Need to prep my stash and IDK what i'm doing. helpmeplease!

LGator2484 · December 2014

so I'm sure this has been discussed at length before, but I've spent the last hour googling and sifting through old posts and I'm still confused! So i'm sorry, but please, help a sister out...

I got my newborn stash a few months ago, and its time for me to get them prepped for baby. Most of what I have is used, but some is new. And I have an assortment of: GMD prefolds, workhorses, kissa fitteds, CB pockets (new), BG aio's, simplex (new), rumparoos aios, thirsties & bummis covers, and imagine aio's (new).

How do I prep?

Based on my research, I'm thinking I need to do everything with a PUL cover separate and without bleach (or maybe just a tablespoon?) and wash in hot water, then cold water, then rinse rinse rinse? And the prefolds/fitteds wash with 1/4 cup bleach & hot water, wash again in cold water, and rinse rinse rinse.

Orrrrrr....

Put everything in a bathtub with hot water and dawn overnight, then rinse and wash everything together?

Or vinegar??

Do I need to do something different with the new dipes than the used ones? The simplex said it only needs to be washed once prior to use, but I thought I had to do more than that?

And what goes in dryer, what's better to hang dry? Drying them out in the sun is probably not an option bc I live in the northeast and its winter and I don't want popsicle diapers.

I'm so afraid of ruining my beloved stash, which is why I've procrastinated washing up until this point.

Smallllmin · December 2014

I'm new here, so you might not want to listen to me... but this sounds way too complicated.
I just do a regular cloth diaper wash when I get a new AIO or pocket.

mariek312 · December 2014

I was freaked out about this too but it can be pretty straight forward. Im not a seasoned pro but this is what I did and nothing bad happened

If the diaper is made with microfiber, it only needs a wash or 2 to be prepped. If it's new cotton/bamboo/hemp material (even if attached to PUL) it needs 5. All with hot water, drying in between and I use a bit of detergent. For the drying use low heat if the cover/waterproof part can't be detached and air dried. If it's all absorbent parts, high heat. To add to the process remember that the natural fibers like cotton/hemp/bamboo need to be prepped separately from the microfiber but can we washed together after prepping. Prepping helps it all reach full absorbency. If what you need is to strip or sanitize used diapers then I'm no help. Good luck!

TJ1979 · December 2014

First split new and used. For new stuff, wash synthetics once, and natural fibers 5 times. I really encourage washing with your sheets, towels, and white clothes so you don't waste water or time.
Used stuff wash once with 1/8-1/4 cup bleach, double rinse.
Hang dry PUL, machine dry everything else. No dryer sheets.
Do you have cd safe detergent?

Mandmeesh · December 2014

ovenrack said:

TJ1979 said:

First split new and used. For new stuff, wash synthetics once, and natural fibers 5 times. I really encourage washing with your sheets, towels, and white clothes so you don't waste water or time.
Used stuff wash once with 1/8-1/4 cup bleach, double rinse.
Hang dry PUL, machine dry everything else. No dryer sheets.
Do you have cd safe detergent?

Yes. This.

And omg no blue dawn!!!

Mandmeesh · December 2014

Mandmeesh said:

ovenrack said:

TJ1979 said:

First split new and used. For new stuff, wash synthetics once, and natural fibers 5 times. I really encourage washing with your sheets, towels, and white clothes so you don't waste water or time.
Used stuff wash once with 1/8-1/4 cup bleach, double rinse.
Hang dry PUL, machine dry everything else. No dryer sheets.
Do you have cd safe detergent?

Yes. This.

And omg no blue dawn!!!

It's a dish soap, not laundry detergent

LGator2484 · December 2014

Thanks!!!! Now that I've separated everything into piles, this seems a lot more manageable. Here's my plan....

Used natural fibers (prefolds, fitteds, and inserts) are getting washed with a little bleach & hot water, rinsed a few times, and machine dried.

