Cloth nappies smelling of wee after being washed, what do I do again???

[Fizzylemonade]

As I don't have that many nappies as yet (was waiting for the new fuzzi bunz but have caved and bought a swaddlebee and blueberry) but I find it hard to guess the amount of detergent.

Anyway, nappies I have are smelling faintly of wee so what do I do? Is it white vinegar? How much and do I then need to rinse loads etc?

I dry pail, wash usually at 40 with a rinse first then I do a 60 wash when needed.

I am very old but I used to swear by soaking in Napisan.

I'd wash them at 60 with a prewash using a tiny bit of powder in the drawer and some Nappy Soak. I use a spoonful of Perfectly Happy People (PHP) Nappy soak - as it is friendlier than Napisan (both to your nappies and the environment).

I have never had to use vinegar.

I found using fairy liquid non-bio good.

Prewashing on a cool wash is very good (without anything), it neutralises the urine

(Wait on new style fuzzis is over in various shops)

I wash on a cool rinse with a little bit of vinegar. Then I do a hot wash with not much powder at all and maybe a little lavender in the rinse cycle.

I was with persil non-bio silk and wool stuff that I had in. I did buy ecover but it doesn't smell nice

I always do a cold rinse first as I was every 2 days.

So do I just need to wash them with no detergent for a few times???

Flame- thanks for info on Fuzzis, I am liking swadlebees as they fit better at the moment and Fuzzis are a little large on him.

oooh think the H must be stuck on my keyboard, I seem to have written "was" and not wash

Sometimes if they smell of wee its because of build up of the detergent in the fabric, it sort of hangs onto the smell, you could try washing them a couple of times without any detergent and seeing if that helps. You will be able to tell if that's the problem from whether they still foam up if you look through you washing machine door. Its also worth knowing that the ammonia is produced by the bacteria in the nappies and your normal 40 degree wash isn't killing them off so try washing at 60 all the time instead.

60c wash and make sure they are well-rinsed.

Cold prewash and a bit of bicarb in the main wash always sorts the problem out with our nappies

Thanks everyone, will check the door when I wash them with no detergent.

I put Napisan in with the wash and it seems to get rid of any smells. I tried tea tree and vinegar but it didn't work.

first i rinse all the nappies under the cold water tap (not hot - it sets stains). then i put them all in the nappy bucket which is filled with cold water and a few drops of grapefruit seed extract and sometimes some nappy fresh. i don't use vinegar or lemon juice cos it can damage the elastic or any oils cos they can make the nappies start replling liquid. i wet pail cos it breaks down the urine and loosens stains so the nappies last longer. i don't soak wraps though cos this affects their waterproofness.
i try to do a wash every day because the longer nappies remain wet the quicker the fabrics will break down.

i do a prewash with no detergent and a few drops of GSE, a 30 degree wash with half a tablet or 1/4 the recommended amount of powder/liquid (we use the ecover non-bio original washing powder because it is the only one that doesn't contain dyes, enzymes, perfumes, whiteners, brighteners or phosphates which can damage nappies. if the nappies are a bit stained i use some nappy fresh or ecover laundry bleach aswell.) and an extra rinse with a few drops of GSE if the final rinse of the wash programme still had suds in it. don't use fabric conditioner cos it coats the fibres and so reduces absorbancy. i hand wash wraps cos it makes them last longer.

i'm another fan of line drying as much as possible, but if not then i line dry inside on an airer near the radiator or in the airing cupboard. i don't put them directly on the radiators or tumble dry as this can damage them in the long run and tumble drying also makes the nappies hold onto smells more. after i've hand washed the wraps i wipe them out with a towel to remove excess moisture and dry them as per the nappies.