UGH!! Diaper issues again...

[misspriss]

Okay I had some absorbancy issues and I stripped and added some filler and it seemed to help. I noticed a faint "old" (like, old barn) smell after stripping when the diapers were peed on, but that went away after the next wash, so I didn't worry about it. They smelled perfect coming out of dryer.

Fast forward to today, I washed diaper yesterday, ALL of them. Stuff ALL my pockets (I hate stuffing pockets, I am not buying another pocket diaper as long as I live. I prefer using prefolds and covers to stuffing pockets!!). Put a diaper on him and put him to bed. When I woke for 2 am feed, it was so smelly. No ammonia smell, just a icky "old barn" smell. Okay, that was one diaper....put another one on him. Same smell, only I swear worse.

I think it is just the microfiber ones, I have not noticed an issue with my prefolds.

So from what I have read, this means I am probably not using enough detergent (or the right detergent) and they are not getting fully clean in the wash.

So quick question (if anyone replies before I go start the next load...), I don't know whether to wash them again with extra detergent like normal, or use Dawn and just wash/strip them again?

I also added vinegar to my prewash and will use it in the rinse. Charlie Banana (the brand of the pocket diapers) recommend using it for smell so I will not void my warranty or anything (although I may have already with the HOT wash instead of warm...) and I don't think it will hurt them. That may help with the smell as well.

 

[Rachel_C]

I would disagree with what you read. If a nappy smells straight away (when dry but not been peed on yet), then it isn't getting properly clean in the wash. A nappy that hasn't been washed properly will smell like it hasn't been washed properly, of poo or wee or a mix of both.

If however, like you seem to have experienced, it smells only after being peed in it's more likely to be detergent build up. How did you strip the nappies? Did you definitely rinse them until they were clean? You said they smelled faintly when peed in just after stripping - that suggests to me that the strip didn't remove all the build up. After a strip, it definitely isn't that you haven't used enough detergent because you use a lot/WUL in the strip. If it still smells then, it's still build up.

However, night nappies do sometimes smell because they are full of wee, and wee left to sit for a while can smell. Sometimes it's like ammonia, sometimes it's just a bit funny (maybe what you describe as old barn smell, I'm not sure!). Do the same nappies smell the same after 2-3 hours of use in the day? If not, I'd suggest it's just the normal smell of a night nappy rather than a washing issue.

 

[misspriss]

I would disagree with what you read. If a nappy smells straight away (when dry but not been peed on yet), then it isn't getting properly clean in the wash. A nappy that hasn't been washed properly will smell like it hasn't been washed properly, of poo or wee or a mix of both.

If however, like you seem to have experienced, it smells only after being peed in it's more likely to be detergent build up. How did you strip the nappies? Did you definitely rinse them until they were clean? You said they smelled faintly when peed in just after stripping - that suggests to me that the strip didn't remove all the build up. After a strip, it definitely isn't that you haven't used enough detergent because you use a lot/WUL in the strip. If it still smells then, it's still build up.

However, night nappies do sometimes smell because they are full of wee, and wee left to sit for a while can smell. Sometimes it's like ammonia, sometimes it's just a bit funny (maybe what you describe as old barn smell, I'm not sure!). Do the same nappies smell the same after 2-3 hours of use in the day? If not, I'd suggest it's just the normal smell of a night nappy rather than a washing issue.

The first time I noticed the smell was directly after first stripping the diapers. I then had to wash them at someone else's house and could have not rinsed them well enough, but they worked fine after. Came home and washed them twice at home since then and then I noticed the smell. Yes, it was only two night time diapers in a row, but like 5 hours max. My nighttime diapers have never smelled before.

I washed them good with the full amount of detergent for regular washing, and rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and rinsed. I didn't see the last rinse to make sure no bubbles, but I could hardly find any bubbles in the ALMOST last rinse. I also added vinegar to the pre-wash and rinse for the smell issue.

They don't smell now, but holy hell they leak. Every diaper I have but on him leaked since I last washed. Two night diapers (he also woke up earlier than usual, probably because his clothes were wet ) and two daytime diapers. The worst was this morning. I got him up, took his wet clothes and leaky nighttime diaper off of him, and put a daytime diaper on him and nursed him on the couch. When I got up, there was a puddle of pee on the couch (I feed him sitting indian style on the couch). Also though, the front (pee area) of his diaper was soaked...Anyway this says detergent buildup to me. I guess I didn't rinse enough. No smell though!

I have just had it with these diapers for now. I put a prefold and my one good cover and went out and bought some chlorine-free disposables until I can get this sorted. I have washed diapers all day for the past three days. I need to wash other things. I need to relax.

