Considering Cloth Diapers

Hi. I don't know were to start. I had 2 kid a while ago and they were both in cloth from the start. You have really just 2 ways to go. the wrest is just frosting. A service were they pick up and deliver or the you wash. Either way get the prefolded and pay close attention to what you close them with. a good set of outer (plastic) pants. you can also find extra thick inserts for over night. Just remember, some things are worth really thinking about and worrying over and some are just "bite the bullet and do it".

We started with cloth diapers. They were WONDERFUL. These are the ones we got, and I LOVED them: http://www.mother-ease.com/database/scripts/store_product...

When we had our second son (first was 18 months), husband became a SAH dad. *HE* decided that 2 was too many for cloth, and he went to paper. I made the mistake of deciding it was his decision (since he was the one at home) rather than sticking to my guns. Sigh. Worst mistake ever.

Not just because of the cost of paper diapers, which is high and continuing, or the problem to the environment, which still bugs me, but because of potty training! At 18 months DS1 was ALREADY telling me that his diaper needed changing, and looking to everyone like he was going to be easy to potty train. Then we put him in paper and that went away. He is almost 4.5 and we JUST got him potty trained for urine and he STILL poops in his pants. It's like we TRAINED him to be comfortable in a full paper diaper. DS2 is almost 3 and hasn't even started potty training. URGH.

I recommend the cloth diapers, for so many reasons. I applaud you for this choice. And I recommend the diapers we used, which were WONDERFUL: soft terry cloth with plastic snaps, strategically placed so that one-size fits all (newborn to older) and an extra snap in liner for night time.

BTW, washing was easy. Have a bucket next to the washing machine with water and Borax (another earth-friendly product). Either use disposable liners (you can find some bio-degradable ones) or make sure the solids go into the toilet, then put the diapers into the bucket. When you're ready to do laundry (at least every other day) you dump the whole bucket into the washing machine and it's started. Easy.

Good luck!

P.S. One thing to know: when you change to cloth diapers, you will have to go up a size for pants/shorts etc. to allow for the room. Or just stick to dresses <grin>.

Hi M.,

Have you checked out gDiapers yet? We have been using them for our little one and love them. they are a great mix of cloth and disposable. They are a 3 part system: cloth cover (reusable/washable), nylon liner (reusable/washable), and insert (disposable). The insert is biodegradable, can be flushed, or even composted.
gDiapers are great because you can toss the dirty part and not have to carry around dirty diapers. And they are better for the environment than traditional disposables. Check them out at www.gdiapers.com
Good luck and feel free to ping me if you have any questions about gdiapers.

I received a month's service of diaper service as a baby shower gift and LOVED it! Kept it going after the first month because it was so great to put such softness on my twins behinds! And with the diaper service...there was no muss or fuss. I didn't do any cleaning...they picked up the messy bucket once a week and delivered me clean diapers. Drawback...you have to change diapers more often since the urine isn't being "wicked" away the same as disposable. But who cares...I think it was worth it. A divorce forced me back to work before they turned six months old. I could not find anyone willing to watch my kids and use cloth diapers...it was like it was an alien thing. So they used cloth with me and disposable with child care. They didn't get their first diaper rash until disposable diapers came into the picture. Don't get me wrong...disposable are a Godsend in many scenarios...but as a personal choice...I will take cloth anyday :) Try a diaper service though...takes alot of the work out of it for you!

I considered it too, but the chemicals diaper services use to sanitize the diapers are extremely harsh on sensitive skin. My daughter had chronic rash due to it. So I now buy chlorine-free biodegradable diapers. Seventh generation makes them and they are great. They are still disposible, but are eco-friendly. If you decide to go with cloth diapers, then I recommend you launder them yourself. Good luck.

We use cloth. It's great. Super easy and we have a service that costs the same as if we were to use disposables. Dydee Diaper service out of Pasadena. You just have to get 4 covers to rotate but no need for pins. The covers use velcro tabs and you can get different styles or even make your own. Call the service and they will set you up - we use about 70 a week - our baby is 10 months old. We still use disposable at night since cloth does get wet easier and we don't want to change her at night and wake her up. But with the service it's about $20 a week and they take all the dirty diapers away - no washing and then they give you a bag of clean ones every week. You just have to get used to having a small bag with you when you go out and collect the dirty diapers for the day- but it is really not that bad and you are saving the environment from a pile of diapers.

I would go with the prefolded ones that have velcro on them. We were originally going to use cloth diapers but we got the basic cloths that you have to fold and pin and we got scared of poking our son since he wiggles so much when we change him. You can actually use things like vinegar and baking soda to clean them and remove most of the soils. There are also natural detergents on the market which can be found at your local health food stores. Another option is the gdiaper which has disposable liners that can be flushed or composted. The outer part of the diaper is cloth and reuasble/washable.

My daughter is now 9 but I only used cloth diapers on her. I loved it! I used a delivery service and it worked perfectly. They delivered new diapers once a week and picked up the soiled ones. You always had the same diapers returned to you until the baby outgrew them. Then you went to the next size up. They tell you not to clean out the diapers at all. I really loved the service, they didn't end up in landfills and she never once had diaper rash. I just always hated all of the chemicals that are in disposable diapers. Check your area for a service that services your area. Good luck!

