|
|
|
|
|
|
I was surprised to find the instructions on Mother-ease says to use hot water. I'm on my 3rd child and I've only ever used cold water and my diapers come out perfectly. I wouldn't even have bothered looking at the washing instructions if it weren't for my mother-in-law. I'll make a long irritating story short and just say she 'questioned' the diaper washing technique I've been successfully using for 5 1/2 years with my 3 kids and my sisters have used as well. When I insisted cold water was fine she told me that's not what the website said to do.
While getting my degree in fashion and textiles I took a series of courses I affectionately called 'glorified laundry class'. We were taught that unless the water was actually boiling there was no advantage to using warm or hot water in regards to germ killing or stain and residue removal. Quite the opposite, the hotter the water, the more it sets stains. This was before cold water detergent formulas became popular. The only use for hot water, we were told, was to dissolve the detergent, so the optimum procedure was set the machine to warm or hot while the detergent was being dissolved, switch to cold to finish filling, add load when full.
Has anyone else had similar results or are most of you finding your need hot or warm to get them clean?
I use an awesome earth friendly line of cleaning products by Shaklee, which might make a difference in my ease of cleaning, but frankly in this day and age I was surprised to find the mother-ease site didn't STRESS cold water care. |
|
|
|
|
I've always used hot water and I think this is pretty much the norm for diaper washing. I've been on diapering boards for about 8-9 years now and in that time I've only heard of people washing in warm or cold a handful of times.
I experimented once with colder water (I don't remember if it was even cold as such, maybe warm instead of hot) and didn't have good results. Now, it wasn't disastrous, just left my diapers smelling a little funky and I was also experimenting with a different detergent. I cut my trial short just because the smell made me nervous and I never tried again with the same detergent but others on here use it with success so I suspect it was the water.
For me what I've always learned is that while it's true that hot water does not actually 'kill' germs it does help wash them away better than cold water does. It also would help dissolve the natural oils and dirts found in feces which I imagine would also significantly contribute to lowering the germ count. There's also the issue that hot water helps dissolve detergent better and this could be very helpful for people with build-up issues, I wonder if build-up problems wouldn't be worse/more common with cold water. Hand washing is always recomended to be done in the hottest water your skin can take so there's got to be something to washing in hotter water. I wonder if maybe the methods in the class you took aren't appropriate only to clothing that typically aren't urine soaked and loged with feces? I certainly agree that clothing doesn't need to be washed in hot water, I've never done that (much to my own mother's horror!).
I also agree though that hot water will set stains more (one of the reasons I always use a cold rinse prior to the hot wash) and probably be harsher on fabrics in general but I've always thought that this was just the way it had to be to get clean diapers.
I've always wanted to give this a more in-depth test because I've always thought that although the numbers are pretty small there's got to be something to using cold water since some people do make it work (seems like the kind of thing that either works or doesn't work, not really anything in between). I might still experiment one day with my girls diapers but they now only wear diapers at night so it wouldn't be as effective a test with us not dealing with poopy diapers. What's your routine exactly? Have you ever used any other detergents other than Shaklee?
Oh, I don't suppose you're using one of those amazing new washers that uses silver ions to kill germs are you? LOL! Just came across that in my research for a new washer/dryer and those things are amazing! Amazingly expensive (and some say perhaps not eco-friendly since they may kill bacteria in lakes and rivers long after the laundry is over, no one really knows yet, they're testing it) but pretty cool nevertheless! Sorry, got sidetracked there, I'm just excited that old germ killing technology like silver is finally getting some recognition and people are thinking outside the chlorine bleach box!
Karen. |
|
|
|
I've also not had good results when the water is colder (but if you've been doing it happily for so long, who *cares* what the instructions say!). I suspect that may come down to a combination of detergent and water type. When I tried warm water instead of hot first, the diapers just weren't smelling clean (faint poopy smell). In our new location, I find that colder water seems to result in beginning detergent build-up symptoms (over time). Because I moved countries, it's not even the same detergent, much less machine and water, so there are too many variables there to tease out.
So what about stuff like dishcloths? Are you able to wash those in cold, too? I wash most of our clothes in cold, but find that dishcloth/kids face wipes get stinky over time, so I periodically throw them in with my diapers.
