Having a baby means having to constantly change diapers; and constantly changing diapers means needing a diaper pail to contain all those soiled cloth diapers. Parents who opt to use cloth diapers have two options for diaper storage: the wet pail and dry pail method.

The wet pail method also acts as a pre-soak for diapers. To use the wet pail method you will need a diaper pail with a lock, water, vinegar, baking soda and essential oil.

To do this, first choose a diaper pail with a sealed locking lid. The locking lid is very important for your childs safety since you will be filling the pail partially with water. If your child is big enough to get around on his own, or if you have other kids that can are big enough to get around the house, he/she might try to look into the pail, fall head first into it and drown. This is why you should also make sure that the pails locking lid does not easily come off.

Fill the diaper pail about full with water then add cup of vinegar and cup of baking soda to gently take out stains and naturally bleach cloth diapers. Add a few drops of essential oil to get rid of odors.

Get rid of any solids (poop) off soiled diapers and flush them down the toilet. You can also use a diaper sprayer or rubber scraper to get rid of solids easier.

If you are using prefolds, unfold each wet and dirty diaper better placing them in the pail to make sure that each diaper is thoroughly soaked and totally cleaned when you launder it later on. If you do not unfold your babys diapers when you toss them into the pail, you will have to unfold all of them before washing.

If you do not plan to wash diapers everyday, change your diaper pails water daily to help reduce bad odors.

When you are ready to wash the diapers, pour the diapers and water into you washing machine and turn on the spin cycle to spin out the excess water. Afterwards, run the diapers through a complete wash cycle. Make sure to use a gentle, baby-safe detergent to prevent your baby from getting skin irritations and or diaper rash. Since the wet pail serves a presoak, it is likely that all stains already came off. But for persistent ones, use baby-safe stain removers or use baking soda or vinegar to safely remove stains.

Cleaning you diaper pail

To clean your diaper pail, first wipe off solids that are inside the pail using a wash cloth or damp paper towels.

Next, douse the pail with a baby-safe all purpose cleaner, or your own using vinegar and water. Create a half and half mixture of the two.

Wear latex gloves to wash the diaper pail down. Use a wash cloth to or a brush to clean the pail. Rinse thoroughly and dry your diaper pail.

Spray the pail with a disinfectant or wipe it down using disinfectant wipes.