Cloth Diapering 1.0

Hi all,

I have a few friends that have mentioned an interest in cloth diapering or are just intrigued so I thought I would give a quick overview. I am not in any way, shape, size or form a detail person so when I first started researching cloth diapers I was absolutely overwhelmed by all the information! There are so many different brands, styles, makes and models of diapers! You could spend weeks filtering through all there is out there and spend A LOT of money trying to figure out what's best. This blog entry is an attempt to simplify cloth diapering for those who are like me and either don't have the time to research for hours (we had only a week or so!), don't know anyone else who uses them or simply get bogged down in all the details like I do. First, I have written why I chose cloth diapers, and second, I am putting it in a format for what would have been most helpful for me. I hope it is useful for use as well.

To skip all the info and go straight to what I use, scroll down to What I Use in blue. To peruse a great website go to Cotton Babies. That is where most of the links on this site come from. It has everything in an easily accessible form, cloth diapering basics and you can order with free shipping. I usually get what I've ordered in one or two days with free shipping!

I do consider myself environmentally conscious to some extent, though we don't go overboard. I also like to be as natural as possible in most areas of our life - I try to do organic gardening (we don't mind holey collard greens too much) and eat as little processed food as possible and so it would only make sense to do the same with our little guy's back side. Yet, while these were considerations in choosing to use cloth diapers, the main reason was for the cost. I've read that you can spend up $2,000 for each child when using disposable diapers. Do you get that? You spend that much on something you are going to throw away! If you diapered your child for an average of 30 months in disposables, then that would average to at least $66 a month. So far we have spent far less than that on average per month including diapers, wipes, detergent, and water and power bills. Also, cloth diapers can be reused when other children come along. Also, babies that wear cloth diapers tend to be potty-trained faster. Furthermore, as Wesley has outgrown his diapers, they've come in handy as burp clothes (he needs a plethora!) and doublers. However, the amount you spend on cloth diapers could vary widely depending on the types of diapers you choose, which inevitably stems from your purpose - saving environment, ease of use, saving babies bum, or saving money.

Here is a list of the very basic items you need to use cloth diapers:

• cloth diapers :) You need anywhere from 18-30 depending on what kind of wetter your baby is. I change Wes after he wakes up from a nap and before I put him down for a nap which takes about 8 or so diapers a day.

• fasteners, if using prefolds - You can use either pins or snappis - Snappis are rubbery t-shaped deals that grab the cloth and hold it all together. Very quick and easy and no worries about poking. Pins are cheapest.

• diaper covers - you need at least 4-5 of these for most cloth diapers to keep moisture from leaking out. Again, there are a bazillion styles and kinds. The most popular are made with PUL, a waterproof fabric and fasten with snaps or Velcro. You can also find them in polar fleece and wool. The wool ones are crazy expensive but supposedly work the best.

• a diaper pail - Eric's parents gave us a basic one from Babies R Us. It seems to work fine. You can also use any kind of trash can with a lid.

• deodorizer - I've tried the disks that go in the pail, baking soda, tea tree oil and lemon oil (a few drops on a small cloth) and Lysol. I think so far I like the Lysol the best. You can get the disks at Babies R Us or order them online here.

• diaper pail liner - Someone suggested just getting camp bags from Wal-Mart. I bought two so that I could have one while the other was washing. They were about $7.00 each. So far this has been fine except I think they are losing their waterproofness. Eventually I might invest in a more official diaper pail liner like these - PlanetWise or Bummis or

• detergent - supposedly, you aren't supposed to use detergent with additives, enhancers, softeners, brighteners, etc, which includes everything you can buy in a regular grocery store except All Free and Clear. Here is a list of recommended detergents. I use Soap Nuts that friend recommended to me. So far, I like them a lot. They take a little to get used to since they don't really suds up and doesn't smell, but everything seems to be clean and fresh. Plus, they leave the diapers soft.

• a drying rack - you can dry your diapers in the dryer which I have done quite often, but I've learned that drying them on a rack in the sun has a bleaching affect, meaning that it bleaches spots and kills germs.

Here is a very basic list of the different kinds of cloth diapers you can use:

The most basic and cheapest:

• prefolds - by far the cheapest option. $1-2 per diaper - last a VERY long time, have multiple uses when babies outgrow them. You need a cover and may prefer a fastener with these.

These are a bit more sophisticated - these already have fasteners, either with snaps or Velcro.

• fitted diapers - a diaper just like a disposable that has elastic and some way to fasten them but you have to use a cover as well. Easy and cheap to make depending on the materials you use. These cost anywhere from $8-20 each.

• All-in-ones - a fitted diaper with an out material that keeps the moisture from soaking through - just like a disposable. You don't need a cover. These can be the most expensive ranging from $13-25 each.

• Pocket diapers - a fitted or all-in-one diaper that has a pocket for inserts for night time, nap time or heavy wetters.

There are a bazillion different "brands" of all-in-ones, fitteds and pocket diapers. This is where I found myself a bit bogged down. Thankfully, I have a few friends who gave me some of their favorites as a gift. One friend who has a cloth diaper sewing and service business made me some flannel fitted diapers for preemies. I loved them! They were so easy to use. I tried to make some like this but by the time I got them all made, Wes couldn't really wear them anymore. Someone else gave me a bumgenius all-in-one diaper and I love it too!

