Washing baby clothes- goofy FTM question

zoopsiedaisy · November 2013

So I washed almost all of our clothes today. So many that we actually don't have room for everything if nothing is in the hamper. Any who...

It got me wondering...do you wash baby clothes separately from adult clothes? Different detergent? Which I've seem differnt opinions online about this. Or does it matter? It sounds a little silly, but what works best in your households? I'm sure it will be trial and error but I can really ruin some clothes!! Even with reading the tags. I don't want to take a lot of chances. My baby shouldn't have to go naked

Mamamonzo · November 2013

A lot of people use All free and clear and wash everyone's clothes together. There are special baby soaps but they are stupid expensive especially when you can use all for a fraction of the price!

KendraL86 · November 2013

I second All Free and Clear. I have sensitive skin and it's the only laundry detergent I can use. I wash the baby clothes in it, too. I just throw the baby outfits in with our clothes and wash as I normally would.

Rrrrrachel · November 2013

You should use the same for everyone, because whatever you use on one load is going to leave a residue and get on the next load, anyway. Also, yeah baby will be wearing their clothes but they'll have their face and mouth all over your clothes, so the separate detergent thing is double a moot point.

We use Charlie's soap, but we're smelly hippies.

zoopsiedaisy · November 2013

I like hearing real mom experiences so thanks ladies. I use arm and hammer and like it so I may try to stick with it or see of there is a free and clear version after reading this. My husband is outside with animals farming most of the day so I will probably wash his separate and should be now. So me and the babes clothes will go together and his separate, but same detergent. Boom!! Plan complete! I love getting answers. Thanks!!!!!

BR · November 2013

karissamonzo said:

A lot of people use All free and clear and wash everyone's clothes together. There are special baby soaps but they are stupid expensive especially when you can use all for a fraction of the price!

This is exactly what we do....use All Free & Clear and wash everyone's together.

Rrrrrachel · November 2013

We wash a lot of dirty work clothes (and cloth diapers), too, and I like to run a cycle periodically either empty or just with some old towels or something to clean the washer out. Hottest longest cycle with bleach in it is what I do, fwiw.

amhah09 · November 2013

We use Tide free & gentle and I've always washed baby clothes with ours. Well sometimes I do/have washed their clothes in their own load but it's the same detergent.

smashton14th · November 2013

We never changed our detergent ever when we had DD. We wash her clothes with ours. It has never been a problem. In the beginning when you need to clean the baby clothes and burp cloths that got spit up and poop all over them, you just throw in some of your clothes so that you can have a full load.
Hopefully this LO won't have sensitive skin either.

bacorrea · November 2013

I'm also a FTM but I already use All Free & Clear because I have crazy skin allergies. I plan on washing all the baby clothes in the same detergent as well (:

SunshineSarah12 · November 2013

I agree with everyone- All free & clear for everyone. Also I've learned for poop stains on shirts and pants etc I soak them in oxiclean free and clear for like a day then wash.

lilmama412 · November 2013

smashton14th said:
We never changed our detergent ever when we had DD. We wash her clothes with ours. It has never been a problem. In the beginning when you need to clean the baby clothes and burp cloths that got spit up and poop all over them, you just throw in some of your clothes so that you can have a full load.
Hopefully this LO won't have sensitive skin either.

This exactly. We used the same detergent we used before baby. It was never a problem

JamiesWife2010 · November 2013

We used All Free & Clear for the first year(our pre-baby detergent.) Last year I made a batch of homemade laundry detergent & we've all been using it.

I wash baby stuff separate from our clothes just because I'm lazy about folding/putting clothes away. It is easier to dig through separated baskets, haha

Sisimama10 · November 2013

I wash everyone's clothes together, but if I have baby clothes in the load I use all free and clear.

shawnsgirl06 · November 2013

All Free and Clear here also. There is nothing wrong with washing baby clothes with everyday adult clothes. I would never put my clothes or babies clothes in with DH work clothes. I have a larger family and everyone gets their own hamper and own load on laundry day so I never have to sort any laundry ( I consider this a huge time saver). If I have soiled baby clothes that I want to wash right away I usually put them in with a load of sheets or towels.

abbeylanecb · November 2013

I will use all free and clear and wash everything together. I will was DH's work clothes separate because he works at a chemical plant so who know what could be on there.

MrsL13 · November 2013

I still wash DD's clothes seperate from our clothes and she's 3. We use all free and clear detergent and dryer sheets. Only reason hers gets washed seperate is because most of DH's clothes are super nasty/smelly from work. I also rinse her clothes twice.

Sarahjess06 · November 2013

I washed my DS clothes separately for maybe a month. I still have the one bottle of dreft. We use all free and clear.

b-ruth · November 2013

We use All free and clear for everyone's clothes but I usually wash my sons separate. He has his own hamper in his room and it ends up being easier to sort his clothes and put them away in his room if they are separate from our stuff.

