Do you have a direct link to the suggestions about detergent please? I can't see any other than a general 'use the correct amount'. No mention of nappies or of the Terrible Terrible Effects that hard water will have on nappies or why. Not that I can see anyway.
Adrie, have you ever tried washing your nappies in any way other than the One And Only Correct Way you endorse? I assume you are unlikely to ever believe anything else but there are people telling you that the way they use works... why wouldn't you believe that? Do you think we're all lying because... I don't know, because we want everybody's nappies to stink? I have no doubt that you're happy with your nappies, the way you want everybody to use obviously works for you. However, I've done the full dose of detergent method, with and without water softener and at all different temps and it didn't work for us. What don't you understand about that? There is no 'one way' to wash nappies. I understand that, do you? Similarly, many people don't want to use chlorine bleach for a whole host of reasons. The 'solution' to that is not to just keep trying to convince them that they must or their baby's skin will fall off. The solution is just to figure out what else may work... and people are telling you their ways that have been shown to work and you point blank refuse to accept them.
I want to start off by saying that I know I come off severe a lot of times. I'm not the nicest person, and I am quite judgmental and unapologetic in how I come across. I do realize that many times, it doesn't help.
Despite what many mom's tend to believe about nappies, they are really just heavily soiled laundry, and they shouldn't really be thought of or treated any differently. For this reason, hard water minerals affect them more than a standard load of laundry as they tend to be washed more often, and are made to hold in and absorb urine and feces, which your clothing is not. Therefore, buildup is easily apparent as they don't work as effectively, or sometimes not at all.
There are no direct links I can provide (as there are COUNTLESS detergents across the globe). But I can suggest some helpful parameters for which to find a detergent that fits your wants/needs. Basically, the general rule of thumb is that any detergent, minus softeners, is okay. Just keep in mind that free and clear versions are not as strong as non free and clear; however, some mom's use free and clear versions and they work great for them. Some mom's cannot use anything with scent b/c their babies have reactions to it. Powder detergents rinse cleaner and are better for front loading machines. Unfortunately, I have never seen a powder detergent w/o scent (at least not here).
When I started CD, I used Rockin Green detergent and no softener. It is very expensive at 26 dollars per about 45 loads (for 2tbsp detergent). And the bag lasted maybe 3 months? Then I found an online community where I was informed about how weak this detergent is (as per its ingredients) in comparison to mainstream detergents. You may hear that it is concentrated--a selling point--but its ingredients prove that it is not.
Shortly afterwards I would read
countless testimonials of mom's using similar brands (any overpriced cloth diaper specific detergent really) and all of the issues they tackled. And then how their issues were solved with their preferred brand of mainstream detergent.
Then I used a Free and Clear mainstream detergent (which I use to wash my LO's clothes) and suddenly had some minor stink on some inserts.
Did some more searching in my CD groups and was informed that Tide Original Powder is one of the best detergents for hard water. it also has the most built in softeners. Made the switch and haven't looked back since. Luckily my daughter has no sensitivities to it.
I don't "endorse" any one particular kind of detergent, just one that works well and doesn't have mom's tackling any of the following issues: bacteria, stink, ammonia, barnyard, rashes (and sometimes burns), and repelling. If you are tackling any of these issues aside from yeast, there is a problem with your wash routine. it really is as simple as that. Obviously detergents can vary in brand across the world, but you can find a compatible option wherever you are.
Look, I understand that it sucks to have to use bleach (chlorinated or oxygen), or hydrogen peroxide, et al., but sometimes there is no other way to really kill these invasive infections. if used correctly and within the proper dilution method, it with rinse clean and not harm any fabrics, save wool or silk.
I wish everyone the best of luck in curing their infections.
