New Product: Charlie's Soap Hardwater Treatment & Laundry Booster!

Did you know that we carry Charlie's Soap Laundry Treatment and Hardwater Booster?  Did you even know that there was such a product?  Well we do, and there is!

What exactly is it and how can you tell if you need it or not?

Charlie's Soap Laundry Booster & Hard Water Treatment uses a biodegradable phosphate that leaves no residue on your clothes while softening your wash water. 

Certain phosphates can safely eliminate these problems and be environmentally friendly. They're only a problem with overuse.

If hard water is an issue, why not use an environmentally-safe product from Charlie's rather than take a chance with other detergents that put bad things into the environment?

The advantage of using Charlie's Soap with our new Laundry Booster & Hard Water Treatment is that you get the benefit of really clean clothes without a lot of chemicals left behind.

The Charlie's Laundry booster and hard water treatment works hand in hand with our Powder or Liquid to give you the best of both worlds. 

How to use it?

Simply add a 1/2 tablespoon per large load with your Charlies Soap detergent!  Your laundry will be whiter, brighter, softer and you can rest assured that they'll be clean, even if you have hard water issues.

MSRP, Just $18.99 for enough to treat 80+ large loads

The Cloth Diaper Geek Explains it all! Laundry Edition

This week's edition will focus on frequently asked questions regarding laundering your diapers! Have you got a question? Don't forget you can either post your question as a comment or submit your question using our Reader Contribution Form.

Question: What exactly is a surfactant? And is it on the detergent no-no list?

The Geek's Answer: Surfactant is short for "surface-active-agent." They help reduce the surface tension of a liquid (like water) allowing items in the laundry to more easily become "wet" and they also makes organic matter more soluble in water which makes them essential to detergents.

From what I've found in my research, surfactants are vital to most detergents, making them more effective and actually classifying them as a detergent. It's the other additives you have to watch out for, the one's specifically intended to coat your laundry with fragrance, fabric softener, starch, stain guards, etc.

For this question I even consulted with Taylor, the owner of Charlies Soap, and he assured me that surfactants ARE detergents.

So, FINAL ANSWER, surfactants are ok for your diapers, they're what get your diapers clean, and naturally produced surfactants are better than synthetic man made ones.

Question: I am in need of some help. I have cloth diapered for 5 years and am totally addicted to it, plus I believe cloth is the BEST. However, my 3rd little boy is getting some serious diaper rash. It has become so bad that to get rid of a rash, twice now I have had to use disposables for a week each time. I mainly do a prefold with a cover, and I have a few old fuzzibunz. But I don't know what to do. I need some help knowing how to wick the moisture away from his bottom to prevent the rash/thrush. Are my diapers not clean enough? What am I doing wrong? I've done this for 5 years--what is my problem. Thanks!

The Geek's Answer: There are many ways to troubleshoot this problem. First I would suggest changing detergents, preferably to Charlies Soap, a gentle yet effective detergent that you can use on both your diapers and the rest of your laundry. If you don't want to change detergents yet, I would suggest changing him more frequently until the rash goes away and also use powder or cornstarch at diaper changes and then on a regular basis to keep him dry. You may also want to try some fleece liners. They serve as a stay dry barrier between your babes skin and the cotton prefold. They can help, and would definitely be worth a try.

Also, not sure on your washing routine but sometimes you need an extra rinse before your wash cycle to ensure that you're rinsing them enough. Ammonia can build up and essentially reactivate when the baby pees in the diaper causing a rash. It's also important to make sure you aren't washing too many diapers at once.

Do you have a laundry related or cloth diaper related question? Post your question as a comment and we'll try our best to find you the answers you need!

Fluff in the Spotlight: Charlie's Soap

Washing cloth diapers can be one of the most confusing and frustrating things you'll ever try to do. Just when you think you've got your routine down, here comes a stink issue, mysterious stains, rash on baby, etc. You rack your brain trying to figure out what to do. Sometimes the most obvious solution is right before you and you may not even notice.

Chances are you need to switch detergents. Many mamas think they need to have a special detergent just for their diapers that they use sparingly and alternate with another detergent for their regular laundry. What you don't know is that you don't need to do that. What you need is a detergent that's safe for both your laundry and your diapers. This is where Charlie's Soap comes in.

Charlie's Soap contains none of the commonly found additives that are found in most laundry detergents. Those additives are designed to bind to fabrics, Charlie's is residue free. What else might you need to know about Charlie's...

• Charlie's is completely water soluble and safe for HE machines
• Safe for cloth diapers, laundry and a multitude of other cleaning purposes
  
• Safe for all color-fast washables
• Eliminates the need for fabric softeners
• 1 teaspoon full is all you need per load, this means 1 bag = approx 80 loads
• Available in either Laundry Liquid or Laundry Powder
• Made in the USA
• Money Back Guarantee
  

The list of reasons to use Charlie's really is endless. Be sure to check out our current Pimp Your Stash GiveAway and you could win a bag of Charlie's Laundry Powder & All Purpose Cleaner. Also, check back in each day this week for more great info on handling cloth diaper laundry.