You can order directly from our store online or find a retailer on our Retailer page.

Molly’s Suds uses the RDA’s washing guidelines and suggests that you “keep it simple” when it comes to your routine.

• Dump solid material into the toilet.
• Rinse diapers in warm if possible, cold if not.
• Wash diapers with Molly’s Suds using hot (HOT!) water and two scoops of powder
• Rinse diapers in warm water. Suggested to do an extra rinse to be sure all detergent is washed away to prevent repelling.
• Dry your diapers on the line, inside on a drying rack, or tumble-dry on warm and our Wool Dryer Balls get them dried quicker! *Be sure to follow your diaper’s manufacturer’s guidelines when washing and drying to stay within warranty.

Yes! Molly’s Suds Cloth Diaper Powder has been formulated specifically for cloth diapers. We want to make washing diapers easy without the risk of detergent build-up. Ingredients: sodium percarbonate, sodium carbonate (from the Green River Basin in Wyoming), Sodium bicarbonate (food grade) and an unrefined triple filtered sea salt. We will have a DIY “scent” instruction on our site, but we did not add essential oils, fillers, or toxic surfactants and optical whiteners to our formula.

We use all natural ingredients with no scents, parabens, sulfates, phosphates, or petrochemicals. This means that everything in our soap is not only safe to use on items touching your delicate baby’s skin, but also kind to the earth. If you’d like scent added to your detergent please see our instructions to DIY at home. We also have Wool Dryer Balls that can replace chemical laden dryer sheets as an alternative way to soften your clothes and diapers with the added benefit of reducing your drying time.

We did extensive testing of our detergent before bringing it to market in all types of water. Our testers all came back with positive experiences, including those with hard water. Molly’s Suds is based in Florida where the water is very hard so we know a thing or two about that! If you find you are having trouble washing your diapers in hard water consider adding a small amount of Calgon Liquid Water softener in with your wash cycle.

Hard water has an excess of minerals that makes the water have to work harder to get things clean. Try adding a drop of dish soap to a jar of water, close the lid, and shake vigorously. If the water has a heavy amount of suds you have regular or soft water. If there are few suds you likely have hard water. Another way to tell is to remove the cap on your faucet; if you can see white crust or small pebbles in the aerator you likely have hard water. You might need to use extra detergent to get your diapers clean if you have hard water.

A typical load of diapers should be no less than 8 diapers and no more than 12. You want enough diapers so that they have enough to agitate against one another to help get them clean. Adjust your water level accordingly, though generally you will want to use a Large or Super setting. Diapers soak up the water in your washer. If you have a Front Loader HE machine you may need to add additional water for the most effective wash possible.

When washing cloth diapers “less is more.” Two scoops are usually enough to get your diapers clean unless you have overloaded the washer or if your water is very hard. If you use too much detergent you could run into problems with repelling. If you suspect your diapers are not getting clean enough either wash fewer diapers per load (optimum loads have 8-12 diapers) or add more detergent. (See troubleshooting guide.)

Yes, unless the diapers are brand new or you are stripping your diapers and they started out clean. Rinsing before washing helps remove any leftover solid waste and rinses out the urine. Imagine not rinsing before a wash- the detergent will have to work against all of the waste that is mixed in the water. With a rinse, there is less “mess” to wash against and your diapers will get cleaner.

Once all of your diapers are prepped you can wash them together with each cycle. This includes waterproof covers, pockets, AIO’s, AI2’s, fitted, prefolds, and flats. When it comes to washing your brand new diapers for the first time you will need to separate your natural fibers (hemp, cotton, bamboo) from anything with synthetics (suede cloth, microfleece, microchamois, CoolMax, etc.) and prep them in separate loads. See next question for more.

To prep your brand new diapers you will need to wash them at least once before using to remove any leftover dirt or chemicals from the manufacturing process. Prepping also maximizes the absorbency. New diapers often come unwashed and will not be absorbent enough until prepped, like prefolds or other diapers made with natural fibers. (Confused about these terms- see our Terms and Materials Guide)

Natural Fibers- for all diapers made with natural fibers wash them apart from diapers made with synthetics. Do 2-4 HOT washes, then rinses, in a row. If you are prepping prefolds you may want to dry them between each wash to quilt them up. You can choose to use no detergent at all for all but one wash, and for one wash use only half a scoop.

Synthetic Fibers- For diapers made with synthetics like pocket diapers and microfiber inserts use half a scoop of detergent in a HOT wash, then rinse with warm or cold and dry.

Microfiber will reach peak absorbency after 2-4 washes, while natural fibers will take at least 6-8. If you are having leaks in the beginning your diapers may just need a few extra washes.

Stripping diapers are only necessary when you are having problems- such as stink, ammonia build-up, repelling, or have encountered yeast rashes. (See troubleshooting guide.) Unless you have any problems you can continue washing your diapers as you always do. Some manufactures suggest bleaching your diapers once a month. Please consult their washing instructions before using chlorine bleach.

