He top loaders

Milagros315

Who else has one of these? I'm still trying to figure out which CDs I want to buy, how I need to wash them and what type of detergent we need. There's so much conflicting information out there. I'm getting frustrated and I haven't even starting CDing yet.

Mostly I'll be using cotton fitteds and prefolds. I also want to try Best Bottoms. Originally I bought the microfiber inserts, but I read that the synthetic fibers are more difficult to clean especially with a top loader so I was planning to exchange them for the hemp inserts. Then I found a post regarding my specific washer (Whirlpool Cabrio, not the newer one) and they said "hemp sucks". WTF. Now I'm not sure. It seems easier to just have mostly natural fibers, but the hemp inserts are more expensive and I don't want to spend the money if they're going to be a pain in the ass to clean.

It also seems like everyone uses Tide powder, but I've also seen that liquid is better for He top loaders/hard water. Has anyone tried both types?

I'm so confused. If anyone has a good routine for this type of washer (bonus points for hard water), I would be so grateful to hear it!

TJ1979

First off, I love your dogs.

Secondly, congrats.

Finally, please don't use liquid detergent.  And relax a little bit... it's just laundry.

bumpuser9353653

I can actually help here!

We have the Whirlpool Cabrio, bought new 4 yrs ago. And we have "moderately hard water" according to the county water supply.

I started off using liquid f&c detergent, and after about 8 months or so, started getting stink issues from buildup. So STAY AWAY from liquid f&c. I made the switch to powder. We do a combo of homemade powder with Tide Original, and sometimes I just use Tide if that load is particularly smelly.

We have a combo of pockets, sbish, and Best Bottom hemp. Microfiber is the devil. I haven't had any issues with the hemp.

I've had to play with the detergent amount a bit, but that happens no matter what washer you have.

My routine is: quick wash (warm) no detergent, whites cycle (hot) with detergent up to line 2 of the Tide scoop. The extra rinse is already included in the whites cycle. All rinses are cold on the Cabrio.

bumpuser9353653

Oh, and we used cotton fitteds (workhorses) for the first couple months with #2, and they washed up really well.

Brandiewine11

Really, try not to stress so much. It will be just fine!

Natural fibers are so much easier to clean than MF. I'm pretty sure this is true no matter what kind of machine you have. Liquid detergent seems to cause lots of problems, so stick with a powder.  Tide already has some softeners in it, so you could start there if you want. Otherwise, there are lots of other "CD safe" detergents you can try. If you have hard water you may have to a softener like Calgon to those, but thats no big deal.

Your wash routine should be simple - some kind of rinse/spin or quick wash with no detergent, either cold or warm, then a hot wash - the longer the better, followed by an extra rinse. You can adjust from there if you have any issues.

Welcome, and good luck!

Rrrrrachel

I have one and I like it a lot. I do a warm express wash no detergent. Then a long hot wash with charlies soap and an extra rinse. Mine doesn't use much water to wash but uses a ton to rinse.

Milagros315

Thank you @TJ1979‌! And thanks for reminding me to relax. It is just laundry.

Thank you @rugbymama‌! I'm so glad to hear that someone else uses the same washer with no issues. That's so helpful!

Thank you to @Brandiewine11‌ and @Rrrrrachel‌ as well!

gsancho

Hope you don't mind me piggy backing a question @Milagros315 ...

So does the type of wash matter much?  We have a super old washer...like embarrassing, probably from the 90s washer.  It's never failed us, but we're debating just getting a new one, especially if we CD.  I hear a lot about the detergent to use, but am having a hard time finding threads about the importance of the washer.

TJ1979

Actually @gsancho old school washers are better for CD laundry than the new HEs.  They use more water and have better agitation.