43 Comments

  1. My son is 2, and he only uses diapers at Naptime and bedtime. So he goes through 2 pocket diapers a day and 3 insert . Is 4 diapers and 6 inserts enough to do a load? Or do you recommend I wait an extra day and do 6 diapers and 9 inserts? (I’ll have another baby in 4 months, but I’ll probably have him wear disposables until he grows into the cloths that I have)

  2. Have you ever had a problem getting the diapers to rinse clean in a front loader? I’m having this issue where the soap never completely rinses out. I can do 20 rinses or more (totally against the whole point of an he machine) but there are still suds in the machine. And stripping doesn’t help because then those suds never rinse clean either!!!

      1. I have added a wet towel to try to add more weight to the washer, and I have also done the rinse/spin cycle with no spin. Still suds.

  3. Do you know if purex free and clear liquid works? We have been using the bumgenkis liquid detergent and having major leaking issues! We use free and clear for our clothes but if the tide powder is the number one may have to run out and get some .. so fed up with leaks!

    1. I, personally, don’t have experience with that particular brand. In general, I’ve been told liquid detergents are a no-no. I’ve had great success with Tide original powder. Your diapers may need a good stripping if they’re leaking…

      1. We have only had them for 3 months which makes the leaks so dissapointing.. how do you recommend stripping? There are so many ways online to do that! It’s interesting that liquid detergent isn’t recommended tat bumgenius made one.. I will look for tide original powder as I think they may just not be getting clean enough! Thank yoi for your help!

  4. Hey! Your post has been most helpful. I’m going to give the boiling hot water to the washer a try…but I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around it. You boil water then open the little tray and pour it in while the cycle is going? Sounds a bit dangerous, eh?

  5. I’m now taking the plunge to try tide, I’m all for green and eco friendly products but my eco detergent is no longer as effective with my fitteds, so i decided to ask a fb group and they all used tide. So here I am reading this review. Now my only question is I couldn’t find ultra tide just plain tide original powder with the active crystals is this okay or should I go and search at other stores for ultra tide

  6. Wow this is very troubling to me. You are making washing diapers far more difficult than it is. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Just throw the diapers and plently of detergent in the washer and be done! I have been washing diaper for 8 years now and the first 6 years I did it the complicated way because I didn’t know better. Then I did it the correct way and its a million times easier. I have been doing it the correct way for 3 years now and I have never had to strip and I never have stink. When I did it the difficult way I was strippung all the time and I was wasting so much water. So anyway I just want people to know that washing diapers isn’t hard and isn’t rocket science.

    Kristi knight

    1. In our old washer and dryer this was the only way I could wash the diapers and get them properly cleaned… trust me, I tried every which way possible. Now I have a new washer and dryer that makes it much easier.

  7. When adding boiling water to your wash cycle, do you have your hot water heater set at a certain temp? Ours is set pretty high so I’m basically wondering if I can skip the process of boiling and adding water to my load. Just trying to make it easier on myself 😉 haha! Thanks!

    1. Hey Angela! If you have a front loader it can’t hurt to add it… But if you know your hot water is pretty hot already you should be fine. My former washer has barely hot water so adding it was a must.

  8. Hello! I have that same washer and I wondering what cycles you use? On the dial thing for washing your cloth diapers? TIA

    1. Hey Rebekah! We actually got a new washer and dryer… BUT, on the old washer and dryer (the one you see pictured)… here’s my EXACT cycle:

      Rinse and spin (NO SPIN) 6 minutes – on my washer I select the “RINSE AND SPIN” button, and then choose the option “NO SPIN” – this gets the diapers WET and heavy. This helps to “trick” the washer into putting more water in because it thinks there’s more in there. Make sure to select “NO SPIN”.

      Regular, cold wash NO detergent 51 minutes – I run the wash like I would with a normal load of laundry, I just don’t put detergent in there.

      Rinse and spin (NO SPIN) (REPEATING STEP ONE) – again, this gets the diapers soaked again so the washer will put more water in at the next cycle. Make sure to select “NO SPIN”.

      Boil a pot of water on the stove – while the second rinse and spin (no spin) is happening, I fill up a pot of water and boil it on the stove.

