Poop Chronicles III
Somehow the fact that this edition of the Poop Chronicles is ALL MY FAULT makes is so much worse. In fact I’m fairly certain that this post is about to exceed all bounds of propriaty. I encourage you to stop reading now.
Excuse me . . . . ah-hem . . . (choke) . . . my gag reflex is acting up again. Ah-hem.
You’ve been warned.
So during these last weeks of sorrow and horror I have neglected many things. Not the least of which has been the diapers. Now the logical and proper thing to do when one runs low on diapers is, of course: do a batch of laundry. However my ingenious solution was somewhat different, namely: stare at the ceiling while the diapers cook in the pail on the back porch. Dh finally resorted to paper diapers (yes he knows how to run the washing machine, but he doesn’t wash diapers, it’s one of the more delicate compromises of our marriage).
Any how, yesterday in a spurt of unforeseen industry, I managed to get the diapers in the washing machine. Now I’ve smelled many varieties of nastiness in my life. Poops that melt the lining of my lungs and whatnot. But yesterday’s smell was altogether unique and terrible. It was all I could do to get the batch started without blowing chunks.
And when I returned an hour later and opened the lid, vile stench wafted out and nearly knocked me on my delicate hiney. Apparently this level of nastiness could barely find the time to snicker at my detergent-and-water before fermenting and growing with remarkable enthusiasm.
And Worse, far far WORSE. Apparently sometime in the fog o’misery I had neglected to swish a poop. I’ve only done this once before, and that time was bad enough. Oh yes, yes it was plenty bad. I knew I would have to remove the copious fiber before I ran the batch again (this time with generous amounts of bleach which I hate to do, bad for the diapers, bad for the environment).
But this time as I removed the diapers and wraps collecting bits of corn and peas and grape skins, I realized that something was just not right.
For lining my washer drum were hundreds and hundreds of plump juicy maggots.
oh. oh. the humanity…
Comment by Sue M — June 27, 2005 @ 8:42 am
oh dear. Oh my. That is just…oh.
Comment by Vicki — June 27, 2005 @ 10:22 am
Uhhh…uhhh…
Comment by Ann — June 27, 2005 @ 10:28 am
Throw them all away and start over. WHY are you killing yourself over cloth diapers anyway????
Comment by Andromeda — June 27, 2005 @ 10:32 am
Yes. Yes, what Andromeda said. While you are at it, throw out the diaper pail as well.
Maggots = not nice. Huggies = no maggots = nice.
Comment by Sue M — June 27, 2005 @ 11:01 am
Cloth diapers = better for baby & better for the environment
Maggots = stomach churningly gross
Lisa = very, very brave
Comment by Artemis — June 27, 2005 @ 11:09 am
If you want my opinion as a chemist: Chlorine bleach is not bad for the environment. It turns into table salt by the time it gets anywhere close to the environment. Now, if you still feel bad about it, use oxy-clean or a comparable product. Instead of chlorine they use peroxides, which turns into oxygen when spent. It is not as good a antimicrobial as chlorine bleach, but it is better than nothing.
Comment by J. Stapley — June 27, 2005 @ 11:19 am
i hope i live my whole life without a washing machine full of maggots.
ewwwwwww…
i’m also immensely impressed that you use cloth diapers. i recycle, i buy recycled products, i don’t litter, i do my best to save the environment, give money to environmental groups, i sort through the garbage to make sure the cans are separate…but I WILL CERTAINLY DRAW THE LINE AT CLOTH DIAPERS!
Everyone’s got a selling price. Mine would certainly be disposable diapers.
Comment by adrianne — June 27, 2005 @ 11:26 am
My mom used cloth diapers on all of us, and once, when I had the misfortune to tear my leg open in the laundry room (long story), a clean stack of my little brother’s cloth diapers were readily available to staunch the flow until the paramedics arrived. Think about THAT!
Okay so I have nothing to offer to a diaper discussion…. *sigh*
Comment by Athena — June 27, 2005 @ 11:32 am
Oh, LiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiIsa. I’m so sorry. Once my mom washed our dog in the shower and the dog had maggots (don’t ask - she was really old and sick) and the maggots all turned into flies in the warm, moist shower drain, and flew all over the shower. It was nastiness personified.
