Cloth Diapers - New Haven,CT

Hi Kimberlt, I am an older mom from back when we did not have disposables. You can get a diaper pail and just wash often. My first 3 did not have the rashes that my last 2 had with throw away diapers. I never had a diaper service and my children were 1 year apart. Grandma Mary

I used cloth diapers with my daughter until I went back to work when she was 1. She had far fewer rashes than her older sister did (disposables). I washed them in warm water and hung them up to dry. I used a lidded garbage pail for a diaper pail and didn't put water in it because I was afraid the baby would get into it and drown or something. I used Borax in the wash and never really had problems with stains. Good luck and the environment thanks you

K.,

Hi, my name is A. and I have 2 boys, one of whom is still in diapers. We use cloth diapers for the most part at home and it saves us tons of money. We buy only one package a month of disposables, which we use on the go. We use Kushies. We like them and it's easy to hang them in the toilet to rinse off the solid waste. Definately go with the cloth if you're at home. Good luck!

I just made the switch to cloth diapers for my 5 month old and I LOVE IT! We use Blue Penguin diapers and they are wonderful! It is so easy too...just throw them in the wash then dry on highheat to sterilize or lay the out in th sun.

i also have a huge stash of disposables which I only use when we go out. just hoping to get rid of them asap. :)

I would say to go for it--cloth diapers are great--for the environment, your wallet, and your baby's bottom--my son potty trained at 18 months I think in large part to cloth diapers--as long as you have them you might as well give it a shot. There is a learning curve so give yourself a month to get in the swing of it.

i started cloth diapering my son at about 2.5 months and don't regret it.
i use an all in one diaper (i.e. no separate diaper and outer covering) they work great and even my husband isn't afraid to use them. no pins or anything!
I use Bum Genius and love them! there are several other all in ones out there too. give them a try. if you have some from a friend, great! use them! and good luck.

Hi K.,
You don't need to use a diaper service, everyone I've known in recent years who has used cloth bought and laundered their own. There are a lot of sites dedicated to cloth diapering so that you can get plenty of hints, tips and instructions for what diapers and laundering techniques can work best. Good luck!

I think it's great! Go for it! One of my favorite sources of diapering information is http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com
Check out the FAQ's for washing suggestions.
You said you have the diapers. Do you have the covers too? My favorite are the Thirsties brand. My son is 19 months and he recently had a bout of diarrhea and those things did not leak! Not to mention, he is already working on potty training (of course we had to put that on hold while he was sick) and he goes several times a day on the potty, so that's something to look forward to.

I used cloth diapers with my first son from day 1 to potty training and loved it. People thought I was crazy but it was really easy. Just an extra load of laundry every 2-3 days. I used fuzzi bunz and thought they were great. Planning on using them for my second (due in Oct.) When washing I would do a cold rinse them wash them on hot. Be careful which detergent you use as some can cause build up and the diapers will be less absorbent. Avoid fabric softeners (including dryer sheets) since also they will make them less absorbent.

Hi K.!

I've been using cloth diapers on my daughter since she was 2 weeks old and now she's 15 mos. I LOVE them so much that I started selling them. You can definately use your friends old diapers on your daughter without a problem. AND you don't need a diaper service. I use flushable/biodegradable liners that sit on the insert/diaper and collect poop. It makes it that much easier for clean up...just flush it all down the toilet. No more dunking (yuck) and no storing in a pail of water. If you would like more ideas on how to make it easier for you just shoot me an email ____@____.com

Good luck!

K.

Cloth diapers are very easy to use, and most people who use them today do so without a service. It's fine to use your friend's diapers, you just may want to wash them on a sanitary cycle before use. I have never regretted making the switch-good luck!

we old folks did not have disposable diapers and we managed. You can put the pro's and con's to each. You will have to buy more detergent , use moe water and then dry the cloth diapers. If you are willing to do that then go for it.

K.-
I have been using BumGenius 3.0 cloth diapers for my almost seven month old daughter since she was a month old and have been VERY happy. I wash them here at home every 2 days (not as bad as you might think) with Planet detergent and they have held up well, with the exception of some minor loss of stickiness of some of the velcro tabs. They are adorable, don't smell bad (like I find that disposables sometimes do), and very rarely leak if changed every 2-3 hours. We did start putting a disposable on her at night a couple of months ago and also use disposables for travel. I say definitely try cloth. They're kind of pricey up front, but you'll make your money back really quickly.

You can wash them yourself. I'm a single mom that works outside of the house full time and cloth diaper. I use the bum genius diapers. They look a lot like disposibles only washable and cloth. I think they are the best thing out there. It doesn't stink like disposbles and a lot easier on babies skin. Plus when your done with them you can send em on to another baby.Just follow the directions on whatever diapers your using, when it comes to washing. It keeps them in the best shape and allows them to absorb correctly. No fabric softner ever! Diaperswappers is a great place to look for cloth diapers and advice for your diapers. And craiglist is another source for local cheap diapers. I love the ladies at bebewamu they are out of the buffalo, ny area. Good luck

Hi K.,

Both my boys were cloth diaper babies. I loved them. It was such a waste of money to buy the disposable. I do admit I used a diaper service. Just the best thing for my kids. My oldest got a rash everytime I tried to use the disposable. I wanted them for when we were out so I didn't have to carry the cloth. I used them for a while but his rash got worse so went back to the cloth 24/7. You get used to it.
Around the Albany area I don't think there are any diaper services anymore. What a shame. Just as my boys got done with them they came out w/ velcro. Would have saved my fingers from getting stuck w/ the pin all the time.
I say go for it. You can always switch back if its not what you thought it would be. Much better for the environment.

