I don't believe in "cloth safe", if it cleans well and doesn't have built in fabric softener I assume it is fine. I have yet to experience this mythical "detergent build up from non cloth safe detergent" I have read about. If I see suds in my rinse (like when our water utility switches water sources and suddenly I have softer water) I just do an extra wash cycle to rinse more and then use less detergent next time.
We also always use liquid detergent in our HE washer, I have experienced powders not dissolving enough and having residues in the dispenser and even powdery white patches on dark clothing.
Anyway, that said
I am at the end of a huge tub of Kirkland (Costco brand) free & clear, it is basically like Tide F&G but has no brighteners, it served us well. I let our Costco membership lapse bc we didn't use it enough to justify it, so I have a big tub of Tide F&G ready to go instead. I also used 7th Generation unscented for awhile but it is so dang expensive and not any better than Tide or Kirkland. I check ingredients to make sure the detergent contains enzymes. And I don't like fragrances of any kind.
We have quite hard water most of the time so I throw Borax and/or Oxygen bleach powder (biokleen brand) in the drum for the prewash and do a sanitary wash cycle + extra rinse, most of the time. Then if the diapers are extra poopy (like right now, she has had a virus and diarrhea) or I am starting to get a hint of ammonia in the night diaper, I do a bleach wash on Delicates (uses more water) followed by a regular heavy duty wash with extra rinse. I have to adjust how much detergent and additives I use based on how hard our water is
it can vary a lot based on recent rainfall or drought conditions.
Congrats on finishing my novel
