Cloth Diapers: How to Wash

Other Considerations

Cloth Diaper No-No's
-Too much detergent can build up (aka not wash out completely) in the diaper and make the diaper less absorbent.
-The wrong diaper rash creams can also build up in the diapers and get difficult to fully wash out (also affecting absorbency).
-Not all detergents are created equally for cloth. Some have too many chemicals and additives and can harm the cotton.  Never use any scented products or products with softeners.  Don't use dryer sheets if you plan to dry in the dryer.

Amount of Water
When washing cloth diapers, you need a lot of water to really clean the diapers and remove any pee/poo residue, detergent buildup, and diaper rash cream (if you use it).  The HE machines today don't use as much water as you need to thoroughly clean a cloth diaper.  Since a load of diapers is usually smaller (and therefore lighter in weight) than a normal load, the machine senses that and does not add as much water.   Great for normal, less-soiled clothes, but not good for soiled diapers.  
Solution: Find out what machine setting adds the most water.  Use that for the rinse cycle at least.  For my machine, that is the HAND WASH setting/heavy soil setting/low spin speed.  (I discovered this by trial and error and by doing a little reading on other blogs, because unfortunately, on my machine, it wasn't clear).
If you are lucky to have a washer that has an "ADD WATER" setting, use it!  If not, like mine, I add 2 soaking wet bath towels to the load.  The wet towels make the washer think there is more laundry in the machine than there actually is, and it will add more water!  

Hard Water
If you have hard water like I do, you'll need to tweak your wash routine to compensate.  The minerals in the hard water build up in cloth diapers and over time, the diapers will become less absorbent and you'll probably notice they smell immediately after baby pees.
Solution:  Some people may use an additive like Calgon their wash to soften the water.  I have never done this and can't say whether or not it works.  From my experience, what works with our hard water is a detergent with some chemical cleaner...AHHH, you might think!  But they are designed to break up stains.  We use regular Tide Powder.  It works great!  We haven't had to strip our diapers in over 5 months.

Detergents
There are some detergents that cloth diaper users swear by.  You can do a search to find lists of cloth diaper-safe detergents.  I tried Ecos Free and Clear, a brand recommended by a friend, and I found that it didn't work at all.  But my friend uses it and it works great for her.  What works for you truly depends on your washer and your water.  I've read that a powder works well on hard water for some reason.  Maybe it gets in there to break up the stains differently than a liquid.  In any case, you may use a different detergent than someone else, and that's fine!  Just make sure that your diapers don't have any bad smell after washing!  I also should mention that you may need to wash several times to figure out how much detergent works.  Too much and it could build up in the diapers.  Too little and they don't get clean.  Maybe I didn't use enough of the Ecos.  But Tide worked so well for us, and we could get it at any store with coupons, so that's what I went for.  

Standard Washing Maching vs. HE Washing Machine
Some cloth diaper users prefer older machines that don't conserve the amount of water in each wash based on load weight. I've heard of people that have a separate standard washer dedicated to diapers.  You can find them on Craigslist.  I think a lot of people would agree that a standard top-loading washing machine is easier to use than an HE machine because they use more water and allow you to more easily adjust water levels. 

If you have any questions, let me know.  I'm happy to help troubleshoot problems with your routine.  Please add a comment if you have any good washing advice! 

You may have noticed that this post is out of order!  Click below to read the first part in this 3-part Cloth Diaper series, The Cost Savings.  Stay tuned for Part 2: What to Buy!