Smelly Diapers

[Kelly1101]

Okay, so I've been CDing since my daughter was about 2 weeks old, she's now nearing 4 months, I'm getting some smelliness to the diapers. It's not HORRIBLE, but I can tell when I pull them out of the dryer, they don't smell as clean (more of a pee smell than poo smell).

I'm using ALL Free and Clear detergent. The diapers are Indian Bleached PFs (Green Mountain), Chinese Bleached PFs (bargain brand), Thirsties fleece fitted, and BumGenius Bamboo fitted.

I remember vaguely hearing about "stripping" or adding vinegar or boiling or I don't know (up till now, I've just been washing once in warm, cold rinse, and for any stains I lay them in the sun, which is insanely awesome. I wash every day.). So much info, don't know what's right or wrong.

What should I do to these diapers to give them back the freshness?

[Gabes Mommy]

I strip my diapers by adding a few drops of Dawn dish detergent to my wash once in a while. Then just do rinses until all suds are gone. Also, make sure to use plenty of detergent and rinse until there are no more suds.

[Kelly1101]

Originally Posted by Gabes Mommy

I strip my diapers by adding a few drops of Dawn dish detergent to my wash once in a while. Then just do rinses until all suds are gone. Also, make sure to use plenty of detergent and rinse until there are no more suds.

Sounds easy-- I even use Dawn dish detergent already for my dishes. Thanks!

[poppan]

Smell can be from two things -- dipes not getting clean enough, or detergent build-up. It can also be from both factors.

Stripping with Dawn will get the detergent residue out. But it won't help with the dipes not getting clean problem, if that is an issue.

Sounds like you have a toploading washer? If the Dawn doesn't solve your problem, you could try adding several pots of boiling water to a hot wash (without detergent). Aim to take the water temperature up to at least 150F (water coming out of the water heater is usually at 120-125F, and boiling water is at 212F -- so you just need to raise the temp of the hot wash a little by adding some boiling water to it). This will kill bacteria as well as help strip away detergent build up.

And moving forward -- you could either repeat this routine every once in a while, or you could tweak your regular wash routine to try to prevent any re-occurence in the first place. In no particular order, my suggestions/thoughts are:

1) Are you using powder or liquid? Most people find powder to rinse out more cleanly. Also, powder has fewer additives (liquid requires additives to keep the ingredients from separating).
2) Wash in hot instead of warm.
3) Do more thorough rinsing (I run a second wash cycle without detergent as a really good rinse -- and I find that hot wash rinses out more suds/detergent than warm or cold)
4) Make sure you're using enough detergent to get the dipes good and clean -- in a TL I would suggest at least 1/4 - 1/2 cup, in an FL at least 2 tbsp.

HTH!

[Kelly1101]

Yes, top loader. Thanks for the tips!

[DevaMajka]

When I got stink, I washed them with a full amount of detergent on hot, then rinsed and rinsed until there were no suds. That took care of it

Using enough detergent and *plenty* of water seem to help.

[CallMeMommy]

Originally Posted by DevaMajka

When I got stink, I washed them with a full amount of detergent on hot, then rinsed and rinsed until there were no suds. That took care of it

Using enough detergent and *plenty* of water seem to help.

That's what I do. Normally I do a cold rinse, hot wash (with a warm rinse), and an extra warm rinse. When I start to notice more stink I do a hot wash with an insane amount of detergent, then another hot wash with no detergent. Clears it right up.