Washing cloth diapers with an extra-large front-loading washing machine

Front-loading washing machines get a bad reputation in North American cloth diaper groups. Members worry their machines do not add enough water, leave detergent residue, or cause ammonia from inadequate washing. These fears are unfounded.

With the right techniques, you can get clean diapers in your front loader. No grape stomping, Grovia Mighty Bubbles or Duplo blocks needed. 

Unique challenges of North American front loaders

Compared to front loaders in other parts of the world, North American front loaders have shorter cycles and limited ability to heat their own water. They also have extra-large capacities (often greater than 4.0 cubic feet). This is significantly larger than machines in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Europe. All these factors create some unique challenges when applying Clean Cloth Nappies’ standard advice

European-style front loaders are sold in North America. They are usually around 2.2 cubic feet and marketed as ‘compact’ machines. These machines sometimes require a 240-volt outlet. We speculate the increased voltage is due to Ohm’s Law: the higher voltage results in a higher current, allowing the water to be heated faster. 

Finding the right program or cycles

If you’ve grown up using a top loader, using a front loader will feel very different. Their cycles are a lot longer, and they use a lot less water. Front-loading washing machines tumble your clothes using gravity, rather than an agitator or impeller. 

Front loader cycles are longer than top loader cycles, but North American front loaders have relatively short cycles compared to their international counterparts. 

• Find the longest, full-weight-rated cycle possible.
  • This is usually called ‘cotton’, ‘whites’ or ‘normal’.
• Select the highest soiling level or any “Intensive” or soak option.
• Use a longer first wash to compensate for the shorter main wash.
  • You can use the same cycle for both first and main washes.

Adding extra rinses to extend the cycle duration does not add extra time to the wash or agitation phase. Focus on selecting cycles with long wash phases.

Water use in front loaders

Front loaders don’t need to be completely filled with water to clean clothes. There is no need to ‘wet’ items to trick the machine into adding more water.

Front loaders can use up to 70% less water than top loaders of similar size. The reason top loaders are so thirsty is because they need enough water to make your clothes float to clean them – unlike front loaders, which use gravity to tumble your clothes.

~ CHOICE

Front-load washers adjust the amount of water to the size of the load you’re washing. They clean by lifting clothes up as the drum turns, then dropping the clothes into the water.

~ Consumer Reports

Selecting a detergent 

Always use an HE safe detergent. Most detergents in North America are HE safe, but always check the label, as some brands have separate formulas. Using non-HE safe detergent can lead to excessive suds.

Use enough detergent

Diapers are heavily soiled items, and need detergent to clean them. We recommend using detergent in both your first wash and main wash.

Start with the recommended amount for an extra-large and heavily soiled load. If you have hard water, add a laundry booster (like Biz or Oxyclean) or a water softener like Borax. 

Fears about detergent buildup are prevalent in North American cloth diaper groups. These fears are unfounded as modern detergents are clean rinsing and do not build up. Seeing bubbles in the rinse phase does not indicate detergent buildup. Bubbles are formed due to the agitation of the water inside the machine. 

However, many mainstream North American detergents are highly fragranced. These product fragrances are designed to hang around. Diapers smelling of fragrance do not mean there is a detergent buildup. 

The exception is if items feel slimy or squeaky after washing. If items feel slimy and/or there is visible detergent residue, then they haven’t rinsed properly. In this situation, add an extra rinse to ensure the detergent is rinsed thoroughly out. 

Loading your main wash

If you have a large machine, you may as well use it. Adult clothing, baby towels, muslin wraps, and receiving blankets are all fair game. The more items you add to your machine, the more detergent you need to add to ensure everything gets clean.

The best way to know exactly how much detergent to use is to watch the suds for your main wash. Adjust the detergent dose up or down based on suds level.

A note about loading

The way front-loaders wash means loading is far less important than in a top-loading machine. There is no need to add Duplo, Mega Bloks, Jax or agitation balls to the washer.

Unlike top loaders, front loaders use gravity in the tumbling action to agitate your clothes. Items inside the washer tumble against each other in an up-and-down motion. This motion scrubs away dirt and grime (and poop) similar to hand-washing.

Top loading washing machines clean your clothes by rubbing them against each other, whereas a front loader cleans by tumbling: it uses gravity to pick up and drop the clothes into the soapy water over and over.

~ CHOICE

With adequate detergent, time and warm/ hot water, your diapers will still get clean in an underloaded wash.

Simple ways to improve your wash routine

If you are having issues with your cloth diapers smelling or your baby has constant rashes, try these steps.

Add chlorine bleach to your first wash

Adding chlorine bleach to your diaper first wash is the most economical, effective and sustainable way to improve your diaper routine.

Chlorine bleach is less expensive and more effective than traditional oxygen-based laundry boosters. The amount of bleach we recommend is safe to use on diapers and does not cause premature degradation to PUL nappy covers or inserts. We have developed a simple and safe method on how to do this.

Run regular first washes

Run a first wash, with detergent, every day or every other day. Night diapers need to be washed the same day they come off the butt.

If you are waiting days before running a first wash then your diapers will start to form ammonia. This will lead to smells and make stains harder to shift. Regular first washes prevent this problem.

Increase your detergent amount

As your baby grows, you might need to adjust the amount of detergent you use. The detergent amounts that work for a newborn usually need to increase once your baby starts on solid food.

Other factors like having grubbier family laundry (hello toddlerhood!) or hot humid weather can also mean your laundry is harder to clean. When the amount of soiling changes be mindful that you may need to increase your detergent to acheive the same clean.

Each wash cycle is different, the level of soiling is never identical. You might have the same cycle length and water temperature but the the soiling and staining of each load is different. This means you need to be mindful of when to adjust the detergent dose (and chemical factors).

~ Anastasia, Environmental Scientist and founding Facebook group admin

Summary

Wrapping up, we love front loaders at Clean Cloth Nappies. They are gentle on fabrics, water-efficient, and energy-efficient compared to top-load washers. With the right understanding of how they work, you can achieve clean cloth diapers.