[babyinabackpack]

Hi nappy gurus!

So bubs #1 is due in 2 weeks.
We have all of our MCN's and they have been washed 3 times and dried as per advice I have read on here and in other forums.

My question now is about the dry buckets. Exactly how does it work?
Do you need to put a bin liner in? Otherwise wouldn't the pee leak and make the bucket less dry so to speak? But with the liner, wouldn't it make the nappies in there sweat and smell?

Do you have to rinse them off before you put them in the bucket? Again, wouldn't that be against the word dry?

I'm totally confused..

Any advice would be very appreciated!

We have 5 newborn size MCN's and 40 normal size so I think we have plenty.. We are planning to wash every 2-3 days.

Thank for your wisdom!

BIABP

[lifehacker]

You can just chuck them in a bucket with nothing in it if you want, if it's kept in the laundry say, some people if they keep the bucket in the nursery like to use a pail liner to line the bucket so they can drawstring the top to keep smells in and make it easy to carry, then you just throw the whole thing in the washing machine. Grovia make a good pail liner for around $20 it's made of pul the same stuff on the nappies.

You can also use a wetbag, which is similar to a pail liner you just hang it on the change table and zip/close it after you put the nappies in, take the whole thing to the washign machine to wash.

eta you don't have to rinse, lots of people don't, especially if it's newborn breastmilk poop but as they get older and their solids get worse then you need to rinse or use a little squirt to squirt the poop off. Some people use a spatula if they don't have a little squirt. Some people just use flushable liners and flush it down the loo and don't bother about rinsing.



This post has been edited by lifehacker: 31/01/2013, 08:44 PM

[Jenflea]

I take off the nappy, flush any solids(not an issue for newborn poo) and stick the nappy in the bucket. Lid off.
Then every second day, I tip the bucket of nappies in to the machine, do a COLD pre rinse and a warm normal wash(with 2 hour soak, my machine says that's the nappy cycle) hang out like normal, getting as much sun as possible.
I've only done ONE strip wash in nearly 3 years and never had an issue.
I found if the lid was on the bucket there is quite a strong ammonia smell in the older nappies, but it washes put without any hassles.

[tamjk]

I just toss them into an open fishing bucket (because DH's fishing buckets hold exactly a full load of nappies). No liner, definitely no lid- putting the lid on the bucket makes them stink! If one of the kids is sick I'll sprinkle some bicarb into the bucket.

If I know I'm having visitors I'll quickly switch the bucket out for a small lidded fabric laundry hamper, nobody wants to see dirty nappies when they're visiting.

I prefer the bucket over the laundry hamper because it's easier to clean, I've got three that I rotate. One in use, one is used for soaking stained clothes and the other is airing out. Using one of the buckets for soaking stained clothes means I don't have to wipe it down with disinfectant every day.

[Sharlie2878]

I have a pedal bin with a removable 'bucket' and the nappies get thrown in the bin, when I wash the bucket comes outside and gets hosed or rinsed and left in the sun to sanitise.

Once we started solids (or if you have formula I believe) and the poo needed to be flushed we got another bucket for the toilet/laundry and the poo gets flushed, nappy is rinsed out and thrown in bucket (with a lid).

I would highly recommend a 'little squirt' style arrangement in your toilet. If you don't know what that is just google it there are plenty of ready made ones and sites that will tell you how to set one up if you are handy.

I believe 'dry' is really referring to the fact that you don't soak the nappies in a bucket full of water and bleach as it will destroy the waterproof components of the MCN. I wash our nappies in washing soda and it works really well, I never fail to be impressed with the way the sun makes any marks on them disappear.

[tick]

Dry pailing really just means NOT filling the bucket with water. It'll be wet in there, but it won't be a drowning hazard.

I rinse my nappies under the tap (all of them, dilutes the wee and helps them to last longer) then throw them into the bucket. Bucket gets a little gross, but hey it's a nappy bucket! Wash every second day and once all the nappies are in the machine the bucket gets a thorough rinse also.

I have a lidded bucket but I only put the lid on when we've got visitors.

[Katie_bella]

We use a wetbag, we have two on rotation and wash it with the load of nappies.

BTW, i think you will need more than 5 newborn nappies, newborns go through about 10-12 nappies each day! OSFM nappies usually only fit bubs over 6 kgs.

[creepycookie]

dry pail doesn't mean there is no moisture whatsoever, more that the bucket is not full of water, soaking the nappies pre-wash as traditional nappies were.

i don't use a liner, i rinse the nappies before putting them in the bucket, and yes it does stay damp in there. I rinse the bucket with hot water and vinegar each time i empty it, and put a bit of bi-carb in the bottom to help with the moisture & smell. I find washing every 2 days best, 3 days is pushing it smell wise lol, & remember to give yourself enough time to dry them without running out if the weather is bad.

[Joey11]

I have a nappy bucket with lid (I got a cheap one from a department store) next to the change table; the lid isn't always on but that's more laziness than design. It is up out of DS's way though as he's quite fascinated with it.

I give dirty nappies a scrape and rinse to get the poo off then leave them in a normal bucket of water in the laundry trough until wash every second day (agree with PP that much more than 2 days is getting a bit stinky; also the amonia in wee is pretty caustic so you don't want to leave it too long and damage the nappies). I keep meaning to get a little squirt. I started off with flushable liners but they get expensive so now I use washable liners that I've made by just cutting some microfleece to size.

I rinse out the nappy bucket with hot water and a couple of drops of tea tree oil and dry it in the sun every now and then. It does get a little condensation in it from time to time but that's no issue - like PPs have said I assume dry bucket just refers to the fact you're not deliberately soaking them like the old Napisan days. The amonia smell gets quite pungent but the smell doesn't seem to stick around the bucket itself and isn't usually noticeable until the bucket's quite full.

I have a couple of zippable wetbags of various sizes for out & about and daycare. They're pretty cheap to buy.

[babyinabackpack]

Thank you for all of the replies ladies!
It makes alot more sense now!
I just couldn't understand how something that would clearly be wet would be referred to as dry! lol

I will look at getting a couple of buckets today and keeping the lids for when guests get here.

Thanks again!