Nappy Care
Each brand of modern cloth nappy (MCN) may provide detailed care instructions for the preparation, use, washing and possibly even specific storage instructions for their products. The following general care instructions are provided with the Booty Crawl Newborn Hire Kit that is available and should be used as a guide only:
• Do not soak prior to washing. Dry-pailing is recommended for all MCNs. Simply remove any solids into the toilet and place the nappy into a bucket or wetbag until you are ready to wash. Should you notice the nappies have a very strong ammonia smell, rinse the nappies before placing them in the bucket (this may occur when baby is teething and with night nappies).
• Avoid overuse of common supermarket nappy rash creams that contain zinc oxides or oils that may leave a residue in modern cloth nappies as they can decrease their absorbency and stain the nappies if used too heavily.
If you need to use a nappy rash cream we stock and recommend GroVia’s all natural and organic Magic Stick. A large stick is $22.50 RRP. If you do have the standard nappy rash creams that you would like to continue using, then please use them very sparingly or only use them with a liner. This will prevent any residue sticking to the actual nappy, as it will be held by the liner instead.
• Aim to wash at least every 2 days. We recommend that you don’t leave nappies for more than 48 hours before washing, as long exposure to urine can cause mould or wear to the nappies and reduce their lifespan. Urine will also convert into ammonia gases over time. A quick rinse can be done if needed for heavy soiling prior to dry-pailing to help reduce any premature wear. Most people tend to wash their light coloured clothes or linen over 2-3 loads each week, and find that this is a good time to add their nappies to the wash cycle, if a full load of nappies isn’t achieved.
• Do not use bleach/sanitizing products to the rinse or wash. These can irritate sensitive skin and reduce the life of the elastic in your nappies. Use a the recommended amount of your chosen laundry detergent (or the one recommended by the manufacturer and NO fabric softener.
• Do not use extra additives in your wash (like baking soda or vinegar). These ingredients are unnecessary and may cause problems in your nappies.
• Do not use fabric softeners.
• For VELCRO nappies, always use the laundry tabs when washing. All Velcro nappies will have laundry tabs built in to prevent the Velcro on the nappy from becoming prematurely worn and collecting lint in the wash. The laundry tab is usually a small section of Velcro within the inside of the nappy, which you use to attach the closing Velcro to. Simply open the nappy out, fold the ‘wings’ or ‘closing piece’ of the nappy over, and it should automatically match up the Velcro to the laundry tab.
• For best results, do a rinse cycle first (or ‘pre-wash cycle’ on some machines). Follow this with a full standard cold, warm or hot cycle (30/40/60) with the recommended amount of detergent for your machine and load size and NO fabric softener.
Drying instructions
The sun is the best way to dry your nappies and is also the best stain remover and sanitiser. All nappy covers should be line dried only. Inserts can be tumble dried on low or line dried. Some All-in-Ones (e.g. Bambooty) may also be tumble dried on low, so please check the manufacturers recommendations before drying to prevent damage to the nappies. We also recommend tumble drying in a lingerie bag for All-in-Ones to protect the snaps.
Grovia, Bambooty, Bumgenius, Baby Beehinds, Rumparooz and Designer Bums may provide specific care instructions for their different products so please check your individual brand for trouble-shooting or maintenance tips and advice.