Good Luck,
C.

My sister used cloth diapers for all 4 of her kids and she never used a diaper service, she did them all herself. I think it is great! Why not try it - you could always go back to disposables.

You can definately do it! I switched to cloth when my daughter was 6months old and don't regret it. Even my husband can't find anything to complain about. I have 2dozen prefolds that keep me going and I do a diaper wash every other day. I do use gdiapers when going out since they are less bulky to pack in the diaper bag and more often than not I use a cloth double with the gdiaper instead of the gdiaper insert. The only thing I found that gets a little out of wack is if you use disposable wipes with cloth diapers, you just can't fold them up in the used diaper and throw them out. I also suggest you invest money in the toilet sprayer, it makes messy diapers a breeze to clean in the toilet. It's expensive, but definately worth it. I use purex free and clear detergent and have no problems with buildup. My water bill did double, but I am still saving more than if I bought disposibles. You shouldn't use diaper creams with cloth unless you have a disposible liner, I've only had to do this once because my daughter got a rash from a swimmee diaper this summer. If you haven't already you should look into the mamasource archive, I received a lot of responses when I was considering cloth diapers and then cloth wipes and I think the responses I received may offer you some more insight. Good Luck!

definitely! and you can wash them yourself too! there are tons of resources online. i like babycenter's cloth diapering group - they are the best (find them here: http://community.babycenter.com/groups/a16235/cloth_diape...)

good luck!

G diapers on line. You may want to check them out.

I used cloth diapers with a small paper liner. The paper liner made it easy to throw poop out in the toilet so that cleaning the diapers wasn't really that bad.

Use hot water, borax and laundry SOAP...do not use detergent or bleach...the harsh chemicals are horrible for babies skin and for the environment.

If you have a washer & dryer in your home, it would be easy to do without a diaper service. If the machines are on the first floor it would be even easier. It might be a little difficult to lug them downstairs and back up again with 2 little ones. But you could do it while they were sleeping or at night. You need a diaper pail and a stick-up for odor. WHen baby gets older the ammonia smell can overpower you, but you get used to it. Its perfectly ok to use second hand diapers and they make terrific dust rags and window washer after you are done with them. As another mom said, stay away from fabric softeners. If they seem rough rinse them twice or use less detergent.

I say go for it!
Start with what you've got, and if you don't like it, try another system. There are so many out there now- from the all in one that is very similar to a washable disposable, all the way down to using prefolds or flats with a cover. I used them all with my daughter. Different things for different times. I'm expecting again in April and am already building up my "stash" just a warning: it can be addictive! :)
good sites, already mentioned was diaperswappers.com I second that! Also, if you want to try different kinds very inexpensively, several sites have 'trial packages'. I tried the one at jilliansdrawers.com and loved it!
Enjoy!
S.

Have you heard of Gdiapers? They are awesome! The convenience of a disposable (the nontoxic 'refills' are flushable, compostable, or simply chuckable) but SOOO much better for the environment. They now make re-usable cloth inserts for them as well. I've been using them since my girl was 3 weeks old and love them. Plus, the little Gpants are so cute there is never a need to use those diaper cover things when she wears dresses.

www.gdiapers.com

Hi K.
Moms did it for years. I used cloth diapers. In fact I used them in the 70's and I used them in the 90's with my children.
Wash them in hot water, then rinse them with vinegar, then rinse them again. I always just started my washer over without anything in the water, so they went through the hot rinse and then the cold. I dried them both on the line outside and in the dryer.
It is much cheaper especially if you don't have to buy the diapers, as they grow. Check the sizes on the ones you have. We used to fold them to fit but our grandson's are sized and "prefolded?"
God bless you
K. SAHM married 39 years =-= adult children 38,33, and twins 19

yes, they should be fine. but you may want to wash and dry them with what you already use for your laundry. I would say to avoid fabric softener for cloth dipes. I don't think fabric softener is good for cloth dipes because I think it lessens the absorbablity of them.

K.,
Go for it. Find someone who sells covers and you're good to go.
Good luck,
M.

Hi,
I cloth diapered my daughter and I would highly recommend it!
I did all the laundering myself as my daughter came early and i was not yet set up with the diaper service. After a few weeks of doing it myself, I realized its not really any extra work- whats one extra load of Laundry every 3 days?
My daughter potty-trained at 18 months because the diapers allowed her to feel wet and she understood that if she want to stay dry she should go on the potty. now at 2 yrs old she only uses a diaper over night ( I am sure she could go without but I feel she is too young to worry about bladder control in the night) and she swears that the cloth are more comfortable then when we occasionally use a disposable (on vacations and such).
Cloth was so much better for her skin and overall health, not to mention the great environmental benefits!
We switched from cloth prefolds with a cover to Haute Pockets and Happy Hienys one size pocket diapers and would highly recommend them. They fit from birth to toddler and are very long lasting and easy to wash.
To wash we do a wet pail with a little bit of vinegar (skip the vinegar if your daughter is prone to rashes as it might be irritating). then every few days we do a cold prewash followed by a warm wash with a small amount of detergent and than a cold rinse. We have had no problems with staining and the diapers hold up well.
Good Luck and If you have any questions, let me know!