Cloth Diapering
Yep, Im considering it, but I havent a clue where to start. Ive looked online and the options are overwhelming. So any advice you can give related to this would be great! I dont usually ask for advice in a general setting because: a) people will give advice whether you want it or not, and b) while most people tend to offer advice to be helpful, some take the opportunity to get up on their high horse and look down on the rest of us. In this case, I know almost nothing about this subject, so the advice is welcome. =)
My main questions right now are:
*How many do I need to get started?
*How much do they usually cost?
*What are the good brands/kinds?
*What does it take to clean them?
*Do I need diaper covers/what accessories to I need?
*Do they leak?
While these are the questions on my mind right now, any information that you can share will be helpful.
Also- if you've had a negative experience with cloth diapering, dont hesitate to share that either. I want to know both sides so I can get an accurate picture to make an informed decision. Right now Im thinking that we will try the cloth diapers while at home (if I can figure it out) and use disposables when we are traveling or outside of the house for long periods of time. That isnt set yet, since Im pretty clueless about cloth, but it sounds good right now.
Thank you for your input!
11 comments:
*How many do I need to get started?
It's a good idea to have at least 20. Infants can't wear the one size yet because they're too tiny. It's cheaper to use prefolds and covers. Once the baby gets some chunk in the legs you can switch to the one size diapers, you'll want at least 20 of those. Cottonbabies (and other cloth diaper stores online sell these in package deals so it's a little cheaper then buying each diaper individually)
*How much do they usually cost?
Prefolds are about $1-$2 each.
One size diapers vary by brand... my favorites on my kids are BumGenius and FuzziBuns
For fitteds (that sometimes require a cover) is Cow Patties
*What are the good brands/kinds?
See above ;)
*What does it take to clean them?
rinse, wash, rinse until you don't see any suds
(only need about 2- 3 table spoons of detergent)
*Do I need diaper covers/what accessories to I need?
For prefolds you will need covers and pins and/or snappi (the snappi is much nicer then pins, you don't have to worry about stabbing the baby on accident)
*Do they leak?
Not if you change the baby regularly and if they aren't repelling.
Repelling can be caused by using fabric softener, build up from the detergent or not rinsing it all out.
I think it's great that you are doing some research. Personally, I didn't use cloth, but that was mostly because the nursery school my kids went to wouldn't use them. So, I just sort of shrugged my shoulders and forged ahead with disposables.
I can say that I thought wistfully of them every time I bought a box of disposables - the cloth are more-or-less a one-time expense. However, if you do go disposables, I recommend Amazon. The Luvs via subscribe & save are the cheapest, and they work very well.
I'll also share the best advice I *ever* received as a new mom, and it applies to 99% of parenting: Just because you decide to try something (a product, a method, whatever) does NOT mean you are stuck with it. Don't be afraid to change if something's not working! :)
Hey lady! I'm considering it, too. I was corresponding with one of my friend's sisters about it recently and thought the emails on the topic might be useful to you. Would you like me to send it to your email?
I have a one month old little boy and just started cloth diapering this past week. We waited for him to grow a little bit so they fit better. The most overwhelming part of cloth diapering is figuring out which kind to use. I was so nervous, but now I love it! (We used disposables for the first 3 weeks; they were either given to us as gifts or from diaper cakes, so we haven't bought any 'sposies and we still have plenty left!)
*How many do I need to get started? 18-24 I ordered 18 and then my MIL gifted us 6 more and a firend gifted 1. 24 is a good number, never worry about running out when the baby has a high number of poops on any given day.
*How much do they usually cost? I think we've invested (including the gifted diapers) around $450.00 (25 dipes, 18 cloth wipes, 2 diaper pail bags, a wet bed, diaper spray to use w/cloth wipes, lavendar oil to put in diaper pail bag to help with any smell)
*What are the good brands/kinds? I'm a fan of the one size, just so we don't have to buy anymore. But, as a newborn they were a bit big, which is why we used sposies at first. We have 3 different brands, FuzziBuns, BumGenius, Rumparoos.
My faves are the Fuzzibuns. They use snaps instead of velcro to fasten. I am not a fan of velcro... the noise drives me crazy. The snaps work well. And the fabric in the crotch isn't as wide/bulky as the other brands. And I really like the soft fleece lining.
