Introducing our ‘bleach in prewash’ calculator

You may have noticed we’ve been promoting using chlorine bleach in prewash these days. This is because it is a fuss-free way to ensure clean nappies and to help reduce the cost of living pressures.

While using bleach is not an essential part of a CCN routine, it does make nappy washing easier and more affordable.

The benefits of using bleach in prewash

Adding chlorine bleach to your prewash is the most affordable, environmentally friendly and low-effort way to achieve consistently clean nappies. This works for all water hardness, machine types and machine sizes.

Using bleach allows you to wash with a lower water temperature, which reduces energy costs. It is also less expensive and more effective than traditional oxygen-based laundry boosters.

It is important to add the correct amount of dilute chlorine bleach to your prewash. The amount of bleach calculated is safe to use on nappies. It does not cause premature degradation to PUL covers or inserts.

Situations that benefit from bleach in prewash

Consider adding bleach to your prewash if:

• Your child has extra stainy poos (such as when baby is exclusively breastfed)
• You store the nappies in a closed bucket or wetbag all day
• You want to use night nappies but can’t handwash or prewash at 60ºC
• You use a top loader, especially if you have an electric tank hot water system that takes a long time to reheat. Save the hot water for showers!
• You need or want to reduce electricity use where possible
• You want to cut corners with your wash routine but still get reliably clean nappies

Adding bleach to the first wash (prewash) is my number one tip for reliably clean nappies each and every time. It is the easiest, cheapest and most sustainable way to prevent stains, smells and ammonia. This simple addition solves the vast majority of issues that CCN members come to us with.

~ Anastasia, Environmental Scientist and founding Facebook group admin

Prewashing night nappies

Our standard advice had been to hot handwash night nappies every morning or add them to a daily 60°C, 60+ minute prewash. This was a challenge for many people, especially those who had a top loader or could not spend time hot handwashing night nappies.

With energy prices rising globally, we know you are looking at ways to reduce your hot water use. Adding bleach (with detergent) to your prewash enables you to machine wash night nappies with warm or even cold water. This also means it is easier for top loader users to use night nappies.

Available now

The dedicated ‘bleach in prewash’ calculator page is live and ready for you to use.

If you’ve been adding bleach to your prewash for some time now, tell us how it has made a difference to your nappy washing routine!

Available now: our dedicated ‘bleach in prewash’ calculator.