You just got all your new diapers and accessories. The first step is to wash all the diapers, doublers and liners. This is to remove finishes that are added to the cloth as well as any excess strings from cutting. If you don’t remove these the diapers will be less absorbent and also irritate your baby’s skin.
Cotton and cotton blends that are unbleached need to be washed and dried at least 4 times before using them on your baby. This is because natural cotton has oils that need to be washed away before touching your baby’s skin. Unbleached fabrics are not absorbent and actually will repel liquids before they are washed. It takes several washings to remove the oils from cotton leaving them soft and absorbent.

Soaking or Not Soaking
We are always asked about whether to add solutions in a diaper pail to soak diapers. It’s actually a matter of preference. There are some parents that prefer to use the “wet pail” method to soak diapers prior to washing. Other parents prefer using a “dry pail” and place the wet and rinsed diapers in the pail.

Rinsing Soiled Diapers
This is the part of using cloth diapers that is the least desirable, however, it is necessary. There are two ways to rinse soiled diapers. The first ways is to “swish” the soiled diaper in the toilet to remove most of the soil. The next step is to rinse off the remaining soil under running water then rub the cloth in a scrubbing motion. The second way is to shake off the remaining soil in the toiled and throwing the diaper in a pail and let the washer do the rest.

Treating Stains on Diapers & Covers
Stains cannot be avoided with cloth diapers. The best thing to do is to rub the stained area with white hand soap. This is great to use on diapers, covers even wool. Just rub the soap on the stained area the rub then gently rub the cloth together and rinse thoroughly.

Washing Wet & Soiled Diapers
Another popular question is how to wash the diapers. There are several different ways to wash diapers. The most recommended way is the “four fold” method. First either rinse or pre wash the diapers, liners and wipes in the washer in cold water. This prevents stains from setting. The second step is to wash the diapers on the longest cycle in either warm or hot water using half a cup of baking soda along with a half a cup of mild detergent. The third step is to rinse the diapers a second time using about a half a cup of one cup of white vinegar in the rinse. The fourth step is to dry the diapers on either regular or permanent press or hang them outside in the sun.

Caring for Diaper Covers
The best way to care for soiled diaper covers is to immediately rinse them before washing. The washing instructions vary for diaper covers and it is recommended to follow what the manufacturer suggests. Most cloth covers can be washed in warm water along with other laundry. Line drying is always the best way and also extends the life of the diaper covers.

What to Avoid
Always avoid chlorine bleach, detergents with bleach, fabric softeners, borax, pure soap products like Ivory Snow and harsh detergents like Tide.

In general, a cloth diapered baby is changed more often then a baby in disposibles. That does NOT mean a cloth diapered baby *goes* more often, it simply means people tend to respond more quickly/frequently to a wet cloth diaper than to a wet disposable. As a general rule, you should change your baby when they are wet, or about every 2 hours.

The average disposable wearing baby will create two tons of bio-hazardous waste that will sit in a landfill for hundreds of years.
It takes a Billion trees every year to produce disposable diapers for the Earths’ children.