One of the How-To topics that is frequently requested by customers is How to Wash in a Laundromat. It's practical advice from Jenn, who began her cloth diapering experience with prefolds and covers washing in a laundromat. So today, we're reposting it here, on the blog, to make it easy for you to find, bookmark or share with someone else:
Cloth Diapers: Washing In a Laundromat
When we started cloth diapering, we lived in an apartment and did not have our own washer and dryer. We were cautious about diving into cloth diapering so we started with a diaper service for three months and then decided that we were ready to venture out on our own. We've discovered that cloth diapering is very doable -- even when you're washing in a laundromat!
The system that we found that worked for us was simple:
It was important to have enough diapers to wash once or twice a week (at the most). I also used a pail liner to avoid hauling the entire diaper pail to the laundromat. I felt like the diapers got cleaner in the top loading machines.
When we started cloth diapering, we lived in an apartment and did not have our own washer and dryer. We were cautious about diving into cloth diapering so we started with a diaper service for three months and then decided that we were ready to venture out on our own. We've discovered that cloth diapering is very doable -- even when you're washing in a laundromat!
The system that we found that worked for us was simple:
- Wash everything together.
- Wash the load one entire cycle on cold using just a little detergent or none at all.
- Wash the load again one entire cycle on hot using 1/4 - 1/2 the regular amount of detergent.
- Sort the pocket diapers and the covers out of the load and dry everything else.
It was important to have enough diapers to wash once or twice a week (at the most). I also used a pail liner to avoid hauling the entire diaper pail to the laundromat. I felt like the diapers got cleaner in the top loading machines.
Costs:
It cost us $3 a week to wash diapers once a week. I paid $1 for each wash and $1 to dry the diapers. When evaluating the cost benefit of cloth you'll want to calculate how much extra you'll spend washing twice a week versus just buying enough diapers to last all week. If you spend an extra $3 a week washing diapers, in four months you could have purchased another two dozen prefolds with the money you saved by washing once a week. We found that it cost less in the long run to have a seven day supply of diapers.
We hope this information is helpful for you or someone you know. Be sure to check out our other "How-To" items on CottonBabies.com
As always, if you have further questions, give us a call at 1-888-33-BABIES
(1-888-332-2243) Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central time.
We'd be glad to assist you.
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