Washing cloth nappies is as simple as doing a normal load of laundry in the washing machine.
There is no need to soak nappies if you own a modern washing machine, they are much more efficient in cleaning nappies than olden models.

1. After changing baby, wet nappies can go straight into a dry pail to be stored until wash day.
Any solids should be scraped or rinsed into the toilet before storing in a dry pail.

2. When the pail is full, toss all the nappies into the washing machine.
Nappies that have a velcro closures would need them to be attached to laundry tabs to prevent 'nappy chains' from forming in the machine!

3. Run a pre-rinse cycle using cold water.

4. Then run a full wash cycle, using a safe detergent*. (recommend 40-60ºC)

5. Line dry in the sun** (preferred) or use the dryer.

*A safe detergent is a simple one: no bleaching agents, no fabric softeners, no enzymes, no optical brighteners, nothing but pure detergent-y goodness :)
**Sunlight is a natural stain remover and sanitizer (kills germs and bacteria).