Lots of questions...

soontobeByrne

Ok, I really want to do this and be successfull!  So, I have some questions...

1.  DD sleeps through the night and working full time with two kids, we all need our sleep...will cd's mess this up?  What brands/types are best for night time.

2.  I thought this was all suppose to be organic or is green different from organic?  I see they have regular inserts and organic inserts...what's the difference?

3.  What is better, inserts or prefold?

4.  If this is suppose to be green then why do they have disposable?  Are they still chemical free and good for the earth?

5.  DH is very supportive but if it gets to be too much I can totally see him going out & buying disposables...how hard is it really & are there any tips to make it as easy as possible for DH?

Last one for now...

6.  Poll: what brand is your fave?  What type is your fave?

I've read a lot & have a little better understanding of cd's but I'm still not clear on some things.  I know in my post below someone said to go to a free class but I've looked & cant find any around me.  I don't think it is as popular here. 

TIA!!!

hisbabybear

1.  DD sleeps through the night and working full time with two kids, we all need our sleep...will cd's mess this up?  What brands/types are best for night time.

-When we switched to cloth it didnt mess up his nighttime at all. There is no brand that is "best" for nighttime since you need to find what works for your family. If you have a heavy wetter, wool or fleece covers over diapers are great for soaking up moisture from babys skin. Etsy sells quite a few. 

2.  I thought this was all suppose to be organic or is green different from organic?  I see they have regular inserts and organic inserts...what's the difference?

-The difference is that one is made from organic materials and one is not. Its really  your preference which one you choose to buy.

3.  What is better, inserts or prefold?

-This depends on your family as well. Cost wise, prefolds are cheaper. But it really is about what you prefer. We tried prefolds for a while but didnt like them for us and decided to stick with AIOs and hybrids. 

4.  If this is suppose to be green then why do they have disposable?  Are they still chemical free and good for the earth?

-Some companies like gdiapers and bumgenius sell disposable/flushable inserts. The ones from gdiapers are chemical free and biodegrade in 100 days in a landfill compared to 500 years like a disposable diaper. In no means are either "good for the earth" tho. Just a matter of convenience. 

5.  DH is very supportive but if it gets to be too much I can totally see him going out & buying disposables...how hard is it really & are there any tips to make it as easy as possible for DH?

-The best way my DH told me i helped him was by getting the trial run of diapers from www.jilliansdrawers.com. They sent us several different kinds of diapers to try out and we both got to decide which ones we liked the best and which ones were easiest for him to use. We learned as a team and he is now a CD pro.  

Last one for now...

6.  Poll: what brand is your fave?  What type is your fave?

-As of now, we are a fulltime Gdiaper family. We LOVE them! I know some people dont like them and having to wash both inserts and liners with the covers but we really do think they are super easy. Those are hybrid diapers. Our other choice is the bumgenius one size. We sometimes use those when i havent done enough laundry!  

 

Good luck!

emsrdh03

soontobeByrne:

Ok, I really want to do this and be successfull!  So, I have some questions...

1.  DD sleeps through the night and working full time with two kids, we all need our sleep...will cd's mess this up?  What brands/types are best for night time. Depends how heavy of a wetter you have.  Some people can get by using the same dipe for day and night, others need to double of inserts in a pocket to increase absorbancy or try switching to something like hemp that absorbs more.

2.  I thought this was all suppose to be organic or is green different from organic?  I see they have regular inserts and organic inserts...what's the difference? The standard inserts are typically microfiber which is not an organic material.  The ones listed as organic are typically made of a cotton, bamboo or hemp.

3.  What is better, inserts or prefold?  Depends on the person really.  Some prefer one of the other but I would say one is better.

4.  If this is suppose to be green then why do they have disposable?  Are they still chemical free and good for the earth? Some of the newer hybrid options have a disposable insert for use when travelling or out and about.  Not sure if they are chemical free, but they claim to be flushable (thought not recommended for your plumbing) and can be composted.  If you just throw them away I don't know if they biodegrade or not.

5.  DH is very supportive but if it gets to be too much I can totally see him going out & buying disposables...how hard is it really & are there any tips to make it as easy as possible for DH?  I think it's pretty easy.  We've been cloth since day 1 so I can't really compare...the only diffrerence I see is I wash them instead of throwing them away.  I would guess most people can squeeze one extra load of laundry into their day every other day.

