[maryjane]

I am expecting #3 in another 6 weeks or so and wanted to prep all my old diapers. We recently moved, but used to have *extremely* hard water. At one point, I tried bleach (way too much, I'm sure) to get rid of the build-up that had caused major stinkies as well as an awful rash on my then diaper-wearer. Well, the bleach didn't solve the stink problem, it just made it worse/different. They stunk all the time -- fresh out of the wash, and then even worse after use. I eventually gave up and packed them away. Fast forward two years, and I'd really like to rehab these diapers.

I'm starting with the BG and FB -- just the outsides, I'll deal with inserts later. I started stripping with Calgon to remove mineral deposits, plus the bleach and detergent build-up. There was improvement, but after about 8 rinse cycles and using the Calgon three times, I gave it a break. I finally got my hands on some RLR and that really seems to be helping. So far, I've run two full soak and wash cycles plus an additional four rinse cycles. The water is finally clear (it was murky the first run-through even after all that Calgon), but there are still a small handful of bubbles.

I'll keep rinsing, but I'm just wondering how many rinse cycles do you typically need to do after stripping with RLR (or other method). It seems like SUCH a big waste of water, but I guess it's worth it if I can actually salvage these horribly stinky diapers.

 

[nursingmom]

Your diapers shouldn't stink if you are using proper detergent (and amount). I would highly suggest switching your detergent or using less or more of it. In general, it is recommended to use about 1/4 of what is recommeded by the manufacturer of the detergent for cloth diapers.

 

[EmmalinesMom]

There's no set number of rinses for stripping. When I've stripped diapers, I just keep peeking in during the agitation cycle and when there are no suds there, I know they're done.

Congratulations on the new baby on the way!