Fleece Washing fleece with other laundry

[juldga]

Has anyone ever washed thier flece w other laundry. I want to use fleece over newspaper but dont want to wash one piece of fleece alone can i rinse in utility sinkand then just put it in the wash w my other stuff

 

[HannibalLecter]

It would get all the other laundry full of hair. I wash my fleece & cozies on their own, and even though I roll the fleece with a lint roller first, I still need to do an empty quick cycle after to avoid hair on my clothes unless I wash the towels after.

Why use newspaper as the absorbant layer? As it's ability to absorb is extremely low, and gets smelly as soon as it gets wet & soggy & would not last long at all. It would also stick to the fleece & making it hard to peel off. I would highly recommend some old towels instead.

 

[juldga]

I am afraid of the smell i want to change the fleece every day

 

[HannibalLecter]

That will be extremely tedious & hard work, I really don't see the point in having fleece in that case. The smell will build up based on using the newspaper. A large enough cage, with a good absorbant layer like towels will not smell for about 5-7 days or more, where newspaper will work poorly & smell within a few hours. The pee might not sink through the fleece as well either.

 

[HannibalLecter]

Have you considered wood pellets instead of fleece? The ones used in stables or for stoves, without additives or accelerans of course. While heavy, they are much cheaper than most other beddings & are at the top in absorbancy & decreasing odors, while also hiding poop making spot cleaning less.

 

[juldga]

I thought about that but didnt know how easy disposal would be living in an apartment. And it id have to vaccuum every.

 

[HannibalLecter]

Wood pellets are heavier. With slightly higher coroplast sides, or just cadboard in certain places none of the wood pellets would be tossed out by the pigs, unlike shavings that stick to absolutely everything. But yes, disposal is a bitch if you have to drag the bag far to toss it.

 

[juldga]

Literally the dumpster is a three min walk from my apartment. I will try many things. But every night when they have floor time i was going to pull up the fleece toss the paper and add new paper and new fleece seems quick and easy

 

[HannibalLecter]

The issue is that bactera will build up, and as newspapaer isn't absorbant the fleece wil be soaked with urine & need cleaning much more often.
Why not use wood pellets in a kitchen area where they pee the most, and fleece with towels in the rest of the cage?

 

[juldga]

Good idea.

 

[juldga]

My other plan is to use cloth diapers under the fleece

 

[Japonica26]

My other plan is to use cloth diapers under the fleece

See my reply in your other thread...

 

[Kim37040]

I also do not mix piggy clothes with mine.
I think you would be surprised at how much towels and/or a uhaul blanket would help with odor.

Then when you do the gp laundry you are not just washing the fleece.

And the vinegar in the water is a must. I read on one forum to also use a little vinegar in the rinse and that has worked out nicely for me.

Good luck

 

[juldga]

See my reply in your other thread...

Thanks i didnt seethat before. I wash my cds with my other laundry too that why i asked about the fleece. Of course id never wash fleece and diapers together

 

[pinky]

If you buy fleece remnants, it's really cheap. You can probably get a used diaper pail really cheap on craigslist. If you have enough pieces of fleece and absorbent layers, you can rotate them and do a load when you have enough to do a load. Just sprinkle some baking soda in the diaper pail to neutralize odor in there. I wouldn't use newspapers under fleece, either. Towels, uhaul pads, mattress pads... all work. Just have spares so you don't have to do the laundry as often. I run a rinse cycle with vinegar and water between guinea pig loads and my clothes or do rugs or whites with bleach so the washing machine is clean to do our laundry.

 

[pandaloki]

Can I use old cotton shirts instead of towels?

 

[Kim37040]

Can I use old cotton shirts instead of towels?

I don't think tshirts would be nearly as absorbent. You would have to layer a lot of them to get the same effect.
If you do not want to use your towels, you can get some super cheap at your local thrift store.
I buy mine from the Goodwill Store. Beach sized towels are usually only $1.75. It is also a great place to find fleece blankets.

 

[pandaloki]

Oh yeah, why haven't I thought of that?! thanks!

 

[pinky]

You can even put up an ad on craigslist, asking for fleece or towels to use for guinea pigs. I'll bet a lot of animal lovers will donate to the the cause...

 

[Kieri]

i typically wash my fleece and towels on their own, due to the fact that 4-5 towels and over a yard of fleece adds up to about one load for me. however, if i have things such as undies or socks, i'll throw them in there.

if you're worried about cost, ask around for some unwanted towels. before i moved, my family gave me some of their towels they didn't want (to be fair, i dye my hair often and i sort of ruin towels with the dye, so they gladly handed them over!)

you can also head to stores like walmart or the dollar store and pick up cheap towels. i got my fleece from hobby lobby- they generally have sales every week, so i got most of my fleece for 30% off. if you don't have those stores around you, you can try out thrift stores, online stores, or craigslist!