Is cloth diapering as difficult as it seems?

EyeOfTheTiger · March 2012

It just seems like a lot more laundry for nothing... And don't they leak more? Sorry for the ignorance, but what are the pros and cons?

jcsumm0 · March 2012

For us, it's about 3 extra loads of laundry per week, which doesn't bother me at all. If you have the right fit, I think they actually leak less than disposibles, and they definitely contain poopsplosions better.

The big pros for us are the cost savings and the environmental impact. This blog post is a good place to start: https://theecofriendlyfamily.com/2010/07/ive-never-looked-back/

There is also a good FAQ on the CD board.

inlovewithB · March 2012

We really don't think it is difficult at all. I do a load of diapers every 2-3 days. We love not having to run out to the store to constantly purchase disposables, we feel so much better knowing we aren't exposing our DD to unnecessary chemicals, and I love knowing her diapers won't be sitting in a landfill long after we are all dead.

Rochell · March 2012

not difficult AT ALL - just extra laundry ....once they start eating solids you'll have to plop the poop in the toilet - but other than that....not too bad.

pixieprincss · March 2012

There is a whole cloth diapering board, so I encourage you to look around there. To answer your questions quickly...for us, it is two extra loads per week, so hardly a burden. In terms of leaks, a properly fitted CD should not leak. My friends who use disposables seem to have more blow outs than we do. I only see pros to cloth diapering. We never even condidered disposables--they just don't fit in with our lifestyle. We don't really use anything disposable save for TP and financially, CDs are much cheaper (unless you get all fancy ones). When we used disposables on a cruise, the pro was that DS's bum was a little less fluffy, so he fit into his baby tux better.

tokenhoser · March 2012

3 loads of laundry a week here. We've never had a poo-splosion. NEVER. Find me a disposable-using mom that can say that.

Really, it's not that big of a deal. It's saving us money, saving a bunch of diapers in a landfill for the next 500 years, and avoiding weird chemicals on my baby's butt. Read the FAQ on the cloth diaper board if you're interested.

happylady07 · March 2012

I don't think it's a whole lot of work, I just do a load of diapers every other day, it's not that big of a deal. I think I get fewer leaks than my friends that use sposies do, and have never had a poo covered baby! Sure beats throwing money in the trash everyday too!

EmilyStL · March 2012

If you work, may help to see what other working moms say. I work and cloth diaper and wouldn't change a thing, but sometimes other laundry does pile up because doing the diapers is a priority and they are in the washer for a minimum of 2 hours once they go in. I don't start laundry until after my DD is in bed, so if I'm doing diapers nothing else is going to get done. I am not the best at time management, though.

Cleaning poop off once baby starts solids is another downfall.

Other than those things, which I gladly put up with, there are no negatives. Cloth diapers are better for the environment, they're less expensive--even if you buy the pricey ones--and you never have to make an emergency run to the store to get more. Also, all the different styles, colors and patterns make diapering fun. And no, if you have the right fit and have proper absorption, cloth diapers will not leak.

Amitchell0626 · March 2012

We wash them 2-3 times a week, in the evening, hang them over night to dry before we go to bed, easy! And we rarely have leaks, never had a poop explosion, never had a diaper rash. Spent $250 on diapers and will never have to spend any more!

StefandTodd · March 2012

CDing is actually much *easier* than I remember thinking it might be. I can't stress that enough.

I wash every other day, and my (newish) washer has an option to program it so I literally empty the pail liner into washer, put in the detergent, hit one button and then start. About 2.5 hours later, I put them all into the drier for 60 minutes on medium heat. Super easy. (I even break all the "rules" and use the sanitary cycle in the washer, and the drier for the vast majority of dries...hang when it's convenient which is very rare).

I've never had leak problems. The only blowouts we've had have been on the rare occasion he's in a disposable, which makes me hate disposables with passion (we had a real incident the other day when I decided to use a disposable overnight...ugh, NEVER again).

So yeah, not difficult at all. Easier than I thought, and I at least thought they'd be easy enough that I never really considered not doing them.

I also work. Intend to work FT, but only work 20 hour/week right now. I really don't think CDing would be any harder working FT though.

katiewhompus · March 2012

It's not bad at all, and I work ft. I have to do an extra load or 2 per week but I use the same detergent I use with my other clothes (a fragrance/enzyme/etc. free) and usually do a cold rinse with just the diapers, then hot/cold cycle with the rest of her baby clothes.

It has saved us so much money already. We did dispo's for the first month or so of K's life and it killed me how much we spent on something to be tossed in the trash. Now we buy a box of dispos (for night time and for running errands) about every 3 months.

SirSleepsALot · March 2012

All diapers leak, IMO. Especially if you have a "husky" baby! DS2 had huge blowouts up the gap in the back of his diaper for about 2 months. It was infuriating. Cloth kept that from happening. We do a service - if I was having to wash them myself there would be no way in hell I would use cloth. Is that an option for you?

MikesMom12345 · March 2012

My favorite thing about cloth diapers is the lack of diaper blowouts! I have a nephew who is a few months younger than DS, and I swear every time we see them (which is at least once a week, usually more), he has a blow out. I kept thinking they were using diapers that were too big or something, but after having DS in sposies over the weekend, I really think that blowouts with disposables are just very common! My mom has been helping me out with DS for the past 3 days, and I thought disposables would make things easier for her, but the first day he had a blow out that got all over his clothes and highchair, next day a blow out that ruined his outfit, and today another blowout down the leg and onto the high chair again.

I also HATE doing laundry and DESPISE putting it away. I don't mind doing the diaper laundry, but I do hate stuffing the pockets and putting them away. If I could do it all over I would probably get fewer pockets and more AIOs and flips.

GHBEA · March 2012

I was hesitant to do cloth. I clothed my older DDs and it was 20 years ago and the advances today makes it much easier.

A few extra loads a week, we save money, we don't add to the land fills, and we just love them.

Glad I gave it a second chance this time around.

JoannaJes · March 2012

If you are curious, you can always do a trial rental from an online CD store. That way you can experiment and not invest a ton of money.

We CD most of the time, but I certainly don't think they are the greatest thing ever. Sometimes they leak. It's more work when you are out and about. They don't fit into clothes as well. You have to change them more often (which didn't bother me when I had just one, but it is a PITA with two. )

Sposies are nice at times too. We mostly use cloth because of the cost and environmental factor. You seriously cannot beat the cost, especially because I made all of my own cloth wipes and wipe solution. I'm not one to keep buying new dipes...I buy a bunch of one size diapers, and that's it.

Neither of my kids have ever had a poop blow out in disposables or cloth. I think people tend to buy too small disposable diapers for their kids, which lead to blowouts more than the fact that they are disposable.

Jena503 · March 2012

It's not difficult.

My total bill for diapers is under $300.

That's for 2 kids.

And the cost of diapering #3? $0.

Oh, and while I know it's not true for everyone, my kids PTd at 22mo and 26mo, and I believe that CDs played a part of that.

kacelle · March 2012

It isn't difficult at all. We rarely have issues with leaks, which can't always be said for disposables. We choose to use cloth to avoid putting harsh chemicals next to DD's skin.

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