To be honest, stripping diapers is not something I would consider myself and expert in, at all.

For good reason.

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Stripping cloth diapers is extremely harsh on diaper components (and time consuming, and annoying, and really wasteful of water), and should only be done in necessary circumstances.
 
With a good wash routine, you should never have to strip your diapers.

I think I stripped diapers once, shortly after beginning, when I realized the "cloth diaper detergent" I was using was not actually cleaning them.

Since using real detergent, properly softening my water, and having a solid wash routine, I have not had any need to strip diapers in the last two and a half years.
Psst... wondering HOW to properly wash diapers?

Being that I am not super experienced in it, I still wanted to lend my advice.

I have been asked a few times A LOT, because the topic of stripping diapers is something that is still obsessed over in parts of the cloth community.

It goes hand-in-hand with the myths of old, and unfortunately, there is some ca-razy information out there when it comes to stripping diapers.



I wanted to clear out some of those crazies right here:

1.  Dawn (or any dish soap) should stay out of your washing machine. It is an extremely effective de-greaser, which can break down the working components of your washing machine. It is also full of sudsing agents that can make a disastrous mess of your laundry room. It is great to use to spot treat grease (like "unsafe" diaper creams), but should be rinsed off before going into the machine. Other than spot treating (or washing by hand, I suppose), it should stay in the kitchen.

AND FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS THAT KEEP YOU SAFE, DON'T MIX IT WITH BLEACH.

2. You cannot strip diapers in a dishwasher. That's insane. That too, should be used strictly for dishes.

3. Just stop mixing things with bleach. It shouldn't be used with anything but laundry detergent, AND, more importantly, most of these concoctions aren't even stripping diapers. They're just doing some kind of crazy disinfection, but putting your health and safety at risk by using something beyond just bleach.


What does it mean to strip diapers?

Stripping diapers removes buildup on diapers from insufficient washing, like washing in untreated hard water or from using soap (vs detergent).

Soap doesn't wash away in machines (it needs more agitation, which you could only get from hand washing), so it slowly coats up on the fabric.
 Just the same, if you do not properly soften your hard water, the minerals will build up on the fabric.
Both will prevent the diapers from being properly cleaned, trap bacteria, and cause stink issues.


When should you strip?

As I have mentioned in a few other posts, STINK ISSUES DO NOT CALL FOR AN AUTOMATIC STRIP.

Most stink issues can be resolved by a few back-to-back washes with proper detergent, then tweaking your wash routine.

Generally, at most, a bleach wash may be needed to disinfect and kill the trapped bacteria, then tweaks to your wash routine to ensure it doesn't happen again.

IF you have been washing in untreated hard water, or with soap or fabric softener, and THEN you are having stink issues, and/or your diapers are repelling liquid, that is when you know you need to strip.


How to strip diapers

Always start with clean diapers. Only absorbent parts can obtain buildup, so leave covers and other non-absorbent diaper components out.

Stripping diapers can be kept extremely simple with these methods (choose one):

1. RLR- This product is specifically made for treating buildup on laundry

2. Grovia Mighty Bubbles- A laundry treatment from GroVia

3. Water Softeners- The mighty trio: Calgon, borax, and washing soda are all water softeners that help break down minerals in hard water. Use a couple tablespoons of each, if you have them all.

Mix one of the above choices with hot water in your machine (or bathtub, if you have an HE machine), and soak diapers for a couple hours. Agitate a couple times during the soak.

Run through a hot, water-only wash .

Follow up with a bleach wash (1/2 cup of bleach added to the load) to kill any bacteria that was trapped from the buildup.

Wash again with hot water only.

Then change your wash routine so you never have to do this again. 



We're seeing the beginning of summer cloth diaper prints being released, and are they good this year!!

As you know, when it comes to limited edition prints, they can sell out fast.
There's nothing worse than finding out about a print release too late, and then having to wait it out on the BST.

So check back here to stay in the know about all the cloth diaper releases, from all the major brands!
This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase on certain links, I receive a commission for my referral, at no extra charge to you. Supporting my affiliates keeps my site running, so thank you!

Cloth Diaper Companies: If you have a new or upcoming diaper release this month, please feel free to contact me so I can get it added!

This posting will be updated throughout the month, as new prints are revealed and released.
All photos are click-able.

