Cannot get rid of ammonia smell!!

[biennourri]

Please help me figure this out. I've stripped the diapers- no difference. I cleaned the machine with soda and vinegar- no change. I do a vinegar rinse and also do a presoak. I've changed soaps to what my friends here use - basically a non Bio with no fragrance (we're in UK so no Charlies). We have a German machine that doesn't use much water at any given time, though it runs for about an hour and a half. I do 2 cycles to try to get them rinsed and clean. The washing machine is running like all the time and we are getting a back up on the other laundry as well since it takes more than 24 hours to get a load done with the air drying. Did I ruin these diapers somewhere along the way? When they are drying I can smell the ammonia. My poor DD always has a faint ammonia smell. No burns so far, thank God. I just don't know what I'm doing wrong!

[inky leeuhhh]

i know it would likely be a huge task, but maybe boil them? what type of diaper are you using? i think ive heard vinegar can be a no no under some circumstances, but cant remember when that is. maybe bleach them with a little bit of bleach?

[JL83]

We had a big problem when our washer broke (stopped agitating) and we didn't notice. What I ended up doing was soaking them in the bathtub and using multiple bathtub loads with vinegar to actually strip them.

When I put them in the tub and swished them around with a wooden spoon the water did discolor a bit, so I kept doing it (using the shower to rinse them) until the water was clear.

I've heard with the high efficiency washers to throw in a large wet towel to increase the weight of the load. The amount of water used is measured by the weight so this will help.

[lifeguard]

We used to have this problem before we moved here. Never was able to figure out why it was happening but I finally just used a little bleach every so often & it immediately solved the problem. I know a lot of people don't like to use bleach but it was so effective & totally worth it to me 'cause I was at the point of wanting to just give up on it.

[dancing_mamma]

I would try adding boiling water into your washing machine drum. Often if you have tried stripping your diapers, but are still ending up with ammonia smell- it is because your diapers are not being washed with hot enough water- which could have to do with your machine, or hot water tank temp. Also, I would stop using vinegar in the rinse- try using a bit of baking soda in the first cold rinse/soak. Sometimes vinegar can be the culprit for ammonia smell left on the diapers- depending on your water condition.
If you are able to find soapnuts in your area- I would suggest getting some, and trying those. I have had several friends, as well as myself- that have had great success with soap nuts being the answer for stinky diapers.
Also- would try Oxygen bleach before regular bleach- as bleach can ruin or really wear down the fibers in your diapers- and could cause sensitivity issues with baby.
Hope that helps!

[JLKMneely]

I know that you are not under any circumstances supposed to use bleach. It breaks down the fibers and wears out the diaper to quickly. Can you line dry your diapers? That ALWAYS helps with smelly diapers issues.

[biennourri]

Sorry, I posted this and then didn't get back online for a while due to a bad cold.

We have Fuzzi Bunz. The diapers themselves smell. I will try boiling them to see if that helps then I'll consider the bleach.

I'm really at my wits end with these. We do line dry everything since we don't have a dryer. The laundry is like a part time job here. Maybe I'm a spoiled American, but right now I want an American washing machine to see if that sorts it out. It's not going to happen, so I'll just try to carry on. We're at 2 1/2 now so we can try to start doing some potty training. DD at least tells me now when her diaper is wet, and that only happens with the cloth diapers, so I want to keep going for now. Oh and home economics. And the environment...

[sedalbj]

A friend of mine has the ceramic laundry ball from H2O at Home and says it got rid of her ammonia stink. The ball is supposed to change the characteristics of the water and make the rinse cleaner, among other things. She was very surprised that her ammonia smell just disappeared. I'm jealous, when I was cd'ing, I had the worst time getting rid of that smell!

[DevaMajka]

Have you tried using more detergent, and doing rinses until there are no suds left?
I do that when I start to get stink, and it always takes care of it. When the stink is really bad, I need to do it a couple of times before it's totally gone, but it really improves after the first wash.
My usual detergent is more natural, but I use Tide when I get stinkies.

[inky leeuhhh]

Originally Posted by biennourri

Sorry, I posted this and then didn't get back online for a while due to a bad cold.

We have Fuzzi Bunz. The diapers themselves smell. I will try boiling them to see if that helps then I'll consider the bleach.

I'm really at my wits end with these. We do line dry everything since we don't have a dryer. The laundry is like a part time job here. Maybe I'm a spoiled American, but right now I want an American washing machine to see if that sorts it out. It's not going to happen, so I'll just try to carry on. We're at 2 1/2 now so we can try to start doing some potty training. DD at least tells me now when her diaper is wet, and that only happens with the cloth diapers, so I want to keep going for now. Oh and home economics. And the environment...

hmm when i said to boil them, i was thinking prefolds. im not sure id boil fb. maybe someone else here would know if it would be ok? i know its fine to boil the inserts (i do that once a month to avoid stinkies). ive been able to get rid of stinky from our pockets by squirting a bit of dawn on the inside, then scrubbing it really well with a wash cloth. after that i rinsed like crazy.

[biennourri]

Oh dear. I've boiled everything and given it a little bleach. They're still wet right now, but I can say they still stink and now the house stinks. I'm really discouraged. I don't know which dish soap is like Dawn here (we're in the UK) otherwise I'd try that. I used to think CD'ing was so easy, but now I'm starting to lose faith .

[chely7425]

If it is possible I might just scrap the FBs and get prefolds... we had HORRIBLE stink issues with pockets and we are in the US. We now only use the FBs/pockets are night and for babysitters. Everything else we use is natural fibers and it is SO much easier!!

[JTA Mom]

Microfiber holds stink like no tomorrow. It's a manmade fiber, plus it's super absorbent. Not good when it comes to stink.

I would NOT boil the FB pockets themselves. The pockets don't really hold on to smells, it's the inserts.

As for the above comment about not using bleach due to premature aging of the fibers--well, it's better than chucking out perfect but stinky diapes!

If you have vicious stink, here's what to do. All of my pockets were used when I got them, and a big chunk of them had horrible ammonia stink.

Fill washer with clean inserts and warm water. Add about 3 gallons of extra warm water. Toss in about 1/4 c bleach AND 1/4c vinegar. Let machine agitate a bit, then turn off. Keep lid CLOSED. The vinegar acidifies the water, which makes the bleach more effective. You don't want to be breathing in the bleach though, so hence keep the lid closed. You can add up to 3 gallons of water in a front loader/regular washer without issues. Front loaders aren't really good for very dirty loads--no enough water.

In the morning, let it go one regular cycle. Toss in a regular amount of detergent. Do another cycle, this one on HOT. Add a couple pots/teakettles of boiling water. Then another cycle, just water to rinse everything well.

This seems like a LONG task, and it is, to get rid of the initial stink.

Maintenance:

Short wash on cold. Set washer to highest, hottest load. Add couple pots/teakettles of boiling water. Full strength detergent. Extra rinse.

Every week or so, wash the entire insert stash with a couple capfuls of bleach. It keeps the ammonia bacteria away.


Or, if you are FED UP with microfiber, like I was, chuck them and use prefolds or flats to stuff your diapers!


ETA: Any dish detergent that says it's grease fighting will work. I use Palmolive because it's cheaper than dawn. Works just as well for stripping.

Ami

[3daughters]

I've been told that Fairy detergent is the European equivalent of Dawn.