Needing Information on Cloth Diapers...

I have a 2 1/2 yr old and a 1 month-old. We use Fuzzi Bunz and have since the beginning. I recently ordered one of their new one-size diapers and I really like it! The elastic wears out on cloth diapers, but this new FB has easily replaceable elastic. So I think I'll use small FB for the first 5 or 6 months (so it doesn't swallow her), and then use the one-size diaper until my second potty-trains.

We use Charlie's Soap (I highly recommend it) and a dry pail system (it's more sanitary than a wet pail). Tabitha gave you lots of great advice, so I'll just refer you to her post. One thing I have heard is that if you use baking soda and vinegar, you shouldn't use them at the same time b/c they just react w/ each other to produce CO2

I like cloth diapering. It's nice to the environment, but the added laundry does get tiresome. I hope you cloth diaper, and I hope you enjoy it!

I am using Bum Genius 3.0 one-size and I can't say enough great things about them. I absolutely love them. My baby was small so until she weighed about 7lbs--about the first month--we had to use disposables--but after that-they fit GREAT. Mine is 6 months old and on the second snap size. They wash really easy. I registered for mine and got them all via www.cottonbabies.com
There is a local store that sells them www.peppermint.com

They are worth the investment.

I'm cloth diapering my second. We went all the way with the first one. I would use prefolds with Bummi covers during the day. I also added rice paper liners when we started solid food. (No diaper dunking or soaking diaper pails) No leakage issues as long as the prefold is completely in the cover. I preferred these while breastfeeding. (I used some disposables for "convenience" and my kids managed to exceed the capacity of the diapers while in public...of course.) The dirty duds bag also comes in handy for bibs when solid food is introduced.

Fuzzi Bunz were great for nighttime or outings when I'd want a trimmer diaper look. They were also a great way to get Daddy on board. Now he just about brags about us cloth diapering.

I wash diapers every other day... yes, sometimes I stretch it to three days and haven't had any problems. I have a pail with a reusable liner (get two). When it's time to wash I pull out the liner and push it into the front-load washer to do a cold wash. I push the liner inside out so I'm not touching dirty diapers. The second wash I throw in the covers and do on Hot with half the recommended soap. (I'm using Charlie's Soap this time so no residue issues... residue causes stink in prefolds and leakage in Fuzzi Bunz) I usually take a big scoop of baking soda (12 lb bags at Sam's and Costco) and put vinegar in the rinse cycle. This freshens and softens the diaper. If they don't smell fresh after that, I may have to do a 3rd short wash with baking soda and vinegar. I then hang up my covers to air dry and let everything else dry in the dryer.

Any staining comes out with sunlight in 2-3 hours. It's amazing and FREE.

There was a book about diaper choices. The title escapes me, but I posted it on previous threads about this.

No, your washer will not stink. Your wash water goes the same place your toilet water goes.

And don't beat yourself up if you need to use some disposables if you are out all day on errands or shopping.

There is also Babies Bottoms and More in Farmers Branch. Check the website for hours since they aren't open all the time like Peppermint.

Oh, and I LOVE my sling from Peppermint. I'm finding it more comfortable than my Baby Bjorn type carrier. I wish I had used one for my first. I didn't know there were pretty slings so I was too snobby to look into it. If you haven't gotten one, check it out. It will make running around with 3 kids so much easier. I can take my 6 yr DD, 3 year old and 7 year old nephews to the park with baby and tow. No stroller hassles.

There's a local store in Richardson that carries some cloth diapers (Peppermint - on Plano Rd just south of Jupiter). They could probably answer some of your questions about what's involved. That way you could look at some options and actually see the stuff. They've never been pushy the few times I've been in there, so I bet they'd be willing to help.

We've been using cloth for awhile. I think it is great. If you google cloth diapers you are going to find a world of cloth that you didn't expect. www.diaperswappers.com is a great place to buy, sell, make or talk about diapers. I highly recommend trying several different styles of diapers until you find the one or two styles you like best. I love Fuzzi Bunz. I also like the fitted diapers and fleece soakers that I made. Caution: sewing your own can become addictive.
My wonderful mother-in-law bought several months worth of diaper service for us when #1 son was born. It was convenient. I didn't have to wash. I just needed to buy covers for the diapers. It was easy. When we were using the service they only had one style of diaper, the prefold. And after Mom's gift ran out, it became a bit cost prohibitive for us.
I really do prefer taking care of our own anyway. If you have a sufficiently large stash, the laundry isn't that much more work. Before I had built up my supply of diapers, I was washing them everyday. I have a pail and a wet bag for used diapers. I prefer the bag. I can be thrown into the wash with the diapers.
So far, I haven't had any big potty training issues. The biggest issue I have encountered is other people (i.e. babysitters, gramma, dad) freaking out, because they are certain that cloth is going to be hard to deal with. I find that a short demonstration cures that. My nine-year-old can change the baby's diaper. It's not that hard.
I'm sure I'm forgetting something. In any case, I hope this helps to answer your question.

