Car Seat Cleaning & Stained Baby Clothes. (2 Month Old)

I use the spray stain remover by Dreft (same company as the detergent). It works wonders on stains even after I had already washed the clothes.

How many times have I taken apart my carseat just to wash the the cover? To answer my own question I don't know. Perhaps you could get some sort of cover for it and something bigger than a bib, like an over sized t-shirt for the little one to wear, then pull it off to expose clean baby. (This too shall pass.) I know my response isn't genius but hopefully someone has the perfect solution and maybe it'll help.

Hi T.,
when my second child was born, I got out my older sons baby clothes and was shocked to see that stains had appeared on them. I had just been given samples of Shaklee's laundry products. I washed the clothes with it just thinking I would use them for play clothes around the house. To my amazement all the stains were gone. I was so impressed, I became a distributor. I love also that the products are so safe for babies.
Oprah was so impressed with these products, she has featured them on her show 4 times and included them in her favorite things.
If you are interested, you can check them out at http://www.shaklee.net/healthforlife

Victoria

Dear T.,

Like you my baby had awful digestive problems and even had to use that pre-digested formula for a while. The vomiting seemed non-stop. She's 5 now and completely past this but here are my tips for how I handled the constant mess:
1) The Dreft stain spray is simply the best on organic food stains like milk, formula, and when she gets to jarred food it will work on those too. Just pre-treat the stains like crazy with the Dreft spray before you put the items in the wash. This will help a ton and I even still buy it because I think it is better on those types of stain than Shout and some of the other products on the market.
2) The Dreft stain spray is also great on upholstery like the carseats and chairs (for me it was the white glider in her nursery). Lightly sprain the stain and then sop the mess out of the fabric. It always worked really well.
3) But the only way to really get the carseats clean is to uninstall them, take the upholstery apart and wash everything that is washable including the belts in cold water and then let them air dry. I just put this most unfavorite task on my calendar to do every three months. They come out looking practically new in preparation for the next round of spit-up.
4) My best trick for keeping baby clothes looking new is to wash in cold water and air dry almost everything. I ran the onesies and bibs etc through normal wash loads but all of her outerwear I treated this way and the little clothes hold up much better over time plus not putting them in the dryer means that if you missed a stain you still have a chance to get it out. Once dried it is practically impossible to get any sort of stain out. I worked in textiles for 10 years and can tell you that using too much laundry detergent and dryers are the absolute worst things you can do to fabric.

Good luck!

For stains, I find that OxyClean (only the actual name brand works!) works perfectly. I was amazed!

Good luck! For the car seat, I would get a cover or make one. There is a pattern on Etsy that is for all models. I haven't tried it, but it's probably worth it.

I have had success with Oxy Clean Fabric Stain Remover. Some car seats have covers on them that can be removed and thrown in the washer. I would pretreat mine and then throw it in the washer and it came out just like new. It is a bit tricky to get on but not too bad once you get the hang of it. I also remove the cover on my high chair. I spray it down with Clorox Clean Up and give it a good scrub.

Oh, it brings back memories! My 1st son spit up ALL the time! I b/f, but had supplement w/soy formula, so I know what you are going through.

I got most stains out by soaking the clothes in oxiclean for several hours. You have to use hot water with the oxiclean, but it works. I warn you, with some of the brighter colors the water looks like all the color has come out. They come out looking fine though, I was impressed!! I don't think you can do this to the car seat covers, though. They do make liners for carseats. A friend just got one at her shower. Boy do I wish I had those w/mine!

Good luck!

all three of mine were spitters, breast or soy or otherwise so don't be to hard on yourself for not breast feeding, One of mine spit more with Breast Milk.

Oxi Clean worked wonders on my stuff, even after the dryer, I used it with my regular All or Tide free. for the car seat you can usually just remove it and throw it in the wash, but I also used the absorbent crib pads, I just cut it to form in the car seat then I could wash it easier and more often, good for potty training too!

Been there done that X3 LOL!!!

My little ones lived in a bib. I have had good luck getting stains out (After the dryer) with "Grandma's Stain Remover." I bought it at a fabric store it was kind of expensive $4 for an ounce, but it works!

All I can say is Dreft Stain Spray and Dreft Detergent... but this is a BEFORE... not an AFTER (the dryer). Dreft Stain Spray is AWESOME at formula spills/spitup.

