Care Instructions

How do I care for my pads?

Caring for pads is surprisingly easy. Here's what I recommend:

Store in a dry pail or wet bag. If you are concerned with stains, some women like to use a soaking solution. My soap bits make a good soapy solution that help keep the stains from setting until you can use a detergent on them.
Machine wash warm or cold. I also suggest a cool rinse before and a cool or warm rinse after. Do NOT wash on hot, as this will set any stains (it literally cooks the proteins in the blood, and removing it is like removing last night's lasagna from the pan - nearly impossible!)
Tumble dry low, or line dry.
Use a cloth diaper detergent or a detergent with few additives. I've found Tide Original as well as the Seventh Generation line to work well. Rockin' Green is also a great detergent specially made for cloth diapers and pads.
Use no fabric softeners or bleach. Stains can be removed with a dilluted hydrogen peroxide solution or Fels Naptha bar applied to the top, but it's not necessary to use a stain remover.
I would not recommend using the sanitize cycle. I preshrink all my fabrics but I have personally found that the sanitary cycle shrinks them quite a bit more and makes exposed fabrics wear and pill faster. If you have an infection and are concerned about re-transfer from the pads, Bac-out or a few hours sunbathing (the pads, not you!) will help kill any remaining yeast or bacteria.