Your Brand New Nappies
For new any brand new nappies that you buy, you should wash them at least 2-3 times before use to remove any fabric coatings used by manufacturers and to bump up their absorbency. Certain fabrics, like hemp and bamboo, will usually need at least 5-6 washes beforehand, however you can use them after 2-3 washes, just be aware that they won’t be ‘at their best’.
With all pre-washes, it is important to follow the usual washing instructions, however there is no need to dry the nappies in between each wash. Also note that you might want to wash deep or darkly coloured nappies separately to lighter/white nappies for the first few washes to ensure the dye doesn’t run!
Storing Dirty Nappies
When a nappy is soiled, dispose of any pooh down the toilet by either flushing your disposable liner or sluicing the reusable liner in the flush.
Modern washing machines are very efficient and so the days of soaking of terry nappies are past and nappies can be 'dry pailed' without soaking solution in a lidded bucket or a waterproof wet bag. You can still soak if you wish, however please do note that some PUL wraps may not last so well if soaked. It is important if choosing to soak to keep the bucket out of reach of young children (ideally use one with a lockable lid) and change the soaking solution frequently.
A nappy mesh can be used inside a bucket to reduce handling of the nappies and, if you are soaking, can help with the draining of the bucket before changing the soaking solution or before washing. When your bucket is full (or you want/need to do a wash!) pop the mesh open into the machine to allow the nappies to tumble out when washing. A few drops of tea tree oil or lavender oil on a muslin cloth in the bucket can be included to minimise smells.
Washing Your Nappies
So – you have your pile of dirty nappies ready to wash? Excellent! First off, spot treat any stains as you wish to – many mums I have spoken to swear by the Vanish bar. Next, make sure you have secured any aplix fastenings either together (with the nappy turned inside out works best) or attach to laundry tabs if your nappies have them. Ideally, you’ll get into the habit of doing this before popping the nappy in the bucket and so save yourself that extra task come wash time.
Most nappies wash at 40 or 60oC, and you only need use between one third to one half of the usual amount of non-biological detergent you normally would to prevent build up of the detergent in the nappies. (In hard water areas you may need to experiment to find the level of detergent that is effective for you.) I used 2 tblsps of Fairy Non Bio.
Do NOT use fabric conditioner, as this coats the fibres of the nappies and drastically reduces absorbency (not something you want!). If you are concerned about your nappies going a bit hard, try using a splash of white vinegar in the conditioner drawer (don’t worry, your nappies will NOT smell vinegary). This is especially good for hard water areas. You can add a few drops of a chosen essential oil to the drawer too, if you wish.
There is only one type of combined detergent and conditioner that can be used for nappy washes, so if you’re really struggling to maintain softness you may want to give it a try – it is Bold 2 in 1, and it is a clay based softener and so shouldn’t coat the fabrics in the same way as regular conditioners.
All of your boosters and reusable liners should be suitable for laundering together, however if you do very hot washes do keep any bamboo separate as heat cooks the fibres and makes it less effective. Nappy wraps (except wool wraps) can generally be included with the cloth nappy wash.
You may wish to do a prewash or cold rinse cycle prior to the main cycle if you dry pail your nappies, or if they are particularly soiled as this helps remove stains when hot water can sometimes set them.
For wool nappy wraps, hand wash using wool shampoo and re-lanolise afterwards by soaking in a dilute solution of wool cure (lanoliser) overnight. Air dry wool nappy outers without rinsing the lanolin from the fabric. Wool wraps do not require washing and lanolising after each use - just air dry and reuse then wash every one to two weeks or sooner if the waterproof properties fail.
Drying Your Nappies
Air drying cloth nappies is the most environmentally friendly option (if that’s the reason you got into cloth in the first place) but for me, best of all, it’s free! An airier or ceiling rack can be used for winter, or almost every season in this country when sun without rain is a rarity and so line drying is difficult! Don’t put PUL nappy wraps, pocket/all in two outers or all in one nappies directly on a radiator as their waterproof properties may be affected, and the same goes for tumble drying them.
A tumble dryer on a low heat can generally be used for nappies (however, you should always check washing instructions label). Tumble drying occasionally can be an effective way to soften up nappies that have hardened slightly. You CAN also do this manually by banging the nappies against a wall or pretending to ring out a dry nappy and rubbing the fibres together, too!
Stains and Smells
I was recommended the usual Vanish bar for stains and it works a treat. Also, for some reason hanging nappies on the line will bleach out stains (or you can pop them on a windowsill in direct sunlight)…I have no idea why this works, but it ACTUALLY does.
Sometimes nappies can become a bit whiffy. Often, this is due to a build of detergent in the fabric, and never fear, there is a simple solution known as a ‘strip wash’. This basically means doing a hot wash with your nappies with a normal amount of detergent, and you can add a sanitiser if you like although there is no actual need. Then do a quick wash or rinse with no detergent, and then keep the machine on rinse (most ladies report that on average it takes around 3 rinses) until you can see NO bubbles in the machine. It’s this rinsing until there are no bubbles that ‘strips’ the nappies of any build up. Some like to do a strip wash every month, others only when the nappies get whiffy – you can be the judge!