SO HERE IS WHAT I USE

Diapers -

• Indian prefolds. I initially ordered 36 preemie size. I think I could have gotten by with 24 to 30. However, as mentioned earlier, these are handy for burp cloths now and we go through them quite frequently. Next, I ordered 24 infant size. He's just about to outgrow these and so I just ordered 18 premium size. These should last us the longest. For all of these we've spent $100 in diapers in four months. For naps, I use a preemie diaper as an insert in the infant size diaper.

• BumGenius All-In-One diaper - A friend gave me one as a gift and I love it. It's organic, one size fits all and all-in-one, no cover needed. I just bought another one of these. It is pricey but if Wes can truly wear it for the next two years then it is worth it. I may buy one or two more if I find that using them at night works well.

• Disposables - We use these at night and when we go somewhere. I would eventually like to use these only occasionally and replace them with the all-in-one for night time use.

Covers - here are the kinds I've used. You need at least 4-5 covers.

• Prowraps - These have worked really well for us and don't cost very much. They only leak if Wes sleeps for a long time on his tummy. A friend gave these to us in three sizes so we saved even more that way! These fasten with Velcro at the waste and come in 6 sizes.

• Thirsties - These are shaped completely different than the Prowraps but also work really well. I use these when he takes a nap. You can tuck the prefolds into them and not use a snappi or pins. They have snaps to adjust for different sizes and Velcro at the waist. These come in 2 sizes.

• Econobum One Size - When Wes outgrows all the covers he has now I want to try these. They are the same price as the Prowraps ($8.95) but he will be able to wear them until he's potty trained.

• Dappis - I may try these as well. They are only 2 for $5.00!

Fasteners

• We have six pins and 2 snappis. I haven't ventured to use the pins yet but as the prefolds get to the edge of the sizing so that the snappis don't reach anymore, the pins may be very useful to get more wear out each size of prefold.

Cost For Basics - For the basics I've added up how much you would spend for start up. It seems a bit much at first but it is a huge savings over time. So for 24 infant Indian prefolds (for newborn to 3-4 months), 5 Econobum one size covers, 2 snappis, 2 liners and three BumGenius all-in-ones (the most expensive part!), deodorizer and Soap Nuts for 160 loads, the total comes to around $230. After the initial cost, you would have to spend around $36 to buy the premium size Indian prefolds and perhaps another package of Soap Nuts. After that, you're done! And, you can use them for your next child! Much better than $2,000! That's almost a tenth of the cost! And, even if you just used the expensive all-in-ones exclusively, that would still only cost you around $500 - $600! And again, you can reuse those with the next child if they are properly cared for.

Here are some other items you might consider buying but could use other alternatives:

• Cloth wipes - If you are like me you have the habit of throwing the wipe in with the diaper. Why not use cloth ones and just wash them along with the diapers? You can buy these Kissuluvs, or BumGenius, or, if you are handy with a sewing machine, you can make them for very cheap out of flannel. I could make 15 double layered wipes in one yard. I made about 60 which is PLENTY! I simply cut 7 inch squares, sewed two together, turned them inside out and topstitched them. These come in handy for lots other things too. They make great wash cloths or for extra soaking material in the diaper. Or you can buy baby wash cloths and use those as wipes. Using cloth wipes will also save you a lot of money!

• Wet Bag - These trendy bags help keep everything else in your diaper bag dry while using cloth diapers on the road. They are a neat idea but since we have so many Wal-Mart sacks, we use those instead, for free. Maybe one of these days, I'll get one or two.

• Fleece liner - These are used to help wick moisture away from the baby. These are also easy to make. You don't even have to sew! Just cut them to size and wala! They won't fray.

• Poop liner - This is my made up name for these. When baby starts eating solids, these liners help peel the poop away and you can flush them. I haven't used these yet. A friend had them and they seemed to work great. I read that back before such things were invented, women just cut strips of old fabric to lay in the diaper. Then, after it was used, they threw it away or washed it.

• Doublers/Inserts - These are used for times when it will be a while between diaper changes, like during naps and at night. There are many of these that you can buy or make but if you have enough prefolds you can just use those instead.

For these extras you can tack on an extra $100 over a 20-30 month period. Even if you "splurge" on these, you are saving money in the long run. If you try to cut costs by making these items, using sacks, old cloth and extra prefolds you will only spend around $25 for fabric for the wipes and fleece liners.

Washing

This might be what scares people the most. Actually, it is really quite easy. Click here for a link to washing. Here is what I do with diapers, covers, wipes, fleece liners, and diaper pail liners.

1. Wash in cold water, with or without detergent. This keeps the stains from setting.

2. Wash with detergent in hot water.

3. Rinse a second time.

4. Dry on the drying rack in the sun, or in the dryer (I don't put the diaper pail liner in the dryer.

5. If you feel it necessary, you can bleach them every few weeks or so but I haven't had to do this yet.

For poopy diapers, we either just throw the diaper in the pail without washing it out, dunk it in the toilet and swish it while flushing or rinse it in the sink. It is really not bad at all and I don't have a strong stomach at all.

I hope you have found all of this helpful and not too overwhelming.