Cloth Diapering

I used cloth diapers with my eldest, but that was the days before the modern day diapers ie. folded and pinned.

So I have Baby Beehinds for the girls, which I like, they are fitted and I have about 12 medium sized ones and as I only use them during the day, it works for us. I have a few other brands but I don't like them as much. I'm doing a wash every second day.

My problem is, that they still smell after a wash and if I wash anything else with them, they stink out everything else too.

I've been using a sensitive wash liquid to wash them in because both girls have eczema (although so far have remained lucky in the bottom area) and thought that might be better but even after two washes, they still smell.

Also I'm finding that the diapers take ages to dry even in the hot summer sun.. I'm now turning them inside out and it's helping but still takes ages.

So, remembering that over here, I can't get the products you can, what do you suggest...

ie. should I wash separately?
warm, hot or cold wash?
Can I use a softener for the last rinse cycle, to help with the odours? or is that not recommended with PUL.
What can I do, to get them dry quicker?

 

Bad smells in cloth diapers are usually either from the pee and/or the soap not getting entirely rinsed out of the diapers when being washed.

Make sure you set your washer to the highest water level you can, do a presoak/pre wash, and an extra rinse. The water should be set to hot. You want to use the least amount of soap you can get away with (it's usually much less than you think you need). Since the diapers are already smelly, you may have to strip them before continuing with your normal wash process. (I'd link to something on stripping [ha!] but I'm on my phone - there's lots of info though if you google stripping cloth diapers).

As for drying time, that's tricky depending on how many layers are in the absorbent part of the diaper & how fast your washer is able to spin them to get the water out. Could you put them on a short dryer cycle before hanging to dry?

 

Stripping Baby Beehinds

See the troubleshooting part. I used FuzziBunz, not your brand, but I think the washing is the same. I'm not sure the soap brand they mentioned is necessary - I would go ahead & strip today without the soap or sanitizer - but you might pick them up online if you still have a problem after stripping. (they may not be easy to find for you locally & I assume you don't want to drive around all day looking for them I've never heard of the sanitizer )

Everytime you wash I would do a prerinse, use only hot water and never wash anything else with the diapers. I also agree with the pp that you need a surprisingly small amount of detergent. You didn't mention any problems with leaking but using too much detergent can make them less absorbent over time and lead to leaking problems. Good Luck!

ETA: I would not use a fabric softener - I think that would cause a problem with absorbency. Also, I think it would be fine for the diapers to put them in the dryer. If you are not using it to save $/resources then I'm not sure what to tell you - maybe hang them instead of lying them flat to dry in the sun?

Here is a link that lists some recommended detergents for FuzziBunz I would think these would work well for your brand as well. Hopefully you can find one of these locally.

 

I had cloth with inserts so the fitted cover and the absorbent part came apart for faster drying--I also soaked in Vanish from the moment I took them off until they went into the washer. Then I added a cup of vinegar to the wash cycle. Vinegar not only kills germs, it deodorizes as well.

 

Do they have an ammonia smell or a fishy smell. If it is fishy it can be from buildup of diaper rash cream, even if it is cloth safe cream, so you would have to strip them for sure. You might need to change your detergent. There is a list of cloth safe detergents out there. You could also try leaving them in the sun or in a sunny window, although then they won't dry as fast. There are lots of websites that talk about stripping diapers and getting rid of stink issues. Good luck.

 

Also; if you have a front load washer try throwing an old thick bathtowel in with them to trick the washer into putting more water in the load. I'd also use the hottest water you can; sanitary cycle if you have it.

 

Hahaha, I feel so silly that I didn't read the Baby Beehinds site first (I did originally go there when I was looking to purchase, duh!)...

Feel extra silly for not rinsing them first... thank you so much ladies... I've just put them on to soak and now know to do a soak/rinse before a wash so hopefully that will help.

Did a google for Rockin' Green, we can get it here! I might get some of that and give it a try !

Learnt a few new things today!

 

I love the website http://www.simplewondersdiapers.com/ where I bought my diapers. She has a ton of great info. and FAQs.

Stripping is as easy as soaking in dawn dish soap (in bath tub) and then rinsing several times in washer.

Country Save detergent is the best!! Have had virtually no problems since I started using it.

 

I wa going to suggest stripping with a small amount of Dawn (original blue). I used vinegar with my load, although if the diapers have any PLU in them, it could break down more quickly. I still used it anyways and never had issues.

 

Yeah, the pre-soak is important to help get all the pee out in the wash cycle! I soaked, washed on hot and did an extra rinse (which was just an extra part of the regular wash cycle on my machine--just push the "extra rinse" button LOL).

I used Rockin' Green on my Fuzzi Bunz and it worked really well. You don't need much at all (like 1 tablespoon approximately).