Cloth diapers have a special affinity for stains for obvious reasons. Meconium, blueberries, food dyes, diaper cream—there are lots of foods that cause staining on cloth diapers. Now, these stains won’t hinder the effectiveness of your diapers, but they are unsightly! And, they could lower the resale value.
Luckily, there are lots of ways to remove stains from cloth diapers. It’s not as difficult as it may seem! Here are a few cloth diaper stain removers to help you lift out those stains with as few headaches as possible:
How to Get Stains Out of Cloth Diapers
OxiClean
OxiClean comes in a bunch of different forms. You can buy it as a powder or spray and with all sorts of specialties. Regardless of what you use, you’ll see success scrubbing stains away with this legendary cleaner. The sodium carbonate component of the cleaner alters pH and lifts stains away! It’s magic! (Well, not really. It’s science.)
Try spraying off the stains using the solution before you even drop it in the diaper pail. But, if you can’t or forget, give it a scrub before it goes in the washer. You can use warm water and a bucket with powder OxiClean or grab the easy-to-use spray version.
Lemon Juice
Lemon juice has citric acid, which has natural bleaching agents. So, adding lemon juice to your stain removal routine is quick and easy. Simply saturate the stain in lemon juice and then lay it out in the sun to dry! You’ll likely see the stain lift right away.
If you don’t, you can add a little borax. Make a paste with borax and lemon juice and scrub it into the stain with a toothbrush. After doing either version of the stain removal process, toss it back into the wash to get the lemon juice and borax totally out.
Bac-Out
Bac-Out from Biokleen is a natural cleaner that has been a long-time favorite stain remover of cloth diapering moms. It uses enzymes, essential oils, and citric acid to wash away stains and blast out odors. It comes in a powder or spray! Just scrub your diaper with it and then drop it in the wash.
Buncha Farmers Stain Stick
Here’s another stain remover for all you crunchy moms like us! It’s totally sustainable and all-natural. This magic stain stick can get stains out of anything. Just wet your stain with hot water and rub in the stick! Then, you wash. When the diaper comes out, it’ll be as good as new.
Sun
The sun is the BEST stain remover. It naturally bleaches things, so if you have a diaper that’s got a nasty stain, hang dry it in the sun instead of the machine drying. As the sun dries the diaper, it’ll pull out the stain too. Just make sure not to sun for too long. Check on it every couple of hours, and bring it in once it’s dry to avoid damaging the PUL and elastic.
Just Keep Washing
If you have a stain that’s really bugging you, don’t worry. Unless it’s super dark, it’ll probably fade over time. Just keep up your good wash routine, and you’ll likely see those stains wash out after a few weeks or months of regular use and wash.
Avoid Harsh Cleaners
It’s true. You could use bleach, peroxide, or vinegar to get out stains. It’ll work too, likely! But these cleaners can be difficult to work with, and incorrect use can ruin your diapers. If you have a really challenging stain, carefully use ONE of these (never mix) to remove the stain as a last-ditch effort.
Staining on cloth diapers is normal, but you don’t have to live with them if you use one of these handy tools!
Even if you spray off every diaper the minute poop lands on it, you’ll still have some staining here and there. Luckily, our athletic wicking jersey pockets are super easy to spray and scrub. You won’t be dealing with stains for much longer! Grab one of these removers and watch the magic. And, for more cloth diapering and parenting tips, check out our blog. We’ve got tons of cloth diapering wisdom for you!