To cloth or not to cloth...

SitinPrety717

Hi ladies.  I am not sure if anyone has thought this far in afvance, but I wanted to see if any FTM (like myself) or STM (and beyond) are interested in/already cloth diaper.  DH and I are very interested in both cloth diapering and cloth wipes.  Let me know your feels/experience

Thanks!!

KingLED

@chickpea912

MamaTree17

We cloth diapered our DD until she was 4 months. That is when she went to daycare and they won't cloth diaper so it didn't make sense financially to buy the one-size cloth diapers for only nights and weekends (up until 4 months she was in the newborn sized cloth diapers). We loved cloth diapering and it was so easy especially at that stage. She was breastfed so her poops didn't smell at all so it was NBD. I don't know how well I would have done had the daycare not been a deterrent to stop and I had to deal with the solid food stuff. That said, we're on the fence with #2. I have all the newborn diapers still so could do the same thing - cloth until daycare - but since DD will still be in disposables I wonder if it's just easier to put them both in them.

Skeemer

We CD'd our DS2 from birth & are still using CD's. There is a CD board on here somewhere that you can probably get a lot of help from. I used to be a part of another forum on a regular basis & the CD board there is where I learned everything I know about CDing.

DH & I both work full time & have since DS2 was born. CDing has been a great choice for our family & we saved SO much money. Be prepared for very few people to be on board with you. You'll get lots of eye rolls & lots of "You'll never stick with that" but now the very same people tell us "Wow, you guys have really saved a ton of money!" Now that DS2 is older & his bladder is bigger we do buy some disposable diapers to keep him dry when we go to town or when he goes to sleep.

We used -

Green Mountain Diaper prefolds paired with Thirsties Duo Snap covers (the velcro ones are crap IMO)

Alva Baby pocket diapers

Sunbaby pocket diapers

We use only Tide original powder to wash his diaper laundry. He got ammonia burn from us using other detergents. Not sure why, it just happened. We use coconut oil on his bum & also Target brand Desitin & Butt Paste. We cut fleece squares from the fabric store to lay between his bum & the dipe to keep the diaper creams from ruining his CD's. For wipes we use Dollar General brand wipes for poopy diapers & use baby wash cloths with a spray bottle of water for tinkle diapers. Plenty of people use cloth wipes for both but DH prefers to throw away the messy wipes. We did not have a diaper sprayer with DS2 but plan to buy one for this baby. Doing one more load of laundry a week didn't phase us. Knowing we weren't throwing away tons of money was a huge factor to us. GL!

nunzchucks

@skeemer Is it worth it to CD #2 if you aren't planning on a third? We use disposables now, but I'm open to CD.

JNerd

We cloth diaper - we use Bum Genius Organic All In Ones - simply because they are super simple to use - no extra steps - no more complicated than a disposable. 

They are really amazing, DS is nearly 17months old and has had 1 diaper rash his whole life. 

We got a diaper sprayer which works great, just wash with the CD detergent (important to use real stuff - other detergents can impact absorption) and sun bleach in the summer.

These have snaps so they adjust to fit your baby - both distance around and up and down. They are the only ones we have used. 

We have 18 of them and that is a good number for us. These were about $30 each, so it was a bit upfront, but before DS was a year they totally paid for themselves. Plus, he is really happy in them and is starting to talk with us about not liking being wet - which will help with toilet learning. 

emandjp

We CD and we honestly love it! DD is 15 months old and has been in CD since day 1. I'd say, for us at least, the only "hard" part was figuring out which detergent worked best for our water (we have extremely hard water). Each stage has its own learning curve but it's really easy. Most of our family and friends said that we were crazy to do it and even thought we would quit but they are all believers now! We don't use cloth wipes, and not for any particular reason, we've just really liked Seventh Generation wipes. I have to say its really nice not to have to buy diapers ever and that we already have diapers for #2. We spent around $600 on all of our stash and that's a great deal compared to the thousands we would have spent on disposables. Not to mention the waste disposables create.

Mamacarly

We have used CD with DS since birth (he is now 13 months). And we love it (as much as anyone can love dirty diapers that is)! We also both work full time and got MANY comments before hand on how gross and time consuming it would be - its neither. You'll be changing diapers and doing laundry anyway! Fortunately, we did have some support from family members who are also using CD's, so we knew what we were in for.

We use BumGenius 4.0 pocket diapers. We will be buying more for Baby #2...which kind of negates my initial thought that we could buy 1 set and use for 2 kiddos, but oh well, its still a HUGE cost savings!

