Mornings Stink

So the whole time I have been using cloth diapers I have never had stinky diaper issues except once when I was testing out a new detergent and it wasn't really cutting it. Now that my little man is sleeping about 12 hours overnight (sorry moms) his morning diapers are STINKY!

No real surprise though. He is in a diaper for 12 hours and all that pee has 12 hours to crystalize and become stinky.  I figured whatever it'll wash out clean. Well it doesn't always. Especially my fitteds. It seems that they need a bit of extra TLC to get them clean and ammonia smell free.  Fear not though you have options!

1. Funk Rock by Rockin Green

This is made by the folks who make Rockin Green cloth diaper detergent. It is an ammonia bouncer that can be used to soak your diapers in occasionally or added to your pre-wash step. The instructed amount to use in the prewash is 1 TBSP. This works really awesome the only issue I have is it costs about $22-24 plus shipping for a 30 load bag. So add that to the cost of your cloth detergent and OUCH!





2. BumGenius Odour Remover



This is made by cottonbabies/bumGenius. It is an all natural odour remover made with vegetable based ingredients.  You are to spray all your diapers before storing them in the diaper pail to neutralize the ammonia odour. I have used this on a couple of occasions I honestly can't see it making a difference. I know some moms swear by it though.

3. Rinse your diapers

 

This is my #1 go to method.  In the morning I rinse my overnight diapers in the tub with warm water before I toss it into my pail. I remove any solids if any first of course. This works like a charm. I have not had any issues with stinky overnight diapers since I started doing this. Since our diaper pail is in the bathroom I started rinsing all my diapers off with my diaper sprayer before I toss them in. I have literally no odour in my bathroom and I do not need any additives. My husband, who was at first worried that cloth diapers would smell, is now a poster boy for cloth stinks less!

Hip Huggers Diapers

One of the most common reasons families turn to cloth diapering is to save money, so it's no surprise that so many moms and dads do a double take and being to have doubts when they see diapers sold for $25-30 or even more!  I was going to save money and now I am to spend WHAT on a stash of cloth diapers?  Well there are options... One would be to build your stash gradually and transition over to cloth diapers over a period of time.  Another would be to buy used diapers from cloth diaper swaps of craigslist. Or.... buy a more budget friendly brand.  Now I know what you are all thinking. A cheaper diaper means cheaper quality, and yes sometimes that is the case.  I was sceptical at first when I came across Hip Huggers diapers on facebook.  I had tried some of the cheaper diaper brands and I was not impressed at all. But then again I had tried some higher priced, "better" brands and was left disappointed. Could a diaper under $20 actually deliver? Well Hip Huggers do!
There are several styles available, a regular, one with leg gussets and a charcoal bamboo. They are all one size diapers with a snap down rise and fit from about 8 -35lbs. They all come with hip snaps and the option to cross over the waist snap so you can get a good fit on babies of all shapes and sizes. The rise on these is great for my little one who is all torso, and for me that is a BIG bonus. At 9 months he is fast approaching the rise limit on a few of his one size diapers but I can still have him on the middle rise on these.  I also love the leg gussets. They really do keep messes contained and that is a huge deal, especially when you are dealing with explosive newborn breastfed poop.

 

 



 

This one is one of the regulars with leg gussets.  It has a microsuede inner which is great for pulling moisture away from baby so they feel dry. The only thing I don't like about microsuede is it stains more than regular fleece, but they sun out without any issues so it really isn't that big of a deal. These are also narrower in the crotch then some other diapers I have which is great because I don't like diapers with a lot of extra bulk.

 

This one is one of the charcoal bamboo inner ones. It also has leg gussets like the regular and it is also stay dry.  I did notice that it gets pilly a bit faster than the regular microsuede.

 

There are a variety of inserts available including microfiber, hemp/cotton blend and charcoal bamboo. All of which are really absorbent and super trim under clothes, although the hemp/cotton seem to shrink quite a bit.  All the diapers clean easily and dry really fast, even on the line. Stains can stick in the ones with white inners but like I said they sun out really well.

 

The best part is that these are available for under $15 for a diaper. Depending on the style they range from $9-$13. They also come in starter packs so you get an even better deal. With all the super cute prints available it is hard to pick a favourite for sure.

 

These are designed by a mom in British Columbia, Canada and are available on her Facebook Page "Hip Hugger Cloth Diapers". 





 

To Wet Pail or To Dry Pail

Two common storage methods for soiled cloth diapers are wet pails and dry pails. 

