Switching to cloth diapers is one of the best things I’ve ever done for my family. I think it’s something every family could benefit from. I know a lot of people are hesitant to make the switch because they feel they are high maintenance and too much work. They really aren’t. My washer and dryer do all the work for me. Keeping my stash of diapers looking and smelling clean is actually easier than I thought it would be. I keep them in my diaper pail until they are ready to be washed. The diaper pail keeps the odor contained until washing day.
You do not need a lot of things to start cleaning your cloth diapers. I know many prefer to have one of those diaper sprayers that rinse the poop off. But I don’t have one and I get by just fine without it. What I use is a spatula. Yep, a spatula. It’s actually a small toy spatula that I found when I was going through my kids toy box. I love this thing and its easy to keep clean. This works really well for me. Even my husband doesn’t mind using the spatula. For me the idea of a sprayer just doesn’t sit well with me. I feel like the water would bounce off the diaper and splash me. But I guess this is a matter of preference as I know there are a lot of mamas who like the sprayers.
I have the Dekor Diaper Plus Diaper Disposal System. It works great for my needs and it’s very simple to use. I like using regular tall trash bags in it. This diaper pail usually becomes full every other day. So that’s how often I wash my diapers. If I had an infant then this pail would definitely be filled up at the end of every day since cloth diapers are bulkier than disposables.
Once my diaper pail is full I dump the dirty inserts and diapers into the washer and do a cold rinse. Then I fill the detergent cap to line 2 and add it to the washer and I do a heavy hot wash. After that I dry all of the inserts in the dryer and hang the covers and pocket diapers on a drying rack. So far my inserts are doing well, they do not look worn out at all. The covers don’t take long to dry and the air drying is a lot easier on them. If I had a big back yard I would love to dry everything in the sun but for now this works for us.
Just in case you were wondering. I have an HE washer and I’ve used Tide, All, and Gain on my diapers and I think they all do a terrific job at cleaning them. I’ve never had to strip my diapers. When I feel like they are particularly stinky this is the routine: cold rinse, heavy hot deep water wash, then I do a hot soak, then a hot rinse and spin. This is not something I have to do very often and thankfully it really does take out all the stinky smells that build up.
I don’t have a lot of storage options so I keep all the diapers and inserts in the corner of the living room in this cute little blue basket thingy my sister gave me. Do any of you use cloth diapers? What is your preferred routine?
