It's not too late, re: CDing
Bride2bMO
member
Man, I always miss the discussions. But in case any of you are thinking about it and thinking that ship has sailed, I just wanted to mention that we just now started (2 weeks ago) and as you can see, DS is nearly 10 months old.
I know we'd all like to think our cuties will be potty-trained early, but most kids I know IRL are closer to 3 when it happens. There is still loads of time to recoup your money.
The thing that finally pushed me to try (after months of lurking on EFF and thinking about it) was dealing with constant irritation on DS's bum. Even though I've tried a wide range of CDs over the last 2 weeks, they all do better on his skin. I haven't applied a single drop of ointment, and the skin on his bum is now just as healthy as the rest of him.
Plus, it's fun and cute. DH was not on board at all, but a few cute diapers turned him right around.
I'm sorta lazy (did I just say that out loud?). So if I can do it, I'm pretty sure anyone can.
Re: It's not too late, re: CDing
I agree about the rash. Unfortunately we only CD part time since daycare isn't on board yet(I'm working on it but she seems overwhelmed) and he tends to get rashy during the week. By Monday morning, it's all cleared up from being in CDs all weekend.
Yay!
I would like to take some credit for getting Summerly to switch over.
I just posted below, but I agree that it is never too late.
Good for you! We didn't start cd till ds was about 4 months old (we were sent a weird batch at first), but we love it still. And ds rarely gets diaper rash and even if he does, a little airing out of the bum and it's usually gone by the next day!
Oh, and I don't care if you get started late and buy enough to last you 2-3 days AND build your stash out of goodmamas or the like. My guess is you will STILL save money in the long run.
Cloth is great
Ah-ha! Well, then I have you to thank, too!
Awww!
Awww, lots of love in this thread.
My DH loves CDing. I won him over on the cost and now he's totally fine with it. He even helps me stuff them sometimes. My babes have never had a diaper rash.
I know, the up-front is kind of getting me.
Well, if you used prefolds, and got enough for about 8 diapers a day (unbleached PFs are $1 at cotton babies), washing every 3 days, and got like 5 Thirsties covers...let me see...that's roughly $90. If you used a diaper pail you already had and used old pillow cases for liners then you save there. So add in maybe $10 for some snappis or diaper pins and some a couple doublers, that would take you to about $100 for a very basic system to wash every 3 days. Even less if you bought used.
I'm not sure how to factor in increased energy costs.
The nice thing about prefolds is that you could buy one or two to try without feeling too wasteful if you don't like them.
BFP 5/07 - Kylie born 2/08. BPF 2/09 - Alexandra born 10/09.
TTC since 8/13 - diagnosed difficulty conceiving due to LP defect. Took vitamin B and Vitex Berry to help lengthen.
BFP 2/14 - Missed M/C found at 8.5 weeks. D&C at 9w2d. Partial Molar Pregnancy.
BFP 11/14
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Bride2bMO makes a good point. The only thing I would change is how many covers you would need. We only have 3 and that's plenty (for an older baby). I'd definitely have more for a smaller baby who poos all the time. And of course it depends on how many diapers in your stash actually require covers. Anyway, you can reuse them as long as they don't get poo on them and let them air out between uses. Throw a few in the wash on laundry day (every 2-3 days anyway). No, pfs are probably not the absolute easiest option, but I like mine and I know a lot of girls love theirs b/c they're super cheap, easy to take care of, and reliable.
I definitely recommend the Jillian's trial. There is an upfront cost associated with it, but I've found it worth it in the long run. I only wish we'd started sooner so we could save even more money
If you were really interested in CDing, you could buy a little here and a little there. There is no reason that you have to make the purchase all in one sum, or make the change all at once. I built my stash up diaper by diaper over the course of my pregnancy.
Also, you can buy used CD's on www.diaperswappers.com That is where 90% of my stash has come from. It saves you TONS of money on great diapers, and makes the whole thing that much more eco-friendly. (Re-using is one of the 4 R's-Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and ReThink)
I agree, I'm just starting also, and Summerly has been extremely helpful!
Awww, there IS a lot of love in this thread. I like it
Bride2bMO First of all, your DS is SO CUTE! What Beautiful Eyes!!
My DD has been in Pampers for almost 11 months and (knock on wood) has never had diaper rash, blow out, leak, or any of the annoyances people seem to talk about with sposies.
But, you are probably the first person to make me THINK about trying CDs. I think it was the lazy comment.
How has washing been? What type do you use?
I'll answer if that's ok
Washing really isn't a big deal. We wash every 3rd day now. I do a cold pre-rinse with detergent (this gets rid of the ickies), followed by a hot wash with detergent. Some do another rinse. I do not. Then you either throw in the dryer or line dry. I line dry some of my dipes b/c obviously they will hold up better in the long run. Totally not necessary though.
You will need a CD safe detergent. We use Crunchy Clean, which I can't say enough good things about (a fab EFF nestie makes it). I'd say 90% of us on the EFF board use it
As far as what kind of diapers we use; we use a combination of pfs (from Green Mountain Diapers) and Thirsties covers, some fitteds (Goodmamas and Mutts) and pockets (the ever-popular BumGenious, Blueberries, Haute Pockets and KCKs).
Yay!
Thanks for getting back to me! For a CD virgin such as myself, which CD would be the best to start with? Something that will make me love these things?
I actually bought a HE washer before Yanna was born just in case I decided to go this route. I am thinking that it can do everything in one with setting it to a prewash a sanitizing program and then finish off with an extra rinse? I think if I have to keep going back in order to keep washing the same wash that I will not stick with it.
Keep the information coming, I am about to go shopping. I will just tell my husband later...
Would you consider the Jillian's Drawers trial? That way you can try out a few different kinds of CDs before making much of a commitment. The absolute easiest CDs (imo) are pockets or AIOs (all-in-ones). For pockets, I LOVE my Blueberries and BumGenious are always a very popular option. For AIOs, a lot of people like the the ones BG offers. I also have a Thirsties AIO that I like.
I think it's always a good idea to try out a few different kinds of CDs. It's also a good idea (imo) to have several different diapers in your stash b/c certain diapers will work better for certain purposes. In other words, don't build your whole stash out of one diaper.
As for the HE machine, I don't have one so I don't know a lot about it