Washing children’s clothes isn’t an easy task. A lot of dilemmas come to mind when it’s going about the laundry detergent choice. Young parents often get lost in the jungle of the products offered in shops. Additionally, there’s a huge choice of the washing, rinsing and temperature settings. It’s not a surprise, as children’s clothes fabric is really delicate, so washing them requires some extra attention.

How to wash the child’s clothes?

Washing children’s clothes requires quite a big amount of knowledge. The first common confusion is if all the clothes should be washed together or separately.  In the case of babies’ clothes, they shouldn’t be washed with the adults’ clothes. Mostly because of the hygienic reasons.

It is obvious that even such a high temperature like 90 Celsius degrees is not able to remove all of the germs and bacteria that have built up on the clothes. Moreover, the available modes are not suitable for mixed washing as they should be chosen according to the type of fabric. Also, the detergents for children’s clothes should be different than the ones for adults. 

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What is the right temperature for the children’s clothes washing?

The most important thing to know about washing children’s clothes is the fact that new clothes must be prewashed before use. Why? Such clothes are full of bacteria that may be harmful to the child’s health or even life. Special attention is required while washing a newborn’s clothes. The first washing should be at 90 Celsius degrees. Additionally, there should be a rinse mode set if a washing machine doesn’t have a foam detector built-in. As a child gets older, the washing temperature can be lowered down gradually. Usually, the baby’s clothes are washed at 60 Celsius degrees. Such a temperature will be sufficient to kill mites, fungus and the most dangerous bacteria. 

The tetras and flannel diapers are an exception because they get dirtier than other clothing. Additionally, the stains on them are difficult to get rid of, and they stay there permanently. In this case, the 90 Celsius degrees temperature will also be the best. Moreover, it is required to wash new clothes for the first few months at such a high temperature. After a year, it’s fine to lower the temperature down. 

In the first few months, it’s fine to wash at 60 degrees and then lower the temperature down to 40 Celsius degrees. Such a value is sufficient to get rid of stains. It is worth mentioning that it won’t kill all the bacteria, but a child should get used to it in the first year of life. It is recommended to use the special detergents that are dedicated to child’s clothes washing. To not get confused with the washing machine settings, or the length of washing, it is better to use additional options of washing if available.

What detergents to use 

What detergents to use for washing children’s clothes is one of the most common questions that parents ask. The recent trend associated with ecology and natural ingredients of many products makes shop shelves full of bio washing and rinsing detergents. Their great advantage is the fact that they can be used both for children and adult clothing. Some people will consider the eco detergents as an unnecessary invention, while others as the only safe product for child’s clothes. 

The opinions about such detergents aren’t consistent. First of all, parents should define their needs. Some children don’t stain their clothes that often, whereas others dirt them to the point that they get broken after one day on a playground, and can only be thrown away. In the latter case, a stain remover is often required because most of the parents can’t afford new clothes every week. Another thing is the child’s skin. This is one of the fundamental aspects that should be taken into account. During the whole child’s life, it’s skin develops a protective barrier. It is worth knowing that in the first years of a child’s life, its skin is more sensitive for irritation, infections and allergic reactions.

Eco detergents

Parents should care for a child’s skins while washing its clothes. However, if the cheaper products don’t cause any discomfort, then it’s worthless purchasing any expensive detergents. If a child’s skin gets irritated, then it is better to consider buying the eco detergents or in the case when the skin is dry or allergic to an ingredient of an artificial detergent. It’s worth adding that the current eco-fashion made the market bloom in sustainable washing products. There’s even a trend of washing clothes in soap nuts or ordinary soap.

Washing clothes in the ecological detergents doesn’t fully guarantee that a child’s skin will not be irritated. However, there are great opinions about the soap nuts. It’s a new trend that seems to be better than synthetic detergents. A child’s skiing doesn’t get irritated because the nuts are fully natural. They come from India and grow on the trees called sapindus mukorossi. The saponin that is their naturally occurring ingredient, creates foam in contact with water. Many parents appreciate them as they are cheaper and more efficient than the ordinary ingredients. Also, they are fully safe for children, which is another great aspect.

Should parents disinfect children’s clothes?

If parents know how to wash children’s clothes, they shouldn’t forget about another vital matter. The right washing detergents aren’t everything. Of course, using such detergents gives a nice smell and removes stains, but not necessarily kills all the bacteria. Sterilisation won’t have an adverse impact on a child’s skin. How to do it? Besides high temperature, a perfect tool will be an iron. 

Definitely, many moms heard from a nurse in the hospital that it works like a sterilizer. And this is true. The high temperature that iron creates eliminates microorganisms perfectly. It’s worth knowing that not only clothes should be disinfected, but also all the fabrics that have contact with the child’s skin. Towels, diapers and bed covers are the basic elements of the child’s bed equipment. Obviously, parents shouldn’t exaggerate. Such a thing should be done only in the first few years of a child’s life. In further years a child will develop a better bacteria immunity, and its skin won’t be as sensitive.

How to take care of the children’s safety?

Child’s skin is unusually sensitive, and this is an important must-know. Also, it is susceptible to different types of allergens, so that the laundry detergents cannot be chosen randomly. Parents should use especially dedicated detergents. The most important is that the product doesn’t contain any chemical substances such as boric acid, fragrances, or colourants. 

Another important matter is the right dosing. If there’s going to be too much of the chemicals, it may turn out that they won’t be fully rinsed off. In such a way, a child may have an allergic reaction. In order to avoid such negative consequences, you can set an antiallergic mode on your washing machine, so the detergents are rinsed off thoroughly. 

Washing children’s clothes – extra tips

In case of intensive stains like vomit or full diapers, such clothes shouldn’t go straight to a washing machine. Firstly, it may be harmful to a washing machine. Secondly, it may stain the other clothes inside. The best solution is to rinse the dirty clothing with warm water. It will have a beneficial impact on the washing quality because the stains are going to be removed better. After the washing, the clothes should be ironed. The iron will even out what the washing machine didn’t remove, as it reaches even 200 Celsius degrees. It’s worth purchasing a good quality washing machine. Little children, especially babies, require changing often. Only an efficient and power-saving washing machine will facile the parents’ life.

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