The Great Cloth Diaper Laundry Detergent Myth Busting Experiment

I am SO ridiculously excited about this experiment. Which is not like me, because I HATE HATE HATE laundry, almost as much as cleaning the bathroom...

In my post about why homemade detergent will not work, I said that I was going to do an experiment to show you that it doesn't work.

But because this experiment, most likely won't be done until the fall, I thought I would try to give some kind of regular update with it.

First off, the procedure, the most important part.

We have 13 cotton prefolds that we aren't using yet, and 15 microfiber (MF) inserts (I actually found more, but I already started the experiment... LAME)

So each load will consist of 6 prefolds, and 7 MF inserts.

Each load will be washed with a level two scoop of "detergent". The scoop I will be using if from our regular detergent.

Each load will be washed, with the following washing machine settings:
Water level: Medium
Water Temperature: Hot (machine will only do initial filling with hot, so the rinses will all be done in cold)
Wash Cycle: Quick wash (aprox. 10 min agitation cycle)

The loads will then be line dried, and every 5th washing, dried in the dryer, on high for 50 mins. (This is to save on our energy costs)

Any noticed differences in texture (feel) will be noted.

I have a spreadsheet to note the washes, dries, and any other things noticed.

We will be using the homemade detergent and Arm and Hammer Perfume and Dry Free.

100 washes each, goal is to wash twice a day, and to alternate the two loads every 5 washes or so.

When it come time for the test on how the detergent affected the absorbancy of the diapers, I will get you the details on that.

Homemade detergent, the scoop, and Arm & Hammer

Diapers drying. (I marked one load, so that if they ever get mixed, we can tell the difference)