Who knew? Seriously, who knew that you need to research to find the perfect laundry detergent for cloth diapers? I imagined that this would be a quasi-easy process, just Google Search laundry detergent and cloth diapers, find answer, travel to the store, buy the detergent and presto-- clean diapers. It has been a weekend long process. Last night I Googled the laundry detergents and came up with at least 10 pages worth of links. I started looking and right away noticed a lot of contradictions. Some people LOVE specific brands, others hate them....it depends on the washer you own, the type of water you have, and your baby's skin sensitivity. The problem is with the detergent's additives, they can break down the diaper over time or cause it to leak. At that point, the owner of the diapers would have to "strip" the diapers through a process of using a bleach alternative (because bleach is bad) or vinegar or a lot of hot water and Dawn (the same Dawn that you would use on your dishes).
For me, it was trying to find a brand that was cheap, sold in the local market, and additive free. So far the additive free seem to have issues of their own (most have additives of some sort...so much for the "free" thing) and are not cheap. Most websites suggest that you order an online brand of laundry detergent. It is some what humorous to read through other people's trials with their detergents (although one woman managed to finagle a new laundry machine). From my research I have determined that it really doesn't matter what you use as long as I fill the washer with water and use a 1/4 of the recommended amount of detergent, and any type I choose should be OK. I am trying to figure out which supermarket brand I am going to use, I have it down to two choices a "free and clear" and a "sensitive skin", I'll let you know what I decide and how they work out . I am guessing that there will be a future post about how to strip cloth diapers of the additives that detergents leave behind (and how long it takes to order detergent online)!
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