Diapers need to be washed every 2-3 days. Diapers should not sit any longer than 5 days to avoid mold growth, ammonia build-up, and the breaking down of elastic or PUL.

Stains happen. If your clean diapers still have stains the best and most effective way to remove them is to lay the diapers, stains facing up, out in the sun. If you live in an area where you can’t put them outside you can lay them in front of a window where light shines through. Even cloudy days can still sun-bleach diapers. Sunning will also kill bacteria and germs in your diapers and is a great thing to do regularly to keep them bright and clean. For very stubborn stains squirt lemon juice on top and then sun, but be sure to re-wash before using them on your baby.

Many manufacturers suggest that you line-dry your diapers to extend their lifespan. If you choose to tumble dry make sure you use the “warm” setting. Drying on HOT every time can wear out the elastic, or worse, damage the waterproof PUL lining of your diapers. To speed up drying time and save energy costs consider using our Wool Dryer Balls, which can shave 20-30 minutes off of a typical load of diapers.

While your baby is being breastfed the poop is water soluble and there is no need to scrape out or spray off the poop. Once your baby begins eating solid foods, around 6 months, you will have to start removing the solid waste before washing.

Sprayers, while nice, are not necessary. Diaper sprayers are used to spray off the solid waste before washing a diaper. If you don’t want to use one you can scrape the waste off using toilet paper, dunk and flush the diapers in the toilet, or use flushable cloth diaper liners.

Yes, you can wash them all together.

Most manufacturers do not cover using vinegar or other additives in your wash routines. Some brands do suggest an occasional use of bleach to disinfect. Please consult your diapers’ warranties beforehand. Using too many products other than detergent on your diapers can complicate the delicate balance that is washing cloth diapers. Keeping it simple, unless warranted, is the best route.

Solution: This smell is caused by an excess build-up of ammonia. Urine contains ammonia salts and if not washed correctly, they build-up over time and the smell will get progressively worse. In the worst cases, the ammonia will cause a “burn” that causes a bright red and flat rash that can be painful. You need to strip your diapers of the ammonia. Try soaking your diapers overnight in a product like RLR and then do several hot washes with no detergent. If you are comfortable, use a 1/4-cup of chlorine bleach while stripping*. For future washes to avoid more build-up try using more hot water and not letting diapers sit for long periods of time before washing. If you are using diapers with a microfiber insert be aware that ammonia is most likely to occur is this material.*See your diaper manufacturer’s guidelines before using bleach or other additives. Using certain products can void your warranty.

Side note: Ammonia will naturally occur when diapers sit for a while, only be concerned with the smell is extremely strong, occurs immediately after your child wets the diaper, or smells of ammonia when clean.

Solution: Diapers not getting clean enough cause barnyard stink. Try adjusting the amount of detergent you are using by adding just a bit more. Start with adding ¼ of our scoop more and go from there. Clean diapers should not smell dirty when clean and still wet, or clean and dry.

Solution: Diaper leaks can be caused by a number of things, including a poor fit, gaps in the legs, compression leaks caused by tight onesies, and repelling. Repelling is harder to fix than adjusting the fit.

The cause of repelling stems from a build-up of detergent on your diapers that preventing liquids from soaking into the absorbent layer. This most often happens with diapers that use a synthetic, stay dry layer such as suede cloth or microfleece.

To get your diapers absorbent again you need to strip the residue away. Consider using a product like RLR and do an overnight soak, or simply run several hot washes with no detergent. Check to see if there are bubbles when your washer is agitating during a hot wash cycle. Once the suds have stopped you should be clear of excess detergent and your diapers will absorb liquid once again.

Detergent build-up can come from residue left in your washer, or even dryer, if you use standard grocery store brands on your clothes. It can also come from fabric softener residue on your washer/dryer, a dryer sheet left in the drum on accident, or using too much detergent in your wash. To avoid repelling again remove these items from your laundry room and/or clean your washer and dryer drum using vinegar.

Solution: We cannot diagnose rashes and are not doctors. If you are concerned about a rash please consult your pediatrician. That being said, rashes can be caused by many things, including sensitivity to synthetic fibers like suede cloth or micro fleece, sensitivity to natural fibers that allow moisture on your baby’s skin, a reaction to the detergent being used, yeast rashes, or the result of a food allergy. Rashes will present differently depending on the cause, so please see your doctor to diagnose a rash. There are cloth diaper safe rash creams available if needed.

Solution: Often when you line dry diapers they will not be as soft as those that are tumble dried. Do not use any fabric softeners to try and solve this problem since they will cause repelling. If you are line drying prefolds or flats there is a trick to softening them- twist the diapers in your hands and crumple them up. They will feel as soft as if they were dried in your dryer! If it is your fitted, contours, pockets, or All-in-Ones that are rough consider tossing them in the dryer just for a fluff cycle if you own a dryer.