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Babies: 0 - 3 Months
question about cloth diapering
:::2nd tri here::
I am thinking about cloth diapering while I am home. I'll be at home full time with baby and wanted to know if anyone who does cloth diaper finds it:
1- more cost efficient
2 - as convenient as disposable OR
3 - a HUGE mistake - stick with disposable
4 - which cloth diapers do you recommend
TIA!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: question about cloth diapering
1- more cost efficient
Yes! My DD is 5 months old and in another month or so, her diapers will have already paid for themselves...and she will be in them for quite awhile yet
2 - as convenient as disposable OR
3 - a HUGE mistake - stick with disposable
They are MORE convenient than 'sposies. I never run out and have to run to the store to buy more, we don't have the extra ton of garbage every week and they make her bottom look adorable
We also use cloth wipes, which I LOVE. SO easy, and better for her bottom because there are no chemicals to dry it out more.
4 - which cloth diapers do you recommend
I personally use BumGenius 3.0, but they definitely had a learning curve and didn't fit her well until she was about 12 lbs. I def. recommend asking the Eco Friendly Family board because several of those women use lots of different brands and can give you a better idea of what to use. If I were to do it over again, or had a lot of money to burn for fun, I would probably add some fitteds and get a few other one-size pockets
I LOVE cloth diapering, and finding cute diapers is totall addictive
Even if they were more expensive than disposables, I probably would still do it.
1. It is *definitely* more cost-efficient in the long run. The initial expense is intimidating, but hey, you'd also be overwhelmed if you bought all of your disposables up front, too. I have some of the more expensive kinds, and we'll still save close to $1000 on this kid alone.
2. I'd say they're only slightly less convenient than disposables, just because of the laundry factor. The actual diapering part is just as convenient. I do think you need more space to store the cloth, too, though, but not much.
3. No way. I'm glad we are CDing. We still have to use disposables at night (DS is a super-heavy wetter), and we keep some handy in case of diaper rash or whatever, but overall, Im' definitely glad we CD.
4. This varies so much. We have all pockets and AIOs. It works well, but they are more expensive than fitteds & covers. We had gone the pocket/AIO route because we thought we'd be sending him to day care... then I got laid off and am a SAHM for however long it takes me to find a new job. Anyway, if I had it to do over again, I'd definitely try fitteds with covers, and prefolds/covers for the newborn stage. It just adds to the cost savings, you know?
As for specific brands, there are SO many different kinds. Jillian's Drawers (and some other places) have a trial where you can try different kinds and return the ones you don't like. It gives you an idea about prefolds vs. fitteds vs. pockets, but it doesn't tell you much about specific brands. Even limiting ourselves to AIOs and pockets, we've tried 11 different brands of CDs, and there are still a ton more. My current favorite is the Mommy's Touch. I also like the Swaddlebees pocket AIO, but it doesn't work as well for DS as I would like.
The eco-friendly family board (EFF ) is definitely a good place to ask your CD questions.
Good luck!
1. It certainly can be MUCH cheaper - depends on what sort of dipes you decide to use as to just how much you will save.
2. Just as convenient. We exclusively CD. The only time I can see using sposies would be on a long trip where we don't have washing machine access.
4. I love fitteds with covers. There are so many options and I really think you have to try different kinds to see what works for you. Some places like Jillian's Drawers have trials you can do so you can try different types.
The EFF board is a great source of info.
Breastfeeding Counselor with Breastfeeding USA
Babywearing Guide ** Newborn Carriers
Cloth Diaper Guide
Safe Bed Sharing Info
It is definitely more cost efficient - although the upfront cost is more. ?It is just about as convenient as a disposable, but not totally. ?If you get the AIO (all-in-ones) it is just like a disposable, you just have to rinse it after your LO poops. ?The pocket diapers are ALMOST as convenient as that...you just have to put the insert into the pocket. ?Again, just rinse after poop. ?(Breastmilk poop rinses off/out really easily, then washes out great!) ?As far as which one/brand...you might want to get 1 or 2 of a couple of different brands and types to see which one you like best and which one fits your LO best. ?The rise, leg, waist sizes are different between brands. ?For example, my LO has chunky little thighs, but is long and lean - so, his rise is longer and legs are bigger than his waist size would suggest. ?SO, the BG AIOs size small are a little short in the rise and small in the leg for him now and he's not out of the weight range yet. ?BUT, the BG one size pocket diaper (that "grows" with the baby) fits him well. ?I'm also about to try a couple of different brands to see which ones we like now. ?I also suggest getting the cloth wipes for your baby wipes! ?It's a lot easier and cost efficient than buying baby wipes. ?Just remember, if you do use cloth wipes, you need a rotation of about 40, just to make things easier on you b/c you will tend to use them for things other than just wipes! ?
Good luck! ? If you want to talk more about it, you can PM me.
Actually we do the same thing. I have a cloth diaper service so I don't have to wash them myself which makes it easier.
No they aren't as easy as disposables but I think the trade off of helping the environment is definitely worth it. Plus I plan on potty training DD early. I'm going to start aroudn a year and hope to have her totally trained by 18 months or so. That is major savings right there.
We definitely find it more economical. I doubt it's more convenient than disposable, but I don't find it to be a pita or anything. Since Jude is bf, I don't have to rinse his diapers right now. I just pop them in the wash.
We use primarily prefolds (greenmountaindiaper.com), but we have a couple of KL0 fitteds and a BG.3.0. I like them all. I'd be happy to use prefolds until Jude is potty trained, but he will start daycare in a year, and I don't know how that will go over with his daycare provider. If they seem overwhelmed by prefolds, then we will probably get anough BGs to hold him over at daycare.
I love cloth diapering! I have found CDs to be more absorbant, hide odor better and be less irritating to their skin. It is also definitely more cost effective, and CDs are much cuter!
I recommend you get 24 prefolds and 6-10 Thirsties covers.
oh, ditto on the cloth wipes. I can't convince DH to do it, though. Boo. If i could convince him, I would just buy a bunch of the baby washcloths and use those.
The PP is also right about the potty training. Having DC trained by 18 months might be a bit ambitious, but CD kids are almost always trained earlier than kids in disposables. Some kids wear disposables until they're 3 or 4 years old. I mean COME on.
Finally, the pockets do require stuffing, but if you pre-stuff them (we do), then when you go to put them on it's just like a disposable. For us, we wash the diapers every other day, and I stuff the pockets right as they come out of the dryer. It takes about 15-20 minutes, max, but then I'm done.
Also, if you have a high-efficiency washer & dryer, you'll save a ton on energy costs. It does cost us a lot to run our dryer an extra 15 hours/month or so.
One more thing - the smell! I can't tell you how much less smell there is in DS's room with the CDs. We used disposables for a while at the beginning, and his room always smelled like pee & poop. It is SO much better with the CDs!
Same here!