Prepping cloth nappies

Before you can start using cloth nappies on your little one, you are going to want to get them ready. Here are our tips for prepping cloth nappies ready for use.

Why you need to prep

• Cloth nappies will need washing before use, to ensure that they are clean and hygienic.
• Brand new nappies are likely to have some residues from manufacture that need removing.
• Bleached nappies may have traces of the chemicals used to bleach them.
• Unbleached nappies will still have some of the natural oils on the cotton fibres.
• Often cotton nappies are starched to make sewing easier.
• Washing nappies will soften them and make them fluff up.
• When first washed the nappies will shrink slightly so that they fit better.
• Washing or soaking the nappy will increase the absorbency.

Prepping cloth nappies

Getting your cloth nappies ready for use is simple.

• Soaking the cotton or bamboo nappies over night in cold water will remove residues and soften them.
• If you want to do the job quicker, then a hot or warm wash will do the same job.
• Unbleached nappies may need a couple of washes to reach full absorbency.
• It doesn’t really make a lot of difference if you soak in cold water or hot wash.
• Dry the nappies after washing or soaking.
• If you tumble dry them it will make them shrink slightly more and make them slightly thicker and softer.
• Line drying will do the job fine if you don’t want to or can’t tumble draw.

Prepping covers

Nappy covers don’t need any special kind of preparation before use. Covers should not be soaked, so do not soak these over night. As with anything new that you are going to use on your baby, it is best to wash the covers before use. This will just remove any residues that have built up on the covers during manufacture.

If you are still looking to buy your cloth nappies, then our prefold nappy packs can be found here.