Last one for now...

6.  Poll: what brand is your fave?  What type is your fave?

Haven't been doing long enough to have tried a ton...but so far I really like the Bum Genius all in ones both for their trimmness and absorbancy.

I've read a lot & have a little better understanding of cd's but I'm still not clear on some things.  I know in my post below someone said to go to a free class but I've looked & cant find any around me.  I don't think it is as popular here. 

TIA!!!

ErinRC

1. CDs shouldn't mess w/ her sleeping but some babies (mine included) don't like too much bulk. like pp said it varies what will work for you. I use a BG w/ extra insert & hemp liner or FB w/ 1 insert & hemp liner. 

2. green just means better for environment not necessarily organic (made w/o pesticides)

3. neither is inherently "better". prefolds are cheaper, inserts can be easier to use  

4. what pp said

5. personally i had no problem getting my so on board (i was pleasantly surprised )some ppl find aio's easier than prefolds

6. i use prefolds w/ thirsties covers during the day

 

Nikki1007

1.  DD sleeps through the night and working full time with two kids, we all need our sleep...will cd's mess this up?  What brands/types are best for night time.

My DD sleeps 13+ hours in her cloth. No problems at all. I use Monkey Snuggles Overnights with a wool cover.

2.  I thought this was all suppose to be organic or is green different from organic?  I see they have regular inserts and organic inserts...what's the difference?

Organic refers to the materials the diaper is made from.  Its a personal preference as to what you want to buy. I have no preference either way. I have both organic materials and man made materials.

3.  What is better, inserts or prefold?

I personally don't like prefolds, however some people love them. Again its a personal preference.

4.  If this is suppose to be green then why do they have disposable?  Are they still chemical free and good for the earth?

I am not familiar with the disposable inserts so I can't answer this question.

5.  DH is very supportive but if it gets to be too much I can totally see him going out & buying disposables...how hard is it really & are there any tips to make it as easy as possible for DH?

Honestly its super easy.  Really no more difficult than disposables IMO. You take the diaper off, pull out the insert is there is one and toss in the diaper pail. Same process as sposies really.  The only difference is that every other day you dump the pail into the washer instead of the garbage.

Last one for now...

6.  Poll: what brand is your fave?  What type is your fave?

I personally like pockets best.  They go on just like disposables and are daddy friendly.  You can also customize the inserts for the amount of absorbency you need. I love my BumGenius pockets as well as my Monkey Snuggles pockets and my Thirsties duo.

I also like fitteds with covers.  My night time set up is fitteds with covers and we also use thirsties fab fitteds during the day sometimes.

Its honestly trial and error.  Everyone has their own preferences and different things work for some families and not for others.  My advice is to either buy several different types to try and see what you love before buying a lot of one type.  Or you can do a diaper trial.  Several websites offer diaper trials.

Dr.Loretta

1. Um, no. You can stuff the heck out of regular CDs, or get overnight CDs. I like monkeysnuggles. They're pretty much bulletproof.

2. No, much of it isn't organic. A bulk of my CDs are lined with a polyester material, and most of the waterproof outer shells are PUL, which is a fabric with a plastic polymer. The point is that you don't throw away a gazillion diapers into a landfill. Organic inserts are going to be made of a plant-based fabric grown and processed organically. It's a big deal to some people, not to others.

3. There is no "better". Different types of CDs work better or worse on different babies, and at different stages of their diapering life.

4. I don't understand this question. If you're talking about hybrid diapers, they are green-er than full disposables, but still "easier" so people who are creeped out by full CDing can use a hybrid product.

5. It's not that hard. If your DH is going to diaper at all (mine only does about 5% of the time), get him pockets or AIOs and pre-stuff them so all he has to do is put it on. Or (gasp) show him how it works from start to finish and he can figure it out. As someone said recently, it's not rocket science.

6. My favorite has changed over time. I loved Thirsties v2.0 sized pockets for the nb and small stage, now I love my AIOs. I'm starting to really enjoy my Fuzzibunz, but I have a mix and like them all. I even have a few that a gal on Etsy makes from a couple of authorized patterns and they're great.

There are no classes here. I lurked the EFF board (before this board existed) for a couple of months before I felt comfortable enough to start a stash, and it took another couple of months of actually diapering before I got it all down. I still have questions.