Product Spotlight - Diapers (cloth/disposables/hybrids)

indulgentgypsy · February 2019

Thought I would start anew spotlight...

So I REALLY want to do almost full time cloth this time around, and I am trying to get started on my "stash". Who has used cloth in the past? What di you love, what did you hate? I tend to grow big babies (8lbs+ at birth) so I am not worried about newborn sizes...

I am not opposed to disposable diapers, but both my boys developed flaming red oozy rashes to all but one brand of disposables, and when we used cloth they were fine. I figure if we do cloth at least full time during the day, it gives me a good chance to avoid nasty rash this time.

mamanbebe · February 2019

@indulgentgypsy I did pre-folds and snap covers last time and I had a hard time with leaks, mostly because DS was a long, skinny little dude. This time I'm going with all-in-ones that have velcro and snaps. I have a really really small house so we cannot accumulate dirty diapers in here, we have to make cloth work.

For additional wetness protection, I love wool soakers, these are a few favorites:

Disana https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004808QGS/
Loveybums https://www.loveybums.com

They work great over both cloth and disposable.

For disposable, I ended up going with a biodegradable diaper for the most part. Partly because they don't contain harsh chemicals, and partly just the guilt of sending a bunch of diapers to the landfill. These are my favorites and have no skin irritants:

https://www.naty.com/us/home

They also hold a massive amount of wetness, on-par with Pampers night-time diapers. They are mostly available through their website, via subscription, Amazon and some Walgreens.

I've also seen ads for this bamboo biodegradable diaper on Instagram:

https://getdyper.com

I would be willing to try them but I have no idea how good they are.

indulgentgypsy · February 2019

@mamanbebe I am with you on the small house, plus we do not have trash pick up and have to take our stuff to the dump, so making cloth work is a priority! Thanks for the recommendations, I will check those out.

nolemomma14 · February 2019

We used covers and Flour Sack Towels for both of my boys and they worked really well for us! Both of my boys were also over 8lbs at birth. Definitely check out buy/sell/trade pages on fb, that’s where I purchased the majority of my covers. We also have a few pocket and all in ones, but the covers with FSTs were our go to. You can purchase the FST pretty much anywhere, and pretty cheap too. Walmart, Target and of course amazon all carry them

indulgentgypsy · February 2019

@nolemomma14 we did the gerber prefolds and covers with a couple G Diaper all in 2s with our boys, and they were pretty awesome. I just want something a little easier to help get my DH all in this time. I will be grabbing FST and covers again, because they were just so damn useful!

runsoncoffee · February 2019

@indulgentgypsy I used cloth part time for my first (gave up once we started solids lol...) I had a 100% grovia stash. I used their hybrid/all in 2 system and I loved it as far as ease of use and fit. Turns out cloth just wasn't for me. I liked that you could reuse the shell a few times and just change out the insert if it was just pee. My hubby also easily could use them. He was not on board with cloth when I first mentioned it but was fine with it when he saw the all in 2 system!

As far as disposables we personally like Honest company the best. We also like pampers pure and just recently tried the new cloud island diapers at Target and like those pretty well too, especially considering they are a good bit cheaper than the other two brands.

mnkenned · February 2019

My favorite were cotton prefolds (from amazon...id have to find the brand) and thirsties covers. I also have a small stash of bumgenius all-in-ones because my husband and babysitter weren't as sold on the idea and those are super easy. They are def pricier though. It takes some getting used to as far as laundry and the right detergent to avoid residue and ammonia but once you get your system it's great. Planning on doing it again and hopefully for longer this time. https://www.fluffloveuniversity.com/ was a great resource.

For when we used disposables, I really liked up & up from target - seemed to have the least leaks and rashes from my little one.

cindler · February 2019

Due to garbage pains in the country and the lack of options in our small town, I want to give cloth diapers a shot. My mom is adamant that I'll hate it and I'm hoping to prove her wrong. I'd like to mimic the easy change of disposables as much as possible so I was thinking AI1s or AI2s. Thoughts? Suggestions?

