Laundry Detergent

Mommaswizz · March 2015

So I've tried digging around to find info about this but I'm coming up empty handed so maybe the seasoned mommy veterans can weigh in here... Is it really necessary to use special detergent on baby's clothes and sheets? We received a couple of Dreft sample packets so I used those on some of the sheets and onesies we've already gotten but DH thinks it's crazy and hopes to just use Tide in the future. He thinks if the baby has some kind of reaction to regular detergent we can obviously invest in the special stuff but otherwise it'd clearly be much easier (and cost efficient) to use the same stuff that we have for our clothes.

Let me know what you think!

iheartpancake · March 2015

I have only used Tide for over a decade now. I think we're going to switch to the free and clear stuff when the baby gets here. I hang dry my stuff as long as the weather is nice but I'm thinking a free and clear dryer sheet for the baby might work better. I'm having a hard time with the idea of my laundry not smelling like clean laundry!

KarasTwin · March 2015

I'm a FTM as well, but I've registered for dreft. I have sensitive skin and use Purex free and clear. I recently stocked up (Kroger was having an awesome sale and I had coupons). I asked my mom if that was safe for babies and she said she recommended dreft for babies are their skin is much more sensitive and doesn't hold moisture like grown-up skin. My neice is 18 months old and when my sister tried to use the Purex free and clear for her she broke out. I'm sure it varies from child to child, but I feel like detergent is along the same lines as baby soaps/shampoos, it exists for a reason.

Mommaswizz · March 2015

KarasTwin said:
. I'm sure it varies from child to child, but I feel like detergent is along the same lines as baby soaps/shampoos, it exists for a reason.

This is probably exactly right. We're such noobs that i was hoping it was just an elaborate hoax to get me to spend money on extra stuff. The mere fact that it exists must have some kind of a rhyme and reason behind it. It's kind of a bummer since clean laundry scent is the best and dreft seriously smells like nothing

APago · March 2015

We switched to the Tide free and clear a few months ago, and will also be using this for baby. I have really sensitive skin and the tide free and clear has worked well for me. Of course newborn skin is much more sensitive than ours. However, my husband and I have agreed that if the baby has a reaction then we'll get the baby specific detergent for him.

Katerina&Baby · March 2015

Baby skin is really sensitive and the fragrances and dyes in regular detergent can irritate them. Just buy the free and clear version of your favorite brand and call it a day - I've been using Tide F&C for years (my older sister developed a reaction to regular detergent so that's how my family got started on it). If you're really missing the laundry scent, throw a dryer sheet in when you dry your clothes. I wouldn't buy one special detergent for baby and one special detergent for me (why complicate your life that way?) but switching to Free and Clear? No brainer.

ElRuby · March 2015

I just us a "free and clear" one... Never saw the purpose of overpriced dreft.... When I feel ambitious I even make my own (with baking soda and soap flakes and something else that I can't remember right now) and it's great

Mommaswizz · March 2015

Katerina&Baby said:
Baby skin is really sensitive and the fragrances and dyes in regular detergent can irritate them. Just buy the free and clear version of your favorite brand and call it a day - I've been using Tide F&C for years (my older sister developed a reaction to regular detergent so that's how my family got started on it). If you're really missing the laundry scent, throw a dryer sheet in when you dry your clothes. I wouldn't buy one special detergent for baby and one special detergent for me (why complicate your life that way?) but switching to Free and Clear? No brainer.

This is what i was hoping to hear. Definitely didnt wanna worry about buying two kinds. Thank you @Katerina&Baby!

Frogger5 · March 2015

If you are cloth diapering it is important. If not, I agree with most PPs that any free and clear or regular Tide makes sense. I've heard that Dreft is really not that great, and has a lot of fragrance in it. It used to be hard/impossible to easily find detergent that worked for sensitive skin so Dreft became a thing, but these days there are lots of options.

We are cloth diapering, and I wanted just one detergent for all of our laundry, so I bought Country Save. It's apparently some kind of hippie formula from the 70s that is better for the environment and works with our HE washer, so score! Decision made. Just hope baby doesn't have a freak reaction!

