Can I Use Essential Oil on My Cloth Nappies and Cloth Wipes?

When starting out with cloth nappies/ diapers there are often a lot of worries and warnings parents get before. Number one being that it could be a bit gross and leave your house smelling. This is simply not the case and in my experience actually means a lot less smells as there is no poo sitting in a bin somewhere but down the toilet where it is intended to go.

I think it is for this reason that many parents new to reusables start out thinking they should be using something to make their nappies extra clean and smell lovely. Like soaking nappies in some kind of cleanser or using essential oils to hide any smells.

There is no need to use essential oils with your cloth nappies and wipes, especially with newborns who have more sensitive skin. You can buy specific for cloth wipes oils, to make them smell nice, but there is still a risk of a skin reaction.

In fact there are lots of risks when using essential oils, especially with babies and should only be done with the knowledge to do so, but in my opinion is unnecessary so let’s not worry about them at all. Here’s why.

What purpose do essentials oils have with cloth nappies?

Many parents like to use essential oils with their cloth nappies/diapers to mask smells, or avoid getting them in the first place. For example using a few drops in the dirty nappy bucket, or in their washing to make the wash smell nice. I recommend against this for a number for reasons.

It is important to not use essential oils in your cloth nappies to mask smells. If your cloth nappies smell anything other than clean it is a sign of an insufficient wash routine. You should not need anything to help the smell of your cloth nappies.

If your nappy bucket is smelling and you feel you need to add essential oils to help the problem you could be simply covering up a deeper problem. Yes of course if you open the bucket or wet bag and stick your nose in your going to smell a few nasty bits. But it should not smell when the lid is on or the wet bag is zipped up. Anything that does really smell could be a sign that you need to wash more often or assess your wash routine, especially if you can smell ammonia.

In fact many parents like to ditch the nappy bucket and have some kind of storage with holes to let the air flow and therefore get even less smells. This was a step to far for my partner, and as we didn’t have a utility room or a separate place to store such a basket out of the way of little hands was not for me either.

The same goes for clean washing. Though I know many like to have a nice smell coming from their washing, which could be a reason to add a few drops of essential oils into the machine drawer, I would still only do this with your clothes. Some nappy companies for example Motherease warn that essential oils as they could effect the absorbency of your nappies so should only be used when washing nappy covers. I’m not sure why anyone would just be washing nappy covers and not all their nappies in one load. Unless you have triplets in cloth nappies.

And again if you want your nappies to come out smelling nice because you don’t think they never smell fresh enough after a wash this is a sign that your wash routine needs assessing too. You may not be using enough detergent, have a full enough load, washing for long enough or washing at a hot enough temperature. You can assess your wash routine easily with my article on “How to rid your cloth nappies of ammonia smells.” Even if your not smelling ammonia the same tweaks can be done for any type of smell.

What purpose do essentials oils have with cloth wipes?

If you enjoy having nice smelling wipes you can buy the perfect set from Cheeky Wipes which comes with essential oils to add to water and soak your wipes in.

I brought one of these set when I was pregnant with my first baby but quickly found having a set of pre-wet wipes wasn’t for me. I prefer to wet wipes as and when I need them, or to have a small wet bag with just enough wipes for the day. This was because I found wetting too many wipes and there for having them sitting in the box for too long meant they ended up smelling a little musty. I started then changing the box every day or two max but would then always forget or found it a little bit of a faff. For me grabbing a wipe and quickly running it under the tap on the way to the changing table worked best. But that of course is personal preference.

The only time I would recommend filling a box of wipes for the day with perhaps cooled boiled water is in the early newborn days. This is because you’ll be changing far more often, often in a very tired state, so having a stack of wipes to hand at the changing table is a help. The last thing you want when you have a very watery, messy, I don’t know how its on the floor as well, newborn poo is to not have extra wipes to hand. After that I usually changed my daughter with her standing on her head anyway with just one wipe.

Why should I use cooled boiled water when making a wipe solution.

It is fine use regular tap water when wetting the cloth wipes to use soon after, but if making a wipe solution which may sit for a period of time there is bacteria in tap water that could breed. It is there for recommended to boil the water first.

Why is it important to be careful with essential oils and babies?

Babies have much more sensitive skin than adults which is why it is not recommended to use essential oils on babies under 3 months. Over this you can perform a patch test to make sure your baby will not react to any essential oils you are using.

The problem with essential oils can be from the fact that they are an oil so when mixed with water if not with a emulsifier like when simply mixing them to make a wipe solution, can create a concentrated patch of essential oil. If you wipe babies bottom with the concentrated oil this could be where a reaction may arise.

What other solutions could I use on cloth wipes instead of essential oils?

If you want to use essential oils like the ones from cheeky wipes on your baby for you can add a small squirt of baby wash or baby shampoo. This will help as an emulsifier to make sure the oil mixes with the water fully before adding your wipes into soak. It also gives baby a nice clean and leaves the wipes feeling extra soft.

Other wipe solution recipes that do not involve essential oils.

Basic Wipes Recipe.

1tbsp Coconut oil. (You could also use oil olive or baby oil.)

1tbsp of Liquid Baby Wash/Shampoo.

Add to a container (any Tupperware you have in the kitchen will do). Half fill container with cooled boiled water. Add wipes until all wipes are soaked, squeeze out wipes, get rid of excess water and pop your now wet wipes back into the container, lid on ready to use.

For a soothing wipe solution when baby has a rash.

Soak wipes in Chamomile Tea.

Repeat as above.

Hannah xx

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