Bleach and cloth diapers: Is it safe to use? & Tips

There are a few times when it is necessary, or at least extremely beneficial to use bleach on your cloth diapers, the main to are

• Sanitizing cloth diapers
• Killing yeast in cloth diapers

If you want to know more about cleaning cloth diapers check out my article ” How to tell if cloth diapers are clean?

Is bleach safe to use on cloth diapers?

Yes, bleach is relatively safe to use on cloth diapers, though bleach is very hard on cloth diapers, so the more you use bleach on cloth diapers, the quicker they will deteriorate.

Especially if you are wanting to use bleach on bamboo fabric, bleach is extremely hard on bamboo, so you will probably want to find another way to clean/ sanitize your diapers if you have a lot of bamboo.

When you are using bleach on your cloth diapers remember to carefully read the dilution instructions on the bleach bottle, too much bleach concentrate and it could ruin your diapers, too little and it’s not going to work.

Also, because bleach is so hard on cloth diapers, most cloth diaper brands say to not use bleach.

So, if you find yourself in a situation where bleach is necessary, like if baby has a yeast rash for example.

Then you will probably want to contact the brand and ask how they recommend you handle the situation without voiding the cloth diaper’s warranty and/or causing a lot of damage to the cloth diaper.

When should you use bleach on cloth diapers?

Stripping cloth diapers

Stripping cloth diapers is done when you need to “strip” everything that isn’t cloth diaper out of your cloth diapers.

When you strip cloth diapers you first soak your diapers in a mixture of Borax, washing soda and Calgon, with hot water and let sit for 45-60 minutes or until the water cools, then you drain and rinse.

This soak is meant to get all the possible mineral buildup that could be causing stinks or rashes out of your cloth diapers.

You can also use Grovia mighty bubbles or RLR to strip your cloth diapers (Grovia mighty bubbles are my favorite).

After the mineral removing soak, you will do a bleach soak to kill any bacteria that may be in your cloth diapers and to help remove any remaining minerals.

Remember to read the dilution instructions on the bleach bottle, then add the proper amount to cold water and DO NOT let the diapers soak for more that 30 minutes.

After that do a long HOT wash with a little detergent, dry your cloth diapers and you’re ready to rock and roll.

If you want to learn more about stripping and soaking cloth diapers check out my article “What do you soak cloth diapers in? Options & reasons why”

Killing yeast spores in cloth diapers

Yeast rashes are very common in children, most of the time your child’s doctor will prescribe a cream or pill and then in about a week you’re good to go.

However, with cloth diapers you do have an extra step.

Yeast or Candida is a fungus, and all fungi have spores, that new fungi will grow from, so if you do not kill the yeast spores in your cloth diapers (which can live up to 14 days on fabric) you will never get rid of the rash.

This is where the bleach comes in.

But not just any bleach, it is imperative that you make sure you NOT using expired bleach, that’s right, bleach can in fact expire.

Expiration dates on bleach can be kinda hard to read, but I did put a link at the bottom of this article that can help you.

Once you have your bleach, you take clean diapers and either soak them in your washing machine, bathtub or really any other watertight container that is big enough.

Read the bleach dilution instructions on your bleach bottle and add the proper amount to the COLD water (hot water will breakdown the bleach before it can work) then let the diapers sit for 30 minutes.

DO NOT let them sit more than 30 minutes, bleach is very hard on pretty much everything, and after soaking in bleach for more than 30 minutes you start to see a lot more wear on your diapers.

There is another thing about yeast in cloth diapers that is very important, and that is.

If the yeast rash is not completely gone and you put your baby back in the cloth diapers the diapers will be contaminated and you will have to bleach them again.

So, you can either put your baby in disposables for a week or until the rash is gone, or you can just bleach your diapers every time baby wears them until the rash is gone.

I personally have done both and for me whether or not I used disposables really depended on what type of yeast treatment cream I got.

Most of the time you will get a cream that has a white petroleum base which is NOT cloth diaper safe, but on rare occasion you might get one that has a mineral oil base which IS cloth diaper safe.

So, for me if I get the one with the mineral oil base than I will just stick with cloth and keep that kids diapers separate and bleach every time I wash them.

But if I get the one with the white petroleum base, I’m probably gonna get a pack of disposables.

If you what to know more about what diaper creams are cloth diaper safe and which are not check out my article ” Can you use diaper cream on cloth diapers? List of popular rash creams”

Will bleach get rid of mold in cloth diapers?

Bleach does NOT kill mold in cloth diapers, or on most surfaces for that matter.

Typically, what happens is even though the surface mold may look like it’s gone, it really isn’t, it has just had the color bleached out of it and now you just can’t see it.

Now, even if you were able to scrub the surface mold off, the mold spores in the fabric will still be there, completely unaffected by the bleach or the scrubbing.

Even the EPA does not recommend using bleach to treat/cleanup mold.

Vinegar is a much better option, since it, ya know, actually kills mold, and not only kills surface mold but 82% of the spores as well.

All you need to do is spray the vinegar on to the mold, and let it sit for a few minutes, then you just need to wash your diapers and you’re ready to go.

If you are worried about your cloth diapers smelling like vinegar for the rest of eternity, there is no need to worry, the vinegar smell will dissipate on its own without further washes.

Resources

Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning I receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you) from qualifying purchases made through those links. * Indicates an affiliate link

Article on why you should not use bleach on mold on ecofrm.com

Article on natural ways to remove mold on ecofrm.com

Page on EPA website on bleach & mold epa.gov

How to read the expiration date on bleach on insider.com

Link to Grovia mighty bubble on Grovia.com *

Link to RLR on amazon.com

Stripping instructions on fluffloveuniversity.com