Wash & Care
Prewash Instructions
IMPORTANT ! : New diaper may easily leak without proper prewash. Please strictly follow the prewash instructions before the first use!
New diaper may not reach its full absorbency initially. You will need to prewash the item to remove natural oils and waxes that will inhibit absorption to prevent messy leak. If not pre-washed, the diaper will not absorb urine properly because during the manufacturing process, there is a waxy buildup on the fabric. If you put any brand new cloth diaper on a baby without proper prewash, urine will simply bead up and run right out of the diaper. Once prewash cycles are done, you will notice that your baby's pee stays in the cloth diaper and doesn't leak out to the sides (like at first).For best results, please follow the appropriate instructions below:
- Prewash for Diaper Shell: Wash the diaper shell with detergent for at least 1 time to remove manufacturing residue. Do not soak or boil the diaper shell. Soaking and boiling will damage the waterproof layer.
- Prewash for Insert/Soaker/Booster: Wash and dry Soaker/Booster with detergent for at least 6 times wash and dry cycles before it reaches full absorbency. Prewash soaker in soapy water, knead it thoroughly to remove the fabric wax from inner layers (*warm soapy water is preferable). You may start using the item after 3 times wash, but you have to change the item more often initially to prevent leak until the item reaches its full absorbency. Most of the times it will take up to 6 times warm wash or 10 times cold wash to reach it's maximum absorbency depending on the effectiveness of detergent/washer/method and etc.
Special Note: Prewash is a process to strip waxy/oily residue from new fabric. The effectiveness of prewash is pretty much depend on the washing temperature, types of fabric, types of detergent and amount of detergent used. Occasionally there are customers that encounter repelling issue after prewash. If you have this issue, try the following: Soak soaker/insert/booster (not diaper shell) in warm water with 1 teaspoon of dishwashing liquid (if many soakers, adjust the amount accordingly). Let it soak for few hours. Knead it thoroughly, then rinse with clean water until no suds and follow by 1 complete washing cycle in the machine to fully remove the dishwashing liquid residue.
Laundry Instructions
Laundering diapers is just as easy as laundering your regular clothes, but there are a few extra steps you’ll need to take:
- Dispose-off any solids on the diaper into toilet. Rinse the solid waste out of the diaper with clean water.
- Remove the soaker/booster pad from the diaper shell. Sort delicate items or those that contain PUL, elastic and snap into laundry net. Washing with laundry net is highly recommended!
- Dump your dirty diapers into the washing machine. Make sure not to overload your machine. Preferable not more than 20 sets per load.
- Do a quick pre-rinse cycle: run a shortest laundry cycle without detergent to get the nasty out prior to the wash cycle.
- Do a complete wash cycle: once the pre-rinse cycle is completed, follow by a long laundry cycle with detergent.
- Hang/line to dry. Always place the inner side of the diaper facing the sun to avoid color fading.
Care & Use Cautions!
Important notes when you using cloth diapers:
- Rinse with cold water, only cold water! As hot water will set the poo stain.
- Do not soak the diaper for long hours. It may cause PUL delamination.
- Do not use harsh detergent. Harsh detergent will shorten lifespan of fabric and cause skin allergies. Use mild and enzyme free detergent or delicate fabric wash.
- Do not bleach, as they are easily damaged by bleaching.
- Do not use moisturizing soap and fabric softener, as they tend to block the micro-gaps in the fibres leading to reduced absorbency.
- Avoid direct contact with rash cream that leave residue on these fibers. If rash cream is applied to your baby, place a sheet of liner to prevent direct contact with diaper inner.
- Wash dirty diapers daily to prevent stinky and mold/mildew issue. However if you cannot do laundry on daily basis, you may rinse it and hang it dry while waiting for laundry.
- Cold/warm wash below 60degc and hang/line dry. Avoid excessive sun drying to preserve the PUL, elastic and avoid color fading of diaper. Once it's dry, bring it in!
Washing cloth diaper with High Efficiency(HE) front loading machines
How many of you are washing cloth diaper with High Efficiency(HE) front loading machines? Do you know that HE machine is great for washing garment because it use less water. However it is NOT good for washing cloth diaper. This is because it is not using enough water to wash and rinse the diapers. This can cause serious residue problems. Please remember that, it is always best to manually set the water level to maximum. If this is impossible, then you may get around this with several ways below to trick the washer to load more water:
- Wet Diapers: Sopping wet the diapers before toss into the washer.
- Wet Towels: Adding one or two wet bath towels to the wash.
- Reset Cycles: Reset the washing cycle when the washer has filled up with water.
This will add bulk to the washer and trick the machine into sensing a heavier load and subsequently add more water!