Also, we use Allens Naturally detergent. I buy it online, its about $40 per gallon, but I'm only part way through my 2nd gallon. You use less than 1 oz per load, and it ends up being super affordable, like 5-10 cents per load or something (less expensive with HE washer)!

 

Finally, we use in-home day care for DS, and interviewed SEVERAL before choosing one. ALL of them were ok with cloth diapers! I think sometimes centers are pickier about accepting them, and once you explain how easy it is and that its JUST LIKE a regular diaper, they generally get some relief.

hollyfp

I'm starting to research too because I think I want to do it.  Some of the links I have saved so far -

https://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2012/04/25/7-tips-for-the-cloth-diapering-newbie-guest-post/

https://www.greenbeanbabies.com/pages/cloth-diapers-101

https://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2012/04/24/cloth-diaper-review-whats-the-best-cloth-diaper-for-you/

https://www.theclothdiaperreport.com/cloth-diapering-101

lifeisbetteronthered

We CD our DD from shortly after birth (waited for her umbilical stump to fall off). It makes a lot of sense for our family. We have saved tones of money, I remember when we calculated that by 3 months we had already broken even, and everything after has been "free". We use slightly more expensive diapers (AMP OS Duos and SAHMs), but find the fit, etc makes it worth it.

We use tide powder in a front loader (I wish we had a top loader) and do diaper laundry every 3 days now. We haven't found the increase in laundry to be a big deal.

I know a family that CD their 3rd, but used disposables with their first 2. They will not be having a 4th and it still has saved them money.

It's not for everyone, but most of us who do it are very happy with their decision. We look forward to CDing this baby, and enjoying the savings.

rmjones15

I CDd with my first until he was 2. I loved it. I used prefolds for 6 months and then switched to Kawaii diapers (you can find them on theluvyourbaby.com). A friend told me about them because they were cheaper, and I ended up loving them.

I used disposable wipes, but this time I am looking into using cloth. If you search around Pinterest you can find tons of great recipes for DIY wipe solution. I have lots more info, feel free to pm me! I love a good convo on cloth diapers!

k2k2tog

I've done a little research and have more or less decided I'd like to give cloth diapers a try. I'll be looking into prefolds though. They take a little more finesse, but from what I've read, once you know how to fold them and secure them, they take no more work and are significantly cheaper, even with the added price of a few diaper covers, than fitted ones.

That said, I have zero practical experience. Perhaps the fitted are worth the price?

MNOpea

We CD our 17m old. Our stash is mostly made up of fuzzubunz os elites, but we have a couple fuzzibunz perfect size mediums and we use kawaii goodnight heavy wetters for overnight. I love cding! We use Charlie's soap which works really well for us but I know some people don't like it. We do have a diaper sprayer, and we do cd laundry every other day even though I have a large stash (44 diapers). I will just be splitting my stash when #2 gets here. One thing I would suggest is doing a diaper trial to see what you like best. While I do like our diapers I had bought 36 fb os elites before DS was born so that didn't leave me much room to try other brands etc

Eta: we use cloth wipes as well. I bought them off etsy but if you can sew you could easily make them yourself. I make my own wipe solution in a spray bottle and just wet wipes as I need them

rmjones15

@sempre_staccato from my experience, prefolds are easy until the baby gets wiggly. I really struggled to wrangle my son into a prefolds and a cover after about 6 months, which is why I switched. For a mom starting out, I would buy a couple different options and see which one works best, before you invest in an entire system.

nicolinab

We our pregnant with our first, and plan to use cloth. My husband has (adorably) been researching all the options and reading reviews of brands. I was a cloth diaper baby (1 of 4!) and babysat twins in cloth. Back then, it was the kind you have to fold, pin, then pull the plastic diaper cover up over... things sure have come a long way!

arekeweg

We too plan to CD.  I have pinned some stuff on Pinterest but otherwise will be brand new to it and will admit I am a bit nervous but figure I have plenty of time to figure it out.

littlemonstermama

We do it about half time. We use Fuzzibunz with MF inserts and tide detergent. We went through a rough patch from 6-12 months because she was taking in so much fluid and was a heavy wetter. We were doing so much laundry because she kept peeing through. It's much better now that she's fully on solids.

girl-23

I cloth diapered my boy from birth (he potty trained at 2) and will cloth this little one as well. I have a cloth diaper blog too.

Skeemer

@LilNunz1 We estimate we spent approx. $700 on our CD stash. On average it takes approx. $2,500 to diaper a child in disposables from birth to potty training. Also, many cloth diapers have great resale value. I know Green Mt. Diaper prefolds have excellent resale value.

