XP: Cloth Diapering

[Kit]

I'm pregnant with our first, and H and I were thinking about cloth diapering.  Am I ridiculous for even considering this?



I wouldn't even know where to start.



I do know that:

-Our DCP needs disposables

-I wouldn't expect any babysitters (ahem, grandparents) to deal with cloth.

-I probably wouldn't deal with cloth if we were out and about



But, while we are home with him, I'd like to maybe try it. So, we'd be doing a mix of cloth and disposable.



Thoughts?
 

[Deleted]

I do CDs when home. DC gets disposables. I did CDs when out and about with DD, with DS I care a lot less so I usually do disposables there. One grandma is comfortable with CDs, the other isn't.

I love it. It's not really hard. I haven't had a major issue in 4 years.

It doesn't have to be an all or nothing, feel guilty thing either. I use them pretty constantly and it's been worth it, but if I have a busy week I have no regrets over disposables either. I just say that because some people make it seem as if it must be an either or choice and it's not.

I have also saved a ton of money. One small pack of disposables a month or so is all I go through.

It's also one of those things I think the internet makes way more complicated than necessary. I sort of went insane about it with DD and my MIL was like, "You know people have been doing this for centuries right?" I sort of settled after that.

I bought diapers I know I would use. I wash them in a manner that gets them cleanest the easiest and fastest. I'm in this to CD my kids, save the environment a bit and you know actually USE my diapers. I expect them to be wornout when I'm done so I'm not at all wrapped in the resale. I also bought $6.00 Kawaiis and super sale BumGenius for this very reason.

[lurknomore]

This is basically what we did for kid #1. Daycare wouldn't take CD (they did by the time kid #2 came along). We used the primarily at night and on the weekends. I've gone back and forth about using them while we are out (sometimes I do, sometimes I don't). Some babysitters and family members use them. We use Bum Genius with snaps. They are simple enough for anyone to figure out, so having others use them really isn't much of an issue (though sometimes they complain!). Our CD habits would be chastised on some of the CD forums. We clean poop off with a wipe and throw it in the trash (no diaper sprayers here!). Diapers go in a wet bag. Now that DD is a bit older and going through less diapers, we wash about every 5-6 days. When we were using only 1-2 a day with kid #1, we washed about once a week. We don't have problems with smells or stains, despite them sitting that long. It is easy. I love it. We have hard water, so our washing routine did take some tweaking. Be prepared for some trial and error. CD was actually DH's idea and I was like WTF NO WAY. But I have no complaints and we've saved a TON of money. The stash we used for both DD2 and DD3 cost about $400 total. I'd say between the two girls we bought about one box each in each size of disposables. Tons of savings. DO IT!!

[belovedbride07]

Oh, @cookienonster03, now that I know you CD'd twins I'm going to have to pick your brain if that's the path we decide to go!

[sunshine608]

I started CD but did disposables with the family/grandparents who also watch him during the day and in the end I switched to disposables.

I basically have one maybe two diaper changes after work and usually that's the overnight diaper ( which was disposable from the beginning). On the weekends I sometimes use my few CD's but I really don't have a full enough stash. My biggest problem is that I didn't invest in the beginning I bought a few newborns and a few different types. When it was time to go all in- there ML was ending, we had a vacation, money issues from ML and vacation, going back to work, grandparents ect. I will say that using them when out and about was actually easier. I do most diaper changer in the car and just throw the diaper in the wetbag vs a plastic bag I put disposables in.

I didn't push my family to CD b/c they were watching DS for free and free childcare is worth more than diapers to me! If I had to do it again- I would CD from the start and invest in them at the beginning. I would also push for my family to do it and maybe have taught them more. THey were expecting old fashioned CD but when they saw mine, they really wern't as intimidating- but I didn't push it.

I really do prefer CD, but doing it 1/4-1/2 of the time was more than its worth for me.

Just my $.2

[kershnic]

We mostly CD our twins too. (belovedbride07, didn't know you were pregnant, congrats!!)

I totally agree that the internet makes CDing sound more complicated than it is. We have a selection, but primarily use Tots Bots, which are an AIO. The daycare they were in for a while did them no problem. There truly is no difference in changing a disposable vs. an AIO; people's concern about it is all mental.

For a long time we used them pretty much 100% of the time, including going out and daycare. Lately I've lost patience for dealing with carrying them around while we're out for the day so I switch to disposables when we're leaving the house. The girls are starting a different daycare in September that won't do them. We plan to keep using the CDs at home when it's convenient, but we'll see how it goes.

I don't at all think it's hard, but I do wonder if it's worth it to buy the diapers if you're planning to use them so infrequently from the start. Granted, we picked an expensive diaper for our primary diapers, but we figured we had to use them the equivalent of full-time for almost a year to break even compared to disposables. But obviously babies wear diapers longer than a year, and the diapers either have resale value or can be used for future children, so maybe it works out.

[cmarie11]

We love our cloth diapers. My husband was a little skeptical at first but once he realized that they are pretty easy, he loved them. Our babysitters/grandparents have been very open to the idea, and ended up loving them as well. My mom tells all her grandma friends about them, lol.

We used Bumgenius 4.0's, which are pockets. Very easy to use. We do laundry about every 2-3 days. The biggest thing for me, was learning the "lingo". I found the articles here very helpful.

Good luck! It seems very overwhelming at first, but once you get in the rhythm of it, it's very easy, and SO much cheaper! I cringe when I buy a pack of disposables for vacation.

[Brie]

We cloth diapered our oldest for 19 months, and are now CDing our baby for 5 months and counting.

We use disposables for our oldest now, as he gets diaper rashes that require Desitin pretty frequently, and we use them when out and about with the baby.

I am a big fan of CDs.

