So, lately, I’ve had a lot of people ask me if they can use the Norwex Laundry detergent to wash their cloth diapers. My typical response is “why would you?”
Now I’m probably going to upset a lot of Norwex Sales Consultants here – but remember, I’m a Norwex Sales Consultant too, so please just bear with me.
If you’re cloth diapering (CD’ing for those in the know) the sweet cheeks of your little darling, you’re probably doing it for 1 of 3 reasons:
- environment – although some municipalities now compost disposable diapers, the truth is, people are still throwing disposables into the garbage and they’re a major contributor to our landfills. You CD’ing moms and dads out there know the environmental benefits of your chosen diapering system (although granted, we do use a lot of water – more on that later – and there’s the whole textile manufacturing process vs the environment debate…)
- health – c’mon, let’s face it, you feel good when you put an organic, unbleached cotton diaper on your babe’s bum don’t you? I don’t get that warm-fuzzy feeling when I peel off a disposable diaper, kiss my baby’s bottom and come away with little crystals of I don’t know what(!) on my lips.
- economics – although there is a somewhat substantial upfront cost, you’re going to save in the long run (especially if you use the diapers for more than one child and then turn around and sell them when you’re done)
Now if you’re using cloth diapers, you know you need a good detergent. One that is going to rinse completely out, is dye free, non-toxic, hypoallergenic etc, etc, etc.
Do an internet search on “cloth diaper detergent” and you’ll find an overwhelming number of options. There are a lot of sites out there that provide a table comparing detergents and identify which ones are suitable for cloth diapers. In any case, you’ll probably also find a multitude of good and bad reviews for each detergent.
Thinking of the environment and health, it’s not hard to find a cloth diapering detergent that’s environmentally friendly and any detergent worth it’s salt is going to be super kind to your little baby’s nether regions. The trick is to find one that works for you – which is going to depend on your washing machine, the type of water (hard or soft) that you have and personal preference.
So that leaves us with economics. If you’ve got cloth diapers in your house, chances are you’re doing a LOT of laundry. Not just diapers – dirty clothes, towels, blankets, car seat covers… oh GOD, the laundry.
So why in blue blazes would you pay $20.99 to do 40 loads?! That’s 52 cents/load! Doesn’t sound like much? Well, I’m only paying 15 cents/load (which incidentally is a lot more than I’d be paying if I lived in the States instead of Canada, but don’t get me started on that). And guess what, I can wash all my laundry with that detergent – including my heavy-duty dog walking clothes and my sexy lingerie with that detergent. OK, I don’t have any sexy lingerie so you can blink that mental image away now.
To be perfectly honest, as a Norwex Sales Consultant, I get a good discount on the Norwex detergent, but I still haven’t tried it. That’s how expensive it is.
Cleanin' Up 
I paid $60 for my Norwex detergent and it has lasted my family of 4, one year. I know I spent more than that on Tide in a year!
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great!
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I am interested in Norwex for my cloth diapers because my baby has extremely sensitive skin…I have tried many other detergents and the either irritate her skin or do not get the diapers clean. I am looking for one that can clean without being an irritant.
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Tess – I used Charlie’s Soap and Nellie’s Washing Soda for our cloth diapers for 7 years. Both cleaned well and we had no irritating issues. But all baby skin reacts differently. A key may be to ensure that you’re not using too much detergent and that there is enough water in the machine to ensure all detergent is rinsed out. I have an ancient top-loader – which is not at all environmentally friendly, but certainly rinsed all detergent out.
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I just don’t have time to stand there and make sure my detergent is dissolved. I can barely get my laundry done, much less stand there and dissolve it!
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I use the Norwex detergent on my cloth diapers and LOVE it. Will never go back. I don’t believe the author of this blog is a Norwex rep. Reps know that HE washers only need 1 teaspoon of UPP per load! My bag lasts for months!!!! I don’t know what the motive is here, but I’ve used many different detergents and Norwex simply outperforms all others. It is a phenomenal product worth every cent.
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MamaCass – you’re right, I’m NO LONGER a Norwex consultant. But of course I do know that you only need 1 teaspoon of Norwex detergent in an HE machine. But the same can be said of the majority of good detergents that are recommended for cloth diapers. It’s certainly the same with the Charlie’s soap that I use (although I have to use a Tablespoon since I don’t have an HE machine). My point wasn’t that the Norwex detergent doesn’t work. My point is that there are many, many, many great detergents out there that are perfect for cloth diapering and cost a fraction of the Norwex one. As for motive, I’m just trying to save people money. Hopefully you don’t find that offensive.
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Hey there, how do you go about washing your diapers?
We have a front loader… And I was told that I didn’t have to dissolve the detergent… Just put it in the tray. How do you do it? And how much do you use per load?
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Baillie – my diaper washing days are all over. I had a good old fashioned top loader though. A beast on water usage but can’t be beat for durability. I didn’t dissolve the detergent before adding the diapers. I usually did a pre-rinse then washed on cold with one scoop of Charlies. Because it’s a top loader, the scoop was about 1 Tbsp. Obviously you’ll use much less with your front loader.