Call an exterminator now. Use some paper diapers until everything is cleaned out, (and probably forever more, because really, who wants to even deal with this possibility ever again?) and run several loads in the washing machine with nothing in it but cleanser of some sort that will kill maggots. (I’m not an expert, but I’m guessing that most of them will do the job.)
Then, when all is said and done, go out and get a pedicure. Or a new outfit. Something fun and girlie that has nothing to do with poop chronicles of any kind.
Comment by The Wiz — June 27, 2005 @ 11:43 am
My mom once pinned me to my diaper… or my diaper to me…. She said I was really fussy after that change and she couldn’t figure it out until she went to change me again and was completely horrified. I was her first and I think that was one of her early I-am-entirely-unfit-to-be-a-mother experiences (she was wrong, of course–best mom I ever had). I also think one of the reasons she switched to disposables a few babies down the line was because of that experience.
I like it that they have all these new-fangled and very pinless cloth diapers nowadays. Not looking forward to swishing, though….
I thought the trouble with chlorine was what it did to people more than what it did to the environment. Isn’t it more toxic when absorbed through the skin? From laundry, for example?
Comment by Artemis — June 27, 2005 @ 11:43 am
Oh, Lisa. Oh Lisa. Did you scream and pass out immediately, or did you manage to call a babysitter before you ran, still screaming, far, far away?
Comment by Heather Oman — June 27, 2005 @ 11:45 am
I thought the trouble with chlorine was what it did to people more than what it did to the environment. Isn’t it more toxic when absorbed through the skin? From laundry, for example?
I have seen no scientific data to corroborate this. However, if it does make you uncomortable, the peroxides should be guilt free.
Comment by J. Stapley — June 27, 2005 @ 11:55 am
Lisa… Thank you for sharing this with us. I have similar stories that would make ya curl your toes.
For isntance, our basement flooded over a week ago, and I still have not pulled the carpet up yet.
I am tired, and lazy, and I just can’t face it. We probably will have maggots growing in our carpet. Who knows.
I just won’t face it, until my husband gets home from being out of town.
Shall I swing by with some diet cola and ice cream? *chuckle* Arn’t I the best support ever?
I would probably just order a new washer, even if it meant putting it on a visa.
*Smile* You’re in my thoughts and prayers. (Seriously)
Good luck to ya, keep us posted!
Comment by Lisa M — June 27, 2005 @ 12:15 pm
I use snappies instead of pins, so there’s no fear of hurting anyone. They’re wonderful. And if anyone’s in the market, I can recommend the Best Wraps Ever.
Truth be told, I’m much more motivated by the $$$$ factor than the environment. I do like to help the environment, but cloth diapers are SOOOOOOO much cheaper. You can not even imagine how much cheaper. Shallow of me, but true.
Actually, I don’t mind cloth diapers at all. I was unsure at first. I still use paper when I’m traveling or swapping sitting with people. Cloth diapers are more work, but not a lot more. And they’re so cheap, did I say cheap?
I’m so glad to hear about bleach. I hate to think that I base so many of my actions on ignorance, but my ignorance is vast I’m afraid. I will use it guilt-free now. Although, it is still pretty hard on the diapers.
Comment by fMhLisa — June 27, 2005 @ 12:22 pm
Oooh gross, I remember:
diaper pail + thirty five degree heat=horrible stinky mess
Did you get the smell out of the diapers? If not I have two words for you Dr. Bronner’s — works miracles
Comment by kris — June 27, 2005 @ 12:32 pm
ew….poor Lisa!!
I hate disposables though. I will continue using cloth, just remember to swish them
I second what Kris said about Dr. Bronner’s AND washing soda is WONDERFUL for getting the smell out. Works better than anything I have tried.
Comment by Mary Siever — June 27, 2005 @ 12:42 pm
Oh But Lisa, this washer isn’t even paid off yet. Gulp.
Comment by fMhLisa — June 27, 2005 @ 12:42 pm
I also use cloth dipes for cost and environmental reasons. I really don’t think the swishing is all that bad. Somewhere on diapershop.com there’s a description of “princess-style diaper rinsing” and that’s the way I do it. Just hang onto a corner of the diaper and flush while twirling the diaper around.