Used synthetics are getting washed twice in hot water & detergent (no bleach??).... hang dry covers and machine dry low aoi's & pockets

New stuff is all synthetic, so just wash once with hot water & detergent and tumble dry low

Sound ok?

I have All Free & Clear detergent.... did a lot of research about this and the All Free & Clear has very mixed reviews, but I like the idea of being able to use the same detergent on diapers that I use on everything else. (Plus I can buy it at Sams Club) So my plan was to try it for a while and switch to something fancier if it doesn't work out. As far as I know I don't have hard water.

TJ1979 · December 2014

You can wash your used synthetics and naturals together and only once necessary.
I would caution against F&cs but to each their own. (Linky @freezorburn‌?)

Smallllmin · December 2014

LGator2484 said:

Thanks!!!! Now that I've separated everything into piles, this seems a lot more manageable. Here's my plan....

Used natural fibers (prefolds, fitteds, and inserts) are getting washed with a little bleach & hot water, rinsed a few times, and machine dried.

Used synthetics are getting washed twice in hot water & detergent (no bleach??).... hang dry covers and machine dry low aoi's & pockets

New stuff is all synthetic, so just wash once with hot water & detergent and tumble dry low

Sound ok?

I have All Free & Clear detergent.... did a lot of research about this and the All Free & Clear has very mixed reviews, but I like the idea of being able to use the same detergent on diapers that I use on everything else. (Plus I can buy it at Sams Club) So my plan was to try it for a while and switch to something fancier if it doesn't work out. As far as I know I don't have hard water.

Powdered regular Tide... F&C can cause buildup issues--> leaking.

Mandmeesh · December 2014

You probably do have hard water if it's city water. Something like 95% of the country does. And times people have come to this board with stink/leak issues, their detergent was all f&c. I'd go with powdered tide

mariek312 · December 2014

Mandmeesh said:

ovenrack said:

TJ1979 said:

First split new and used. For new stuff, wash synthetics once, and natural fibers 5 times. I really encourage washing with your sheets, towels, and white clothes so you don't waste water or time.
Used stuff wash once with 1/8-1/4 cup bleach, double rinse.
Hang dry PUL, machine dry everything else. No dryer sheets.
Do you have cd safe detergent?

Yes. This.

And omg no blue dawn!!!

See, the pros can explain so much better. You ladies are awesome, I quit

Into+the+Kitty · December 2014

Simplex are not synthetic. And the stay dry imagines are synthetic, bamboo are natural.

Just wash all your used diapers with the bleach. Make sure to dilute the bleach and add it once the drum is already full of water (or use your bleach dispenser), it won't damage PUL to use a small amount one time.

freezorburn · December 2014

TJ1979 said:

You can wash your used synthetics and naturals together and only once necessary. I would caution against F&cs but to each their own. (Linky @freezorburn‌?)

https://www.jilliansdrawers.com/resources/detergentsforclothdiapers

If you are concerned about allergies and don't want to use Tide (I'm guessing this is why a lot of people want to use F&C detergents), then you might want to check if Country Save or Charlie's is available at your local supermarket -- those are really good brands for using on both your diapers and regular laundry. I haven't done the math, but my impression is that they are a bit more cost effective than some of the other detergents recommended as CD safe.

Checking your water hardness should be as easy as visiting your local water authority's web page. In most cases what is coming out of your tap will not be too different from what is in their annual WQ report.

Unknown · December 2014

This content has been removed.

freezorburn · December 2014

theultimatesak said:

Checking your water hardness should be as easy as visiting your local water authority's web page. In most cases what is coming out of your tap will not be too different from what is in their annual WQ report.
This is probably a really dumb question, but if I have well water, is it likely to be close to the hardness of our town water?

Does your town use groundwater? What sort of treatment does the water go through before it is released into the water supply? It's possible that if it goes through some filtration or softener first that it would be different from your well water.

My thinking is that if you have well water the best way to know would be to test it yourself.

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Need to prep my stash and IDK what i'm doing. helpmeplease!

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