Laundry
I know we discussed this many, many months ago, but I just can't find the posts and now that DD is eating solids, it's become rather pressing in our house.
I wash DDs clothes in TJ's version of 7th Generation laundry detergent in warm water. I've been using it for years and it works fine on the adult clothing. For the first few months it got out baby poop and spit up stains but now that we are eating solids it doesn't always get everything out. I've tried pre-treating all the stains with OxiClean in the spray bottle, liquid detergent (also TJs seventh generation knock-off) and now spray and wash mega and still not everything is coming out.
Does anyone have a stain removal system that works for them? I'm trying to get better at dealing with the stains as they happen instead of waiting a few hours/days but it just isn't always possible. I hate ruining clothes - and not just DDs, mine too, since it never fails that some of her food winds up on me. (She just loves helping to hold the spoon and I can only avoid her so long...)
 |
| From December 29, 2011 |
Re: Laundry
For poop stains, I put OxiClean Baby directly on the stain, leave it for five minutes or so and then put the clothes in the washer with a quarter scoop or so of OxiClean Baby powder, the regular amount of detergent (Tide Free) and water. I let the clothes soak in that combo for ten minutes and then wash. I also check to see if the stain is out before I put the item in the dryer. If the stain isn't out, I repeat the process.
This process usually works for me, but then again, DS isn't yet on solids. We'll see if it holds up in a couple of weeks.
I am no pro with stain removal but one thing that seems to work relatively well for me is that I keep a bucket of water mixed with a scoop of Baby OxiClean powder in our utility sink. Whenever something gets poop or spit up on it during the week, I put it in the bucket of water and swish it around with the hopes that the stain won't set. Then when I do laundry on Sundays, I throw everything from the bucket in the washer. It doesn't work every time but it at least keeps me from having to do laundry during the week.
I keep a bucket on top of the dryer filled with a mixture of water and baby OxiClean. I put her dirty clothes in it ASAP, and I toss the clothes in the washing machine every few days. Like pp said, it doesn't work every time, but it has gotten out the majority of stains (even formula stains after going through the dryer). Good luck!
We just the dye and perfume free ALL for He washers as the detergent. My sister is the queen of getting out stains and here are the best tips I got from her. Use the Shout advanced gel in the bottle - this gets out a lot of my stains that nothing else ever did. Use the gel immediately and it can sit until you do laundry for basic stains - I let it sit at least a day for the enzymes to do their work. Check for the stains when it comes out of the wash and do not dry if still stained, just retreat and use a toothbrush to really get in there and then wash on hot if the stain is really stubborn.
Also if you have a white shirt with embroidery or something else on it that you can't bleach you can use the clorox bleach pen to spot treat. This has saved so many Gymboree shirts for us that have that cute embroidery but Maggie stained them - used the clorox bleach pen, rubbed it in with toothbrush, washed with other whites and there was no errant bleaching, just the treated stains came out.