I also do elimination communication with my babies and with my older son I certainly caught most of his poops in the potty by around 12 months or so. My 2nd, it’s not going that way yet though, he’s more of a stealth pooper now that we’ve fixed his constipation problems.
Comment by Vicki — June 27, 2005 @ 1:32 pm
Lisa, what you describe is admittedly enough to turn anyone’s stomach… but you couldn’t be pregnant, could you? The gag reflex, and your recent lethargy… just makes me wonder…
Comment by Rosalynde — June 27, 2005 @ 1:39 pm
Wow, I’m surprised by the number of you who use cloth diapers. I honestly didn’t think anyone did this anymore. I would never ever consider washing diapers.
Lisa, I don’t know what to say except that whenever I read your posts I’m glad I’m not a Mom. Please don’t be offended when I say that FMH is the best motherhood deterrence I’ve ever encountered.
Vicki, “elimination communication” is the funniest thing I’ve heard today. Did you coin this phrase or is this widely used?
Comment by Melissa — June 27, 2005 @ 1:54 pm
No, I didn’t coin the phrase “elimination communication.” Credit for that goes to Ingrid Bauer, author of a book titled “Natural Infant Hygeine.” It is becoming more well-known, at least in online attachment parenting circles, than it was 5 years ago when my oldest was a baby. And it’s just the western name for what millions of moms outside the western world do–help their babies and toddlers with their toileting needs with minimal or no use of diapers.
here are some links, FYI:
http://www.natural-wisdom.com/
http://www.timl.com/ipt/
http://www.freewebz.com/freetoec/index.htm
(btw is the comment program acting weird for anyone else here?)
Comment by Vicki — June 27, 2005 @ 2:08 pm
Lisa, you can also look at the whole thing this way. You possibly have the best Mommy gross out story EVER. Now, when people say, “Oh, wow, my kid got chocolate ice-cream all over my new suit”, you can just look at them and say, “At least you’ve never had MAGGOTS in your WASHER!” That should definitely shut people up about complaining about other, less gross parts of motherhood.
And if there is ever a bloggernacle contest for grossest mommyhood experience (hmm..maybe I should do one?), you would without a doubt get grand prize.
Comment by Heather Oman — June 27, 2005 @ 2:31 pm
Oh Lisa, I am SOOOO sorry! I use cloth, too. And much prefer them to disposables–who can stand blowouts? I’d rather wash diapers than have oodles of poop-stained clothes. I am in the market for some new diaper covers, though, if anyone has recommendations. And I’m with you–the best part is the cheap factor. I hate spending money on poop & pee catchers. Especially money we don’t have. That’s one of my favorite things about breastfeeding, too. CHEAP!
Comment by mindy — June 27, 2005 @ 2:42 pm
Hmm. Let me see if I can do anything.
Comment by Kaimi — June 27, 2005 @ 3:55 pm
Wow. Holy crap! Lisa, I will gladly send two bits your way. gross!
Comment by Steve Evans — June 27, 2005 @ 4:30 pm
yuck yuck yuck
I’ve delt with more than my fair share of poop but never ever maggots!
I’m so so so sorry!
Comment by Kristi — June 27, 2005 @ 5:32 pm
Wow. Gross doesn’t even begin to describe this! But it doesn’t seem like maggots should be the ruin of your washer … wouldn’t enough bleach (guilt-free!) kill/dissolve the things?
I use cloth diapers, too. I don’t even swish … I just dump out what I can in the toilet and throw the diaper in the pail. A few stains don’t bother me (or, they bother me less than swishing does), and I use bleach too.
I have a maggot story, too. When I was about 10, living in Northern California, snails were the bane of my parents’ garden. So they paid my sister and me the grand sum of one cent per snail killed. We’d collect them and squish them between two giant sheets of plywood — stand on top and do the twist to squish them. Well, one day I saw what appeared to be snails still moving after I’d squished them. So I took a closer look. You guessed it — maggots.
Comment by Pam W. — June 27, 2005 @ 6:09 pm
You know, disposable diapers, for all their legendary non-biodegradability, are actually kinder to the environment than the cloth ones, which use up much more natural resources (hot water!) and are obviously less healthy for your children, the ultimate valuable resource in which to invest.
Huggies, would solve your problems here.
Comment by D. Fletcher — June 27, 2005 @ 6:57 pm
I has been a few years but my mom when my mom sat down and figured it out using disposables are cheaper.
