If you haven’t heard about Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps yet, let me be the first to tell you – best stuff ever. Especially if you cloth diaper your little ones. BUT, Dr. Bronner’s is not only for cloth diapering, it’s for anything and everything. Your laundry, your kitchen, floors, face, bod. Everywhere that needs to be washed. And, it really is magic (I didn’t make that part up). Let me tell you what led me to Dr. Bronner’s in the first place, then you’ll understand why I think it’s the greatest stuff around.
I have been cloth diapering my daughter since birth, so about 15 months. Things were just dandy in the beginning. I had a detergent that I liked, that didn’t irritate my girl’s incredibly sensitive skin, and didn’t cost a bundle. Perfect! Until……that brand decided to change their formula somewhere a few months back.
Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, the diapers started to stink. And BAD! I’m talking the kind of stink that will knock you out. And along with the stink came rashes. Oh man. It was bad. So I began the search for another detergent. I have tried just about every national brand under the sun, every detergent marketed for cloth diapers, and nearly every natural detergent I could find. Most of them met with no success. Some just didn’t clean anything at all (gross). Some made things a lot worse. Some seemed to work, and then a week later we would be back where we started. With me stripping diapers just about every week. Have you ever stripped your cloth diapers? Do you even know what I’m talking about? It’s not fun. And, for me, it’s expensive since I don’t have a washer and dryer in my apartment.
But, then I remembered a conversation I had with a family member. She mentioned in passing that she likes Dr. Bronner’s. I saw Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds at the health food store, so I thought why not? What have a got to loose? Didn’t even think twice about the $12.00 price tag. I’ve seen worse. Much worse.
So I went home that night, stripped the diapers with Dawn. Rinsed rinsed rinsed, and set out the next morning with a fresh stack of diapers for the day. We made it through the first round with no problems. But I wasn’t sold. Washed again with 2 tablespoons of Sal Suds, used them and again no problems. But I’m not going to sit here and tell you that something is great if I have only used it a couple of times! We have been using Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds for about a month now, and still no sign of rashes or stinkies. And the best part, I haven’t had to strip the diapers yet either! I also noticed, her diapers are actually softer. There’s no fabric softener or anything like that in the Sal Suds, it just works so well that the fibers are clean and soft! Works in cold or hot water, hard or soft. So you don’t even have to think about it. Another great thing about Dr. Bronner’s is you don’t have to use much of it. I have been using about 2 tablespoons in the wash and that seems to be just right. So, while the price tag may shock you a bit, you get a lot of use out of one bottle. If you have an HE machine, try 1 tablespoon first, and go from there. This is soap, so it does make suds.
Knowing how awesome Sal Suds is, I wanted to check out what else Dr. Bronner’s had to offer. The question is, what doesn’t Dr. Bronner’s make? There’s lip balm, bar soaps, lots of liquid soaps with different scents. There’s even a facial soap with tea tree oil that’s supposed to be great for sensitive skin. That’s at the top of my shopping list! There’s also shampoo, conditioner, body lotions, the list goes on.
But if you can only commit to trying one thing, please do try the Sal Suds cleaner first. You can clean your whole house and laundry with it. If you have someone with very sensitive skin, or have had any troubles with your cloth diaper routine, this might be just the soap for you. If you are looking to stay green and be friendly to the environment, the Dr. has you covered there too.
Here’s some more facts about Dr. Bonner’s:
*Certified Fair Trade
*Organic
*Top Quality Ingredients
*Biodegradable
*No petrochemicals
*Over 60 years as a company and 150 years of soap making experience!
Be sure to check out the Dr. Bronner’s website monthly. They run specials, and you won’t want to miss out on those! The July special is 15% off all peppermint soaps and lotions. I love peppermint! When you are done shopping, be sure to browse the site for other info about the brand, soap and much more.
*I was not compensated in any way for this post. All views and opinions are strictly my own.*
14 COMMENTS
Nicole
13 years agoLove Dr. Bronner’s! I found it by accident. Stayed over a friend’s house and that is whT she was using. Been a fan ever since!
Ro via Facebook
13 years agoI love the Lavender one. This soap cleans everything from clothes to floor! Great stuff!
via Facebook
13 years agoI’m so glad to hear you have tried it before! I love love love Dr. Bronner’s now. I want to try them all! You use the lavender in the wash and it works well? -Rebekah
Tanjarine
13 years agowhat is the difference between Sal Suds and the lavender? I have a bottle of the lavender in my cupboard that I have been meaning to use, and wonder if it would be ok to try out with my cloth, as I have stink issues with them too.
Rebekah
13 years agoFrom what I can tell, Sal Suds was formulated specifically for cleaning and laundry. Meaning it will rinse completely clean and leave no oils behind. The lavender seems to be safe for regular laundry but maybe not cloth diapers because of the added essential oil. I just asked Dr. Bronner though. If I get an answer, I’ll let you know!
Tanjarine
13 years agoThanks! I am sure the store I bought it from sells a few other options, I will check it out. I think I am going to try and mix up my lavender soap as a mosquito repellant and try it this weekend. They are so bad, I hope it works!
Megan via Facebook
13 years agoI love the lavender one too! Its a great multi purpose soap. And its what I use on my homemade wipes solution:)
Rebekah
13 years agoI didn’t think of using it in wipes solution! Great idea. I bet the tea tree oil version would be good for that too!
via Facebook
13 years agoI absolutely loathe the smell of lavender. I use the unscented variety! – Jess T.
Jasmine
13 years agoOkay, I totally NEED this now! I have never heard of Dr Bronner’s before. How awesome of a product!
Heather
13 years agoWe don’t cloth diaper *yet* and my excuse has always been because we don’t have a washer or dryer in our apartment. I’m curious what your system is without a washer/dryer and any tips you might have for someone on the fence…maybe a future post for us apartment cloth diapering mamas?
Annie
8 years ago*I cannot seem to tell how old this post is, so apologies in advance if this is old old old.*
We too are in a rental with no w/d inside (we do have a communal w/d on the property, but I’m hesitant to use for cloth diapers, not sure how the other renters will feel about it) so I am venturing into hand washing our clo diapers. Our son is 8mths old and we have been use disposables since birth, ocassionally using cloth but he has never pooped in one yet (not sure how I worked that one!). The plan had been to use disposables for just the first several weeks but then, well, I guess I have to admit I got lazy and just kept buying them and sizing up. Now the cost seems to be catching up with us, life is quite different on one income! So I’m back to getting prepped for cloth diapers almost solely (right now saving $40-$50/mth would be huge to us!). So, from my research I intend to hand wash in a large bucket in my tub with Sal Suds and a plunger (or any type of large wand for swishing) and also stomping them….I get a work out too! I’ve been researching what detergent would be best and have wanted it to be the Sal Suds because we use Bronner’s products otherwise and love them, but wasn’t sure about any possible residue buildup from the natural oils. I will report back with results over time.
Suzanne
11 years agoWe make homemade laundry detergent and use: borax, bar soap(dr.bronner’s) & washing soda. Have you ever tried the bar soap on your cloth diapers? I keep hearing mixed reviews..but I think we will probably try it out anyways because it’s so much cheaper!
Tim
9 years agoThe label of Sal Suds states that it’s not meant for washing your body.