I also use Bum Genius 3.0 one size and ABSOLUTELY LOVE THEM! I never thought I would cloth diaper, but now I can't see myself using disposables again. JilliansDrawers.com is also a great resource and they have a 21 day cloth diaper trial period if you are unsure of what type you would like to use. For me it is not a questions....bum genius 3.0 all the way! :)

Check out Green Baby Diaper Service. It is listed on Mamasource. April is great and very knowledgable. She can answer lots of questions and point you in the right direction. You can also look up the cloth diaper association online. The website is very informative. Another resource would be Peppermint, you can see the different choices. Good luck!
Personally, I now prefer cloth to disposable. I was doing 1/2 and 1/2 and recently went all cloth with my son. I have fewer blowouts and no diaper rash. With the right diaper covers it is just as easy as plastic and better for everyone.

We love cloth here. We started about 1 year ago and wish we had started sooner. There are tons of great diapers out there, we started with Bumgenius 3.0 then added fitted with wool to our routine. There is so much information about there it can be overwhelming. check out www.diaperswappers.com it is a boarded full of cloth diapering mommas that are very knowledgeable. Everyone is in different stages there, just thinking about, just starting out, old pro. They also have a great FSOT forum. Watch out though it can get addictive.

T.,
I am in my 60's now, all children grown and gone, but when I was a young mother, first child, (and this was right before they began marketing disposable diapers), I (being an experienced sew-er) thought ofo the idea of making my own cloth diapers. I bought lengths of colorful, printed flannel at the fabric store, and remembered that I had saved back old washcloths and worn-out t-shirts for cleaning rags, enough that I was able to use them for the filling. I cut out a shape that would work for diapers, a fitted shape, narrow enough in the crotch area to fit the baby for many months to come, with flaps on the back where it would overlap for pinning, and a front that was not quite so wide. They were beautiful and soft, and foldable. I made 3 or 4 dozen, and wound up using them for both of my first two children, a girl, then a boy, and was very happy with the experience. By then, disposables (Pampers)were appearing in the stores, and I got enamoured by the thought of not having to scrub poopy spots, store dirty diapers till I did the wash, and I switched. The disposables were all I used for the next three children, and of course, the rest is history. Most mothers in America in the past two generations have used disposables, knowing no other option. If I had it all to do over again, knowing what we now know about the environment, I'd do the cloth diapers again.
Just get a good system of keeping them till wash-day, in a non-smell tub with lid, or plastic bag, maybe a huge ziplock or something, (you can buy sweater-sized, and then wash frequently, using baking soda for deodorizer. That would be my experience.

I used fuzzi bunz - and I loved them. I bought a few on ebay, and used them when we were at home.

You may want to contact Kristi at www.hip-green-baby.com. She'd be a great resource to talk to about cloth diapering.

We are using gdiapers and I love them. Go to www.gdiapers.com and watch the video on how to use them. They are flushable so there is no smell in your house, no trash and nothing in the landfill for 500 years! I only have 2 covers and 4 plastic liners and have no problem, but my daughter is 2. I'm sure you will need more for a newborn. They have a starter pack for like $26 if you just want to see if you like them.

We loved them, but I need to sell my old ones to pay some medical bills, otherwise I'd love to save these for another kiddo. You can find some pictures here. I'll be posting them on diaperswappers.com soon to sell. http://www.flickr.com/photos/conradzone/3296514726/in/set...

I raised 3 children back (60's) when disposal dipers were almost unheard of or so expensive most could not afford them.. I kept a plastic container in the bathroom with some water and a little bleach ,this helped with any staining and odor. I would take the poopy diapers to the commode and shake them out,flush, then dip again to remove any remains of the poop. then I would place them in the container of mild bleach/water, until I had enough to wash. My daughters never suffered any type of diaper rashes and always had clean soft fresh diapers.
Also another tip, when the newborn arrives, have some soft cloth liners to place inside the diapers. I cut strips from old white sheets. Use these inside the diapers as the newborn poop sometimes really stains the diapers and you can just toss the liners.
From a 65 yr old Mom who has been there..and would recommend the cloth ones..

I used fuzzi bunz with both my boys. I really liked that brand. You might look into them.

Hi T.,

I run a cloth diaper store in Farmers Branch called Babies Bottoms and More. You can check out our website at babiesbottomsandmore.com. You are welcome to give me a call at ###-###-#### and I'd be happy to answer any questions you have. Also, I will be starting an intro to cloth diapering class on Saturdays at the store from 12:30-1 (the store is open Saturdays from 1-4). We have moved so please call for directions if you'd like to come. :)

E.

Yeah, you! Cloth diapers are cheaper, easier, more convienient, better for baby, and easier on the environment! There are so many options nowadays, as they say, "These aren't your mamas cloth diapers!"

I'll send more specific info tomorrow, but I just wanted to send along some encouragement tonight. :)

I can't wait to tell you all about it! You'll love it!

~A.