      Heavy, hot wash, stain cycle WITH TIDE detergent filled up to the 1 line 1 hour and 51 minutes -when the second rinse and spin (no spin) is done, this is the ONLY part of the wash cycle where you use detergent. I fill up the blue TIDE cup to the 1 line with powder, put it in, and then run a HEAVY wash on HOT water. I also select the “stain” cycle which adds more hot water and an extra rinse at the end.

      Add boiling water to the hot cycle a few minutes in – once the water on the stove has come to a boil, I put it in a pitcher and I pour it directly into the washer (via the drawer where I put the detergent) while it is running. What this does is 1) adds more water to the cycle and 2) makes sure that the water that’s washing the diapers is extra hot to help kill germs, etc.

      One last cold rinse and spin, extra rinse 33 minutes – Once the hot cycle is done, I select “RINSE AND SPIN” again, but this time I allow the spin, and I also select “extra rinse.” You really want to rinse your diapers well to avoid detergent build up.

  9. I don’t have kids but I found this post oddly fascinating! I do spend more time laundering my white cotton face cloths that I use in my skin care routine. They always get makeup and mascara on them, but they come out nice and white. I have never used Tide but may give it a try. Oh, I also add white vinegar to loads that I want extra clean and to get rid of odor.

  10. So I have yet to figure out the answer to where to put powdered detergent in my front-loader, but after some research and price comparison, I decided to give Purex Free and Clear liquid a shot. I’ll let you know how that goes! Meanwhile, do you have any thoughts on the amount of detergent? I have read mixed/competing information from various sources, some of which recommend using a smaller amount of detergent than you would for a normal load.

  11. So maybe this is a silly question, but WHERE do you put the powdered laundry detergent in your front loader? In the drum, or in the detergent tray thingy? I washed my new cloth dipes for the first time yesterday and just used the sample pack of detergent that Bum Genius sent. It’s powdered, and so I wound up just dumping it in the drum. The only other powdered thing I’ve ever used is OxiClean, and it says right on the container to put it in the drum….so I just went with that for the diapers, too. Thoughts?

  12. I have the same machine, super hard water and use bum genius diapers. Try upping the amount of detergent to Line 2 or 3 and doing only the rinse and spin, hot or warm heavy duty wash with detergent and then one last rinse and spin. You will probably save a ton of time and water. The hot water is helping make up for not quite enough detergent but I bet you will be fine without it. Good luck. Your blog is gorgeous and love that you have all the new prints. I have just Jules and I adore it, you make me want a top hat.

  13. I use Tide Free liquid on our clothes and just started using it on my Bum Geniuses with baby #2 (I used a CD specific soap with #1). In your research, did it have to be original Tide powder or do you think I am ok with Tide Free liquid? The scent of many regular detergents bothers my daughter’s and my skin.

    1. Great question! I’ve heard a lot of moms use tide free and love it. I’m not sure about liquid detergents… I think you should be okay! If you start to notice buildup just strip your diapers and you should be good to go! 🙂

  14. You seriously made me laugh with your statement about Tide. After buying expensive cd detergents, I finally started making my own about a year ago. Besides just figuring out the amount of detergent to use when I have switched, I have never had stink issues and I have being cding for four years now. I kind of think it is just luck given that so many people seem to have so many problems with stink. Oh, and I use a bunch of cycles to wash my diapers too.

      1. I use equal parts borax, super washing soda and sun oxygen cleaner. I use two heaping tablespoons full per load. I did a bunch of research on borax before deciding on using it. I know there is negative press about it, but I ended up deciding I was ok with it. Also, I use sun oxygen cleaner because it is “pure” oxygen cleaner and cheaper than using a name brand one.

  15. Thank you SO much for doing these posts! Due in May with baby number one and super interested in cloth diapering. Haven’t found a lot of super detailed instructions yet, so I am so glad I found your blog! Found your posts on Pinterest. I now have everything you own in my Amazon wish list! 🙂

    Keep the posts and the advice coming!

  16. I just had another little one and wanted to try cloth diapering this time around, especially now that I see how many disposable diapers we throw away in just one day. I have to admit though, I am not sure I would have time for a laundry routine like this. It seems like a lot!

  17. So I don’t have kids, but I always read cloth diapering articles. Tide makes a wonderfully amazing washing machine cleaner. My husband is in the Army and wears two sets of workout clothes a day (plus towels). I use the machine cleaner every other month or so. It help keeps the machine clean and fresh and helps remove the smelly residue from the clothes that seem to keep that smell even after washing.

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