[boiler717]

Jul 1, 2015 14:12:03 GMT -5 @cookiemonster03 said:

We CD'd full time with our twins. It was really NBD. our DC at the time was ok with it, and I expected grandma to do the same. We used pockets and AIO for them (prefolds in covers mostly at home) and it's NO DIFFERENT than changing a disposable. Put on, toss old one in pail, done. I got velcro for DC; snaps for home.

If our DC won't CD the next babies, I will sell the velcro and keep on keeping on with snaps at home.

Is there a reason why you prefer prefolds at home vs AIO/pockets for daycare?

[drloretta]

Jul 1, 2015 13:57:01 GMT -5 Kit said:

But, while we are home with him, I'd like to maybe try it. So, we'd be doing a mix of cloth and disposable.



Thoughts?
 

It's totally doable. You'll still save $ and trash space just by CDing at home. DD went to daycare for a short time, and they only did disposables. We still CD'd at home.

And you'll likely get addicted to all the options out there. Just sayin'

It's been a while since I CD'd, so other mommas will be able to point you in the right direction as far as latest brands/styles and educational resources. If you have a cloth diaper store anywhere near you, they often have CDing 101 options, or you can at least go look.

You can always start with 1) a starter kit that some online stores sell, or 2) flats/prefolds that are a cheap option to get started. If you don't like it, you haven't invested a ton of $ into it. Very MM

And we were definitely NOT an all-or-nothing household. We did disposables on trips, for grandparents, and a few other occasions. DD didn't really care what was on her butt.

[Deleted]

Buy cheap diapers. Try it out. Alva, Kawaii, and Sunbaby are good cheap brands for pocket diapers.

I've been at it for 4 years. They'll be worn out when I'm done, but it's been worth it. I do all pockets. Microfiber inserts to start, bamboo or prefolds later on. Wash with Tide.

[humpforfree]

We cd but don't have to worry about a daycare. I started with newborn prefolds & covers since they were cheap. Once he was 10ish lbs I moved to pockets (mostly cheap Alvas and Kawaii, some BG 4.0s). Started with the MF inserts, changed to the prefolds when he was 6 or 7 months, now he is 1.5 and I do a prefolds with a hemp liner. We wash with country save.
We do disposables at night right now because it seemed like his teething/toddler pee so much/for 12 hours at night was irritating him by morning.
Eta- we do cloth wipes, just cut up wash cloths in the OXO container with water. And we have a diaper sprayer, which is a godsend because we do not have ploppable poops here..

[Deleted]

My DCP was totally okay with cloth (bum genius pockets, about as close to sposies as you can get).

My mom, aunt, and grandmas were also totally fine with them. My mom and grandmas cloth diapered way back when so they thought the new diapers were so cool! I also gave teenage babysitters the choice and they all chose to use the cloth like it was no big deal.

For out and about we did a mix of cloth and sposies depending on where we were going and for how long. It was fine.

[Deleted]

I bought some cloth diapers. I tried one day and it seemed to make DS fussier but it could have been coincidence.

But really now I just look at them in the drawer and get anxiety. I need to just give them to my sister and forget about. I don't think I have the mental ability to remember to do specific laundry every day/every other day. I am maxed.

[estrellita]

We do a mixture. We got a few CDs about 2 months ago and have been slowly growing our stash (if you don't mind waiting, co-ops are super cheap!). We still send disposables to DC and use them while we're out for an extended period of time. It doesn't have to be all or nothing! But once we get more we might send some all in ones (inserts are sewn in, no extra work other than putting in wet bag instead of trash) to DC.

I really love them. They are way easier than I originally thought. Getting the poop off does suck if it doesn't plop right off, but E only poops maybe once a day so it's not bad. Washing is easy and you can ignore most of the things people will say (check out Fluff Love University for washing tips).

A couple more resources that have helped me before and after deciding were from Dirty Diaper Laundry (Kim also convinced me to try the Diva Cup and I love it!) and Padded Tush Stats. Just a warning, it can be addicting because some of them are so damn cute!

[atarianna]

I have done it nearly exclusively for both kids. Daycares have been accepting once they see they are really no more work than disposables. We were lucky and never had any thrown out by mistake.

We do them while we are out, but I do have some disposables in the car just in case I run out or something.

My parents and babysitters have no issues with them.

We do disposables at night now because I just couldn't find the right absorbency for nighttime with my heavy wetters and was sick of changing the sheets. We buy a 100 pack once every 2 months.

[estrellita]

Now that I'm at my computer I can type a little more Here are a few things I've learned so far that might help you:

-You can easily get diapers super cheap. Don't buy the Alva or other cheap brands on Amazon. They are cheaper through their website and even cheaper through co-ops.
-AIOs are easier but take forever to dry. Pockets can be a little annoying to remove or stuff inserts, but they dry faster.
-Microfiber is usually a standard insert, but bamboo or hemp are better. More expensive though.
-We don't have a sprayer yet so if the poop doesn't come off easily the peri bottle I got from the hospital works decently well. I just have to fill it a couple times. EBF doesn't need to be rinsed but if I had been able to BF I probably would still rinse it just so it doesn't stain as much.
-Buying used diapers is another good way to get cheap diapers. Just do a bleach soak before using.
-Don't listen to the washing instructions on most diapers. It's perfectly safe and even recommended to use regular detergents (Tide is recommended all over) and dry them in the dryer. I even use a little Oxiclean in my regular wash to help prevent staining.
-The sun really does work wonders for stains! E had a blowout in a disposable diaper while wearing a mostly white onesie. I did an Oxiclean soak and let it sit out in the sun. Can't even see it now!
-It is SERIOUSLY ADDICTING! If you can't tell by me going on and on about it I'll stop now though, haha.