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I have a HE machine and the Norwex Detergent does not work with my machine. i have tried dissolving it in water first, adding it in powder form in the dispenser, and just putting it in with my cloths and nothing seems to work. The cloths come out smelly and still dirty. What else would you have me do? I really want to like it but I have ruined a few of our cloths by drying them when the stains are still there.
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Hi Holly. I’m no expert on the Norwex Laundry detergent because I refuse to buy it because of the price. But I am a member of several cloth diapering forums and the issue of detergent comes up a LOT. I only bring it up now because your issue with the Norwex detergent is similar. People who use cloth diapers (well at least some of us) become very loyal to certain detergent brands because they get the diapers clean and stink free. But often the brand that one person swears by is hated by others who have had no luck with it. It all seems to boil down to the combination of washer type and water hardness.
If the Norwex detergent isn’t working for you and you bought it less than 60 days ago, send it back. No sense in ruining more clothes or getting more frustrated.
I did a blog post a while ago in which I gave a link to a site that lists a number of great detergents. You’ll find good and bad reviews of them all on-line so if you’re in the market for a new detergent, I’d look for reviews from people that have similar machines/water hardness to you.
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So, I found this website as I was searching for a new laundry soap – due to price increase of Norwex. In today’s world, we are accustom to slight increases, but what Norwex did with it’s laundry soap was hyper-inflation to say the least. Sorry – after that, Norwex (all) is off my radar! If they will do that with the soap, they will do it with their other products. Nice products but over priced! Glad to say, I have found several soaps that people are happy with that I will try as an alternative – Charlie’s Soap, and Nellie’s Laundry Soap for starters!
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Robin. Thanks for the comment. I LOVE Charlie’s Soap. I wrote a short post about Charlie’s Soap some time ago and posted a link to a website where I’ve found the cheapest prices for it. Last time I checked that site they had an amazing deal on the 4 gallon bucket (if you live in the States). If you live in Canada, I’ve seen Nellie’s at Winners for a really good price the last few times I’ve been there. It makes me think it may also be at Marshall’s or TJMaxx (since I believe they’re all related).
I’m not sure how much of my blog you’ve read but I recently left Norwex in favour of e-cloth, which I found to have far better prices. I’ve posted a few comparisons (and the reasoning behind my switch) here too.
Happy cleaning!
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Where is that website to the cheapest price for Norwex please??
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Jamie – there is no “cheapest” norwex website. They’re all the same. You may find a consultant that will offer you a “deal” if you host a party but all on-line sales are processed through the Norwex head office system so there is no variance in price.
If on the other hand, you’re looking for an alternative to Norwex. One that cleans just as well at a fraction of the cost, you’ve come to the right place. Check out the e-cloth products at my online store, eclothusa.com
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Interesting facts about theNorwex Laundry Detergent…
NEW 2012 bag, I took a Tablespoon and measured a whole new bag by hand to figure it out myself, if you’re also curious I came out with exactly-
552 loads using 1/2 tsp. per load HE machine=$0.04 / load
276 loads using 1 tsp. per load for HE machine = $0.08 / load
92 Loads using 1 Tablespoon Top Load (Soft Water) =$.23 / load
46 Loads using 2 T…. Top Load (Hard water) =$0.46 / load
80 Load box of Tide HE powder, cost $21.99 ($0.27 / load).
Using 1/2 tsp, you can get 552 loads out of ONE bag of Norwex Ultra Power Plus. It would take 6.9 boxes of Tide to get the same amount. PLUS Norwex doesn’t have the perfumes & fillers that Tide and other brands have.
a 2.2lb bag of Norwex Ultra Power Plus = $20.99
6.9 boxes of Tide = $151.73
ADD the Norwex Magnet ball and cut each measurement in half, and times the load by 2! All of course depends on your water (hard,soft) BUT it generally measures out to these exact measurements when used! 🙂
I’m also a Norwex Consultant 🙂 Haven’t bought laundry soap for 6 months now, still the same bag.
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Also Norwex puts the SMALLEST amount of loads on teh bag, other’s put the MAX amount of loads on the bag. So generally what they say on the bag doesn’t come out to the amount anyway 🙂
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Thanks again Brienne. I just have to add that in my many years of doing laundry, The recommended amount of detergent per load on the “big name” detergents is always too much.
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Brienne – thanks for your comment. I’m always interested to hear from other norwex consultants.
I agree that the number of washes indicated on the Norwex Ultra Power Plus detergent is actually the minimum number. And I’m sure many readers will be interested to know how many washes they can get per bag, depending on how much detergent they use.
BUT the truth is, you can do that with ANY detergent – even Tide. I haven’t used Tide for years, but when I did, I NEVER used the recommended amount. Typically I used less than a quarter of what Tide recommended and my laundry was always clean.
I’m not disagreeing that the Norwex detergent is a great detergent. The problem I have is that you can find similar, great detergents with no fillers for much less.
It’s no secret that I use Charlie’s Soap. I have a top loading non-HE machine and use 1 table spoon of detergent for a super-sized load and get amazing results. But I have hard water. A friend of mine with a HE machine uses a teaspoon of the same detergent. Another friend uses less than a teaspoon.
