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 DETERGENT
CHOICES
updated
March 2008
Detergents abound on the supermarket shelf, but none have a bright, bold, beautiful cloth diaper on them to let you know that they are the product of choice for your cloth diapering laundry needs. This page is a compilation of information regarding well-known name brand detergents and lesser-known environmentally friendly detergents. Compare your choices to determine which product is best for your baby's cloth diapers. If you are just starting your cloth diapering journey, I can not emphasize enough how advantageous it is to choose a really good detergent. Remove as many obstacles as you can at the beginning to ensure your success. If you want to experiment with your favorite detergent down the road, do so, but only after you are successfully cloth diapering so you know what normal is. Recognize that washing conditions, such as machine and water supply, do vary from person to person. However, by eliminating known problems you should find success in washing your diapers more easily. For
information on
updated March 2008
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
The "Detergent Chart for diaper laundry success" is under copyright to Sarah Gesiakowski and may not be used in part or whole without written consent from same person. Images used in the "Detergent Chart for diaper laundry success" may be under copyright and should not be used without expressed permission. 2005, 2008 what makes a good cloth diaper detergent?... choosing detergents for pocket diapers... information on using other laundry aids with cloth diapers... view detergents and their ingredients... For
information on Detergent Choices for The Modern Cloth Diaper Many of the modern diapers such as pocket diapers, all-in-one diapers, and some fitted diapers are designed with a synthetic stay-dry fabric for their inner layer. These synthetic fabrics are more sensitive to detergent buildup than standard fitted diapers or prefold diapers. Your choice of laundry detergent will determine not only how easy it is to care for your diapers but how well your diapers will perform. The best detergents for the modern cloth diapers need to rinse completely clean out of your diapers leaving no residues or fabric enhancers behind. Laundry detergents that contain fragrance/scent, fabric softeners, and brightening agents/optical brighteners are not suitable because these fabric enhancers are designed to leave chemicals on your diapers to make the diapers "appear" cleaner or better through your senses of touch, smell and sight. These components of the detergent will buildup on your diapers over time and may lead to diaper failure. The diapers could retain unnecessary odors and they could even have repellency issues so that the moisture will escape out the side of the diaper rather than being absorbed by the absorbent part of the diaper. A few more natural ingredient detergents that are derived from plant oils or have essential oils in them are not recommended for the modern diapers. We have made note of these detergents in the detergent chart above. Some of them seem to work fine in naturally soft water, but with 80% of the United States dealing with hard water it is easier just to point out that they may cause trouble. Soaps should never be used for washing diapers in general. Dr Bronners and Fels Naptha are two that come quickly to mind. Also, I haven't seen a recipe for making your own detergent yet that would be suitable for washing cloth diapers in. Learn more about washing pocket diapers... Detergent Choices for Prefold Diapers, Fitted Diapers, and Covers Choosing a detergent without additives would be the best choice even for use with prefolds and covers. However, as long as you don't choose a really bad detergent rated with either 1 or 2 red stars you should be ok. Realize that some diaper covers will end up leaking if washed repeatedly in a detergent wtih optical brighteners.
Evaluation Process for Detergents This work is an elimination of detergents for cloth diaper laundry based on problem ingredients and a compilation of known detergent complications with cloth diaper laundry. Even from the recommended detergents all of the detergents may not be compatible with your water or washing routine. At least you will have fewer detergents to experiment with. Best success in your real-life chemistry adventure. Please let me know how I can help. 
A
product with a red star has known problems that make it unsuitable for cloth diaper
laundry. Examples include Arm and Hammer
Fabricare which has been known to cause severe reaction due to its
enzyme content. Ivory Snow, Dreft and Zero which are just too
mild of a detergent for diaper washing. Environmentally friendly
detergents may fall
into the orange coding when they have ingredients that may act with hard water poorly and
create a residue. Detergents with built in fabric
softeners are all included as unsuitable. Biokleen has caused trouble with pocket type
diapers but may work fine with prefold or fitted cloth diapers.
? A product with a question mark just hasn't had enough research done to honestly evaluate it. I just don't have the information yet to evaluate the product.
OTHER LINKS: Learn more than you ever wanted to know about detergents... More about those optical brighteners and other ingredients... |
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