Are we really supposed to wash baby clothes in cold water???

Lexi333

Half the baby clothes I have are "wash in cold water" and the other half are "wash in warm water."  I really can't see the difference in material they are made of.  I don't mind washing in cold water for the first wash before the baby wears the clothes.   However, this doesn't seem very practical once the baby wears the clothes and they are in heavy rotation.  So what is the deal?  Is "wash in cold water" just something the manufacture prints on labels for safety sake?

Oh I should also mention that I (obviously) have no kids and this is my first pregnancy.  And I don't really don't own any "baby outfits" only onesies and pajama style footed rompers with long sleeves.

 Thanks in advance:) 

mrsgabus

<shrugs> Ive always used cold or warm and never thought about it.

msjcordova

IMO we put to much thought into how we wash and what we wash baby clothes in. I just washed them with our other clothes with nothing special.

kls621

I always wash my DS clothes in cold water, I have found the stains come out better. Plus, there is less shrinkage. I use free/clear detergent and I do wash his clothes separate from ours right now, but I can get a good load once a week of just his clothes. I plan on doing the same for this LO.

bre86ann

I wash everything in cold to keep colors from bleeding too much and prevent shrinkage....but that's just me.

aleksmar

bre86ann:

I wash everything in cold to keep colors from bleeding too much and prevent shrinkage....but that's just me.

This. I find it's better for the environment too, because it saves energy in heating up the water. I use a free and clear detergent and wash baby stuff with the rest of our clothes...
AND if you have some extra space, why don't you line dry it too? Then it surely won't shrink

Pinaysis86

bre86ann:

I wash everything in cold to keep colors from bleeding too much and prevent shrinkage....but that's just me.

This. Also cold water is more energy efficient for those who care about being green

backinpgh

Is there some reason you really want to use warm or hot water? I've washed all my clothes in cold for years without any issues.

shortstuff15

msjcordova:

IMO we put to much thought into how we wash and what we wash baby clothes in. I just washed them with our other clothes with nothing special.

This is what we do now.  At the begining she had enough clothes to do her own load multiple times a week, but now it's once a week with our clothes!  I hate washing in cold though because I don't feel it gets the clothes clean enough.

2-Step

Ditto on cold for everything. I only use hot for our bath towels and socks because they tend to get kind of musty sometimes in the hamper. Otherwise it is cold for everything.

I actually do all DS's clothes in one load once a week. It makes it so much easier than sorting out tiny baby clothes in between our clothes, and I just don't have time to run 3 loads of seperate baby clothes for colors, whites etc. All his clothes look great.

Remember that they only wear most baby sizes for 3 months max, sometimes quite a bit less. Even at this age DS is only wearing clothes for maybe 6 months so it's not like they need to last for years of washings.

baby3ob

cold for everything

i typically only use warm / hot for towels, sheets and my jeans (towels/sheets bc i read somewhere once that it's better for getting out bacteria ... who knows) and then warm for jeans to keep the color.

[Deleted User]

I wash everything in cold too, and on gentle cycle, so I don't have to separate anything.

MrsClark8109

Ive heard stains are less likely to set in cold water. Also, I've noticed alot of baby clothes are white with bright colors...maybe it helps prevent the colors from dingy-ing up the white???

Only other thing I can think of is shrinkage, to prevent shrinking so clothes dont get smaller as LO gets bigger...

mabma80

I've always washed everybody's clothes in cold water. I use Tide Coldwater.  Saves energy and $$.  Plus, warm water shrinks everything and I hate it!  I'll be doing the same with LO's clothes. Wash in cold, but it will be seperate from everyone's else's clothes.  

We don't seperate colors and whites. I just throw everything in there and wash it.   

dadonet

I read that cold helps wash out detergent better so its better for babys skin if you use cold. 

sweetep15

bre86ann:

I wash everything in cold to keep colors from bleeding too much and prevent shrinkage....but that's just me.

This. And it saves energy. Plus out hot water heater is somewhat small so I try not to hog it all up doing laundry.

Temp574971250006741

I wash all my clothes in cold water. To be honest never paid attention tot he tags lol.

Cilley

It depends on the clothes. If they are really nice, I will wash in cold and separate whites and colors if it calls for it. But in general, I wash clothes in warm.

emmyloustu

I wash everything in cold, except whites, sheets and towels.

vanessrose

I had about 3 loads to wash between crib sheets blankets and clothes..I just used warm water with All free and clear det. Dryed them on med heat. I washed seperately than our other clothes and will continue that.

KRISTA555

I never did. And I only used the free detergent until my DD was about 3 months old. Then I started washing all the clothes together. She's never had a problem.

Do what you want.

Ritzy19

Personally, I wash all our clothes in cold water regardless of what the tag says.  I've had too many things shrink on me from using warm water (even when the tag says to wash them in warm).

mpstochlinski8

I dont have babies here yet but have their clothes, I've washed them all in cold with baby ganics and hung them to dry, then just a quick no heat fluff in dryer to soften them. some of the clothes were new some hand me downs, I plan to keep theirs separate and stick to cold water washes.

Lexi333

Thanks everyone for your advice!  I guess I was just thinking with all the projectile vomit and poop I've been lead to believe I should expect that all the baby clothes should be washed in hot water...to better kill bacteria.  I usually wash most of my clothes in cold water, with the exception of underwear, gym clothes, sheet, and towels, which I wash in hot water to kill bacteria.

Thanks again for all of your sound advice:)

 

RadicalDreamer143

This was an enlightening thread.  I've always been told to wash light colors in warm, darks and brights in cold, and whites in hot (which I let soak with oxy clean).  Been working for me for almost two decades.  The only things I switched up when I had a child is not using fabric softener except for our sheets, and using vinegar instead.

Lexi333

RadicalDreamer143:

This was an enlightening thread.  I've always been told to wash light colors in warm, darks and brights in cold, and whites in hot (which I let soak with oxy clean).  Been working for me for almost two decades.  The only things I switched up when I had a child is not using fabric softener except for our sheets, and using vinegar instead.

 

Thanks RadicalDreamer!  I like the idea of soaking stuff in oxy clean....I bet that would kill some germs.  My mom suggested soaking freshly vomited and pooped on baby things in bleach to kill germs, but I'm bleach-phobic.

llamakins

I washed all my baby clothes in cold water and hung to dry to avoid shrinking. It shouldn't matter warm or cold for the washing.

beautiflaw

Probably its to keep them from shrinking and the colors from bleeding or fading. I wash everything in cold water except for white towels. Colors last longer and there's little to no shrinking.

RadicalDreamer143

beautiflaw:

Probably its to keep them from shrinking and the colors from bleeding or fading. I wash everything in cold water except for white towels. Colors last longer and there's little to no shrinking.

See, what I noticed over the years was if I avoided using Oxyclean on whites (I never use bleach, and bleach + Oxyclean = fumes), my whites became gray.  As for my colors, I just use some Clorox 2 for colors, which does a fantastic job on my darks (which are in cold anyway), and my lights don't fade/shrink at all in warm water (I can attest to this, since I still have some clothing from when I was in college, and I am now 32) that is in perfectly fine condition.

So a more elaborate answer would be:
Darks/Brights = cold, reg detergent, Clorox2, whichever rinse I choose
Lights = warm, a little oxyclean, whichever rinse I choose
Whites = hot, oxyclean soak, vinegar rinse
Non-white towels = cold, vinegar rinse

BettyBookworm

I wash in warm water mostly. The only thing I do differently for the clothes that I am preparing for Abby is the little mittens/socks (newborn size) I put in a mesh bag with my delicates. That way they don't get stuck between the door boot, gasket & washtub of my front loading washer.

I can't even tell you how many baby socks I fished out of drain pumps when I was working in the field (repair technician for laundry/kitchen). Its a very common occurrence and can be expensive for the drain pump repair!

Sorry about the randomness of that little bit, but its related to washing baby clothes.