I have had some luck with Oxyclean on old stains.

Carseat? I wash mine at least 1 time a month, unless it needs it more often. We only have one carseat... so this is a big ordeal with getting the stuff dry since it can't go in the dryer.

D.

I love the sol-u-mel from Melaleuca and they also have great anti bacteria spray that is natural and better for you and the childe than other national products. If you would like more info - please feel free to contact me. They have tons of great products.

J. ###-###-####

You can get the set in stains out with Oxyclean soak them over night in a bucket, not your washer. Then launder them in the hottest water they can accept. I also wash bibs & burp cloths separately from the clothes and add an extra scoop of Oxyclean to the load. I also love Totally Toddler (kind of expensive but so worth it!) as far as I know you can only get it at Babies R Us, I use it as a pre-treater and you can use it to spot clean the car seat until you can actually take the time to remove the car seat cover and wash it in the machine. Totally Toddler rinses out far more easily than Shout, etc. And as far as bibs go - most are useless but if you can find Carter's Keep me Clean bibs they're awesome! They have a vinyl coating inside the fabric layers and won't soak through.

I always use Oxiclean. Target sometimes carries the Baby oxiclean, but normally I just get the regular kind, soak them for however long I need too (sometimes more than 24 hours) and I have always had success. Even with my older dtr's clothes that had been in storage for 5 years before I had another daughter that needed them!

I would suggest getting all stains out before you wash and especially before you dry the clothes. I wouldn't hold out much hope for stains that have been heat set in the dryer.

I soak everything in oxiclean. I have also used the Ultra Clorox bleach or something like that. It's thicker than normal bleach & not as potent. It works for patterns & is better than bleach b/c it does not take out the color immediately! Good luck!

I had a major spitter, and I put burp cloths under her butt and used those really big pull-over bibs. You can wash the car seat fabric. It's not easy and it's very time consuming, but it helps with the smells.
As far as existing stains, I've never been able to get them out!

throw the dirty baby clothes, colored, whites, and bibs in the washing machine. Put some baby detergent in then add some bleach. you read correctly, bleach. a normal dose for the size of your wash. Set the machine to wash on regular with A. extra long cycle for heavily soiled clothing. Then dry as usual. You will notice the bleach will take out all or noticeably lighten the stains on colors and whites. My sister taught me this when I couldn't get food, milk, and etc stains out of my dd clothing. I was skeptical but it works. The extra rinse will make sure the bleach and detergent is gone. Good luck.
I forgot to mention the bleach did not effect the colored clothing. As for the carseat check if your carseat allows you to remove the padding to throw in the washer.

It's easy to clean the car seat. The cover comes off either as an all-in-one or in two parts. Wash them then hang them dry. I hose down the plastic seat (don't forget to turn it upside down and get underneath) then wipe it down with an anti-bacterial cleaner and put it outside to completely dry in the sun. Try Borax with your laundry detergent to get out the stains. This stuff gets everything out. Good luck!

You can take the cover off right? Just toss it in the washing machine, or hand wash it in the sink or bath tub. If it starts to look gross have a cover made for it, that way when that gets spit up on you can easily slip it off and wash it. I made one for our daughter since our first carseat was sort of boyish, and I love it! Plus it's unique.

I had the same issue. The easiest solution for me was to try to rinse the stain almost immediately, and I add a half scoop of Oxyclean (regular kind)to every load. Works miracles!

I use a bar soap called Fels Naptha for pre-treat. It does really well on spit up/ formula spills as well as diaper blow-outs. I don't know how well it'll work on set stains, but it's worth a try. At our house we're kinda of the mind that if the Naptha can't get it out, nothing can. ;) And I gift it to all my new mommy friends. I don't know where you live, but I've found it at the Kroger on 1709 on the top shelf in the laundry aisle. It can be harsh on your hands, so maybe wear gloves or make sure to moisturize after. :)

Good luck. It seems never ending. Maybe you can cover your daughter while in the car seat with a receiving blanket or a towel or something so that it doesn't get in the car seat?

Soaking in cold water and Oxi-clean worked for my daughter, but she was breastfed, however It works for my sister-in-law who formula feeds.

Good luck!