Cloth Nappy Wash Routine

It's #RealNappyWeek so let's chat about washing routines and the importance of getting the right detergent. There are so many great and informative posts out there about wash routines but everybody's is a little different, and the more people showing how easy it is means that, hopefully, more people might consider making the switch to cloth. ♻️



We keep our routine pretty simple, you don't need to do anything fancy. What you DO need is to find the longest wash on your machine that uses the most water - modern machines are clever and try and be as energy efficient as possible which is fab for most laundry but cloth needs lots of water and agitation to get hygienically clean. (Please remember the washing of reusable nappies still has a FAR lower impact on our planet than the manufacturing of disposables, let alone the consequences they create in landfill.) 🌎 You also want to get hold of a non bio detergent powder (this doesn't have to be fancy - I've genuinely found supermarket is the most effective for this job.) Powder detergent washes in and out of the fibres more effectively than liquid, which can cause a little bit of build up. Don't use fabric softener as, like with towels, it can reduce absorbency. You can use an optional laundry/nappy cleanser - I like to as I find it helps prevent stains particularly during the winter. Whatever I use, I ensure it's cruelty free. This doesn't cost extra - many supermarkets like Aldi and Sainsbury's don't test on animals and some are even Leaping Bunny certified. 🐇

With all that said, here's our wash routine! 💧
💙 After taking the nappy off, any poo goes down the loo. Any laundry tabs/Velcro are folded in so it doesn't catch on other laundry, any inserts are pulled out with pocket nappies, and the lot goes into our wet bag/nappy bucket, including the wipes.
💙 When it's wash day (for us that's every 2 days) everything goes into the washing machine including the bag.
💙 First I do a cold rinse wash with no detergent. This flushes the nappies through, gets rid of dirty water, and prevents stains setting.
💙 Next I put them on the longest wash I can - usually at 40 degrees, 60 if I feel we need to for any reason (illness/buildup) Using powder detergent (the appropriate amount for the load as per the box instructions) and a scoop of nappy cleanser (I use Miofresh - this is totally optional)
💙 We have an extra rinse option, I use this to help wash out any residual powder to prevent build-up.

And that's it! It's so easy to get nappies feeling clean, fresh and good as new. Newbies - does it make cloth seem more approachable? Cloth mamas, how similar is your routine? 💧