I am so irritated. I managed to travel with cloth diapers and make that work when DH wanted to do 'sposies. I really don't like putting disposables on him for all the chemicals. Now I have had to go out and buy some a week later because my cloth diapers are not working. It is frustrating because I have felt like I had to defend my decision to cloth diaper to all of my family and now when it isn't working it feels like I have made a fool of myself to my family and had to give in and use disposables like they always thought I should...*sigh*

 

[Rachel_C]

Could you look at ordering a nappy detergent you can strip with? I recently did an Eco Sprout strip (you soak the nappies in it for a while, then give them a good long wash or two and that's it, you're done) and it worked pretty well. I think you can do that with Rockin Green too, or they at least have a strip method on the back of the pack, I can't remember exactly how you do it. It might be easier than rinsing forever!

 

[misspriss]

Well I am going to try Dawn again in a couple of days. I am going to wash them like regular when I finish the clothing laundry and then after that strip. In the meantime I got a couple of packages of BabyGanics 'sposies and....(confession time) I am really happy right now.

I may try "combi diapering" sometimes. I have a lot of anxiety issues and being the only one managing the diapers all the time has been stressing me out. DH changes and stuff but I am the only one who washes and stuffs. Just being able to throw them away has been quite liberating from my anxiety now, not being worried about having to wash the diapers. The problem with cloth diapers is that baby needs them now, so if you have a problem like this you HAVE to take care of it NOW unless you have other options.

I'm glad my new diaper order is 1/3 prefolds. I am really digging prefolds right now. Heck I may send all the fancy diapers back and buy more prefolds and covers. I see why people like them so much.

Either that or AI2s with natural fiber inserts. Microfiber is irritating the crap out of me. I wish I'd had this problem 3 days ago when I ordered a bunch of diapers. With my new order my stash will be 13 synthetic or synthetic combo, and 17 natural fiber. Maybe I should just send back the 6 synthetics and exchange for natural fibers, or just the 4 full synthetics and keep the combo ones since I already own 7 microfiber diapers. Maybe I could sell those though....hm...

Or I could just send the whole order back and change to 'sposies for now, I want to CD so badly, but I am struggling with breastfeeding right now and having to back to work in 2 weeks and have to introduce bottles in the next week and start pumping again and the house is still a mess and I need to get all the clothes ready and find all my work clothes and buy more nursing clothing and...it would be nice not to have to worry about diapers while I am keeping up with all this other stuff. Yeah...I may take a break...I don't know.

 

[Rachel_C]

If you have microfibre inserts that need stripping, you could try boil washing them. I had some really bad build up after a holiday hand-washing them - detergent stripping didn't seem to work (or I wasn't willing to spend three days rinsing them!) so I put just the plain microfibre (no elastic, no PUL) in a boil wash, which is actually 90 degrees C on my machine, with a little detergent. It sorted the problem quickly and easily.

I know it's not recommended and if you're nervous about it don't do it, but microfibre should stand up to it. Or you can boil it in a pan on the cooker, add a drop of WUL to the water, boil for ten mins (make sure it doesn't catch), then leave to cool and wash again in the washing machine. It will invalidate warranties, I'm sure, so don't do it on anything you might be able to return.

 

[misspriss]

Well, DH and I talked it over. I am going to wash my diapers that are used today, and then in the next few days strip them (I don't think I will do it today, I just don't want them stinking it up).

After that, I will sun any stained ones and prepare to store the sized small ones. I will then pack up and store all the sized small ones. I will set aside the OS ones until I decide if I want to continue with CD'ing.

I called the diaper place I ordered from and they had not yet shipped my order and I asked them to cancel it, I hope they can. If not, I will set aside the diapers when they arrive and not open them. If I decide to stop CD'ing, I will send them back and only be out shipping.

I am going back to work in 2 week and I am honestly not sure I can keep CD'ing and work full time. My days will be filled with work and pumping and when I get home I will probably spend every waking moment with LO until he goes to bed, I will not want to spend my time washing and stuffing diapers and then if I have to worry about crap like this where my diapers just go to shit all of a sudden.

I found this describing a full time working mom's day with cloth diapering:

I would get up early prep all my diapers for the hubby, then work 9-10 hours, come home and clean out all the dirty diapers (which is much funner with a teething baby might I add). Then give the baby dinner and then bed. That was my schedule for the week. In addition I would have to do the diaper laundry every 3 days as well.

I don't think I can handle that. If my LO didn't have breastfeeding issues and stuff, it might be different, but I'm not sure. If I didn't have anxiety issues, it might be different, but I do.

Anyway I am going to use disposables for a while. Just one day of doing disposables and my stress level went WAY down. If I decide later I want to pick cloth back up again, maybe just part time, I might, but at this point it looks like I am giving up on cloth. If I were a SAHM, I would definitely be doing cloth and sticking with it, but my time with LO is just more important. Unless I had enough diapers to go all week (which would not work for the smell) I would have to sacrifice precious time with LO to wash diapers during the week, and I'm not keen on that.