June 1 - 9
Cotton Babies' Lochy Ducky- Exclusively through Cotton Babies June Cloth Diaper Collectors Club

June 1:
Thirsties' Palm Paradise and Tortuga- Available through participating Thirsties retailers for a limited time

Buttons Diaper's Shortcake- Available through participating Buttons retailers for a limited time

June 4:
Lalabye Baby's Lily Bee- Available through participating Lalabye Baby retailers for a limited time


Mother ease Watermelon, Pink Flamingo, Sail Away, and Sea Turtles swim diapers- available through Mother ease
Bambino Mio Rainforest Collection- Available at participating retailers

June 7:
Lighthouse Kid's Company Funfetti and Red, White and Bloom- Exclusively through Green Path Baby for a limited time


June 8:
Thirsties' Good Fortune- Exclusively through Spray Pal for a limited time





Week of June 10-16
June 13, 10 AM CST:
Best Bottom + Planet Wise Grand Finale- Exclusively through Nicki's Diapers for a limited time


June 14

10 AM EDT:
Smart Bottoms' Independence Adventure- Exclusively through Lil' Tulip's for a limited time


10AM CST:
Lighthouse Kids Company's Beach Garden, Bug's Life, and Dream Weaver- Exclusively through Nicki's Diaper's for a limited time




June 15. 12 PM EDT:
Buttons' Cosmos- Exclusively through Diaper Junction for a limited time


Week of June 17- 23
June 18
10 AM CST:
Nicki's Diapers' Brainfreeze- New regular-lineup for Nicki's Diapers
12 PM CST:
Smart Bottoms Far Travels- Available exclusively through Abby's Lane for a limited time


BumGenius Playball! Series- Now available from Cotton Babies. This series comes with an interesting ordering process, so check it out!


June 19, 11 PM CST:
Smart Bottoms' Incognito- Available through participating Smart Bottoms retailers for a limited time

June 20, 10 AM CST:
Imagine and Planet Wise Palm Beach- Available at participating retailers

June 21, 9 PM CST
Lalabye Baby Sarchi- Re-releasing at participating retailers for a limited time

June 22
2 PM CST:
Buttons Diapers Antsy Pants- Available at participating retailers for a limited time




3 PM CST:
Lighthouse Kid's Company Violet's Garden- Available exclusively at Abby's Lane for limited time


Tell me if this story sounds familiar:
When I was researching cloth diapers as a pregnant first-time-mom, I kept coming across all these charts. The ones that break down cloth diaper types as "easy", "easier", "easiest".

It weighs some of the pros and cons of each type- like price.
And not much else, actually.


Using diaper covers with flats or prefolds seemed SO intimidating to me- and this chart clearly showed they were the most complicated system.

All-in-one diapers were just too expensive.

I ultimately chose pocket diapers because they seemed to be the middle of the road- more affordable, and easier to use than other types.
Well, after almost three years, two kids, and experience with every.single.diaper type, and over a dozen brands- I'm here to call bulls--- on that chart.

There is no "easiest" cloth diaper.

They all have their pros and cons, which goes far beyond just the price, but they're all easy.

Organic Baby Boy Clothes

Don't get me wrong, I liked my pocket diapers when I used them.
I bought them at a good price, and they did their job.
They were easy to use, and I didn't mind the stuffing.

Pocket diapers, it turned out, required more work than using a diaper cover with a flat or a prefold. Stuffing diapers, and then un-stuffing when they were used kind of did it in for me.
I hated having to touch pee- soaked diapers, or maneuver around poo to get the inserts out.

I want a diaper I can just toss into the pail and forget about.

I understand that there are pocket diapers that you don't need to unstuff if you use their dedicated inserts, but these wouldn't work for me because of my next issue:

Then there's also my beef with most of them automatically coming with microfiber inserts.
Some people are okay with microfiber, but I am pretty adamantly pro-natural fibers for a multitude of reasons.
I quickly swapped mine out for cotton flour sack towels, which was not only an extra expense, but I was also stuck with this stash of microfiber inserts, which seemed so wasteful to me.

Pockets are probably the most bulky choice of diapers, too.

Once the pocket diaper is stuffed, it is an easy go on the bum, which does make it a great choice for caregivers.

All-in-one diapers can be finicky to wash, due to their thick layering of fabrics.
They also take longest to dry. And- get this: most AIO come with tongues that need to be folded or put into place before actually putting them on the bum- which makes them just as "complicated" to put on as a cover with a pad-folded insert.



So which diapering system did I ultimately switch to after I had my second baby?
(and two in diapers)


Covers and flats/prefolds.
When you pad-fold the insert into the cover, it becomes an all-in-two diaper system.
Which, to me, has all of the pros in cloth diapering: affordable (this is the cheapest diaper system), easy to use (just put the cover on with the insert laying in there!), easy to wash, quick to dry.

And the con: you need to fold an insert.
Which is no more labor intensive than stuffing and un-stuffing a pocket, and can be as complicated as it is to fold the soaker tongue of an AIO in two (not at all).

As of today, I have one lone pocket diaper in my stash.
It was sent to my by a cloth diaper brand when I first began my Instagram account a year ago. I partially hold on to it for the sentimental reason that it was the first time a brand noticed me and offered to send me a product.
I use it as a cover.

All-in-ones have recently began to make their way into my stash- most for free as promotions, a couple I have bought.

I like AIOs. They are easy to use.
But are they THE easiest?
No way.

Click here to see my complete guide to cloth diapering