The most common complaints about smelly cloth diapers are (1) stinky diaper pails and (2) diapers that smell fine when they come out of the wash but get more and more stinky as they get soaked with urine and (3) diapers that smell when they come out of the wash.
Luckily there are solutions to both of these problems. And even more luckily, cloth diapers rarely (if ever) get as stinky as a garbage can full of a week’s disposable diapers.
So, to solve problem #1: a stinky diaper pail. The best solution for the stinky diaper pail problem, in my experience, is to stop using a diaper pail and use a hanging diaper bag instead. A hanging diaper bag allows air to circulate in your dirty diapers and reduces the buildup of stinky anaerobic bacteria. Other tips for reducing smell of your hanging diaper bag are to:
- - add one to two drops of tea tree oil or lavender oil to a cloth and throw it into your hanging diaper bag
- - make sure that you are washing your diapers often enough (at least once every 2-3 days)
- - use an enzyme based deodorizer either on your diapers or place it in the room near your diaper bag
- - make sure that you don’t have any residue problems (see below)
Problem #2 (diapers that smell find when they come out of the was but then get stinky when soaked with urine) is caused by residue on the diapers. Over time, detergent and urine residue can buildup on the diapers. This tends to happen more quickly when using a high efficiency washing machine but can also occur when using a good old-fashioned top loader as well.
To get rid of residue, run your clean diapers through 3 cycles of hot wash/cold rinse in the washing machine with no detergent. If you have a high efficiency washing machine you should manually set the water level to high. If you can’t manually adjust the water level, throw a wet towel or 2 in with your diapers to trick the washing machine into adding more water. This should get rid of your residue problems. As an aside, this technique will also solve about 90% of problems that you may have with cloth diapers so it should be the first thing you try if you’re having problems.
Cleansing diapers with baking soda and vinegar tends to be more of a band-aid solution, as your diapers will soon become stinky again. Vinegar can also react with urine to create stink in diapers.
As for problem #3 (diapers that smell when they come out of the wash), you should first make sure that you’re washing with hot water except if your hot water is really hot as this will cause damage to the laminate layer in your diapers. You should also consider switching detergents as the one you’re using may not be cleaning your diapers properly.
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