In order to guarantee a long life for your diapers, their maintenance is very important. By taking care of your diapers, they can be used for 2 to 3 children which will pay your investment back as well as the ecological impact of their manufacturing.
There are two types of maintenance for fabric diapers: "daily" washing and clean-up
1. The "daily" washing of fabric diapers
On a daily basis, the diapers are washed maximum 3 days after their use. We therefore wash the diapers every 2 or 3 days with a full machine. We place the wash net containing the diapers (without the disposable covers and without the excess stool that we could remove beforehand) in the machine, the net is left open so that the diapers can "travel" during the wash, as well as the closed wash net of the reusable wipes. We avoid letting the wipes "travel" because they could get stuck between the glass and the rubber of the door of your machine, which prevents them from being cleaned properly.
The first step is to rinse for about 30 minutes without any laundry detergent. This removes excess stool before proceeding with the actual washing.
Then, the diapers can be washed at 40 degrees with an ecological washing powder. The best is the classic product from Biotop or Ulrich Naturlich. There is no need to use too much product. Just follow the instructions on the package of detergent for normally soiled laundry (no need to increase the dose and consider the laundry as very dirty). Do not use fabric softener or laundry ball. Avoid spinning the laundry too hard and do not exceed 1200 revolutions per minute.
To dry the diapers, simply hang them. A clothes horse with clips can be very useful for this step. The drying time is very variable depending on the chosen diaper system, the materials used, the temperature of your home and therefore the season.
When the laundry is dry, just put the diapers away!
When the absorbent parts become too stiff, you can put them in the dryer for a maximum of 30 minutes (if it doesn't heat them up too much) to make them softer. If you overheat the absorbent parts, they will unfortunately not absorb anymore... The waterproof part of the diapers can't go to the dryer.
When the diapers are clean, it can be interesting to get them ready for the next change: adjust them to the right size if necessary, place the absorbent inserts, etc... it can save time at the right moment!
2. The clean-up of fabric diapers
About once every two or three months, you can clean your cloth diapers, this is the second type of maintenance. It takes place when the diapers absorb less well because they are clogged with fat (liniment or cream) or limescale, or if they start to smell bad. By cleaning them regularly, we prevent these inconveniences.
This is a deep wash of the absorbent materials.
Beware of PUL and wool materials that cannot be washed at 60 degrees and therefore cannot be claned-up (and do not need to be).
There are several ways to clean fabric diapers. Personnally I use the following :
Rub the inserts with a little degreasing soap (e.g. dishwashing liquid)
Rinse them
Wash the inserts in a long cycle at 60 degrees without product.
If the clean-up did not work (odors persist), it is possible to do an exceptional cleaning with sodium percarbonate.
In this case, the inserts are left to soak for 4 hours in water over 50 degrees in which bicarbonate and percarbonate of soda are put (about 2 tablespoons and 1 tablespoon per 5 L of water respectively).
Rinse and spin
Wash again at 60 degrees.
These cleanings are made to remove or avoid bad odors coming from deep inside the fibers. However, for persisten stains, nothing beats a sunbath for fabric diapers ! UV rays degrade all organic stains.
3. Important comments
For the diapers to be washed properly, your washing machine must be clean as well.
Tip: close the velcro on themselves before washing to prevent threads from getting stuck in them and to avoid damaging other fabrics.
- The clean-up only concerns the absorbent inserts, the waterproof part does not need it.
Feel free to comment and tell us about your diaper care experience via Facebook messenger !
I hope my experience as a young mom can lead you to a less polluting change 😉
And when this stage is over, why not take the step to washable feminine hygiene ?!
Charlène C.