Intro & advice on what to use after the NB stage?

qtqiqi

Hi Everyone,

I have been reading through the discussion and getting lots of good advices and wanted to introduce myself. I am a STM, currently expecting #2 10/27. For DS1 we CD from NB to about 20months. We used flats/prefolds with covers for NB stage then switched to BG2.0 OS pockets (this was 6 years ago), we had major stink problems with the BG which now I realized was likely due to the microfiber and was pretty discourage and switched to disposables.

This time we are have decided to give CD one more try mostly due to how well the NB stage worked for us and for environmental reasons. I also discovered the GMD workhorses (thanks to ladies of this forum) and decided to add some for my NB stash and I think I've got the NB stash covered, please comment if you see anything that jumps out to you:

18 NB prefolds
12 NB work horses
6 yellow edge work horses
4 NB covers from before, 1 ecobum adjustable cover, and 1 Thirsties Duo

My concern is really for what to use after the new born stage and I really want to hear your thoughts it.  I want to really stay away from microfiber, and I am not a big fan of the pockets although we didn't really have any issues with leaking or anything else other than the stink last time with the BG2.0s. I like the idea of the OS approach, but the fitted workhorses seem to work so well with so many of you. How should I do it? - Thanks.

TJ1979

What about using best bottoms covers with snap in cotton/hemp inserts?  BG elementals are natural fibers also, but more pricy, and not as well loved as the old style elementals were.  I would still get some work horses and use those for overnight diapers.  Or branch out to more fun and more functional fitteds such as twinkie tush, goodmama, sustainablebabyish (sbish), etc.

mrshudson618

Have you considered flats? They are OS and have a lot of benefits.

As to your nb stash, have you really checked out those nb covers from before? 6 years is a long time, it is generally not recommended to store for more than 2-3 years at the most. Just make sure that the elastic and PUL haven't degraded. Dry rot is a real possibilty if they are that old.

qtqiqi

Thanks ladies. I looked into the twinklie tush, are they cotton? the website seemed a bit hard to navigate. definitely very cute, but seem pretty spendy...

Good point on checking the old covers, they looked fine, but I have not tried with water to test how waterproof they are...

one more questions, we have since changed from regular top load washer to maytag HE front load, will this have big impact on the washing?

TJ1979

Maybe, maybe not.  You might need to play around with it to get your routine perfect, but luckily natural fibers are more forgiving.

You'll want to do a pre-rinse with no detergent.  Then a hot wash/cold rinse cycle with CD safe detergent.  Then an additional rinse.

Pinstripes and polka dots has info on the safety of different detergents with CDs.  Keep in mind though that it does not address the efficacy of the detergent.  The best detergent for you will depend on water type (hard/soft), detergent tolerances (allergic to tide?) and preference.

You might have some issues with not getting enough water bc it's HE.  You can check your washer's user manual to find out which cycle uses the most water.

abby8279

Why don't you just stick with prefolds and workhorses after the NB stage?  If you like them and they work...

We had stink issues in the beginning.  It was a combo of microfiber and we were not doing the right routine and detergent for our machine and water.  We switched to cotton prefolds, flats, and workhorses (and a few bamboo doublers).  And got our routine and detergent right.  Now we are smooth sailing.

Nat. fibers are going to be the easiest to clean.  Flats and prefolds are going to be the surest bet to get clean.  Workhorses are good to.  I avoid anything thicker than a workhorse b/c I fear my HE FL w/ hard water would not get them clean.  And prefolds, flats, and WH work soo well for us that I don't see the reason to mix it up (unless we will need something thicker for ON later down the road).

RachelCA29

If you like flats and prefolds you could stick with those, or as @TJ1979‌ suggested, Best Bottoms with the hemp/cotton inserts are an easy solution (no stuffing pockets) and no micro fiber. Also, BBs are pretty affordable.
Or, for another no-stuff solution, you could use your flats and smaller sized prefolds in Blueberry Capri and/or Flip covers. Basically an AI2 system but if you use pad folded flats SUPER easy to wash (I much prefer using flats for this over prefolds, but I do use a tri folded prefold like this at night with a stay-dry liner).

freezorburn

Thirsties OS pockets come with a MF and cotton/hemp insert that you can use separately or together. I have a couple of their old Size 2 pockets and I still use both inserts that came with them. I can't say the same for any of my other pockets.

A few more natural fiber AIOs to consider: blueberry simplex, Grovia AIOs, Totsbots Easyfit v4.