Laundry soap for CD's

[Wendy HS]

I am just switching to CD's. I've never used them before and I am going with the Diaper kit from Bummies for my DD just because it was the cheapest way to start and seemed easy. My problem is, I can't find any of the recommended detergent to use. I need it to be easy (get it at walmart, or Brookshires with the rest of my shopping) and online ordering just seems too much trouble. Is dreft baby detergent okay to use on CD's? Any other suggestions of something I could use that I can get at a regular store and not have to order on line and have shipped? Thanks for any suggestions. I look forward to getting the diapers and getting them washed and ready.

[Katie T]

I have heard that Dreft has fabric softeners which will cause repelling.

You can try really anything, lots of people (not me though ) have had luck with All free and clear, tide, or any other normal detergent.

I use Charlies Soap, you do have to order it ( but you can get it at some local stores just not around me, you can look up your area here)
http://www.charliesoap.com/
If you order more than one bag it is free shipping and comes fast. I use it for all our laundry and dipes and it is great but some people don't have good luck with it. It really depends on the make-up of your water.

Good luck and hope you love cloth diapering, it is so fun!

[Bokonon]

There is some great info here:
http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.co...glancepspd.htm

I use Country Save and have seen it at natural foods stores near me, but ordered mine in bulk from Amazon, as it's cheaper and has free shipping. I use it for our regular laundry now too, and haven't been disappointed.

[MamieCole]

Brookshire's...you must be in East Texas or Louisiana.

Avoid using Dreft. It's hecka expensive and not good for your dipes.

Try this list, there are several 3 or 4 star detergents that should be available in your local stores.

[meg_shannon]

Homemade laundry soap

I've been making homemade laundry soap for years...it works out to about 0.02$/load if you don't add any essential oils for scent. What I make is similar to the recipe on the diaper jungle link; here is what I use.

It doesn't appear to leave a residue on anything, and has caused no skin irritations. It takes less than 1/2 hour to make, and then just let it gel. Depending upon your water (softness/hardness, mineral content, etc) you may need to tweak the proportions.

I've tried the DIY powdered detergents, never had much luck. They don't really dissolve for me and I find little white balls of detergent at the bottom of the washer after the cycle - a lot of them, and therefore inferred that the clothes weren't really getting clean. The only way I could get it to work was to pre-dissolve it in hot water for each load - kind of defeats the purpose of powdered detergent.

[jeminijad]

Not Dreft. If you are set on only using something you can get in your normal shopping routine, try for a free & clear powder detergent.

[Blueone]

I use Rockin Green Hard Rock. We used Arm and Hammer at first, but it never fully rinsed out, my son broke out in a rash, and ultimately I had to do like 3 or 4 wash cycles with no soap after every wash no matter how little I used. If I used too little his diapers would stink too.

[sara_m]

Allen's Naturally also comes highly recommended. I recently switched to it because I don't think my All Free and Clear is doing a very good job. Can't speak to success or failure yet, but the reviews are all really good.

[Geigerin]

I second the recommendation for homemade detergent. I get borax and bar soap (I use ivory) at the grocery, and our ace hardware sells the washing soda. It's so easy to do! I promise.

Our diapers are clean and smell-free. Once a month, we also use oxygen bleach to really make sure the dipes are bacteria-free. We buy Ecover brand, which is pure oxygen bleach (no additives).

A very good friend of mine has twins in cloth diapers. She uses a small amount of regular old tide, and before she puts them away for the next child, she washes them with oxyclean. Take it or leave it, but we have her hand-me-down prefolds, and they are stain-free.

[Geigerin]

I want to add that we got our prefolds and covers from Green Mountain Diapers. Their washing instructions helped us a ton! We got a 16 page instruction manual. My husband read it from cover to cover and has taken over diaper duty. (woo-hoo!)

A link to their recommendations is here:

http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/washing-diapers.htm

[Ola_]

Many people even use Tide with good results. I haven't heard good things about Dreft though. I think a lot will depend on the quality of your water (hard vs. soft) and the washing machine you have (front vs. top loader). The pinstripes/polkadots website that Bokonon linked to above is a very good reference and you can use it to see what's available in your area.

Here's a link to a list of the info they have including a complete detergent chart, some other stuff may be helpful to you as well:
http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.com/basics.htm