Cloth smelling of wee

[tokyo]

I'm using pockets with my LO and have been since about November. When I first got them one of the things I marvelled about was the complete lack of smell - it made me realise how stinky disposables actually are! Now though I am getting some wee smells but don't know how normal that is.

They don't smell when they are freshly washed (wet out of the machine or later when dried). They don't smell when LO has just used them and I'm changing her. But after a night in the nappy bin I do notice a strong whiff off them when I'm putting them in the machine. Is this normal? I only ask because as I say there was no smell to begin with.

I used a dishwasher tablet in the wash with them back at the end of Jan. Is there anything else I need to do or is this smell after they've been sitting a while normal?

 

[Rachel_C]

It can be pretty normal for nappies to smell after they've been in the pail for a while and it's normal for night nappies to smell when you take them off too. There is a lot of wee in there! If day nappies don't smell when you use them/take them off, I'd say you're probably fine.

If you're using the dishwasher tablet method as a preventative strip, I'd probably do it once every 6 weeks or so.

 

[tokyo]

It can be pretty normal for nappies to smell after they've been in the pail for a while and it's normal for night nappies to smell when you take them off too. There is a lot of wee in there! If day nappies don't smell when you use them/take them off, I'd say you're probably fine.

If you're using the dishwasher tablet method as a preventative strip, I'd probably do it once every 6 weeks or so.

Thanks Rachel, I'd imagined it would only really be an issue if they were smelling when just washed or just used but wanted to check. I'll prob use the dishwasher method again mid march then. The manufacturer of my nappies (Dudeybaba) suggests using bicarb of soda in some washes - do you think that's a worthwhile thing to do? I've read some things saying that it's too diluted in the machine anyway so not really worth it. Thanks

 

[Dragonfly]

Mine only smell of wee if I dont put them in a proper wash. Mine are on whats known on my washer as a baby wash. 90 degrees, takes 2 hours. Dosnt smell of wee after that. And use washing powder to.

 

[Rachel_C]

I don't personally think bicarb would be strong enough unless you use a LOT! You could try washing soda maybe? It softens the water and can give your detergent a boost.

Don't wash your nappies on 90 degrees unless they are plain cotton. Any bamboo would be cooked by a temp that high, your elastic would deteriorate very quickly and your PUL might actually explode .

 

[Dragonfly]

lucky my ones are cheapos, they come out fine and have them over a 2 years now. But do watch in case you have spent a fortune and wreak them.

 

[tokyo]

Mine only smell of wee if I dont put them in a proper wash. Mine are on whats known on my washer as a baby wash. 90 degrees, takes 2 hours. Dosnt smell of wee after that. And use washing powder to.

I don't have a baby cycle (think they have extra rinses programmed in them?) so I do a rinse, a wash at 40 with 1/4 amount of non bio washing liquid and then another rinse, sometimes 2. The manufacturers instructions say to wash at 40, I occasionally do a 60 wash but don't want to do anything do damage the PUL and they seem pretty clean at 40. As I say, there is no smell when they are clean or just used, only when they've been in the pail overnight or for a couple of days.

 

[Dragonfly]

maybe the extra rince or pre wash would help I know mine has a pre wash before the 90 degrees wash. I did do a few 40s once as I wasnt in the mood to wait and they always did smell not good after.

 

[Rachel_C]

If they don't smell during use and it's only after a long night or a couple of days in a bucket, I would say with 99.9% certainty that it's not build up. If you peed in a clean bucket and left it a couple of days, I'd imagine it wouldn't smell amazing!

 

[SarahDiener]

If they smell after use is it a build up? Sometimes in the day I take them off and they're whiffy

 

[Rachel_C]

It depends how bad it is really. Wee sometimes does smell so it's normal that the cloth would smell of it too - it doesn't have gel to lock the smell away or mask it. If they smell of normal fresh wee straight after use, that is fine. If, however, they have a funky/musty/bad/fishy smell to them, that could be build up. After a while, the normal wee smell can turn to a normal ammonia smell too; there is quite a difference between that and the build up smell. If you ever find yourself wondering if LO has pooed when it's just a wet nappy (and it's not recent wind!), then it could be build up.

 

[SarahDiener]

It smells like old wee