Once a week, I address a reader submitted question, and ask my readers to chime in. Don’t miss any posts! Subscribe to our new RSS Feed or subscribe via email.
Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.
Elizabeth asks:
Have you heard of charcoal liners?
Bamboo charcoal is created when older bamboo plants are heated. The powder is used to create charcoal bamboo fabric. Traditional “bamboo fabric” has been under fire for being falsely advertised as environmentally friendly, natural etc., when in fact the bamboo is processed into a rayon fabric that some think doesn’t retain any of the properties of bamboo.
Bamboo charcoal is broken into chips, then ground into a fine powder, which is compounded, then spun into yarn. The fabric is said to be porous, absorbent, odor absorbing, moisture wicking, anti bacterial and much more. I have only used charcoal bamboo inserts in Lil Helper Diapers, but I was quite pleased with it. It was super soft, absorbent, and the darker color hides stains.
I don’t know very much about the chemical process of making the fiber, but it is my understanding that the resulting “charcoal bamboo” fabric is a polyester, much like traditional “bamboo” fabric is in fact rayon.
Have you used charcoal bamboo?
Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 18, 14 and 11-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. 
[…] Charcoal Bamboo: polyester fabric made from bamboo charcoal is very soft, wicks moisture away from skin, and has potential added benefits of bamboo. […]