Hand-me-downs safety

[ShwarmaQueen]

I'm not usually a paranoid mom when it comes to germs and such, but one of my friends has graciously offered to give some of her CD stash to me when her DS outgrows them (a few months). She does mainly pockets/AIOs which are out of my price range so I accepted her offer. The only thing is that her DS has recently had an outbreak of blisters/boils on his rear, the doctors are not 100% sure but say it's a probable staph infection. Now I'm questioning her stash- can I be sure my DS won't contract it?? Is there a way to fully sanitize CDs from this type of thing??

[Michigan Mama]

It would make me nervous. That is one case where I would bleach or boil, or both. Even though they are pockets, and there is some risk with boiling, I know there are people who have boiled them with success...

[SuzyLee]

I would probably boil them in some Dawn, then run a bunch of hot rinses, then add some bleach to a hot rinse, then hot rinse some more.

You might be able to look up online (or call your pedi) and ask about what can kill a staph infection. I woul assume bleach would do it, but I would bet you can find out for sure from your pedi.

[ShwarmaQueen]

I was thinking about a bleach/boil duo, but then was worried I would ruin them. If others have done it with success I might consider it though.

[rn]

vinegar kills the same amount of bacteria that bleach does, you can use that instead of the bleach.

[Mama2Rio]

vinegar works great, but not for use all the time... my BGs wore out after i started using vinegar in every wash for about a month... the elastic just went out on them... I would check with the brand's recommendations too... BGs can be occationally bleached... and sunning the diapers will actually help kill stuff too. i would maybe try boiling one or 2 at a time and see how they come out so you don't ruin the whole stash if you do end up with a problem.

[omelette]

I'm wondering if teatree oil would work. It's antifungal/antibacterial although I don't know if it would be strong enough to kill a staph infection.
I would be hesitant to boil pocket diapers that didn't belong to me. Is your friend giving them to you or loaning them to you? If you're going to boil I would run it by her first incase they get ruined.

[ShwarmaQueen]

Originally Posted by omelette

Is your friend giving them to you or loaning them to you? If you're going to boil I would run it by her first incase they get ruined.

I'm assuming she's not expecting them back but I'm still worried if I ruin them and they can't be worn at all. They're WAHM pockets/AIO, so i'm not even sure on the quality of the PUL.

I'm thinking about just telling her after a few months that I'm happy with just prefolds and politely decline them if she brings it up.

[Cersha]

I just don't DO used diapers. I mean, I woudn't buy used underwear...and really, nobody poops in underwear. I just can't get over it.

[celestialdreamer]

You know I'd have no problem taking used diapers from a friend...but the staph infection would personally make me say no thank you. A friend of mine has a dd that got a horrible staph infection while wearing cloth and she did end up bleaching them successfully. She actually was very anti-bleach but now washes her diapers with bleach once a month because of it. I'd be too scared!

[Slabobbin]

When my baby was having constant yeast infections last winter, the doctor (pretty natural minded dude) told me to hang the diapers out on the line and let them freeze. He said that it would kill the yeast. I didn't research it much so you may want to look it up before relying on it. He also said that the sun would have the same affect as the freezing.

[aiyasmama]

I would find out exactly what kills the staphyloccocus bacterium and do that. Not all disinfectants kill everything, so I wouldn't assume that bleach or vinegar is deadly to staph until looking into it. As far as I know, boiling will kill all living bacteria, but it will not destroy endospores, so you want to check that staph is a non-sporing bacteria. Maybe you can find an online microbiology reference guide.

[megan sacha]

Originally Posted by Cersha

I just don't DO used diapers. I mean, I woudn't buy used underwear...and really, nobody poops in underwear. I just can't get over it.

To each her own but I think this is a bit silly given that many cloth diaperers use a service, so diapers that have been on hundreds (thousands) of different babies. Enough bleach should kill any residual bacteria and a boiling could be done for good measure as well. Do you or anyone you know have a sanitizing wash on your machine? They may be easier than boiling.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Cersha

I just don't DO used diapers. I mean, I woudn't buy used underwear...and really, nobody poops in underwear. I just can't get over it.

: I have to agree. I cant even bring myself to sell the hardly used (and never pooped in) diapers we dont want. I just cant imagine why anyone would want to buy them. I'd rather pay a little extra and get new. But to the OP I would say a polite no thanks. I just wouldnt want to take the risk. And probably if they've cause her a rash they have some kind of build up problem anyway so you'd be taking on that issue too. Its just not worth it IMO.

[bedheadmaestro]

In my [somewhat limited] experience, a one-time boil shouldn't ruin the PUL. For me, boiling only seemed to cause the dye from the PUL to run and fade. It happened only after I left the diapers boiling in the pot for too long (10 minutes or so?)
Stain-free, great condition used diapers are fine, especially for people who CD to save money! Both buyers and sellers! Most people consider them an 'investment.' There's such an insane, huge market for used cloth.
I would say to check diaperswappers.com for more specific help, I am sure I have seen this topic many times.

[mamadelbosque]

I'd run them through the wash a couple times with bleach and maybe once with vinegar. my BG 2.0s are 2.5 yrs old now and I've occasionally run a wash with a bit of bleach or vinegar. Not very often, but once in a while, its not gonna hurt them. Good luck!!