products, and some lovely patterns. For me, apart from an extra wash or two per week, they weren't any more effort than disposables but there were lots of benefits.

@TokenGinger you’ll be fine, you just get into a rhythm. And I’m very disorganised.

You didn't answer my question.

I used Terry nappies for my first two. When the third was born and I returned to work it became impossible. I very reluctantly started using pampers and never looked back.
I gave being 'green' my best shot but working and steeping and boiling and drying and fluffing up are the job of a SAHM wich is why I asked the question !

We don’t get nappy stains at all. Daily quick wash at 40 with bio and a scoop of oxy then long wash at 60 every few days with bio. Clean Cloth Nappies has always had the best wash routine, my friend uses the nappy lady’s routine and gets terrible stains and is always ‘stripping’ them.

Our favourite nappies are Petite Crown, no fleece at all. Mostly use their swim pockets because they have a great mesh lining but also their packa nappies which are suede cloth. Their Trima nappies are bamboo from memory.

Cubs n Foal are having a closing down sale starting today with minimum 50% off everything- code is CLOTHROCKS50. Might help!

@blockpavingismynightmare the days of boiling nappies are long gone. Nappy “technology” and laundry facilities have moved on. MIL, who used terries for DH, tells stories of being up until the early hours boiling nappies. She had three under 2 and worked too!

None of this is answering the OPs questions. Very odd derailing of the thread.

I'm new to cloth nappies myself OP so can't offer much but have heard that tumble drying can affect their long term waterproofing so that could be one to beware of ☺️

There was always something really nice about folding a nappy and pinning it on. I remember those times.
Hats off to those who do but hats off to any mums no matter what they do.

Sorry I can't help - I was just about to post the exact same thing though. I'm lost on what brand to get and what I'll need!

Give the fleece liners another shot, could have been just coincidence.

When I used to use cloth nappies I just washed with non bio on my machine's baby care setting. I think it went at 60. No steeping or adding anything else. No stains because they would have been on the fleece liner but that doesn't stain.

www.thenappylady.co.uk/

This site is great for advice, especially the questionnaire . Also your council might give a voucher to buy some.

They’re super old school but I swear by motherease Sandy’s. I used those, the classic organic cotton totsbots (I did have some bamboozles for night, they’re pretty great), closer pop-in bamboo (I think they’re called that), and I had a few kissaluvs in a small size. Some friends used the Lambs ones, Little Lambs? Seemed quite like tots bots.

I also have a few pocket types, but I found they leaked more that the cotton two parters. So if I had to do it again, the ones above would be my choices.

@sapkot, my youngest is 11 (near enough), but I used to soak my nappies in Napisan to remove stains.

My favourite brand was Tots Bots. I had some bamboo liners, but I can't remember where from. I was fairly nonchalant about fleece liners. I used disposable ones, but realised (accidentally) that they stood up to washing at least once!

@blockpavingismynightmare - I used cloth for both children (now 11 & 14), whilst working. Wasn't a problem at all, massive cost and waste saving.

Good for you. I wasn't judging at all !

Used terries but second a long wash. With whites I put in oxygen bleach 30c quick wash. Then normal long wash with non bio at 60c.

All babies get nappy rash. I've laid mine on old towel and let the air circulate at times

Daily pre wash with half dose detergent then every 3 days 3 hour wash at 40 with Ariel bio (1.5 times usual dose of detergent) and extra rinse. Never had a single stain. No idea why the U.K. is obsessed with non bio detergent that doesn’t exist in most of the world. No evidence it is any better for skin but lots of evidence that it’s less good for getting dirt and stains out!

You don’t need to soak nappies in anything.

Tumbling fine for anything that doesn’t have plastic/waterproof fabric on (don’t tumble PUL).

I liked little lamb bamboo nappies and bamboozle stretch for nights.

That rash might have been due to your wash routine. As others said, decent rinse cycle first to remove all nasties. At this point, mine are actually fundamentally clean. Then your longest eco wash at 40. Don't use too much powder! To be safe, an extra rinse at the end to remove excess soap. You can check if you're using too much soap by watching the drum at the end before it starts to spin. If you can see soap suds, you've used too much. I'd be surprised if there was a reaction to the fleece itself. All that scrubbing before you start isn't necessary. I never pre rinsed mine by hand. Let the washing machine do it for you.