Well a wet pail is exactly what it sounds like, a pail with water and then the soiled diapers. This used to be the storage method that everyone used but now days it is really not the best way to go. A huge pail of water is not only a drowning hazard with little ones crawling around, it is kind of gross. I mean you have to somehow get the dirty diapers from the wet pail to the wash machine...
Wet pails used to be the way to go and soaking your diapers in water with a tiny bit of detergent is really effective at cutting out stains but with modern cloth diapers that have elastics and PUL or TPU water resistant layers it is not the best way to go. Soaking diapers wears down the PUL/TPU and the elastics way faster.

A Dry pail is basically a pail with a liner that you throw your used diapers in, no water needed. On wash day you simply take your liner our and toss all the diapers in the wash machine along with the pail liner and wash. I find that by rinsing soiled diapers before tossing them in the pail I have few stains and non that I can't get rid of with a bit of sunning. I love that I don't have to deal with a sloshing pail of yucky diaper water.

A dry pail keeps odours down also. I was used to pail stink from when I used a diaper genie with my first and I was pleasantly shocked to find my dry pail of cloth diapers smelled way less. For one thing rinsing poopy diapers and washing every 2-3 days means there is never a week old pile of diapers in the pail. For second a dry pail allows for better air circulation so it helps cut down odours big time. Even in the heat of summer... no smell.

Some moms find that they like a combination of the 2. They store their covers, shells and AIO's in a dry pail and soak their inserts, flats and prefolds. To me that's just too much space and work so I stick to the dry pail.

Little Fancy Pants are something Fancy.

Little Fancy Pants are really something fancy. Not only do they come in some of the cutest prints, EVER, they are super soft and squishy and fit really well.

They are a Hybrid Fitted diaper. This means that they have a hidden layer of fleece inside the diaper that acts as a fleece diaper cover would.It pushes the moisture back into the inner part of the diaper.  Many moms go coverless with these diapers all the time. I use a PUL cover like a Thirsties or a Blueberry when I go out and about but I can go without a cover at home for about 2 hours or so.

These are hand made in the USA and available on Hyena Cart on Fridays and Sundays. But you better have lightning fast fingers and super Internet because they sell out fast. She stocks at 2:30 pm EST of Fridays and by 2:31 pm all of them are sold!


These are a onesize diaper so they fit from 9-35lb ( size 2s).  She also offers a Newborn size, a size 1 ( 9-25lbs) that fits slightly smaller and shorter babies than the size 2's, and a size 3 (18-40lbs) for Toddlers. The front of the diaper has fold down snaps to allow you to shorten the rise if needed. There are snaps that cross over on the wing flaps so you can get a great fit even on super thin little ones.

 

 

 

The inside of the diaper is a super soft cotton velour. The soaker snaps into the diaper so that you can remove it for washing which is great.  The soaker is also topped with matching cotton velour but is made of a thirsty bamboo fleece. It becomes more absorbent  the more you wash it. I usually can't wait to put it on the bum though, so I just wash it once.

 

Here is a picture of the soaker.It has 2 separate layers so it cleans thoroughly and dries quick. You can also get additional boosters if you need the added absorbency.

 

These are my favourite diapers in my stash!!!

 





I got my Diapers.... Now What??

Well once you have your diapers you have to "prep" them. This refers to getting them ready to use. The way to prep depends on what the diaper is made of and where you got it from.

Synthetic materials like fleece and microfiber only need one good wash in hot with your detergent to get them ready to wear.

Natural fibres like cotton, bamboo and hemp need several washes to reach their max absorbency.  They are coated with natural oils when made and you need to remove that oil to increase their ability to absorb liquids. You should wash them on hot about 4-5 times before use. Now you could just do 1 or 2 washes but just know that they won't be fully absorbent.  If you are prepping inserts, flats or prefolds you can boil them in water on the stove for about 20 minutes and then just wash once.  Any diaper with snaps, elastic or a waterproof layer should not be boiled.

This will work for all your brand new diapers. If you got your stash from swaps and are used diapers the process is a bit different.  The diapers have been prepped so you don't need to prep them for the same reason. You do want to make sure they are clean though.

I put all my new to me diapers through 4 hot washed without any detergent and check for bubbles.  This works out whatever detergent was used on them before hand and may still be stuck in the fibres. Your little one may be sensitive to some detergent and you really don't know how the diapers were cared for so you want to wipe the slate clean.

I then put them through a hot wash with my detergent and 1/4 cup bleach to sanitise. I also do 1 or 2 additional rinses to make sure all the bleach is out.  I only recommend bleach on 2 or 3 occasions and new to you diapers is one of them.  I treat all new to me diapers as if they carried the plague!  You want to make sure they are clean and sanitised properly before putting on your baby.

Now you are all set to diaper baby with all those super soft and cute diapers.  Happy Fluff