Hey Karen, my Samsung does have the silver care thing. Honestly, it's not why I bought that washer (it just happened to come with the high spin speed I wanted). I used it once, umm, probably because a "helper" pressed the button and I didn't realize it, but haven't looked into it. DH considers it a total gimmick, but I know that some hospital use similar technology. I should probably look into it more! |
|
|
|
| You know this is actually a very good question. I haven't used any cloth diapers myself, but for period stains I was always told to use cold water and that did it good. Of course blood is different from baby urine and poop. |
|
|
|
|
Oh yeah, just wanted to second aavt's sentiment that if it's working for you then who cares what the instructions say, what the rest of us have experienced or what family thinks!!
Karen. |
|
|
|
No fancy new machine here. =P .We've got a second hand Whirlpool that works great! My Shaklee rep specifically advises that if you've been using another detergent, to do a load of unimportant stuff because it cleans the machine out so well that first wash can end up all over the clothes. I hadn't considered what being great at getting rid of build up might mean for diapers and other loads.
Someone asked about work clothes and, yes, I use just cold on them too and they come out great too.
My specific diaper regimen is 2 days worth of diapers, so about 16 small sandies, plus the odd pull up for the 2 year old.
I do a rinse on cold with the water set to small. (I've found the less water the more they seem to scrub)
Next is a regular cycle set to medium water height (on my moms new machine the same water height is called large. Kind of like calling last years size 12 pants a size 10 this year LOL!)
I also do a final rinse with a shot of vinegar set on medium height and cold temp.
*just remembered I also shakein a bit of Shaklee's 'Nature Bright: Laundry booster and stain remover', but only when I remember it, which is not often.
I've always loved my cleaners cause they don't make me itchy like most detergents, but now if it's part of what allowing me to use cold when that's not the norm, I love it even more. YAY!
I agree that if it's working why change it, the superior tone of my MIL just hit that nerve, y'know? |
|
|
|
Well you learn something new everyday!
I must say that I have never heard that before about cold vs hot. I guess the only difference I notice is that cold water dissolves the bubbles better & faster. Probably why the rinse cycle usually uses cold, huh?
I use soapnuts which need hot or warm water to work but maybe I'll try a concentrate boil & see what happens with cold water.
Why not at least try it?
Thanks for the info!
Yep, if it ain't broke, why fix? |
|
|
|
|
I've always thought it was the opposite, that hot water rinsed/dissolved suds better, hence why stripping is done in hot water and not cold. I know that in the past when stripping I've noticed no suds at all in a cold rinse and thought I was finally done stripping. I decided one last hot wash just to be safe and then when checking that hot wash there was suddenly lots of suds! That's why I tell people having build-up problems to check a hot wash/rinse for suds if possible as opposed to relying on the final cold rinse.
I always just thought automatic cold rinses on machines were for energy efficiency and because hot just wasn't necessary.
Karen.
|
|
|
|
| It's my understanding that almost everything is going to be more easily dissolved in hotter water because you've got heat breaking up the chemical bonds. Besides the rinsing, the hotter water should help break up the fats in the poop residue. I don't think it would matter for urine only, but for diapers with poop, it should make a difference. Granted, some detergents (as those for cold water washes, etc.) must have some means of chemical compensation to be able to break up the fats in cold water. |
|
|
|
My mom told me that. She always taught me to rinse dishes in cold water because it dissolved the suds better. If you run cold water in the sink full of suds, it rinses away quickly as opposed to warm or hot water that continues to produce suds. Works the same if you are trying to rinse soap out of a bottle to use for something else or recycling. You rinse the soap out alot faster if you use cold water than continuing to rinse with hot or warm, producing more bubbles.
Try it. It works like that, promise.
I dunno why the issue would be different with diapers. If the soap is there, it will sud. If it's gone, it shouldn't. Hot or cold.
I get the rinsing a final time or two with hot/warm to be certain the soap is all gone because soap suds better in hot/warm. But for stripping the soap out, cold should work better actually than hot/warm. All you are seeing in the hot/warm rinse is whether or not you have enough soap to suds. Which does help you know if all the soap is out or not(so it does have value, not knocking that!). But I disagree that it is the water temp that is doing the stripping. It's the water itself. |
|
|
|
|
Sorry, have to disagree. Your demonstration only proves that cold water does not create suds like hot water does, not that it's rinsing or dissolving anything better. As a matter of fact, I'd even venture to say that the hot water creates more bubbles exactly because it is dissolving the detergent in the water better than the cold does.
