Did I ruin my cloth diaper?

[DaddyHatiwolf]

I've got Kins cloth diapers and I put them in with my work smocks and heavy wash and they always come out very clean and fresh. :3 I use Dreft and haven't had trouble with build-up (yet).

But then again, I don't let them sit for any large amount of time enclosed. If they get wet, I put them in the extra bathtub, rinse them if it's a lot, and then let them dry up until laundry day.

Wet item + enclosed space = STANK (And if not stink, then mildew, which is awful.)

Dreft is good too as it doesn't have scents that will cause buildup. The only downside of Dreft is that it works better if you have soft water. Usually big city water is hard from treatment and remineralization while well water is often soft depending on ground soil content. That's not an absolute but true in most cases. I don't use Dreft anymore because it is priced right at where the big 2 diaper soaps are in price. Dreft is easier to find everywhere though.

 

[dogboy]

DaddyHatiwolf made me think about washing machines. I have a top loading washer and it uses a lot of water which I like. The front loading washers use very limited water so if you have a front loading washing machine, that might be part of the problem.

 

[DaddyHatiwolf]

Yes. Im so glad I got my wife the silly monstrosity samsung toploader that "omg you can start it from the phone while out at dinner!" Now why you would want to start it at dinner and still get home 3 hours later so you have to rewash anything that you dont want wrinkled ill never know but shes happy and amex was happy. I guess thats all that mattered. Oh and the diapers are happy.

 

[chuck]

I put my used cloth diapers in a dry pail. I wash them once a week. Do pre-wash (with detergent), wash (with detergent) and 2 rinses in the washing machine. Then put them in the dryer. Sometimes they come out a little discolored, but with continuous use they eventually end up looking good.

 

[Teekabell]

I have successfully used
GroVia Mighty Bubbles Laundry Treatment for Baby Cloth Diapers
Link to USA Amazon Product GroVia Mighty Bubbles
It is cheap and has done the job when I needed it. It is not laundry detergent, but it gets out the smell. Sold on Amazon. There are other products that do the same thing. look around.

 

[Cottontail]

Given all the detergent recommendations being thrown around here, I figured it might be good to link the washing instructions of one of the larger cloth baby diaper companies in the US, Green Mountain Diapers. Here you go:

Green Mountain Diapers: Guidance for washing cloth diapers

How to wash cloth diapers, how to strip cloth diapers, stripping cloth diapers, washing cloth diapers and laundry detergent recommendations for cloth diapers.

www.greenmountaindiapers.com

For cotton diapers, note the "Choose any mainstream detergent you like. Anything mainstream is fine on cotton." And also, with regard to detergents marketed specifically for cloth diapers, "If the ingredients in these products were so great, don't you think the big detergent companies would have figured that out?"

Well... Right! It's also worth mentioning that Green Mountain and a number of other cloth baby diaper companies, along with ABDL diaper companies like Changing Times, used to pimp the expensive diaper detergents like Rockin' Green. Now, most no longer even sell the stuff. Telling.

In short: Buy detergent and don't agonize over your choice unless you've got a skin condition or something.