Cloth Diapering
Why do you CD vs. Disposable?
I'd like to try CD but am being met with some resistance.
My reasons to CD were to reduce waste and reduce diaper rash. I had initially thought it would be a cost saver but after much research, my preferred system - Grovia hybrid with biodegradable disposable pads - will cost the same as disposables, if not more with purchasing additional shells.
My DH and others think CD will add extra steps and complicate things at a time when we should make things easier on us.
What are your reasons for CD vs. not CD? Thanks!
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Re: Why do you CD vs. Disposable?
I chose to go with cloth diapers for the health of my baby. Because their skin is so thin, they absorb tons of chemicals in larger quantities than we do, and those chemicals have been shown to cause reproductive problems. Some people thought we were "brave" or "crazy" but if you're nursing, the poop is water soluble and it only requires an extra cold rinse in your washer before running a full laundry cycle.
Why would you want to go with the flushable/disposable pads from GroVia? I'd just wash the reusable pads...then economically you come out on top. Another thing is that there are other options out there. FuzziBunz, Knickernappies, and other pocket diapers are really easy to use, and come in One Size, so with the exception of newborn size, you only need 18-24 max, depending on how many times you want to do laundry. (daily, every other day, or every third day...with third day you'd need more, and I've read that more bacteria grows so it's safer to to every other day). There are a lot of other choices though as well. Covers with prefolds or pads (like Thirsties Duo Wraps, or the Flip system). If you diaper for 3 years (which is the average), it's over $2,000 for disposables...
Better for the environment
Healthier for my baby (less exposure to chemicals, less rash)
Cheaper (if you're using all cloth)
They are cute!
Environmental reasons.
Cheaper.
Better for baby's skin.
Fewer chemicals.
Adorable.
Better for DD
Cheaper
Never have to worry about running out of diapers or wipes
Cuter!!
I started with disposable - I did not want to learn a new baby and a new diapering system all at once! The baby was enough! At 25 weeks or so, I started to cd part time, which really means I put her in cd's and DH and day care use disposables. But really, one less disposable in the land fill and one less on her bottom is good enough for me
I didn't tell anyone I was doing it until I got the hang of it and I was met with a lot of resistance too. I think most people are picturing the old time ones that our great grandparents used. My mom was almost disgusted when I told her - until she saw them and then she was impressed!
I think any system with disposable pads will be more expensive. I use pockets personally, and for poop (since DD is luckily a fairly predictable pooper), I use liners. I like the Kushies liners.
The bottom line for me was that it is better for the environment (it does not use more water since I have never done a load of only cd's), better for the planet, and SO much better for DD. And really, what would you rather wear - soft cushie cloth, or plastic chemically treated disposables? (that is the selling point for your DH
)
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And with the delivery trifecra of one twin vaginal, one c-section with general anesthesia for twin B, Spencer and Sidney joined us at 35 weeks exactly on June 18.
DH was allergic to every brand of disposable diaper on the market. Granted, it was 30 years ago, but I don't want to risk it.
It's healthier for the baby. Quicker to potty train. Better for the environment and cheaper!!
money
better for environment
More environmentally friendly
Cheaper (both buying nappies and because we're charged for garbage by the bag)
Better for his skin
It's EASY! Anyone who says it's not has never done it. I've been using cloth for only a week and it's super simple and takes hardly any extra time.
I bet that cuts down on how much people just toss as opposed to reusing and recycling! I think we need to start doing this in the States!
Oh, and OP, pretty much the same reasons as everyone else- cute, economical, good for the environment, cute...
You wash your CDs with other clothes?
Thanks everyone.
I decided on the disposable pads as my DH will be on dipe duty initially and other family members are helping with childcare regularly. I thought the disposable pads were a happy medium between "traditional" disposables and CD and cost much much less than biodegradable diapers. I also thought I could purchase Grovia in store at my local Costco but after a visit learned I have to order online (see my other post: https://community.thenest.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/41081443.aspx). I'll take a look at some of the others you recommended.