It's just a scientific fact that hot water is better at dissolving chemical bonds and holding stuff in suspension. That's why we suggest people strip their diapers in water as hot as possible. It's also why you use hot water to dissolve jello powder. And why you can dissolve more salt in hot water than in cold water.
<A href="http://blog.visiondecor.com/index.php/2008/11/18/the-explainer-why-does-hot-water-clean-better-than-cold-water/">http://blog.visiondecor.com/index.php/2008/11/18/the-explainer-why-does-hot-water-clean-better-than-cold-water/</A>
<A href="http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_sugar_dissolve_better_in_cold_or_hot_water">http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_sugar_dissolve_better_in_cold_or_hot_water</A>
Now, I'm not suggesting that we should rinse our clothing or diapers in hot water. Cold water does a perfectly adequate job of rinsing or at least it should if we're not using too much detergent. Which is why it's important not to use too much and why stripping diapers of build-up requires very hot water.
Karen. |
|
|
|
| Never said it cleaned better of worse. Just rinsed better. You can rinse soap out better with cold water than hot/warm. I agree to disagee. |
|
|
|
So then you disagree with the oft-given advice to strip in hot water then? We would be better off stripping in cold and just having a last hot rinse to check for suds?
I guess we will have to agree to disagree but science is on my side here...
Karen. |
|
|
|
And just so I was clear in my post the other day, the point of the link about hot water cleaning better was also to show that it rinsed better. If you read carefully, they clearly say that hot water dissolves particles much better, this would obviously apply to rinsing since dissolving particles (and carrying them away) is what you're trying to do in rinsing as well as washing.
I know, I know, I said agree to disagree, but I just wanted to point out that the link was indeed relevant to rinsing as well as washing since I guess that wasn't clear.
Karen. |
|
|
|
|
I know I should but I just can't let this go. Sorry but it's just bugging me too much as this really isn't a matter of opinion, it's a very basic scientific fact. Here's yet another link that proves my point: <A href="http://www.iun.edu/~cpanhd/C101webnotes/aqueoussolns/solandtemp.html">http://www.iun.edu/~cpanhd/C101webnotes/aqueoussolns/solandtemp.html</A>
Higher temperatures enables water to dissolve solids more easily and to a higher degree. This is exactly what you're trying to do when rinsing clothing or diapers, getting the detergent, which is a solid even if it's at the microscopic level, and lifting it out of the fabric, into the water and then rinsed away.
The tip your mom gave you, particularly about washing out bottles, is still perfectly accurate though, perhaps that's where the sticking point here is? I don't disagree at all that using cold water to rinse out a bottle probably does indeed work better. The difficulty with rinsing soapy bottles is that the suds are lighter than the water, so whenever you tip the bottle to empty it, the suds rise to the top and stay stuck in the bottle. So whatever you can do to minimize or elliminate suds will surely help. This does not invalidate the fact that hot water rinses clothing better. It would never make a difference with dishes though because those aren't fabric, the detergent you're trying to rinse out is right at the surface, not imbedded inside. So hot or cold is equally effective except in cases where suds get in your way, in which case cold is more helpful.
Anyway, more on topic to the OP's thread (sorry it got kind of hijacked - although it was still about water temp so I guess we weren't that far off), I'm planning on giving the washing in cold a shot tomorrow. I'll let you all know the results of my experiments. Maybe I'll see if I can convince a friend to experiment as well. My experiments will only be with overnight pee diapers so it would be nice to get someone with real dirty diapers to experiment as well. I anticipate that it'll be fine for at least a few washes, after that I'm less sure but I don't figure I'll have huge problems with just urine diapers. The real test would be poopy diapers and I'd love to hear from anyone who tries it!
Karen.
|
|
|
|
Actually, we just bought that new Silver Care washer and dryer so we could use cloth diapers with our new baby. Ok, well our old washer conked out on us, and I thought it would be a good way to get my husband to say yes to cloth diapers. It worked. 
We tried the Silver care wash on soiled diapers and couldn't believe how clean everything came out on cold wash! We also used Bio-vert detergent. I can definitely tell the difference between our old front loader and the new one. You can smell the difference.
I was testing out some bamboozle diapers on a trial diaper loan, and noticed it said to wash on hot... so I gave it a try. I was so upset that the stain didn't come out, especially in a new washing machine! I ended up buying that diaper instead of sending it back, as I was so embarrassed at the explosive stain not coming out. I'm not sure what I did wrong, but as my baby is still breast fed exclusively, I thought it would have been water soluable.
