A picture of just beginning a soak in Rockin Green Hard rock. These diapers were all "clean" before I put them in the hot water with 6 tbs of Hard Rock. The water was also clean and clear when I filled the tub. Then when I started to throw in the most stained and smelly diapers, and the water immediately got cloudy, yellow and smelly! I will post an after picture as well of the clean diapers and dirty water.
Well, I am finally getting a chance to review the Rockin Green Cloth Diaper detergent line. I started out with 2 samples of Classic Rock, in Vanilla Buttercream and Peppermint Mocha. When they arrived I found that the two scents had come to smell very similar. But I read later on their facebook page that this was common to happen when the samples are mailed together and in the small sample bags. But from what I could tell both were pleasant fragrances and mild. They wern't as strong of smells as I was hopping for but still were nice.
The night that I got the samples I took every cloth diapering product that I had and did a gigantic soak in the bath tub full of steaming hot water. I had some very stubborn synthetics that I was on my last rope with, and had discontinued their use because of staining and smell, and really had no hope for. So Rockin Green put them to the test!
The soak lasted about 3 hours and I used half of the bag on them which was about 7 tbs! This is a huge tub that had over 50 diaper pieces to be cleaned, in hard water, so a decent amount of detergent was needed. After the soak was over I took all the diapers to the washing machine for another hot wash. I used no detergent on the first wash cycle. But on the second wash cycle I used 3 Tbs. I transferred the things that can be dried in the drier and the rest hung dry.
I waited in anticipation of the results!
When every thing had finished drying I put them to the smell test! Every thing smelled wonderful. My synthetic inserts were still discolored but they have never smelled so good! I think they probably still need a few more good washings to really become as absorbent as they can be but I think at this point they are usable again. I now use prefolds and love them so I wouldn't use the synthetics for anything other than a booster (more absorbency).
Next in line to test is Rockin Green's newest addition, Hard Rock. Hard Rock has been formulated for hard water, which Houston has. I was so excited for this detergent to come out because this was my initial draw to this company in the first place. With Hard Rock I only need 1 TBS per load vs 2-3 for Classic Rock, and now I can cut out using Calgon water softener with each load, saving me more money.
On a whim I ordered Hard Rock in Grape Soda, which has fragranced my laundry room with a lovely smell. I think I will like any fragrance that they make in this line. Next order I think I will go with Mango Sorbet, sounds nice and summery :)
Again I have not been disappointed with this formula. This has worked just as well on the diapers. My diapers do not come out smelling like the particular fragrance but they have no smell at all which is a good thing when it comes to cloth diapering.
When washing my diapers I do a quick rinse on cold. Then my second cycle is a hot cycle with 1 tbs of Rockin Green. Simple as that. My old washing instructions, though they worked, had a few more steps . So this has simplified every thing a little bit.
My over all opinion I am in love with this soap :) I think you will like it if you give it a try. Remember if you are not sure about diving in head first with the stuff they have samples you can buy for $.85 with $1.00 shipping. On the big bag the shipping was around $5.00. Hard Rock is $15.95 and Classic Rock and Soft Rock is $14.95. I do know why there would be a price difference in the two but it could be the price of the ingredients or it could be, because it is new. Anyways pick the formula that works for you water type and go with it. To help you determine your water type Rockin Green has these great
test strips for $0.60