It's cheaper for us, since we use BG OS. I've never used disposable liners, but I guess that would increase the cost. IMO, if you're going to do that, you might as well just do disposables. It's really not that big of a deal to dump poo in the toilet IMO.
Better for the environment
I don't want chemicals against her genitals.
I'm doing it for the environmental, health, and financial reasons that everyone else here listed. Oh, and WAY less blowouts.
I think most people are met with some resistance on CD by family/friends. This is just because a lot of people don't know anything about what CDs are like now (they just imagine pre-folds and safety pins). Once I showed my parents and in-laws snappis, covers, and especially AIOs, they calmed down and got with the program. It's not hard to change a cloth diaper, and Hubs and I are the only ones who wash them. I would actually imagine that the hybrid diapers with disposable inserts would be more confusing to explain to someone. With a fully CD, all you do is take it off and throw it in the hamper. What's hard about that for someone who's babysitting?
Honestly...we didn't much like the Grovia after trying them, so you might want to try a few kinds before committing to a full stash (and I haven't even opened that box of disposable liners...and doubt I ever will now. we love the cloth too much :P ) Jillian's Drawers has a diaper trial.
So far, we like BumGenius and SmartiPants and PreFolds/Thirsties (for at home)...FuzziBunz were okay.
-better for the environment (i can't justify dumping a metric tonne of plastic diapers in a landfill)
-safer for my baby's health
-it is easy to do (especially because i use kaley's soap nuts to wash which is cheap and requires no diaper stripping; plus i never fold any of the clean dipes - just pull out what i need from the clean laundry hamper!)
-they are cute!
-my baby never gets diaper rash in cloth
-we never get blow-outs
-it's cheaper in the long run
-i know i can sell the cloth diapers when i'm done with them
*Grovia is expensive. There are lots of other options! Try buying your stash second-hand from www.diaperswappers.com !
Reasons? Let me count the ways:
1. Less stuff to throw away. It kills me to throw away $20/2 weeks worth of disposable diapers. Even DH, who's not a big CD user, said it's so nice to not throw away a diaper after one use.
2. Cuteness. CDs are addictively cute
3. Ease. Really, once I started, I realized how freakishly easy CDs were. And if you get things like AIOs or pockets, it's just like using a disposable diaper.
4. Learning something new. I knew nothing about CDs. I wanted to get through the "challenge" of learning something new, figuring out the nuances, etc. I love it.
5. Cost savings. Most of my stash is used, seconds, or sale CDs, and I've sold some of DD's nb stash. The $ outlay hasn't been that much in the end.
Why does your DH thinks it will add extra steps and complicate things? If anything, you're adding a few loads of laundry a week. And you're doing that with baby laundry anyway.
4.
I started to do it because DS peed through out of every disposible. I also really like the way they look and I SAH so I feel that I should CD. I love how cute he looks in them mostly.
I would be careful with buying all Grovia. I originally bought a *** ton of g diapers. In several sizes. I hated them. They leaked and the disposible inserts are expensive. I've also tried Flip and Grobaby (old version of Grovia). I would try a few of each and see what works for you. I ended up going all cloth and using BumGenius and Smartipants and some other pockets and AIOs. They are super easy and I find less messy and or course cheaper than hybrid diapers.
I thought grobaby was my preferred system too, and when I first started with CD, thats all I had.
I've since sold them all. We now use Fuzzibunz and Bumgenius.
Its a lot of trial and error, and every baby is different. Try a few different diapers before committing to one type.
The average baby goes through 2000-3000 diapers before potty training. I personally thought it irresponsible to put that many diapers into a landfill.
I am a runner, knitter, scientist, DE-IVF veteran, and stage III colon cancer survivor.
1) Reduce waste: we live in an apartment and I'm really not fond of trekking down to the trash bin...and our trash is rationed, so cutting down was a must.
2) They're cute.
3) We've come out ahead, money-wise (wasn't convinced because we went with all pockets rather than prefolds and covers, but it's absolutely saved us money over disposables.)
4) And, because we dump solid waste in the toilet and wash diaper laundry frequently, we don't ever have smelly diaper trash which is huge in my book.