Also, just my opinion, but if I had a place to line dry I would choose that over machine + dryer sheet for sure. Actually, I stopped using dryer sheets at all and haven't noticed a difference. They are pretty necessary for controlling static if that's a problem for where you live and the time of year, but luckily in the PNW it really is never a concern.

lovethatcolosun · March 2015

I used one bottle of Dreft in the very beginning. It will last a while because their cloths and thus loads of laundry are smaller. After about six months I switched the whole family to a Free and Clear brand. I LOVE the smell of laundry soap, so I add the sent boosters to the adult loads. Best of both worlds.

finchfeeder80 · March 2015

I use Charlie's Soap for everything. My best friend used it with both of her babies and never had a problem. It's just plain old washing powder with no dyes, scents, or anything added. It's good stuff and lasts forever. The last tub I bought was about $23 and it lasted me for five months.

ETA: The tub was about 2.5lbs.

Mommaswizz · March 2015

I appreciate the input ladies!! This is awesome!

Mommaswizz · March 2015

@finchfeeder80 I'm definitely going to check that out! Anything that lasts that long is worth looking into! ;-)

kaitlynmaureen · March 2015

Dreft actually is Tide with two additional enzymes and a different fragrance. It's no better for baby's skin than any other scented detergent. Baby wash and lotion are really the same things as well. They're just marketing different fragrances with the same chemicals. The only reason Johnson's baby wash doesn't cause tears is because it contains an ingredient that numbs the baby's eyes. It's really not gentle at all.

Mommaswizz · March 2015

@kaitlynmaureen I had no idea! This is crazy, i really need to read up on some of these products that i considered the "safe" choices".

PS, I'm assuming your name is Kaitlyn Maureen, which is an awesome name as I'm a Caitlyn Maureen myself!

finchfeeder80 · March 2015

@mommaswizz I get it off of Amazon, since I'm Prime, but you can also directly to their website as well: https://www.charliesoap.com/ The advantage to Amazon is that you can buy one tub at a time. Unless they've changed it since I was there last, the direct website makes you buy two at once. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, just an FYI.

kaitlynmaureen · March 2015

I am Kaitlyn Maureen! I've met tons of people with the middle name Marie, but never another Kaitlyn/Caitlyn Maureen! This article may be a good starting place for you. Just make sure you're looking at the ingredients on the back of the product, not the manufacturer's claims on the front

https://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/3620372

ksimo6 · March 2015

We never changed our detergent or bought anything special. If my daughter had a reaction, we would have bought something else, but she has had no issues.

amhowell14 · March 2015

ksimo6 said:
We never changed our detergent or bought anything special. If my daughter had a reaction, we would have bought something else, but she has had no issues.

We never changed with either one of our girls, and never had any issues.

Serenamarr · March 2015

Does anyone else get their laundry done at a laundromat? We live in an apt building without washer/dryer so we don't have much of a choice. They use the products I send so I'm not really concerned about the detergent, but am I being ridiculous to think I don't want my baby's clothes being washed in machines where other possibly dirty strangers clothes are washed? It sounds silly to write but I just keep thinking I have no idea whose clothes were in that machine before ours -_-

iheartpancake · March 2015

@Serenamarr I worked at a dry cleaners many years ago and we also took in just normal laundry. If something came in soiled with any sort of bodily fluid or just overly soiled in general, it was not accepted. If your cleaners are using separate machines from the general public, I would say they're probably not washing anything too gross in them. Those people do not want to touch that stuff. Now as for people coming in and sharing machines with the rest of the world, that's a little more unpredictable...

jessieR358 · March 2015

The honest company has their own detergent that I have set with diaper bundle deliveries. I'm going to use that for the baby.

kcave21 · March 2015

I bought 1 large thing of Dreft and after that used tide! It works great, but got the Dreft just for safe measure and used it on all out clothes until it ran out.

nicolec3 · March 2015

We use free and clear detergent. My kids have sensitive skin.

Frogger5 · March 2015

Ooo, the other thing is, if you really think there's stuff in the detergent you use on your clothes that you don't want on your baby, you have to change it because the baby's skin is against your clothes all the time.

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