When her last child was in diapers she switched to disposable (remember this is when they first came out and were a little bit more expensive). She said that she saved money. I sure it is still true with the cost of water these days.
Comment by Mard — June 27, 2005 @ 7:37 pm
Nice try, D. Fletcher, but no sale. Here is a good general link re: diapers; and some pro-cloth diapering sites are Diaper Hyena and Diaper Safari. (Makes diapers sound waaay more exciting than they are, yes?)
Comment by Artemis — June 27, 2005 @ 9:41 pm
Mard,
You mother was on drugs.
D. Fletch,
You are on drugs.
But I love you and your mothers any way.
Comment by fMhLisa — June 27, 2005 @ 9:49 pm
You have to look at your local situation when deciding on which diaper is better financially or environmentally. I switched from cloth to disposable for my second baby, because we were in the middle of a huge drought in my town (as in occasionally no water came out of the tap), and I felt guilty using so much water. Landfill space wasn’t a problem. Also, for some bizarre reason the baby had fewer rashes with the disposables. With the price of water, and the cheapness of Wal-mart diapers, and the greater expense of cloth diapers now compared to when my mom bought diapers, I’m sure the disposables saved money as well.
Comment by Sara R — June 27, 2005 @ 9:53 pm
Water & electricity to run a washer prices definitely differ by area.
I spend $35/month on diapers….last time I calculated it, anyway.
I had a friend who spent $60+/month on diaper service because she thought it was better for her baby and she thought it was still cheaper that disposables??? They only made about $18K/year.
Yes, I’m still her friend even though I can’t understand any decision she ever makes.
Comment by JKS — June 28, 2005 @ 12:12 am
Ew, yuck, gross. I’m so sorry.
Here’s my maggot story (I know this is going to cast some serious doubt on my cred as, well, a decent human being):
One summer I had a little apartment to myself. It was really hot and I was in the attic and I didn’t have A/C (or a screen on the window. yes, window singular. tiny place.). I left a dishcloth in the kitchen sink under the dishes, it must have been a couple days at least, but no more than four or five. (Like I said, I lived alone, I hate doing dishes, I probably wasn’t cooking much.) Well, here’s where the maggots come in - when I rinsed off the dishes and got down to the dishcloth, it was heavier and the reason was . . . it had maggots in it. (Just remembering makes me shudder.) I threw the cloth in the garbage and took the garbage out right away and rinsed the sink with bleach and washed all the dishes with bleach and was just really completely grossed out. And I never left a dishcloth in the bottom of the sink again. Ever.
Comment by Heather P. — June 28, 2005 @ 12:20 am
Well — maggots are just nature’s way of trying to clean up what you didn’t get around to cleaning . . .
Regarding cloth versus disposable: the calculations are actually kind of complex, but a best estimate suggests that they have about the same environmental resource impact — costs of manufacturing and disposing of paper versus costs of cleaning and eventually disposing of cloth (Artemis’ web site citation conveniently ignores the costs of waste water treatment, detergent/surfactants, and water heating). As a couple of people have pointed out, especially when there is a drought on, sometimes it’s less harmful to take up landfill space than to draw down water resources.
Comment by Dora — June 28, 2005 @ 6:07 am
The secret to cloth diapers is diaper liners. The poopy deposits are more easily removed and sent on their merry way. The only problem is that that plagues all infant posterior coverings: explosive excessive elimination. You’ve all seen it, the poop that escapes the diaper and ends up everywhere, such as my wife’s dress on her first Mother’s Day. My daughter was too young to make anything else for mommy. Unfortunately, like cloth diapers, the diaper liners are very difficult to find.
Comment by Floyd the Wonderdog — June 28, 2005 @ 6:49 am
I know this is one of those issues where we will never sway the cloth-diaper-mafia, but I worry about people who wash diapers at home. I don’t think that most home washers get hot enough to kill everything you want killed.
Comment by Julie in Austin — June 28, 2005 @ 8:17 am
Dora,
it does not ignore them. But it doesn’t go into great detail, as it’s a general article.
“Other factors are your time to launder the diapers, cost of electricity, soap, water, and wear on your washing machine and dryer.
In general, if you compare the cost of the fancier high tech disposable diapers to the cost of laundering your own cloth diapers, you will save money by using cloth diapers and laundering them yourself.”
