Fleece Washing fleece before sewing

Denise Mabie · Mar 5, 2016

How many times should I wash my fleece and Uhaul padding before sewing up cage liners?

Saylavi · Mar 5, 2016

Honestly I make liners and I don't, because you run the risk of the uhaul/batting turning into fluff in the wash. Fleece, batting, and uhaul all shrink by 5% when washed/dried, while cotton and flannel shrink 8%. Get a calculator and add whatever percent plus an inch for seam allowance (2 inches if you aren't used to your sewing machine yet) and sew it 5% too large. Then wash/shrink everything.
But to answer your question properly, 3-5x with an unscented detergent. Some detergents with "softener" or "restorative" properties may leave a coating that stops fleece from absorbing, so avoid such detergents.

Denise Mabie · Mar 6, 2016

Saylavi said:
Honestly I make liners and I don't, because you run the risk of the uhaul/batting turning into fluff in the wash. Fleece, batting, and uhaul all shrink by 5% when washed/dried, while cotton and flannel shrink 8%. Get a calculator and add whatever percent plus an inch for seam allowance (2 inches if you aren't used to your sewing machine yet) and sew it 5% too large. Then wash/shrink everything.
But to answer your question properly, 3-5x with an unscented detergent. Some detergents with "softener" or "restorative" properties may leave a coating that stops fleece from absorbing, so avoid such detergents.

Thank you so much for your quick response. And also thank you for your video tutorial. I watched all three and made my first full size cage liner. I had already washed the fleece and Uhaul once before I sewed it up. I now have another question. I measured to leave room for shrinkage unfortunately now that I'm finished the width of my liner is 29" and my Cage is 28". Since I already washed the fabric once do you think it will shrink more than an inch when I wash it again?

Saylavi · Mar 6, 2016

You can try washing and drying it on high heat to get some more shrink out of it, I find that most of the time (even if I tell people not to) they do that anyway. I don't know if you'll get another inch out of it, but if you started with 30" you should get another half an inch.
and thank you! I just put up a quick video on making tunnels today

Denise Mabie · Mar 6, 2016

I really don't want it to shrink anymore. I usually wash my fleece on hot for cleanliness sake but I'm afraid to wash my new liner on hot because I don't want to shrink it too small.
I'll have to watch your new video. I subscribed to your YouTube channel and my husband kiddos and I watched some of your videos. You and your piggies are darling! We enjoyed the videos we watched. Thanks again for your help.

emilia0830 · Mar 6, 2016

@Saylavi what is the name of your YouTube channel?

peachyteen · Mar 7, 2016

Denise Mabie said:
I really don't want it to shrink anymore. I usually wash my fleece on hot for cleanliness sake but I'm afraid to wash my new liner on hot because I don't want to shrink it too small.
I'll have to watch your new video. I subscribed to your YouTube channel and my husband kiddos and I watched some of your videos. You and your piggies are darling! We enjoyed the videos we watched. Thanks again for your help.

heat isn't important for cleaning fleece. washers and dryers won't get hot enough to actually kill a lot of the germs. the most important thing for cleaning is the detergent (I personally use bleach)

Saylavi · Mar 7, 2016

Denise Mabie said:
We enjoyed the videos we watched. Thanks again for your help.

thank you, and you're welcome. I doubt it will shrink much more than it has already, the drier is the one more likely to shrink than the washer, so if you dry on low I doubt it will shrink at all. Like I said before, I doubt it would shrink an inch, you might get half an inch.
@emilia0830 it's called Saylavi https://youtu.be/rkYrzVuoZLo

BrowniesMemory · Mar 7, 2016

Saylavi said:
Honestly I make liners and I don't, because you run the risk of the uhaul/batting turning into fluff in the wash. Fleece, batting, and uhaul all shrink by 5% when washed/dried, while cotton and flannel shrink 8%. Get a calculator and add whatever percent plus an inch for seam allowance (2 inches if you aren't used to your sewing machine yet) and sew it 5% too large. Then wash/shrink everything.
But to answer your question properly, 3-5x with an unscented detergent. Some detergents with "softener" or "restorative" properties may leave a coating that stops fleece from absorbing, so avoid such detergents.

Totally wish I had known the percentage of shrinkage back when I did the liner for my boys' cage, but now I can keep this in mind for later projects.

Saylavi · Mar 7, 2016

Fleece is 5%, cotton batting 5%, uhaul (5% cold wash) up to 7%, cotton and flannel up to 7%

ShinyDust · Mar 7, 2016

Saylavi, I love your channel!! You just got yourself a subscriber. I got my piggies last year and I think I'm getting addicted to sewing... It's just sad that we have a very limited fabric to choose from here in Greenland.. We have only one store that sells fabrics and not cute at all.. TvT

Saylavi · Mar 8, 2016

I've been washing all of my liners on medium heat / normal in a front loader ever since I started, I make sure to shake off all the poop, then wash with a quarter cup of unscented detergent and a couple teaspoons of salt. I'm told you can use vinegar if something is being stubborn, but I haven't had that issue yet

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