I was a loyal Pampers user until I found out I was expecting twins 4+ years ago, and I made the switch to cloth when they were born, relaizing how much money it would save us. I've continued to use cloth ever since then, on the twins, my daughter who was born 2 years later, and I plan to use cloth on the new baby I'm expecting this summer. Over the long run, it really has saved us literally thousands of dollars.

There are so many different cloth diapers available nowadays . . . they've come a looooong way since the old days. I started out using prefolds and covers with my twins, and used those for the first year and a half. That is definitely the most economical way to go, at least to start out, but as the baby grows, you have to buy bigger sizes. Eventually I switched to Bum Genius one-size fits all pocket dipes (available at cottonbabies.com) - they fit from newborn to 35 pounds (and I can vouch for this). I LOVE them. Very user-friendly - just as easy and convenient as disposables. It's a big cash layout to start out, as they cost around $17 each brand new (although you can find gently used ones on eBay and diaperswappers.com), but since they truly do fit from newborn through potty training, in the long run they are still way cheaper than disposables.

Everyone who uses cloth has their favorites, so you may just have to try a few different kinds to see what you like. There are some great websites with cloth diapering reviews and resources. Diaperpin.com is one; diaperhyena.com is another; also, if you go to pregnancy.org, there is a message board forum dedicated to cloth diapering, and you can get lots of info there.

Good luck!

Hi M., Parents magazine just did an article on this and came to this conclusion. Cloth diapers cut on waste for landfills, but use up a lot of water and electricity to clean and maintain, which might not be worth it. Plus, usually when one is finished with them they end up in a landfill anyway. Also a parent must devote a lot of time to the cleaning anyway. They did suggest a disposable that uses less paper and therefore is less wastefull, but unfortuanately I do not remember what it is called. I think the author even ended up staying with traditional diapers and making his life more green in other areas. Hope this doesnt damper your spirit. I was considering switching myself, but kind of decided it wasnt worth it.

M.,
I used cloth on my two boys for over 4 years living in an apartment! If you have your own washer and dryer it is even easier! Originally I purchased everything on-line and made several mistakes; it is overwhelming and was like decoding Chinese for me. Now I am a cloth diaper master and have my own shop in Fullerton, Belly Sprout. You can go online and read one of my articles, Naturally Prepared; Cloth Diapers, easier than you think. I have simplified the whole process and at the store we walk you through the change to cloth. From personal experience at the shop I can tell you that we have switched more people to cloth just by the bumGenius One-size diapers (pocket diaper), which are the most modern and easiest way to start cloth. Once using them the parents will come in to trouble shoot with items like hemp liners and disposable liners. We carry everything form the diaper to the detergent and give you the hand-out as well. With bumGenius you wash on hot and dry on high; that's it! You will need as many diapers as you change in a day and calculate that by how often you want to wash (every day or every 2 days). The diapers can be stored in a plastic trash can, so nothing fancy. Cloth can save you up to $2,000, is safer for the planet, and MUCH better for your baby. Plus you can re-sell them when you are done! I hope this helps and check out the site!

I do not have much info for you but want to applaud you for choosing to be more ecofriendly!

I have done the same in many ways in my home and garden. We are out of diapers now...

I got overwhelmed with that too. Some say it was better others say it is better to get biodegradable diapers...because of the products needed to clean the diapers is harsher on the environment than the disposable. Have you ever gone to www.diapers.com? I think they have some there.

If you google cloth diapers or google green diapers stuff like that you may get some good info.

But I bet with the wise mommas here you will get great responses.

Hello M.

I'm in the process of switching over to cloth for my 4 month old son. I agree that it's completely overwhelming, which is why I put if off this long.

I started with a company called www.jilliansdrawers.com where they offer a trial package of cloth dipes for 21 days. You give them a $100 deposit and if you send them all back, they return $90 of it. You get an assortment of prefolds, pocket diapers, and all-in-ones....then you can decide for yourself which route is the best for you. I'm at the end of my trial and have ordered several different brands of pocket diapers. I found them to be easy like disposables, but with the removable liner, they dried more quickly. The all-in-ones seem to take forever to dry in the dryer. The prefolds are indeed the cheapest, but my SAHD husband was too intimidated by them. These are the things I never would have known had I not been able to try them myself!

My favorites are Fuzzy Bunz and the Happy Heineys. We use the Bum Genius One size pocket diaper only for nighttime because it's a little big on my tiny guy and it does not leak.

I would also recommend a washable diaper bag that hangs (I hang mine on the back of the door next to the changing table). The brand I have is Mother of Eden. All the soiled dipes go in there, then I dump the whole thing into a cold wash (no detergent), then a hot wash with detergent. Right now I don't even rinse them because my son is exclusively breastfed and that poop is water soluble. But I did order a sprayer that connects to your toilet...you spray the poop off and throw it in your bag.

I also have a Wahmies lined zip-up bag for when I'm out and about. I throw the soiled diaper in there and can run around all day without any smells. (Again, we're talking breastfed poop here!)

I also use G Diapers sometimes because it's where I started. It took awhile to figure them out, but now I think they are great. But the flushable liners are pricey. I still use them while I'm waiting for my new cloth ones to arrive and put cotton prefolds in them instead when we're around the house. A lot of people use them that way.

Once you get into a rhythm, you'll find it's not *quite* as easy as disposables, but WAY easier than you think. It feels good to not be dumping as much waste into the earth.

Good Luck and good for you for even considering it. It's such a good thing for the health of your baby and the health of the planet!