baby laundry detergent?

melissahigh · September 2015

I don't know if it's because I'm a first time mom, but I have never heard of needing special detergent for babies before, makes me wonder if it's a new gimmick to spend more money on. What are all of your opinions and information on it?

skruhmin · September 2015

Don't do it. It's expensive. You can do other detergents that are free and clear of junk. It might smell amazing but that's one less thing you should spend money on.

lightrox · September 2015

My son was allergic to most detergents as an infant so we used method free and he didn't breakout. Babies have more sensitive skin you can try your detergent but if your baby gets a rash try a milder detergent for baby.

PinkSunglasses16 · September 2015

I just used Free and Clear detergent, Purex brand usually.I discovered that she didn't have any reactions to fabric softener so after her being a few months old I was back to Tide and Downey. I'm not paying for Dreft ever...

littlemanmomma · September 2015

My son has had issues with a lot of the free and clear detergents and it wasn't til we switched to babyganics laundry detergent that he stopped breaking out. So it's good if your kid has super sensation skin like mine does but like the other posters said try the normal stuff first cause most of the time it works just fine. Although if you do cloth diapers some of the stuff in the detergents builds up and affects their absorbancie.

kynbar5 · September 2015

My daughter and one of my sons did and still does have sensitive skin but I've just always used All Free & Clear. I've never had a problem with using it on the newborns. I think like pp stated its expensive and unnecessary.

parenthood4 · September 2015

Ditto All Free and Clear!

Torpedogirl · September 2015

I have always used Dreft for all of my boys. I still use it for my 2 1/2 year old. It smells great and it's the same price at bjs as tide. I get one tide for us and one Dreft for him. His lasts like 6 months for the big one because I only do his with it.

RosyK · September 2015

Nope. Just the same thing we use for the rest of the family. Dh freaked with #1 and thought we needed it because of sensitive skin etc. then I pointed out that WE aren't using dreft on OUR clothes and with us holding baby they touch our clothes just as much as their own. He felt really silly then.

meg_2006 · September 2015

You're just paying extra for that "baby smell." I make our detergent. One batch only costs a couple dollars and lasts for months. Doesn't take too long, either!

lindscnn1 · September 2015

meg_2006 said:
You're just paying extra for that "baby smell." I make our detergent. One batch only costs a couple dollars and lasts for months. Doesn't take too long, either!

Could you please share how you make your detergent? I spend a fortune on laundry soap having 4 kids and I wash my sheets and blankets every 3 days b/c of said kids and dogs.

llybeck · September 2015

We have always used our regular detergent, I didn't change for DD. But she didn't have any issues or allergies/sensitivities to it. I would say try using your normal detergent and if your LO seems to be having issues, make the switch to Dreft or a Free & Clear type of detergent.

mshukh · September 2015

I think it's a marketing scheme. Most detergents advertised to be "clean" aren't really anyways. The majority of kid won't have any issues with regular detergent. Clearly, there are a few for whom this matters and if you see a reaction, then go try something else by all means. If there's no reaction, no reason to buy 2 types of detergent.

FutureMrsCaesar · September 2015

If you want to be on the safe side I'd get a free & clear detergent, but if you like the smell of Dreft or other baby detergents most babies will be fine with that as well. I usually get 1 bottle of Dreft because I like the smell but once that's gone the baby's things get washed in Tide just like everyone else's. DS1 has sensitive skin but fortunately hasn't had issues with detergents because I NEED Tide, my kids are so insanely messy and it gets the most stains out with minimal effort on my part.

Parker16772 · September 2015

PinkSunglasses16 said:

I just used Free and Clear detergent, Purex brand usually.I discovered that she didn't have any reactions to fabric softener so after her being a few months old I was back to Tide and Downey. I'm not paying for Dreft ever...

I used dreft as a FTM for a few months and then switched to Purex free and clear. I will stick with that for this baby.

ClaireBear90 · September 2015

Someone gave me a bottle of Dreft at my baby shower and I never actually used it because I read that it's bad for baby's skin. I'd start with a regular old Free & Clear detergent as others have said and if your baby has extremely sensitive skin and has any issues with it, look into other options.

ETA: @lindscnn1 I also make my own detergent and one batch lasts FOREVER. This is the recipe I use: https://happymoneysaver.com/making-your-own-laundry-detergent-worth-the-cost/

Want a personalized experience?

baby laundry detergent?

Re: baby laundry detergent?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards