Bio Clean Detergent and Bac-Out Stain & Odor Eliminator on Cloth Diapers?

I used the Bac-Out Stain and Odor Eliminator in combination with Charlie's Soap for my daughter's cloth diapers. We used Fuzzi Bunz. I never experienced any problems using the Bac-Out. It kept the odors out of the inserts and if there was a terrible stain, it was easy to spot treat an individual diaper/insert. I also found that line-drying the diapers and inserts helped them stay fresh.

Hi J. -

I'm also using Bum Genius and have had a slight odor problem in the last month or so with my 6.5 month old daughter's diapers. My understanding is that odor shortly after peeing either means you're not getting things clean enough or you've got soap residue from using too much or the wrong kind. I know my problem is not too much soap - I use Country Save and when I look at the load during the rinse cycle I don't see an excess of bubbles. I bought the Biokleen laundry detergent as well, but planned on using it for my regular laundry, not the diapers. I'm sticking with the Country Save for that!

I think part of my problem is that I have a front loading HE washer so they're just not getting the soaking they really need. I just bought some of the Bac Out a couple of weeks ago to see how it works. My hemp doublers seem to be the stinkiest part of the diaper. I washed just the inserts (the hemp and the BG inserts) on the sanitary cycle in my washer, and that definitely improved things. A few days ago I soaked the hemp doublers in the Bac Out and that also seemed to help.

And now, the last two washing days, I've put the Bac Out in the fabric softener compartment on my first wash (a cold cycle - I use the hand wash option on the washer b/c that seems to use the most water.) So far so good...her diapers leak at night if she wears them for more than six hours, but that's b/c she's a heavy wetter! That, and she likes to sleep on her tummy which means the pee just leaks out the top when the diaper gets full. Ah well! As she decreases her milk intake that problem will lessen. I've also toyed with the idea of putting the BG on backwards so that the gather is on her tummy to help catch the pee.

Sometimes my diapers don't seem to get quite as clean as I'd like but I think that has more to do with the HE washer than anything else. A second wash of a diaper with a little poo left in the gathers usually cleans it right up. I'm also putting a soaking wet towel in with the diapers to try to trick the washer into using more water since it weighs more.

I absolutely recommend the Potty Pail: www.thepottypail.com
It's not necessary when your little one is breast fed, but once you move on to solid food it's FANTASTIC! I got the complete system and it makes cleaning her poopy diapers so much easier. I just use the sprayer to hose the poop off into the toilet, which means I don't have to bend over the bowl and swish. I can also leave them dripping in the pail after I spray them so I don't have to find a place to store a diaper or have a second diaper pail in the bathroom. I'm sure that having the potty pail will help minimize the stains from the poop since it's being sprayed out of the diaper immediately.

Also, if you order anything from Green Mountain Diapers (www.greenmountaindiapers.com) they will send you an eight page How-To Booklet for free that has some fantastic tips and suggestions and advice for CDers.

Hope my rambling helps!

H.

ETA: I stopped using the Bac Out b/c it didn't seem to help. What has really done the trick is a pre-soak in the Potty Pail for about 15-30 minutes. This gets the diapers as wet as they need to be to get washed properly, and also tricks my HE washer into thinking that there's more laundry in the load b/c it weighs more when I put the wet diapers in. Hooray! No more stink!

Hi J.,
I was told by Abbie at Mom's Milk Boutique (online ordering with FREE shipping all the time.. they are great!) to use Bac Out on my Bumgenious b/c I was having issues with a slight odor after washing them. She then emailed me back and told me she had checked with the company that makes them (Cotton Babies) and they DO NOT recommend Bac Out for their products. They actually recommended using bleach once a month and that would help. It did, and I only do it about once/month. Also hang them outside to dry in the sun quite a bit and that helps. As my son has gotten older his urine has gotten stronger, so this was completely necessary. I haven't used Biokleen, just Tide Free and it has gotten all my stains out just fine. Good luck!

