Caring for your Cloth Diapers

Before first use

Your cloth diapers will need to be washed a few times before your first use. Natural oils on unbleached fabric have not been removed by processing. Wash at least 3 times with hot water and a small amount of detergent, drying between each wash cycle. This will remove the oils and new fabric starches and help make your diapers fully absorbent.

Basic Washing Routine

Remove diaper and store in diaper pail
- Wet diapers:
  Put directly into the diaper pail, no rinsing is necessary.
- Soiled Diapers:
  While your baby is exclusively nursing, the dirty diaper can go directly into the diaper pail, no rinsing is necessary. (Breastfed poop is water-soluble, and it doesn't smell.) Once your baby is eating solids, the soiled diaper can be rinsed in the toilet and the solid poop flushed down, then put the diaper into your diaper pail.
- * Remove any insert or liner and toss into diaper pail.
- * Diaper covers can be reused a number of times unless soiled. Rotate them by hanging and airing them out between changes.
- What to use for storing dirty diapers:
  All you really need to store your diapers is a container with a tight-fitting lid, such as a kitchen garbage bin. If you are using a well-sealed container to store your diapers, you will not need to worry about smell. If you rinse out your pail periodically, that will eliminate odor. For even easier maintenance, purchase one of our washable pail liners - just dump it in the laundry along with your diapers.
When the pail is full, dump the diapers directly into the washing machine.
Do a cold pre-wash, a hot regular wash, and a cold extra rinse.
Use a detergent that is free of bleach, fragrance, whiteners, and other additives.
** Use a small amount of detergent to wash your diapers (¼ to ½ the recommended amount).
Do not use fabric softeners.
Do not use bleach.
Line dry or put in the dryer on medium heat.
* Sun is a natural whitener and will naturally bleach and disinfect your diapers without chemicals. Outdoor line drying is a great way to get rid of stains!
* Waterproof covers should not be put in the dryer. They will air-dry relatively quickly since they don't absorb liquid.

Important Points

Don't use a lot of detergent - use only about a quarter of the amount of detergent you would normally use.
Don't use chlorine bleach - bleach is very irritating to a baby's delicate skin. And it will break down the fibers of your diapers and noticeably shorten their lifespan.
Don't use fabric softeners or dryer sheets - they leave a residue on the fabric and reduce the absorbency.
Don't use diaper creams without a liner in any cloth diaper - they leave a residue and can hold in odors and cause stinky diapers.
If your diapers DO get a residue or they are starting to smell or lose some absorbency, add a ¼ cup vinegar to your final rinse cycle.