Washing nappies

[bigmomma1]

My baby is now 15 weeks and I have finally taken the plunge and started to use reusable nappies. I'm just getting a bit worried about washing them! I've been advised to store them in a dry bucket, but does that mean even the soiled ones? Baby is breasft fed so poo still watery and not staying on liners. Do I rinse the poo off before washing? Also, is it ok for hygiene and plumbing to rinse baby poo down the sink in the bathroom? Can't believe I'm asking these things but I'm feeling quite flustered! Also, is cotton wool flushable?

Just my experience... Cotton wool - went in bin. Dirty nappies - got as much as possible off down loo, including wiping off excess if necessary, then rinse and put in dry bucket. We put a wash on every 2 days with a nappy sanitiser added to normal washing powder. Hope it goes well!

with newborn poo I just chucked them in the wash without rinsing , and several others on here have admitted the same thing

don't flush cotton wool (though I used re-usable wipes)

Wash in machine with half the usual amount of detergent and put some vinegar in the softener bit of the draw

I wouldn't rinse in the sink - wipe off what you can, then if necessary hold the soiled nappy (firmly!) in the flush to rinse off as much off as possible before putting it in the bucket.

if you do rinse them you could hold them under water that comes out when you flush the loo (I wouldn't put any kind of poo down sinks just because you might get bits in the sink rather than just down the plug and I could't be arsed cleaning the sink every time)

I have an old blunt knife that I keep in the bathroom (out of childrens reach obviously!!). I use this for when the poo doesn't fall off the fleece liner as easily as it should or when it 'escapes' the edges of the paper liner. That way none goes down the sink, and not too much remains on the nappy before it is washed - just scrape it down the loo. Rinse kinfe quickly under tap afterwards.

I also use the sanitiser in the machine and dry pail the nappies.

I've tried various ways (wet pailing, rinsing, dry pailing etc) and with bf poo the best thing imo is dry pail, no scraping etc as it just dissolves in washing machine. I wash nappies separately mostly and put them through a rinse first then main wash with a little detergent, sometimes a sanitiser. I've just discovered what a difference sunlight makes in getting rid of stains - miraculous!

Dry pailing is easier IME, I occassionally soak but it's a PITA getting them into the washing machine without dripping bucket juice on the floor and down the front of the washing machine plus I don't really find the soaking makes the washing any more effective. So yes, dry pail - even the soiled ones.

You can rinse the poo off before putting them in the bucket, if it doesn't come off then either hold the liner tightly while flushing the loo to rinse it or just chuck it in the bucket as it is - it will come out in the washing machine wash easily. I wouldn't rinse in the bathroom sink because the way the sink is plumbed is not desinged to flush waste away as effectively as the toilet so bits may very well get stuck in the pipes!

Cotton wool is not flushable - I would say you'd probably find using reusable wipes easier - you don't need to make up a solution for them if you don't want to you can just hold one under a warm tap when you need it - then add it to the nappy bin and treat as a nappy. You don;t have to buy special fabric if you don;t want to - just cut up and old sheet.

If you are concerned about putting very soiled nappies in your machine you can always run a quick cold rinse before your proper wash - doesn't use up much energy at all.

btw - I wash at 40C without any sanitiser and only 1/2 the amount of detergent (if that!)