CDing this newborn will be nearly free for us (we need a few more covers for our prefolds) since we have saved all of DS2yrs diapers.

Gigi8212

My dd is 15 months and has been in CD since she was 5 weeks. I will be doing CD with the new baby too, however I plan to start at birth this time. I have to have a c section this time around, so in consideration of the recovery time, I will likely just do a diaper service for the first 8 weeks so I don't have to worry about all the dirty diaper laundry a newborn creates!

I absolutely love CDing, but it does take some effort. I wash about 3 times a week and have probably 70+ diapers (not necessary for one child, I just had an addiction for awhile). I prefer WAHM fitteds (Twinkie tush) while my husband prefers Bum Genius.

My best advice would be to do your research beforehand and realize that you may try a few brands before you find one that works best for you.

Skeemer

rmjones15 said:

@sempre_staccato from my experience, prefolds are easy until the baby gets wiggly. I really struggled to wrangle my son into a prefolds and a cover after about 6 months, which is why I switched. For a mom starting out, I would buy a couple different options and see which one works best, before you invest in an entire system.

^ This. Buy a few different kinds before you settle on a brand. Some babies are tall, short, thin, chunky, big & etc. What fits my son nicely may not fit yours.

Skeemer

hampire said:

My mother asked me about this yesturday. She had wanted to help buy a crib but a coworker is giving us one so she offered to help with a cd stash. I really want to do it but I'm concerned about whether or not the day cares here would allow it. I guess I should email around.

A lot of times if you actually go to the daycare with pocket diapers & a wet bag & show them that they have nothing to do except stuff the diaper in the bag instead of the trash...they'll likely cave. At least I've heard great results with this approach from other CD moms who daycare. GL!

mom2be614

I love cloth! We cloth-diapered my daughter from about two weeks old through potty training. I used mostly prefolds and covers for the first several months, then we settled on pocket diapers for the remainder. I liked PFs a lot, but DH didn't, and we didn't want to put that on daycare. That being said, we had no trouble getting any of our childcare providers on board with cloth (daycare, church, the Y). 

If I were a SAHM, I'd probably stick with prefolds and covers as they are cheaper and longer-lasting. We had one brand of one-size pockets (Kawaii) that didn't last the full three years, and two diapers that won't make it this next time around. I think the rest of our stash will last for a second child, though.

I think the cost-savings may be negligible for one kid if you go with pocket diapers (although the environmental factor is important to me, too), but for two kids or more, it's definitely worth it. Keep in mind, too, that there's a robust resale market for cloth diapers, so even if you only use them with one kiddo, you could probably get back some of the money you put in.

mom2be614

Also, I definitely do NOT recommend cloth if you don't have a reliable washer/dryer in your home. We had a six-week period of having a broken washer, and it was almost enough to make me quit. I would not want to try cloth-diapering and using a laundromat.

chickpea912

Looks like a lot of ladies are already CDing or are considering it - YAY!  I'm a huge proponent of this.  We CD'd our first from birth until she PL'd - she PL'd at 2, and has been wearing undies at night for about 9 months now.  I have a bin of her old CDs and have been buying a few cute ones here and there.

There is a LOT of choice out there and it can be overwhelming.  I'm always happy to talk it out if anyone has questions - I've used pretty much every kind out there.  LOVE cloth.  DH and I both work full time and we made it work for us - if you're dedicated to doing it, I guarantee you won't feel like it is a terrible burden.

mrs_drc_rn

I'm so glad this thread was started! I'm a FTM and have been considering using CD to help with costs (DH is a college student so we're on a budget). Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences, I really appreciate the information!

ncbelle

I cloth diapered both babies from birth to PTing and will again.  It's awesome!  Never a blow out; rarely a leak (and usually that was an ill fitting diaper issue).  Neither kid ever had a rash either.  

chickpea912

LilNunz1 said:

@skeemer Is it worth it to CD #2 if you aren't planning on a third? We use disposables now, but I'm open to CD.

I think it is.  In addition to the benefit to the environment (just google how long it takes for disposable diapers to degrade), it is way cheaper.  Even if you go hog while and buy really expensive diapers, it's still a fraction of the cost of disposables (in terms of monetary cost).  The laundry cost is honestly negligible.  I think my water bill and electricity bill went up $5 a month, if that.