Mamaengen · November 2013

I washed and usually still wash my daughter's clothes separately from ours. This is mostly due to color bleeding. Hers seem to bleed a lot and I wear a lot of dark denim, which can bleed. When she was first born, I washed in Dreft bc someone have us a bottle at the shower, but I eventually began washing in our normal detergent when that bottle ran out. She had no allergies to it. At that time I was using original Gain. Today I make my own detergent and she has no allergies with it either. I think it's trial and error with each child's tolerance to things, but I don't plan to wash this baby's clothes in anything different unless its skin forces me to.

prettyinpink84 · November 2013

What is the homemade detergent? Is it ok for sensitive skin? I washed DS clothes in Dreft for the first yr and then throw them in with ours now. DH got the detergent last shopping trip and I don't even know what it is. All I know is detergent can get very expensive.

emanresu14 · November 2013

Dreft is the worst detergent for any being actually. It's graded the last "F" on this website's list- meaning it contains the most toxic ingredients of any detergent! Save your money and please don't bother with Dreft.

https://www.ewg.org/guides/cleaners/2943-DreftUltraLiquidLaundryDetergentforBabies018months

I usually make my own detergent, and will probably continue to do that. The powder actually is awesome for stains. If you have a front loader though, it's best to put it right in the drum.

patunia7321 · November 2013

@lalamama81 do you grate the bar and use it as a dry powder detergent?

I'd love to hear everyone's homemade detergent recipes, I've always wanted to try it out but never settled on how to go about it.

Rrrrrachel · November 2013

Most detergents say they're he compatible, now, but to my knowledge it's fine to use them in non he machines, too.

prettyinpink84 · November 2013

Wow that is scary! Thank you @LalaMama81 and @emanresu14. I had absolutely no idea! Can u imagine how many people use dreft and don't know like me... Thank you for the info.

zoopsiedaisy · November 2013

I made my own detergent last year and actually loved it. I used ivory soap instead if fels naphtha because of what was in that. I need to do that again for sure! Thanks for the reminder.

LEIGHLOVE09 · November 2013

I always wash DD's clothes separate from ours...we use Dreft for her which is different than what we use for ourselves.

fourthnlast · November 2013

I usually wash the baby stuff separate for the first time, but after that, it's all going in with the rest of our stuff. We're going to be a family of 6, combo laundry is a must!

AcaAwkward · November 2013

We've used a bunch of different detergents since DD's birth but they are all "gentle" and on the natural side of things... Charlie's Soap Powder, Rockin Green (for CDs), Method. Method is my favorite and that's what I'll likely stick with. I usually wash DD's clothes separately from ours just because I like to run hers on the gentle cycle - they seem to hold up better that way. I also use OxyClean Free (same exact thing as OxyClean Baby but they often mark that up in price purely because it's a "baby item") to soak stains.

prettyinpink84 · November 2013

Not to play devil's advocate, but I looked up ingredients for homemade laundry soap, and the 20 mule team borax got an F and fels naptha received a C. Just FYI fwiw

beautifulstr13 · November 2013

I never used any of the fancy soaps or detergents on DS's clothes and still don't. I do still wash his clothes separately but just because it's easier to throw his whole hamper in. That being said, a lot of kids do have reactions to certain soaps. If money isn't an issue I would buy at least one tub of the free and clear detergant and use it for a while.

LyndseyLC · December 2013

I have always washed dd clothes separate from ours use dreft for her and usually tide for us. But as soon as I use up what we have I am going to use the all free and clear and not worry about washing separate

LyndseyLC · December 2013

However when I wash hers I use cold cold and tumble dry low..

maelic · December 2013

As an FYI, if anyone is planning on using more natural detergents (like the ones you can buy at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, for example) be careful to avoid ones that have enzymes in them. They clean great but they are AWFUL for sensitive skin and it would be even worse for a baby's sensitive skin.

I have a plethora of bad allergies (all sorts of cleaning agents and dyes and fragrances) and use All Free and Clear, it really is the gentlest.

HNRomance · December 2013

I'll probably wash baby stuff separate and do a second rinse but my DH already has some skin issues so usually have to get free and clear detergent of some kind

emanresu14 · December 2013

prettyinpink84 said:
Not to play devil's advocate, but I looked up ingredients for homemade laundry soap, and the 20 mule team borax got an F and fels naptha received a C. Just FYI fwiw

I will likely skip the borax for baby clothes. I know it isn't recommended for CD, something in it breaks them down quicker. As for the fels, I feel a C is better than F. You could also make/grate your own soap if you would like to have more control over safety of ingredients.

The reason that the borax received an F is actually wrong- and it is not boric acid. It is sodium tetraborate, and for some reason EWG doesn't like borax. The amount of borax it takes to actually cause toxicity is crazy. It's still a chemical and something to keep away from kiddos and pets, like anything else. I feel better using this, as there is a lot more research/history on usage of borax/fels than products like Tide/Dreft. I'm not putting anyone down who uses these products. It's a personal decision one has to come to for their family. It is impossible to keep all toxins away, but every little bit helps in my eyes.

Washing baby clothes- goofy FTM question

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