It also mentions the economy of scale benefits to washing large loads–diaper services, for example, use their water & energy more efficiently, but any eco-friendly guide will tell you basically the same thing–larger loads are more efficient, so get those washers full.
Another thing to consider, which the article hinted at but did not discuss, was the long-term cost to families via taxes and fees for cleaning up contaminated groundwater and soil from the landfills, as well as having to ship one’s garbage even further when the local landfill fills up.
Also, as the article notes, the better quality your cloth diaper, the more economical it will be in the long run, especially if you’re like Lisa and you try not to wear them out too quickly through too-harsh chemicals like chlorine.
Comment by Artemis — June 28, 2005 @ 9:15 am
I don’t think that most home washers get hot enough to kill everything you want killed.
That would require an autoclave. However, with the addition of bleach, there is no need for an autoclave. Bleach kills everything.
Comment by J. Stapley — June 28, 2005 @ 9:20 am
Hmm. . .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoclave .
I oughta get one of those things.
Comment by Kaimi — June 28, 2005 @ 9:27 am
Lisa:
I would love to know about the Best Wrap Ever. (I use a diaper service) The best wraps I’ve found so far are Pro-Wraps. They worked fine for my son, who’s now potty trained, but my daughter, the super-soaker, goes right through them and we have to put rubber pants over the wrap. She’s only 16 mo old and I can only see the situation getting worse.
Comment by Carrie W. — June 28, 2005 @ 9:53 am
Here is a more in-depth discussion from Mothering.com. Also, the Baby Marketplace has a similiar cost analysis here and Enviro-Baby.com analyzes the data here. However, I think the Mothering article is the best.
Comment by Artemis — June 28, 2005 @ 11:16 am
Um — I don´t want to turn this into a monstrous threadjack, so rather than bombard the board with a lot of contrary links of my own, I´ll just observe that Artemis´ sites, while interesting, are pretty obviously heavy on spin and light on peer review, and move on. The contrary studies (from those trying to sell disposables rather than those trying to sell diaper services) are pretty easy to find if people care to, as are the (relatively few) more neutral analyses.
Comment by Dora — June 28, 2005 @ 1:54 pm
***********************
I don’t remember the exact name of the wraps, but I’ll look it up and post it.
******************************
I don’t really care if people use cloth or disposibles. (Which I assume disqualifies me as a cloth diaper natzi) (I hope). In fact I don’t know anyone, not a single soul, but me, who does use cloth.
*******************************
However, an (internet) friend gave me all of these diapers and wraps after her baby grew out of them. So they were free (which is very cheap).
I used to spend forty to fifty dollars a month on diapers, I can not use the cheapest paper diapers due to the fact that they make my children stinky.
And now I “spend” four to six batches of laundry a month (and I usually line-dry). And perhaps one flush a day for the poop swish. (My whole monthly water bill is usually around $20)
There is nothing you can do to convince me that flushing the toilet once a day and running four loads of laundry a month costs me FIFTY DOLLARS.
That’s just crazy talk.
Comment by fMhLisa — June 28, 2005 @ 4:04 pm
fMhLisa–
“There is nothing you can do to convince me that flushing the toilet once a day and running four loads of laundry a month costs me FIFTY DOLLARS.
That’s just crazy talk. ”
What’s your time worth?
Four loads of laundry plus line drying for forty bucks is not a wantad I would answer if I saw it in the paper.
YMMV, of course, but I always cringe when the time commitment part of women’s work is downplayed–even by the woman herself.
Comment by Julie in Austin — June 28, 2005 @ 5:56 pm
Julie in Austin,
I’m surprised that you would take such a cheap shot at Lisa when you’re the one devaluing her use of time, not Lisa herself. And besides, taking the 4 loads of laundry example, she probably spends no more than 2 minutes gathering and dumping the diapers into the washer. And she’s probably line-drying things anyway, so adding wet diapers to the process would probably not take more than 5 minutes per load. That’s 28 minutes of work. Round up to 30 just for fun and she’s saving 50 bucks every half hour, which is making $100 an hour. Even say her expenses are $25 (total water bill + energy to heat water + detergent for 4 washes). She’s still making $75 an hour. Pretty good, if you ask me.