I know there is extended drying time, but I'm not concerned with that. What other issues arise with the AI1 or AI2 styles?

ameliabedelia-2 · February 2019

100% disposable here. We splurge on pampers swaddlers and use only the pampers sensitive wipes. We had no luck with any of the cheaper brands like Costco, luvs, or Target. If we stick to pampers there haven’t been issues with diaper rashes.

we also tried honest company and babyganics, both led to rashes.

Cbeanz · February 2019

We did Bumgenius one-size AIOs with all 3 of my daughters and loved them. They were literally as convenient as disposable, just unsnap and toss into a zippered wet bag (I have a few from Planetwise) and there was zero smell like you get with a trash can of disposables.

My stash is only about 25 diapers. I would toss them in the laundry every other day (we went through about 6-8 each day - more in the beginning) and hang on a drying rack to dry. There are cotton and microfiber versions. The microfiber dried overnight while the cotton version sometimes took a day and a half to dry which was less convenient.

Question to those of you doing biodegradable. Are you composting them or throwing away? I didn't think it was safe to compost baby poop but I also don't think they will break down once they're in a landfill..? So I honestly wasn't sure what the driver was behind biodegradable diapers. Maybe you can compost the pee ones...?

mamanbebe · February 2019

@Cbeanz Naty are mostly made from corn based products and were almost completely biodegradable if not 100% at this point. You have to send them to the dump if you don’t have a composting waste setup (like a full composting toilet) but they will break down. You can buy full sized biodegradable trash bags to throw them out in to avoid the plastic barrier, we use bio trash bags for our regular trash bags.

Bear14+ · February 2019

I tried cloth with my first and ditched it when we started solids.. I didn't even bother taking them out with my second.

I loved Pampers Swaddlers and then Cruisers around 5-6 month mark for my son. The Swaddlers gave my daughter a rash, so she was in Honest diapers for a while. She didn't have a problem with Cruisers though, so we went back to them when she was a little bigger. This time, I want to try the new Pampers Pure line... really hoping for no rashes! We had the best luck with Huggies natural wipes...I liked the texture for cleaning poop that the Pampers wipes didn't have. I also strongly dislike wipes that don't connect (like the babyganics wipes)... I use a wipe warmer (I loved my wipe warmer) ... and I would hate having to stick my fingers in it after every wipe to grab the next one!

You just never know what's going to to happen!

runsoncoffee · February 2019

@cindler everyone said I'd hate cloth too. I was determined to like it. I didn't hate it but ultimately gave up. I hate laundry and the poop is nasty once you start solids lol. That said, the all in 2 system was super easy! I had a large stash (still didn't help me with laundry) but if its laundry you think you won't like I'd recommend a larger stash!

Panaceia · February 2019

+1 to being a completely disposable diaper family. We loved Pampers Swaddlers with DD and then cruisers and pull ups after so we'll likely try that again. We had rashes with other brands but never had leaks or rashes with Pampers. Also +1 to the Huggies natural wipes. I prefer the thickness and texture to other brands. DD still uses the Huggies wipes to clean herself after a poop:)

Panaceia · February 2019

@Bear14+ I haven't heard of the Pampers Pure line but thank you for mentioning it. I'm definitely going to look in to this!

runsoncoffee · February 2019

@Panaceia @Bear14+ we like the pampers pure!!

ETA... I also heard that pampers recently changed their swaddlers diapers including some ingredients and people were complaining of rashes. We didn't use them since the switch so I can't say from experience but for newborn I'm buying the pure this time instead of swaddlers.

Bear14+ · February 2019

@ccmama3 that makes sense, because neither of my kids have sensitive skin... it was always so weird that DD had that reaction. I'm really hoping to like the Pure line... @Panaceia the only reason I know about it is because my Instagram feed is bombarded with sponsored ads of John Legend changing his daughter's diaper to promote the brand!

nopegoat · February 2019

Another fully disposable diaper family here too. I literally would rather scoop up steaming piles of Beefy poo than do laundry most days. Plus we are on septic and we'll so we have to watch our water consumption and waste. At least that's my excuse ha!!

When I was pregnant with #1 we pampers had a huge chemical burn thing going on (which has since been fixed but still sticks in my mind!!) and so we are a huggies family until they are in size 2's. Then we switch to either Luvs or Costco brand.