Second faves are the rumparoos. They are velcro and highly adjustable. The best feature of the rumparoos is the leg/thigh is double gusseted, much like a dispoasable diaper, to help keep things in. The liing is also very soft.
Third is the BumGenius. Again, I'm not a big fan of velcro. And the inserts (used to absorb the urine) are the most thin of the three brands. And the lining isn't very soft.
But, I also have friends who swear by the BumGenius. And I have friends who use and love the Flip system.
*What does it take to clean them?
Rinse (or pre-wash with no detergent), wash, rinse. I'm not sure what your washer is like, the ones we were issued in our area of Germany, I use the pre-wash cycle and don't put any detergent in the pre-wash detergent holder, then a little bit of Vaska detergent for the wash cycle, then rinse. I line dry mine (either outside, or on an indoor drying rack, b/c our dryers take forever and a day to dry, especially on low heat, which is recommended for cloth diapers.
*Do I need diaper covers/what accessories to I need? With Fuzzibuns, BumGenius, Rumparoos, you don't need any covers. When you order them, they come with 2 inserts (one for infant,a dn a larger one for when your child grows). And where I roder my Fuzzibuns from, I was able to get a package that came with diaper pail liners, the wet bag, diaper spray, lavendar oil, detergent and cloth wipes. (http://www.fuzzibunzstore.com/) OH, and free shipping too.
*Do they leak? we've only had one leak for a very runny and large BM (which would probably have leaked from a disposable) and once over night.
Hope that helps some and doesn't overwhelm you even more!
*How many do I need to get started?
16-20 remember you won't want to do laundry daily when baby is little little (I bought mine 2 at a time and used disposables to supplement until I had a stash)
*How much do they usually cost?
WIDE range. I use covers ($15-20$) and prefolds 2$ish each. I can reuse the covers until they are soiled. My son is a heavy wetter so usually only 2-3 times but still means I only need 6 covers to cover a couple days.
*What are the good brands/kinds?
I have a RANDOM assortment since I like experimenting. Not really brand loyal as much as type loyal. A button up cover over a prefold is all I really care about.
*What does it take to clean them?
In my opinion...not much. Wet diapers I just put in with my regular laundry and wash daily. Dirty I put in a bucket and spray in the tub (German tub with the sprayer already installed) then dump the water out and throw the "clean" diapers in with the laundry.
*Do I need diaper covers/what accessories to I need?
depends on what type you use, I like them so I use them, but some types such as All in one and all in 2 don't require them. Accessories--I use disposable wipes and just put my diapers in with my regular laundry so I don't have any special accessories. I'm probably breaking rules here, but it works for me. I've done cloth diapers as cheaply as I could so "special" stuff isn't in my budget.
*Do they leak?
I have had issues with this, but my son is a heavy wetter. He goes from dry to overflow is seconds so I'm probably not the best judge. The biggest issue I've found is tight pants tend to leak around the waistband and leg gussets. My issue isn't with leaking as much as soaking through I guess. That being said on a recent trip to London he leaked through disposable diapers 3 days in a row. Soooo who knows. I just travel with an extra pair of pants in my bag and one in the car.
Good luck!
Oh I order mine from sweetbottomsbaby.com they ship free to US and APO (I know you're in Germany, not sure if you're military or not though) They also have a rewards program and I always get my orders in 4-5 days.
Oh my goodness, I am totally reading all these comments. We're doing cloth diapers but have so much research to do still!
I have a friend on base who does cloth diapers for her kids. If you want, I can hook you up with her so she can tell you more info. I have heard from friends that it's a lot easier in the States than overseas since you can use a diaper service.
I'm not a mommy, so I have no experience. However, one of my good friends recently wrote two excellent blog posts about this. Check them out:
http://ohapostrophe.blogspot.com/2011/05/cloth-diapers-for-win.html
and
http://ohapostrophe.blogspot.com/2011/05/washing-cloth-diapers-with-rockin-green.html
I'm considering this as well, so thanks everyone for the comments. To the person who said something about diaper services in the US, they definitely aren't everywhere--including where we currently live (a mid-sized FL city). None of the CD moms I know in other cities use them though, anyway.
Thanks for participating in the Roundup!
I never used them but my brother did and liked them (except when my niece had diarrhea). And he did what you said, disposable while traveling. Sorry I have no advice, but it looks like you got some good advice from the other commenters. :)
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