Disposable v Cloth Diapers??

Dawn2011

For starters, I was totally set on using cloth diapers.

I believe they are better for the environment and my child. 

That being said, there are zero child care centers within a drive-able distance and price range that will allow cloth diapers, and a nanny is too expensive also. 

 SO, do I invest in cloth to use only at home? Or scrap it altogether and just use regular disposable diapers?

Opinions?

byrne15

Even using CDs at home will save you money and waste.

With ds we used a combo on CDs and disposables.

boymomstrong

Maybe a hybrid? I know that most day cares cant do disposable because of the sanitation risk, but maybe if you did a hybrid cloth that is biodegradable then they can throw the insert away and you can feel good about not using disposable diapers, and you can use the all cloth inserts at home... We had this same issue and a friend recommended gDiapers to us, and we LOVE them! We went to BRU and checked them out and I did a bunch of reading on line, and they are great! We will for sure be using them! Just a thought!

WonderJess

DS is in daycare only 3 mornings a week... we use cloth at home and send disposables to daycare and they've still paid for themselves 3x over.  We also didn't buy the most expensive ones out there (but they rock!)

HeyJune

We use cloth during the day and a chlorine free disposable diaper at night. DD soaks her cloth diapers at night, so a disposable just worked better for us at night. FWIW, the chlorine free disposables that we buy at Kroger are super cheap, like $5-6 a pack. 

I love using cloth, but I have so say that if I were just using cloth for a few hours in the evenings I wouldn't be able to stick with it for very long. You'll be putting a disposable on your child before daycare, and he/she'll come home with one on. That means if you pick up at 5 pm, you'll just have time for one or maybe two cloth diapers at the most before bed time. If you put one on at bedtime, you'll still have only 2 or 3 diapers per day to wash. It seems like you wouldn't have enough dirty diapers for a full load until the oldest ones have been sitting so long that you'll be dealing with stink issues. Just something to consider.

angelfire02

I will be staying home but we also plan on using a mix of both.  When we go for the weekend or are out all day we will use disposables but when we can we will use cloth.  Anytime you can use cloth instead of disposables you are going to be saving money even if it is just when you are at home.  I wouldn't throw in the towel completely just because you can't use them at daycare, it's annoying but the baby will be home more than at daycare. 

Tash13

kfdecarie:

Maybe a hybrid? I know that most day cares cant do disposable because of the sanitation risk, but maybe if you did a hybrid cloth that is biodegradable then they can throw the insert away and you can feel good about not using disposable diapers, and you can use the all cloth inserts at home... We had this same issue and a friend recommended gDiapers to us, and we LOVE them! We went to BRU and checked them out and I did a bunch of reading on line, and they are great! We will for sure be using them! Just a thought!

FWIW, I hated gDiapers.  I'd buy the beginner pack and try them out before deciding on them one way or the other.  I've heard others that liked them but they were really hard on our plumbing system and leaked, especially at night when DS would be wetter than usual.  They worked better with prefolds.

I agree with PPs.  I'd bring an example of an AIO or pocket and show them that they go on just like a regular diaper and doesn't need any more work than rolling them up and putting them in a wetbag. If they still have a problem, I'd do 50/50.  You'll still save and I loved cloth diapers. 

plainandsimple

We did the opposite early on -- cloth at his daycare, disposable at home.  The kids adjust, although DD was such a heavy drinker that the cloth couldn't contain him and he soaked them through very quickly.  He never had diaper rash from disposables, but did get it from the cloth ones for a couple weeks.

Also, when you decide which is more environmentally friendly, make sure you take into account things like water usage from washing cloth (and fuel usage & pollution if using a diaper service.)  Cloth is a great option but if you're stuck, I think there are enviro-friendly disposables on the market?

judahsmommy1

When are you going back to work and how long is baby going to be at daycare? What is your budget like? If you spend a bunch on cloth and then hardly use them is that a big deal to you? Your baby will need to go to daycare in a disposable and will have a disposable on when they come home. So if she's at daycare all day then you're talking about using 2 diapers tops at home during the week. Another thing to consider is if you intend to do cloth at night. My son slept much better at night wearing a disposable because when the cloth got wet, he got cold. I think the answer to your question completely depends on your budget and how committed you are to using ONLY cloth while at home.