We've been really lucky so far not to have any reactions to diapers or wipes.

mama_bear19 · February 2019

Disposable over here too. We mostly used pampers. Luvs and Costco brand didn’t work the best for us. Has anyone tried amazon diapers? I’m considering those, luvs, and Costco again to save money.

tsa208 · February 2019

Thanks for the info @mamanbebe - I just ordered a free sample pack of Naty from their website (only $3.50 for the shipping). Hopefully they work out!

mamanbebe · February 2019

@tsa208 That's great! I hope you like them as much as I did

erynpdx · February 2019

With DD I really wanted to use cloth (even did a ton of washer/dryer research before buying our set), but gave up pretty much immediately. I ended up really liking the Honest Co subscription, we'll probably just do that again.

nolemomma14 · February 2019

For disposables I like huggies and the Costco brand. The target up & up brand was alright for the smaller sizes, but wasn’t a huge fan after that

emills14 · February 2019

We do 75% reusable... and I’m lazy so I like all in one Bumgenius. They have a bunch of snaps and are easy to adjust in size. No leaks no fuss. Personally I find them Easier to clean then the insert ones with covers.

shawnacrest · February 2019

100% disposable also.. We tried lots of different diapers because my son was awkwardly shaped when he was really little. Every #2 would be a blow out until we tried huggies little snugglers. We used those until he was about a year old and then switched to target brand.

Panaceia · February 2019

@ccmama3 ooooh. That's good to know! DD had very sensitive skin as a baby so if they have changed the chemicals I'll probably start with Pure. Thanks for the heads up!

cindler · March 2019

Based on someone's awesome comment in another thread, I've started to look into cloth starter kits to help us decide what we like best. The brands I'm finding are not familiar to me.

For those of you who tried cloth or were successful with it, what brands (not types of diapers) did you like the best?

nolemomma14 · March 2019

@cindler we mainly used bumgenius brand cloth diapers. Also Alva Baby, which are similar in style, but cheaper.

Baby and kids consignment stores often carry cloth diapers as well, you can probably get a variety for cheap!

FrancesGrace630 · March 2019

@cindler I loved Green Mountain Diapers for flats/fitteds/prefolds and Thirsties and Blueberry for covers.

Cbeanz · March 2019

Bumgenius exclusively. All in ones, one size.

cindler · March 2019

Forgive my million questions. I really want to try cloth, but feel very overwhelmed by it all. I'm suffering from indecision paralysis at the moment. Since cloth diapers new are kind of an investment, I want to make sure I'm getting ones I'm more inclined to like and use. On the second-hand side of things, I have my sister looking for deals on FB in the city where she lives and I'm going to hit up the one baby consignment store in my town to see if I can score a deal. I'm not holding my breath, though because my options are so limited in a small community.

I think AIO is the route I want to go. I like that they're one thing (no cover needed) and one size. If I go AIO, I can mix and match brands, right? There is no need to match a bumgenius AIO with a bumgenius insert?

If I try AI2s, do I have to match brands?

@nolemomma14 I can get an Alva baby starter pack on Amazon, so I'll probably give them a try, thanks!

@francesgrace630 I appreciate the information. If the AIOs or AI2s aren't for me, my next option is prefolds.

@cbeanz I've heard great things about bumgenius, but they're so expensive to buy new. I'm just trigger shy on shelling out $20 for one diaper when I'm not even sure I'll like it!

vanillalatte89 · March 2019

I have fuzzibunz pockets and bumgenius pockets from my daughter. It’s been 5 yrs so I def need to refresh my cloth knowledge.

tsa208 · March 2019

Just to follow up, I tried the Naty biodegradable disposable diapers on my 16 mo old and they worked great! Didnt really notice a difference although I only used them during the day and not overnight.

nolemomma14 · March 2019

@cindler it took me until my first son was 7 months before I finally jumped into cloth. It can be totally overwhelming!

https://www.fluffloveuniversity.com/

That site I posted above, is a huge wealth of resources!