I'd like to try them someday, but now's not the time for me. I have stuff that I never used for my first that I'm trying to pass on for less than I paid. When you know what you want and if you're interested, let me know!

Good luck - there are so many adorable things available!

Someone mentioned G diapers and I wanted to add that you can actually use the covers with cloth diapers too. So,if you buy a starter kit you can use them with your cloth diapers and then just buy the flushable liners for when you need their convenience.

I also didn't rinse my poopy diapers in the toilet when my daughter was exclusively breastfed. I started out doing that and then one day missed one. I put it through the wash and it came clean. I found that just getting the solid pieces in the toilet is enough.

I used cloth diapers with both of mine. My son went to childcare and they used cloth diapers as well. The disposables where used to and from the center and home. On occasions I would use them on errands. The diapers had a liner that was used to catch the poop that was picked up and flushed away. My kids did not have rashes on their bottoms from the cloth or wetness. I worked full time with my son and did diapers every three days with no smell in the house. Washing diapers was not the hard to do just make sure you rinse them before putting them in the pail and then do a rinse cycle before washing to make sure any left overs are removed before washing. In fact I ran across two of the diapers the other day that are 36 years old and boy and they soft. The other S. PS The diapers in my day were flat or some prefold but at least you could change the size of the diaper to go with the size of the child and not have to buy several sizes.

T.,

Congrats on the new baby! I started using cloth with our third and I wish I'd used them with the first two kiddos! We have bum genius one size diapers and LOVE them. never have leaks and they're so easy. I wash with mountain green laundry detergent and borax and white vinegar. One cold wash and one-two hot washes in my front liner. I ordered a case of the detergent online when she was born and am still only half through it a year later, and borax and white vinegar from sams are super cheap too. I would never go back. We'll be buying some extras to stretch the stock for our 4th on the way! :) Good luck and congrats on a great decision for your baby and the earth!

K.

I'm going to second the gdiapers suggestion. We started using them when our son was 6 months old and LOVE them! You won't spend time rinsing poop out of cloths (time-consuming, especially w/3 kids), yet you're not contributing to the landfill. We flush the poopy diapers w/out any problems, and put the wet ones in the compost. We bought our starter kits at Whole Foods, and get our refills auto-shipped from Amazon, with a 15% discount. What I like most about them is how dry my son stays...the gdiapers wick the moisture off of him better than cloth or disposables can. Good luck!!

I've been using Indian prefolds and Thirsties covers since my now-8-month-old DD was 1 month old. I wash every day or every other day and have few smell problems in her room. Until we started solid foods, I didn't rinse the diapers at all (she was exclusively breastfed). Now that she's on solids, I just dunk the poopy ones in the toilet to get off what I can. I hang my diapers outside and the sun takes out most of the poop stains. We just recently started using a Snappi and it seems to have really helped contain the poop leaks (wish I'd known about them sooner!). I've bought mine (recently) from Abbie at momsmilkboutique.com. She's very helpful if you want some advice.

I'd be happy to share any more advice if you have any questions.

My daughter is 24. I used cloth diapers because she had horrible problems with diaper rash when I used disposables. I bought 5 dozen diapers...4 dozen daytime and 1 dozen night time. I had a 2 diaper pails in the bathroom that I filled 1/3 full of water and borax. You can buy flushable liners that make it easier to get rid of solid waste. I would rinse her diapers in the toilet and put them in the borax solution. I washed diapers every other day. At that time I had an Italian front load washer that heated its own water. If I set it on hot, the water was scalding to touch. I did not use bleach on the diapers, only Dreft and borax. I line dried her diapers whenever possible and the exposure to sunlight completed the bleaching process. I timed washing her diapers to my husband's arrival home from work. He would entertain her and I would hang diapers on the line. I never found the cloth diapers inconvenient or a problem and my daughter no longer had any diaper rash. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I'm sure there are numerous improvements out there that make it even easier to use cloth diapers. I did use disposables when we were out or on vacation. Good luck and have fun.

Try Diaper Swappers.com I hope that is right.

Pepermint Baby Boutique (www.peppermint.com) not only sells cloth diapers, but offers a cloth diapering workshop. Another good website is diaperpin.com .

I've used FuzziBunz, and while they are easy to use, the elastic tends to wear out. Certain "batches" of FB seem to have this problem. Not nice when you are paying so much for a diaper! So I may look into something else, but I do think that for me, pocket diapers are the way to go.

Hi T....congrats on your new baby, I wish I'd had a third!

My experience with cloth diapers wasn't good...they're just too gross & inconvenient, especially when you're out somewhere...or traveling. You have to wrap the diaper in a plastic bag, then open up that bag hours later...it was all just too much for me. Dumping the poop in the toilet and saving all the wet, dirty, stinky diapers till the service guy came...or washing them yourself...I would never do it again.

My baby had more rashes from sitting in the wet cloth, the disposable ones are so much better for the baby, and kept mine so much dryer, especially overnight.

So, there's my 2 cents...good luck!

S.