I used Planet liquid detergent in the prewash and then threw the family's clothing in to fill the load for a regular wash cycle with Planet again. By using vinegar in the fabric softener cup (2 capfuls) it helped rinse out any remaining soap and we never had a problem with stinky diapers or clothes. My son has extremely sensitive skin/eczema and we definitely had our share of unhapy detergent experiments before coming to this process which worked so well.

Hi! I did not use bum genius, but the bac-out did not affect absorbency at all on chinese prefolds.. check out the pumkinbutt website for really great diaper care info.
Hooray for cloth diapering!!

BioKleen was terrible on our Fuzzi Bunz diapers! It really messed up their absorbency. I had to strip them four separate times to get them to absorb again. I think you might run into a similar problem with Bum Genius, but I can't say for sure. I've been much happier with Charlie's Soap. Good luck!!!

I didn't use that detergent product, but I did use cloth diapers and washed them myself and was able to get out almost every stain - we still use the diapers as rags after two children (those that I didn't sell to another mom interested in using cloth diapers).

15 years ago I bought cotton pre-folded diapers - not the birdseye gauze - this was before the internet, so you got what you could find in stores or catalogs. I think they're now called "Chinese prefold". I also bought inserts that kind of looked like sanitary napkins to use for extra overnight protection. Another product I used were diaper liners to make removing the poop easier. They were (are?) flushable.

I would soak the diapers in a diaper pail right near the changing table. [The diaper pail had a lock on it so I didn't need to worry about anyone drowning in it.] I would fill it about 1/4 full with water and some white vinegar. Most diapers could go straight into the pail, some needed to be soaked in the toilet for a little while first to remove anything stuck to it.

To wash, I used Dreft and put white vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser. My diapers smelled great and as I said, I got out almost every stain using this method - tried and true by many generations of women before me! [Get the vinegar at Costco, Target or other big box store, you'll go through a lot of it!]

I used a diaper service.

BUT- I have used biokleen detergent, and have sensitive skin, and it worked out great for me and my month-old baby (she's 13 months now). I just bought 2 more bottles because they were on sale (I follow natural detergent sales, sticking to one brand can get expensive). The biokleen I really liked, rub it on the stain and it came out. It also smells really good, and I usually can't stand scented laundry detergent. You may end up using a different detergent for clothes and for diapers. Good Luck!

Congratulations on the birth of your daughter! Things should be getting a little easier now, eh?

For the smell, there's lots that different products can do, but if you have any opportunity, then use the sun! Before there was bleach, there was the sun, and it actually works.

Defintely check out the green mountain diaper link that Hilary gave you, they are awesome. I got my unbleached cotton prefolds there, and I love them. (Potty Pail is excellent too, and if you go thru the green mountain link to the Potty Pail site GM will get credti...)

I stopped using BioKleen Free & Clear powdered detergent based on GM recommendations (said it would leave a residue that over time affects absorency) and switched to Country Save for all our laundry and cloth diapers. If you're in Oakland area, you can get it at Farmer Joe's on MacArthur/Fruitvale right off 580. GM also recommends Charlie's Laundry soap.

I use white vinegar in the final rinse cycle (cold wash w/ det, hot wash w/ det, then rinse, as recomm. by GM) After I started doing that the diapers lost any leftover smell they had, and are even a little bit softer.

I do use Bac Out for the covers, I don't wash those with the diapers because I don't want to wear them out (I got some that will fit newborn to toddler, and would like to use them for the next child too!).

Good luck! I actually love the work that goes into using cloth, it makes me feel terrific knowing I'm putting something soft and safe next to my daughter's bum!

Hi J.,

I haven't used Bac Out, but someone I know has and says that it works well. I believe that she soaks her diapers overnight in it. I just started using Charlie's Soap, which came highly recommended by a few people. Just did my first load of diapers yesterday, so I can't say how it went. I know that Bum Genius makes an odor spray for their diapers, you might want to look into that too.

Hi J.:
I use Melaleuca produts. The laundry detergent is fantastic.
All of there products are eco friendly and contain no harsh chemicals. If you want more info send me a email.

Have a great day:
C. Lowe
____@____.com

Hi, I just wanted to know what you decided, I am curious about this. though using disposables still.