Laundry Woes

My seven month old son has been in dutifully white cloth diapers since he was born. Cloth diapers are better for our environment, and less expensive down the  line. Yet, initially it is a large purchase to make. Costing anywhere from 200-$1000 to get a good "stash"

Not taking this ticket lightly, I decided to do all the research I could to discover how to keep my precious purchase looking its best, and lasting the longest.

Along the way, I discovered something amazing... My god, we have all been using WAY too much laundry soap all these years!


Stepping out of the shower, I pull a towel off the rack and put it to my face, instinctively taking a deep breath. After getting dressed and presentable, I go to my mother in the kitchen and say, "Mom, these towels stink!" She continues what she's doing, not bothering to look up "Ok, well I'll use more soap next time."


Little did I know then, the more detergent you use, the dirtier your clothing remains. The object of washing your clothes is not to make them smell good (If you insist on that, use some kind of stinky fabric softener) the object is so that they smell of nothing.

My mother in law told me once, "Grandma isn't happy unless she can see suds." I use that as a signal that I have used too much soap, and need to adjust my method. An excess of soap in the wash leads to soap build up, so each time you wash your clothes, your machine works harder and harder, trying to remove that soap, not the dirt or residue of day to day life.



"Method found that 53% of people don't use the recommended amount of detergent per washload, preferring instead to guess or, worse, to simply fill the cap up to the top—a practice that wastes more than half the loads a detergent bottle could wash, Method executives say."

When I tell people they are using too much soap, they look at me like a mad man. "Too much soap? surely, there is no such thing." but washing clothes is not like washing your hands - and  machines break down after too much abuse. This is a particularly tricky subject as more and more of us buy HE or "High Efficiency" machines that need even less, sometimes half the recommended dose.


So, here is a recipe I use on my diapers regularly for a good, hard cleaning, and on my towels when my parents come into town...


For a FULL load of laundry in a non HE machine

• Run a "soak" cycle... I bet you never even knew your machine had one
• 1/2 tsp Palmolive dish soap
• 1/2 cup borax
• Run a cycle per usual

After one - maybe two applications, your clothing, towels and diapers should be back to smelling like nothing.

Why use more than we need? You are essentially throwing money down the gutter. Read your labels and begin to develop an intimate relationship with your washing machine. Come check on the load every once in a while. See suds? Use less!

Your skin will feel softer, your towels will not offend and you will save money.


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