In terms of keeping costs down, covers ended up being the cheapest route for us. I was initially drawn to the all-in-ones, and still use some, but I don’t find the covers any harder to use. Since the covers can be used a few times before being put in the dirty laundry, you need fewer to start out. You can use any type of insert in them, except microfiber. We either use prefolds or flour sack towels. The flour sack towels are super cheap, you can get large packs of them at target, Walmart, and of course amazon. I place an insert inside the cover, and it goes in the drawer. When I do a diaper change, I just toss the dirty insert in the wet bag, and grab a new diaper. If it’s just pee, I wipe down the cover and leave it to air out so I can re use it again.

ketomommy · March 2019

We use disposables. Day care doesn't allow cloth and I hate doing laundry.

We used Pampers swaddlers for the first year with DD. When my husband lost his job we switched to the Costco brand to save money. I think they worked perfectly. Now that she is two and has very serious opinions, we use Huggies because she wants Mickey Mouse on her diapers.

I hate hate hate hate hate hate the Up & Up diapers. They are really cheap which is why I bought them once. They leaked. The overnights and the regular ones leaked.

Just to note, I didn't start using overnight diapers until DD was two. She never really leaked at night.

afterthestorms · March 2019

My daughter was tiny 6lbs14oz so we used disposable for 6 weeks until she fit in Bumgenius Freetimes. We used those 100% of the time until potty trained. She was exclusively breast milk fed until 6 months so we just washed the poo with the diaper as that is water soluble. Once we added in baby food we did use liners that we would flush if they had poo on them and toss if just pee. It made the poo so much easier to clean. Dandelion Diapers Baby Diaper Liners was the brand we used. Also @cindler we used thegreennursery.com to order ours because if you buy bundles they can be as low as $16 a piece and also you get points that you can use as money off future orders. I strongly suggest Planet Wise wet bags and I swear you will have zero poo smell in your house if you use those and then also the liners once they start on solids.

mamanbebe · March 2019

@cindler You might also check https://www.nickisdiapers.com too -- they carry many of brands, offer lots of deals and bonus free products throughout the year, have real reviews and they also make their own cloth diapers, which are a bit cheaper. This starter kit looks like a pretty great deal and it has a few different kinds of diapers included:

https://www.nickisdiapers.com/cloth-diaper-101-starter-kit.html

cindler · March 2019

OMG thank you so much for all the information! You guys seriously are amazing! My sister landed on a deal that was less than $5 per diaper. I pulled the trigger and should have some AIOs and AI2s headed my way tomorrow. If we like them, this should be all we need! Still might get some pockets or other kinds just to try. At this point, the flour sack towel method sounds unappealing, but you never know how things will go when you're in the thick of it.

I was talking with DH to make sure he was on board with the purchase and he kind of freaked out about the poo disposal part. He claims he didnt realize he would actually have to dispose of the poo. This is coming from a guy who has owned dogs for 10+ years and has dealt with many a dog poop-pocalypse... I think he'll come around and realize it's not as bad as it sounds.

Do you guys dispose of the poo (after solids are introduced) right away, or at the time of washing? We got a second hand diaper genie, will that be adequate to contain the smell?

Cbeanz · March 2019

I second the Planetwise wet bags. They contain 100% of the smell and you wash it right along with the diapers. Zero smell in the house.

When I change diapers I'll flush the poop right away. For some ungodly reason, daycare would roll the poop up in the diaper and put in the bag to send home so I'd dump them all when it was laundry time. It definitely smelled worse when they were "stored" overnight lol. Wouldn't recommend that, although either way is fine.

And for breast milk poop, those just go straight in the washer, no scraping required.

Cbeanz · March 2019

Once you're done with diapers, those Planetwise bags function for wet clothes etc on trips to the beach/pool and for clothes after public toilet accidents etc! Many uses for those bags.

indulgentgypsy · March 2019

@cindler - even with disposables you are supposed to flush/dispose of the poop, not just chuck it all in the trash... granted almost no one does, but you are supposed to. We just immediately flushed, rinsed, and hung up to dry. At the time I had 2 G diapers (all in 2s I think) and pre-folds with the old fashioned poly covers. They worked pretty great, and it was easy and cheap to double up the pre-folds when we needed to.

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Product Spotlight - Diapers (cloth/disposables/hybrids)

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