So now I'm a little nervous about washing in anything other than the Cold silver care cycle.
I wish I could figure out how to get the stain out, other than to use bleach (I'm sensitive to it). Any ideas? |
|
|
|
I've heard about soap nuts, but haven't met anyone who uses them.
Can you tell me what you think of them? Are they as easy to use as other deteregents, how do you use them, and how well do they wash your diapers?
Thanks,
Jenn |
|
|
|
Thanks for posting those links. It has me thinking, and I have a few extra quesitons to ask if it's not a bother...
So I'm a little confused about something: Why is it that when I've been using cold wash, all the BM stains came out, and the one time I washed in a hot cycle, the BM stain set in and now I can't seem to get it out?
Is there any way to get out a 'set in' stain?
The other reason I've been using cold wash, is because my diapers are all different colours. I was told that with general clothing, when you have mixed colours you wash in cold so they don't run. My sister gave me some of her AIO Monkey Doodles to try out while I'm deciding what kind to buy myself. I don't understand why some of the instructions for different types of diapers say to wash in hot if they are different colours - unless they are assuming you only buy one colour? Can anyone explain this one to me???
After trying several styles, types, and brands, I favour the Mother Ease bamboo diapers in both Sandys and the one size styles. Actually, my baby's bottom was the deciding factor aside from fit, ease of use, and leak stopping ability. So while I'm on here trying to find some near my for sale, I'm also tring to figute out the best way I'll need to wash them. |
|
|
|
|
It's totally true that cold water does tend to set stains less than hot water does so that's probably why. Doing a cold water pre-rinse will help remove a lot of the poop while not setting the stain like you would using hot water immediatly. It will also help you save the step of having to rinse out poopy diapers, at least as long as your baby is exclusively breastfed.
That said, stains from exclusively breastfed baby poop is totally normal and almost inevitable (using cold will help a lot so if it results in clean diapers that's all that matters, but even then I'd be surprised if you could avoid all stains all the time even using cold). Actually breasfted baby poop tends to stain more in the sense that the stains are very bright, almost neon like! BUT they're also MUCH easier to remove. Just lay the stained diaper in the sun (wet or dry doesn't really matter, although wet might work a bit faster) and in a few hours it'll be totally gone! Try it, you'll see it's really like magic, especially at this time of year! It'll also work on formula or solids poop but not quite as well and will take longer.
Doesn't really matter if all your diapers are different colors. I would maybe make sure the color isn't running by maybe washing it seperatly the first time (sometimes if it's freshly dyed the dyes may not have all totally rinsed out) but other than that you don't have to worry about it. Done it all the time with no problems. Even clothing really can usually be all washed together once the clothing have been washed a few times. It's best to seperate just to be sure but I've accidentaly mixed colored stuff with whites several times and only if the bright clothing is new did it result in some stuff coming out pink! All that said, washing in cold will prevent fading better and is generally better for the fibers so if it's working for you then there's no reason to stop.
Basically the general 'rule' for washing diapers is to use hot water for the reasons stated in previous posts. But, as the OP can attest to, it's not always necessary and may be even less necessary using that special silver technology. I say if it's something you don't mind trying out and it works for you (ie diapers don't smell and don't result in funky rashes) then go for it! It's cheaper, better for the environment and better for your diapers!
Karen.
|
|
|
|
Oh, and as for the soap nuts they're great! No residue, which is great for diapers and it's as natural as you can get!
As for ease of use, if you're using hot water it's super easy. Just put a few nuts in the little cloth bag they give you (or an old sock, whatever) and throw it in the washer. Then just remove at the end of the wash (no need to remove for the rinse cycle). If you're using cold water it is a little more complicated but not that bad in my opinion. The thing is that the nuts need hot water to release the saponin from the shell, this is what does the cleaning. You can just take your bag/sock and soak in hot water for a couple of minutes and then just throw the bag and the water in the machine. Or you can boil the nuts in a little water, strain the nuts and then just use the liquid. Making a large quantity of the liquid would require that it be used quickly (there are tons of other uses) or that it be stored in the fridge to keep it fresh. But I've seen that quite a few places that sell the nuts now sell the liquid concentrate (with a preservative inside to keep it fresh) to save you the trouble of making your own. Obviously you'll pay more for that so you will lose some of the frugality of using raw nuts (even buying online and paying for shipping they're pretty economical).
Karen. |
|
|
|
|