We did home day cares, and as someone said before, I just brought a wet bag in and our pocket diapers, and showed how easy it was, and I didn't have a single provider tell me they wouldn't do it.  Once they see they aren't deal with large flat diapers and pins, they tend to be okay with it.

akp0709

When I was pregnant with DS2 I spend many hours in research about this. I really (REALLY!) wanted to and DH was on the fence. I ended up making a spreadsheet with all the costs of cloth diapers from birth to potty trained and then again with disposables. I included initial costs of AIO (all in one diapers) replacement parts for the bumgenius 4.0, cost of washing, diaper sprayers, detergent, etc. The difference in prices was less than $1,000 over the course of 3 years. I, of course, recommend that you do the same research. You might come up with different results. If cost is your only motivation to CD, you might not get the saving you had hope for as one all-in-one diaper is about $15-17 a piece. 

HIGHLY recommend Cloth Diapering 101 on you tube. It's a 7 part series but is very informative. 

If you stay of the fence, you can do a cloth diaper trial for $10 through Jillian's Drawers 

https://jilliansdrawers.com/products/clothdiapers/tryclothfor10/tryclothfor10

The ONLY reason I decided to not CD was because it was going to be such an investment and we thought DS2 was our last kid. But don't get discouraged! It can be confusing but the CD board ladies are really sweet! GL!  

jckeown89

No experience with cloth diapering, but the savings alone has my husband and I convinced. We have also had friends suggest this as the way to go. I have already picked a system after research. We will be using bumgenius 4.0.

1982Babies

I want to do it because of the savings in the long-run, the impact on the environment and the fact that I won't have to run to Walmart at 3 am for disposables!

MississippiCatfish

I do off and on with my little one. I'll be honest, I get tired of the stink, spraying poop, and getting the sopping wet sprayed diapers from the toilet back to the wet bag, knowing that I probably have poop on me and the surrounding area. I also hated how funny (huge) his butt looked when he was less than 3ish months. I've probably CD half of LO's life. We've also been away from home for three months, so I didn't want to bring them with me across the country to a hotel. Actually doing the extra couple loads of laundry each week never really bothered me though.

I also tried everything under the sun and was not able to find a way to CD at night without giving my son huge skin issues: bamboo, hemp, cotton, microfleece. I think that's all I tried, but the few times I tried overnight he woke up with redness, twice it was open and slightly bleeding. I couldn't put him through it to keep trying.

I would echo PPs - don't go crazy and buy all one kind before LO arrives!

With that said, I have a feeling I'll do it in spurts again with this little one, especially in the beginning when you don't have to spray BF poop!!

ETA I'm an idiot. My main reason for posting was to share this awesome cost comparison! It usually saves quite a bit (although I think they way overestimate the cost of disposables if you're buying store brand).

https://diaperdecisions.com/pages/cost_of_cloth_diapers.php

Yasm33na

I'm excited to use cloth diapers. I plan to always have a stash of disposables for when we go on long trips or drop them off at Grammies but as long as we're close to home, I'm CDing. My family all says I'm nuts for it and my MIL even laughed at me and called it a stupid idea. Luckily, DH stood up for me and told her it's not her business since she's not the one who'll be changing the baby. I'll definitely go check out the cloth diapering forum if there is one, I'd love to know more.

Skeemer

Yasm33na said:

I'm excited to use cloth diapers. I plan to always have a stash of disposables for when we go on long trips or drop them off at Grammies but as long as we're close to home, I'm CDing. My family all says I'm nuts for it and my MIL even laughed at me and called it a stupid idea. Luckily, DH stood up for me and told her it's not her business since she's not the one who'll be changing the baby. I'll definitely go check out the cloth diapering forum if there is one, I'd love to know more.

Don't ya just loooove supportive family like your MIL? Good for DH!

As far as I'm concerned everyone should do what's best for their family. If I don't like at your house & pay your bills than I don't get a say in what you do.

Gigi8212

Yasm33na said:

I'm excited to use cloth diapers. I plan to always have a stash of disposables for when we go on long trips or drop them off at Grammies but as long as we're close to home, I'm CDing. My family all says I'm nuts for it and my MIL even laughed at me and called it a stupid idea. Luckily, DH stood up for me and told her it's not her business since she's not the one who'll be changing the baby. I'll definitely go check out the cloth diapering forum if there is one, I'd love to know more.

When I decided to CD, everyone thought I was nuts! There was not really anyone that encouraged me, and most people seemed skeptical that I would see it through. It honestly didn't bother me though because I had done so much research and I had a pretty good idea of what to expect.

StacyH0507

We really want to and I already have some diapers from friends, but the childcare we will use does not allow them so then I will do them at night and at home and use honest diapers for childcare. I really hate the chemicals of disposables and want to avoid them as much as I can. 

christinemurray91

Honestly, I was interested until my sisters started doing it. Now I have absolutely zero interest in ever cloth diapering.