Comment by Artemis — June 28, 2005 @ 6:51 pm
How about the chemicals that are sitting next to your baby’s skin and reproductive organs 24/7 for 2 1/2 years?
“Sodium polyacrylate is the chemical that is responsible for making disposables superabsorbant - it can absorb up to 100 times its weight in water. It can stick to baby’s genitals, cause allergic reactions, and when injected into rats has caused haemorrhage, cardiovascular failure and death. This chemical was removed from tampons in 1985 when it was linked to toxic shock syndrome. Dioxin is a by-product of the paper-bleaching process used in manufacturing disposable diapers and is the most toxic of all cancer-linked chemicals. It has been shown to cause birth defects, skin and liver disease, immune system suppression and genetic damage in lab animals. Damage to the central nervous system, kidneys and liver can be caused by dyes found in some disposables.”
Cloth diapers do take time — and some people, who are not even members of the any “mafia” think it’s worth it.
Comment by kris — June 28, 2005 @ 7:23 pm
I use Huggies and only spend $35/month.
My water bill is $60/month….and we never, ever water the yard.
Comment by JKS — June 28, 2005 @ 7:49 pm
My kid was naked so much before he was potty-trained, I’m not really all that worried about the chemicals that touched his skin.
Comment by Heather Oman — June 29, 2005 @ 11:49 am
My mom diapered me and all my baby brothers and sisters in those big, fat, bulky fold up kind of cloth diapers with the big old diaper safety pins and rubber pants. With my own children it was also the oldf-ashioned way of diapering (like my mom), and now i’m a grandmother who often has the duties of changing cloth diapers with pins and rubber pants on many of my grand children as my two older daughters as well as both of my daughter-in-laws have all been staunch cloth diaper users from day one.
Comment by Davina — July 4, 2005 @ 7:29 pm
Hi — You may not believe this but I found this site because I googled Maggots in Diaper Pail, yes I too found them in our diaper pail tonight and was so grossed out, and hoping that they weren’t a sign that our 23 month old has worms? Ugh. No I guess they are maggots. Out comes the bleach. (By the way, where do maggots come from?) Even despite this low point in our cloth diapering career I remain totally PRO CLOTH DIAPERING. I agree, anyone arguing that dispsables are better for the baby or the environment must be on drugs or in denial. We line dry the diapers and it is a little extra work but not more than 5 minutres or so per load. We spent around $350 on super great cloth diapers and they have lasted 23 months so far and could easily last through at least one more child’s diapering years. I recommend our diapers, they are from Mother Ease, very high quality, soft and easy to use. (all snaps, no pins or folds.)
Comment by Nan — July 5, 2005 @ 8:05 pm
Oh no! I used cloth diapers right up until that same day. I saw them in the pail though and they never made it to the machine. I threw the whole batch away and switched to disposables. I felt bad, but I just didn’t think I would ever get over that hideous shock.
I feel your pain.
*blech*
Did you burn your machine in the yard?
Comment by introspectre — July 6, 2005 @ 2:07 pm
OK. I know this thread is old but I too got here by googling “maggots in diaper pail” because my husband just called me at work to inform me that we have the same problem. Please post and tell me what you did about this. I’m so grossed out.
Comment by Barbara — August 22, 2006 @ 12:43 pm
PLEASE Post what you did, I just found the same thing in my pail! Help!
Comment by Amara — July 6, 2009 @ 10:49 am
I think she just scooped them out and ran the machine a few times. Maybe with bleach. You could also use vinegar. Yick. I say just dump them in your garbage and get out your soap and vinegar.
Comment by Artemis — July 6, 2009 @ 3:53 pm
I too discovered them in my pail today. Will regular washing get out and kill all of the maggots and eggs? We don’t have the money for a new set!!! Please help. I need all of it I can get! How many washes and with what? I am highly disturbed by this!
Comment by genie — July 20, 2009 @ 9:22 am
I fainted cause i never heard such a juicy butt disgusting story
Comment by Mikayla — May 5, 2010 @ 8:35 am
I saw maggots today… It was gross. )>:
Comment by Mikayla — May 5, 2010 @ 8:40 am
I skipped school
(>;
I’M 9 YEARS OLD
WHOO HOO
Comment by Mikayla — May 5, 2010 @ 8:42 am