cloth diaper materials - pros/cons of each?

junebride060306

is there a website or blog where I can read about the various cloth diaper materials and the pros/cons of each? or maybe someone on here can break it down for me! fleece, bamboo, cotton, microfiber, hemp, PUL, TPU, etc! so many materials! trying to decide if there is reason to pick one over another. I get that the fleece isin a lotof pocket diapers and gives that stay dry feeling. and I think I understand the difference between PUL and TPU. which fabrics stain less, are easier to care for, are more durable, etc?! TIA!!! 

tokenhoser

I haven't found a good comparison anywhere. What I can tell you:

Microfiber is the cheapest stuffing. It works well (I can leave my boy at least 6-8 hours with a single insert, and it could be longer we haven't tried), but is prone to problems like stink and repelling. I think a lot hinges on what kind of water you have and if your detergent works well with your water.

Cotton is really easy to care for but not that absorbent. Still, that's all that was used 20 years ago and we all survived. Commonly used for prefolds and some fitteds. Cheap.

Bamboo and hemp are the more high-end stuffings. They are more absorbent than cotton and easier to care for than MF.

Fleece is mostly used for pocket diaper lining (it's usually fleece or microsuede), or you can get fleece covers for fitteds. 

Wool is another cover for fitteds - I don't have any, but people seem to love it.

flyer23

A "complete" diaper is a waterproof (or VERY water resistant) outer + some sort of material to soak up, welllll, the stuff that ends up in a diaper And optionally, some kind of lining that feels nice against a baby's bottom!

Those materials might come in one or more parts. For example, you could have an all-in-one that is, well, an outer + soaker + liner all in one (hence the name ) or you could have a wool cover + a separate fitted diaper (basically one big soaker!) + a stay-dry fleece liner, as three separate pieces. But those are the basic types of materials you're looking for.

Waterproof/water resistant materials: PUL/TPU (they are the same thing; see here under the Q&A section), wool, fleece

PUL is easy to care for, but not breathable. Wool is easier to sew than PUL, a little more difficult to care for (not very hard, but you can't throw it in the wash with your diapers...) but very breathable. Fleece is cheap and easy to care for and breathable and easy to sew, but not as bulletproof as PUL or wool -- especially the cheap stuff that you buy locally.

Soaker materials: Microfiber, Zorb/Zorb II, or pretty much any natural fiber (cotton, hemp, bamboo). Note that most natural fibers will have at least some cotton content, e.g. most "hemp" inserts are actually hemp/cotton.

Microfiber is perhaps a little more durable. Natural fibers will tend to get small holes over time, although this doesn't affect function. Microfiber is most prone to stink, followed by hemp/cotton. Zorb is a manmade material that is supposed to be very absorbent. It can't be used on its own; it needs to be sandwiched between another fabric. Zorb II is Zorb pre-sandwiched between bamboo (I think?). Natural fibers are more prone to staining -- if you care about that. Honestly, I don't; stains sun out.

Liner materials: For a stay-dry effect, microfleece (NOTE: microfleece is NOT the same as the fleece you use as a water-resistant outer), suedecloth, minky, crushed panne. Non-stay-dry (but super soft!): bamboo velour, cotton velour. Really, any kind of natural fiber will work, e.g. flannel, jersey.

Again, natural fibers tend to be more prone to staining. Stay-dry materials are, well, stay-dry, which some parents prefer for extended wearing, e.g. overnight. Some babies are sensitive to synthetic fibers, like those used in stay-dry fabrics, so they do better in natural fibers.

As far as what I usually use:

- For pocket diapers: PUL outer, suedecloth or microfleece inner/liner. Most of my inserts are bamboo/cotton, but I'm playing around with Zorb II right now.

- For fitteds: Cute cotton outer, hidden bamboo fleece layer, bamboo velour inner.

- For covers (over fitteds): Wool