Leakage
With a good cloth diapering system, ther should rarely be any leakage. However, if you experience leakage on a regular basis, check for these easy fixes!
1. Make sure you are careful to tuck the diaper completely inside the cover, so moisture doesn't wick out into the clothing.
2. If the leakage is around the leg openings while the diaper and cover don't seem very wet, it is likely caused by the fit of the dipaer cover. It could be too loose or too tight.
3. Is your baby wetting through everything - with a totally saturated diaper, wet cover and wet clothing? You may need to change your baby more often. The diaper may become so saturated that the wetness has nowhere to go but out!
Persistant Stains (usually on the inserts)
Lay them in the sun for a few hours
Fleece that Stays Wet or Has Persistent Odor
The diaper may need to be 'stripped' - that is removing any soap scum or oily residue buildup left by natural soap products or cleaning agents. Run the affected diapers through a plain water HOT wash. Then wash the diapers again with HOT water and a good detergent (like Allen's Naturally or OxyClean). Rinse in COLD water. Add a 1/4 to 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the rinse water to help release any leftover detergent and restore pH. If you still see bubbles in your rinse water, run them through another COLD rinse. Tumble dry on low heat or line dry in the sun.
What to do about the storage of soiled diapers between washings can be answered in several ways. You need to choose a system that will work for you depending on your particular situation. Maybe you have your own washer & dryer and wash every day or two. You may live in an apartment and need to use a laundry-mat. Or maybe you have a washer and no dryer and use the line-dry method either outside or in your home/apartment. Our goal is to offer you a few solutions and let you choose what works best for your own needs.
Dry Pail Storage
A flip-top lidded trash can without a lid that seals will work fine for this method. There is no need for a sealed lid because using a DRY PAIL does not pose a danger of drowning that a WET PAIL does. A 20 - 24 quart pail will easily hold two days worth of diapers. Storing soiled diapers using this method for more than two days is never recommended!
A nylon tote to fit your pail will make transporting the diapers to the laundry room/mat easier and is best for the environment and your budget. The nylon totes are reusable, washable, water-resistant and hardy. (Try a nylon draw-string sack that holds a sleeping bag!) Their simple design with the pull-string and toggle makes dry pailing simple at wash time. They can be thrown in with the diapers to wash and hung inside-out to dry. If you need a 'quick-dry', they can be thrown in the dryer, but don't leave them there for more than 10 minutes! Keep two totes to rotate between washings! Avoid using a cotton, woven or even canvas-based tote. They will absorb the moisture fro the soiled diapers, retain odor and require you to clean your diaper pail after each use.
Odor control products can be as simple as a fabric softener sheet. Just lay one fo these on top of your diapers. Try to stick with more baking soda based softener sheets. The more perfume it has, the more likely it will interact negatively with the ammonia smell of the urine making the odor worse! A couple of drops of tea tree or lavender essential oil on a paper towel or rag thrown into the pail can help eliminate a good amount of the ammonia-like odor. Sprinkling a 1/4 cup of baking soda in the bottom of your pail and adding more as needed will help control odors too.
Wet Pail Storage
Presoaking the diapers in the pail until washing is considered more sanitary, better smelling and produces cleaner diapers than dry pail storage.
Any waterproof, lidded container that can SEAL is a must! With wet pails it is essential that you choose a container that has a tight lid that seals/locks. There is a real danger that curious children can easily fall head first into these pails and drown. Also, a liner is not needed with this method. Wet pails can be heavy and difficult to manage. Make sure you do not get too large a wet pail or you will not be able to lift it to pour the diapers into your washer. If your washing machine is in the basement, try keeping a large diaper pail near and keep a smaller bucket with a lid upstairs (next to the toilet). When you've accumulated several diapers, you can then easily transport them to the larger pail downstairs. If possible, keep the larger pail at waist level for easier pouring into the washer.
Fill the diaper pail about 1/4 of the way with water and add any of the following to help 'pre-treat' and soak possible stains as well as reduce diaper pail odor.
Do not add detergent to the water in your wet pail. This is harsh on your diapers and will wear them down prematurely. DO NOT ADD CHLORINE BLEACH! It will eat away at the fibers of the diaper resulting in holes or tears and render them useless for absorption.