If you’re a person that’s using cloth diapers for your baby, then you know there is a fine line between using enough detergent to get rid of the poopy smell and using little enough that it is thoroughly rinsed out so that you don’t get an ammonia problem. You have to take into account the type of machine, the hardness of the water, the size of the load, etc.
My point is, no matter how you do the math, the Norwex detergent is simply too expensive compared to others in my opinion.
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Is charlie’s soap safe enough to wash the norwex cloths in?
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Yes! I used Charlies on my Norwex and e-cloths for 6 years. I switched to Nellies Washing Soda last year only because I can it much more cheaply in Canada.
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I would also like to comment on the cost of the Norwex laundry soap. I too am a consultant and I had been making every effort to introduce environmentally friendly additions to the households of co workers, family and friends. Unfortunately when I received my last order (3 patrons ordered the laundry soap) I was met with very unhappy patrons!! Two of the three wanted to return the product due to their unhappiness with the price increase. I talked them out of it saying I would relay the information to Head Office – here is the answer I got for my trouble:
Hello Barb,
Due to the rising cost of raw materials, the current packaging of the laundry detergent was to experience a significant price increase, resulting in a purchase price of more than $32. We elected to repackage this top selling product in the new 1kilo/2.2 lb package to support a more affordable purchase price. Again, we know how many customers LOVE our laundry detergent but we also recognize that many consumers would be hesitant to purchase the laundry detergent for the first time at a price of more than $32 therefore we elected to reduce the package size AND the purchase price in order to keep this competitively priced. The new price is an increase over the former per ounce/kilo price and could not be avoided. No decision is ever made at Norwex without us having first considered how it affects our consultants, their families, and our customers.
Thank you for your email.
Needless to say I was quite upset last evening after reading the above. It is my perception some Norwex people need to attend Math 101 as how does raising a 2kg pkg by $2 compare to getting 1/2 the product for a $6 increase!! Also I felt the last sentence was extremely RUDE as it is more than obvious they don’t really care what myself or my patrons have to say. As I have said to everyone who is interested in this subject NORWEX can keep their laundry soap at the current price I as well as my patrons will shop elsewhere until they decide to make the products affordable to the middle income families who would like to make a difference in the environment. From the time I started purchasing Norwex to today most items have gone up anywhere from .50/item or a more substantial increase with a smaller quota. Maybe they should think about cleaning house as they may be getting a little TOP HEAVY.
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I would also like to comment on the cost of the Norwex laundry soap. I too am a consultant and I had been making every effort to iintroduce environmentally friendly additions to the households of co workers, family and friends. Unfortunately when I received my last order (3 patrons ordered the laundry soap) I was met with very unhappy patrons!! Two of the three wanted to return the product due to their unhappiness with the price increase. I talked them out of it saying I would relay the information to Head Office – here is the answer I got for my trouble:
Hello Barb,
Due to the rising cost of raw materials, the current packaging of the laundry detergent was to experience a significant price increase, resulting in a purchase price of more than $32. We elected to repackage this top selling product in the new 1kilo/2.2 lb package to support a more affordable purchase price. Again, we know how many customers LOVE our laundry detergent but we also recognize that many consumers would be hesitant to purchase the laundry detergent for the first time at a price of more than $32 therefore we elected to reduce the package size AND the purchase price in order to keep this competitively priced. The new price is an increase over the former per ounce/kilo price and could not be avoided. No decision is ever made at Norwex without us having first considered how it affects our consultants, their families, and our customers.
Thank you for your email.
Needless to say I was quite upset last evening after reading the above. It is my perception some Norwex people need to attend Math 101 as how does raising a 2kg pkg by $2 compare to getting 1/2 the product for a $6 increase!! Also I felt the last sentence was extremely RUDE as it is more than obvious they don’t really care what myself or my patrons have to say. As I have said to everyone who is interested in this subject NORWEX can keep their laundry soap at the current price I as well as my patrons will shop elsewhere until they decide to make the products affordable to the middle income families who would like to make a difference in the environment.
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There was a mistake in that response, Barb. Laundry detergent would have gone to $42.99 for the 2 kg bag. I love and sell a ton of UPP and find people are more inclined to try it for $20.99 and the true directions are 1tsp:load in a front loader which means I get over 200 loads out of the new bag!! You should give it a try…..you’ll never go back!
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Im a new consultant as of Jan this year and also new to Norwex, so when I found this page I have learned a lot from it.Thank You!!!! But I need to let you know my thoughts on the laundry soap. I Love it and didnt think twice about the cost because it works really good and my skin isnt itchy, plus I have a front load and only use 1 tsp (awesome). I’ve tried many laundry detergents in the past, and a majority of them either made my skin itch or they didnt clean to my expectations, and this one works well on my husbands extremely dirty clothes. I understand why some might frown on the cost increase because many of my favorite things have gone way up in price since I first started using them, like my coffee. But when you find something you really like and you dont want to use something that doesnt work or taste as good (like my favorite coffee) Im willing to pay the higher price rather than do without. I find other ways to save money on other things in life so I can afford the good things in life.
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