Stripping Cloth Diapers

After many rounds of washing, cloth diapers can get build-up from detergents, oil from the body and other substances stay in the fabric. Hemp diapers may smell stale sooner than ones made of other fabric. This build-up can also make diapers less absorbent.

What to do Start the stripping process with a batch of clean diapers that are still wet. Put them in the washer on a hot cycle without any detergent. To make sure the water is extra hot, parents can boil some water on the stove and add it to the cycle. Look for soap bubbles in the cycle - this shows the extra detergent and residue are washing out of the cloth. Make sure the rinse is hot, too. Repeat the hot rinse cycle until no more soap bubbles are visible. To make sure the bubbles are soap bubbles and not just water bubbles, stop the cycle for a moment. Soap bubbles will hang around once the water stops moving.

Other ways to strip diapers

Those who do not have access to a home washing machine can do the same process in a dishwasher, though it is generally not recommended as it could be a fire hazard. Laundromats often have large washing machines and very hot water, so this is a viable option. It's a good idea to run an empty cycle through a Laundromat machine to remove any residue from the inside of the washer.

If stripping doesn't help

If cloth diapers are still smelly after stripping, try washing with a hot cycle and more detergent than usual and a number of rinses. Adding a fabric softener to water that is especially hard can cut the vinegar in the water that might be making diapers smell. Sometimes water alone isn't enough to take away the stink, and there are products on the market that can help, both chemical and natural. A half cup of white vinegar or baking soda can help. Products like OxiClean, Bac-Out, Dawn dish soap or Calgon might also help. Use Dawn as a cleaning product on the diapers with a brush. Add the other products to the wash cycle and rinse a number of times. If absolutely nothing else works, bleach in a hot washer works as a last resort.