[mothra]

the thing i'm most worried about with CDing is the detergent/care of them and making sure i don't ruin my stash. i am really sensitive to most detergents and the one that i've found and love that doesn't make me break out is Arm & Hammer - Free of perfume & dyes, dermatologist tested. it doesn't say anything on the box about additives or anything...it seems to be pretty pure and simple. i guess i don't really know what to look for to avoid for the dipes.


ETA: also, and believe me i feel like an idiot, but i guess i don't understand how to use my washer. i have a regular old top loading agitating machine, and i'm trying to figure out what everyone's instructions mean when they are changing temps for each cycle and whatnot...when i do laundry i just set the water level and go. i'm confused by all this "pre-wash cold" or "rinse hot" cycle changing. lol. i must be a moron, i probably need someone to actually show me how to do it.

[ragmama]

I'm not sure about the detergent...from what I understand, all "free and clear" is bad, but I'm not sure why. I wash mine in Tide with Dawn and it works great for the dipes, but not sure how well you'd tolerate it...

As for the settings...I have to set mine on a cold pre-wash/soak, then go back when it's finished and set everything else. Mine has temp settings (hot/cold, cold/cold, warm/whatever, etc.) and I set it on hot/cold because it's the only one that has "hot" in it. Power of deduction, right? There's also a dial for an extra rinse, so I flip it onto that...and that's all for me!

If you just can't figure it out for anything...you could always post a pic of your washer dials and I'm SURE someone here can tell you how to do it!

[Mommy2Amara&Kayori]

you could always post a pic of your washer dials and I'm SURE someone here can tell you how to do it! [/b]

thats a good idea

[picklesmama]

Ditto the pics of your washer if you aren't sure

Free & Clear detergents can cause repellency issues with synthetic diapers. Suedecloth, microfleece and microfibre can get a waxy buildup that causes the pee to roll off rather than be absorbed. Can doesn't mean will though, your water type is a factor as well. I have used several different F&C detergents and everything was always fine for several months and then the issues would crop up. If your baby doens't have your sensitivity to detergents I would use regular detergent for the diapers, but if you're concerned that he may or know he does, I guess you could just be prepared to strip your diapers frequently.... or maybe you won't have issues. Some don't. I did encounter problems with the Free & Clear versions of All, Purex, Arm & Hammer and Tide - they all worked great for 2-3 months, and then my FBs would begin to leak and my inserts not seem to absorb and feel "slippy". Stripping with RLR restored them each time though - still I switched to regular Tide just to avoid having to deal with it.

[toasty]

Ditto the pics of your washer if you aren't sure

Free & Clear detergents can cause repellency issues with synthetic diapers. Suedecloth, microfleece and microfibre can get a waxy buildup that causes the pee to roll off rather than be absorbed. Can doesn't mean will though, your water type is a factor as well. I have used several different F&C detergents and everything was always fine for several months and then the issues would crop up. If your baby doens't have your sensitivity to detergents I would use regular detergent for the diapers, but if you're concerned that he may or know he does, I guess you could just be prepared to strip your diapers frequently.... or maybe you won't have issues. Some don't. I did encounter problems with the Free & Clear versions of All, Purex, Arm & Hammer and Tide - they all worked great for 2-3 months, and then my FBs would begin to leak and my inserts not seem to absorb and feel "slippy". Stripping with RLR restored them each time though - still I switched to regular Tide just to avoid having to deal with it.[/b]

ugh, thats the boat im in with Chelsea. Im going to give the tide a little longer, but if she keeps getting rashy its getting the boot and im gonna have to go back to F+C and just strip...or avoid pockets, but i still love pockets...

Anyways, moving on. I also have an old fashioned top loader and i just turn the dial to "rinse" and pull it. And it just starts there. If you turn the dial to anywhere and pull it - it will start anywhere mid-cycle. Just experiment! If it does something you dont want just push it back in to stop it and turn it to a different setting! I I can run extra spins, extra rinses, an extra wash. I almost never just run a "normal" cycle from start to finish. I always interrupt it for some reason or another.

[tygrss]

Arm & Hammer - Free is what I used when I first started CDing and it caused major repelling within about one month. Some people use it with no problems, but it definitely didn't work for me.

[KBeans]

don't use free and clear anything.

i use dawn original (not the uktra, just plain original), cheap and works great for us with our hard water.

i was also going to suggest the picture of your washer dials! lol so please post when you can and we'll help ya out.

here's a list of the detergents to look at: updated 3/2008
http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.co...entchoices.htm

[KBeans]

as i read that though i see that ALL F&C is recommended but it is horrible! and TIDE id recommended, which i haven't tried, but i heard it works great. hmm i dunno.

[drewbears]

I have arm and hammer sensitve, I don't think its a F&C though.

I was using tide with no issues as well.