Will didn't start wearing cloth until March when he was 9 months old. I knew several people (Margaret, Krista and Leah mainly) that used cloth and just decided it was something that we should do - for all of the reasons already discussed.
My only apprehension was being able to find time to do those extra loads of laundry while working full time. Well - I am here to say that I look forward to diaper laundry. Yes, I am strange. There is nothing like the challenge of getting your diapers the cleanest possible, fighting detergent buildup and the joys of stripping. Aside from the super-cuteness of a cloth covered bum, my FAVORITE thing about diapers has been perfecting the wash routine. I used to view it as a pain, but now it is just a challenge. Please feel free to ask away on laundering questions. I know first hand how frustrating this part of diapering can be.
Now on to our stash...Our stash is pretty much the same that we started with. The only things I've sold are diapers that Will outgrew or ones we weren't crazy about. I've been slowly adding to it to try new things and get prepared for having two in diapers come March. This is what we have:
12 BumGenius
10 Fuzzi Bunz - size Med
2 GADs (green acre designs) - size Med
2 Swaddlebees - size Med
2 Kissaluv fitteds
12 rainbow short prefolds (green mountain diapers)
1 bummis jungle print cover - size Med
3 prowrap covers - size Med
1 pull on wool cover (wild child woolies)
1 pull on wool cover (luxe baby)
12 microfiber towels from Target
24 cloth wipes
2 joey bunz hemp inserts
2 pail liners
5 wetbags
Yes, we technically have 40 diapers. But many of these were bought used from Diaperswappers and most will be able to be used on both Will and the new baby at the same time. I first ordered the BumGenius diapers new from Cottonbabies and we started using those part time. I slowly added some used diapers to try out including the Kissaluvs, Swaddlebees, FuzziBunz and GADs. Since then, I've purchased more NEW of all of those brands. I then added prefolds to the mix and would HIGHLY recommend Green Mountain Diaper prefolds. Here is my review of each dipe I currently use:
BumGenius - great for sitter and grandparents to use, build-up can occur easily leaving STINKY diapers, also don't like the velcro...it already seems worn out.
FuzziBunz - I LOVE snap diapers, great for overstuffing at night, Mediums have a HUGE weight range thus lasting a while, overall my favorite POCKET diaper.
Swaddlebees - SUPER trim and LOVE the side snaps (as opposed to FB that snap in front), hard to get good absorbancy because they are small pockets
GADs - LOVE these super cute side snapping pocket dipes, can custom order colors, fabrics, etc.
Kissaluvs - my favorite fitted diaper, again I like the snaps
GMD rainbow short prefolds - LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE these diapers. They are cut slightly shorter than traditional CPF of the same size. This means there is less diaper to fold and it is less bulky. Now the bad news...they don't make these anymore. Sorry! But...search diaperswappers and you might find some! Also - they make a slightly larger version (that we'll be buying soon) with a brown serged edge that is similar.
Covers - I definitely prefer the bummis cover over the prowraps. But I think PUL (waterproof) covers are very dependent on your babies shape. My recommendation is to get them used to find one you like and then buy new.
WOOL - I recently purchased two pull on wool covers and can't say enough about how much I love wool. They are supercute and you wash every 2 weeks or so unless you get poop on the cover! It is pricey, so I will be adding slowly. Washing wool is also a little different than the diapers, but again just ask! It's easy once you figure it out. The one pictured below is from Luxe.
COST - I plead the fifth. Seriously though, I do have a list that is keeping track of all we've spent. Keep in mind that we started with the most expensive options you can do in cloth mainly because that's all I knew at the time and Will is with sitters half of the week. I estimate that we've invested about $500 in cloth between what I've bought and sold. That was our goal and the deal was that if I wanted anything new for Will I have sell something first.
I think I'll make a separate post about my laundry methods later on. Hopefully I can save someone the headaches I've endured over trying to figure this part out. Also - please ask questions. When talking cloth diapers it's easy to assume everyone knows all the lingo and such even though I know not everyone is as obbsessive as myself in doing research and such. I'll end now with a picture of my cute son in his very first cloth diaper - a BumGenius!
18 comments:
Alright Christina (and others), my question is, how hard was it to convince Jacob to go to cloth? I would love to go with it, especially if we find childcare that would be cool with it, but Matt is less easy to persuade. Especially when it comes to thinking about dirty diapers and dealing with those. Thoughts? Advice? Maybe some of the husbands could post so mine (and others)will get their perspectives too. Anyway, I really appreciate the blog, and hope it helps me prepare!
Hi Anna!
That's a great idea about having husbands post about cloth. Jacob was fairly easy going and easy to convince so maybe someone else has more advice for you. Here are some points that I think might help:
1. Storing dirty cloth between washes is WAY less stinky than storing dirty disposables, even in a diaper genie like system.
2. Changing them is no harder. You could start easy (like we did) with the pockets like a BumG - and then introduce the trickier ones like prefolds.
3. Jacob now hates the smell of disposable diapers. They smell perfumey and are even worse when peed/pooped in.
4. WAY cheaper.
I ran across this blog a while ago and have been reading ever since - I really enjoy it and always look forward to updates.
I just wanted to let you know that these posts on cloth diapers have convinced me to try it out. I'd been wanting to, but always found a reason not to - until now! Today was my daughter's first day in cloth.
Thanks for helping to convince me to give it a try.
I appreciate each of the points that you guys are trying to make about cloth diapers. However, if your blog readers are basing decisions about cloth vs disposable diapers on your comments, then I think you should post pros AND cons to cloth diapering. In addition, I think you've left a few things out:
1. Your price breakdown about how much you save by cloth diapering is based on using Huggies - one of the most expensive disposable diapers you can buy! There are numerous cheaper brands, including the least expensive, store brand diapers. Based on my calculations, store brand disposables are actually cheaper than cloth diapers over 30 months!
2. Another factor in your cost breakdown that you are missing is that most of you say that you use disposable diapers while on vacation, with sitter, or in the nursery. You aren't counting the price of buying disposables for those times into your cost for cloth diapers.
3. Your time is another factor! With cloth diapers, you are spending more time cleaning diapers and that is time that could be spent with your child (or husband).
4. Diaper rash. My daughter uses store brand disposables and has never had a bad diaper rash. With cloth diapers, because the pee or poop stays next to the babies skin, they are more prone to diaper rash. Also, you can't use diaper rash cream to help heal diaper rash with cloth diapers because of the way those chemicals affect the cloth.
5. As far as disposables go - the smell is minimal. Once the wet or dirty diaper is off baby, you throw it away and get it out of your house. It's gone, it's done. With cloth, you have to scrape the poo into the toilet, soak the diapers, then wash them. In that case the smell (and numerous load of laundry) linger.
I am happy that cloth diapers are a great options for lots of people and I respect that decision. Just wanted to pass along some of my thoughts.
I'm enjoying the blog. :)
-Lisa
(Christina - you know I love ya! Sorry for the negative post) :)
Lisa,
First of all - yes, it is clear we are all biased towards cloth and maybe haven't made somethings clear. We are simply trying to get the word about cloth out there since SO MANY families don't even consider it an option when it is in fact a great one!
1. Cost - yes we are calculating using the most expensive brand disposable, but for us store brands have never worked. They either come un-velcroed or they leak and dont hold enough pee overnight. Huggies are simply the only disposable option for us. The next fact hasn't been mentioned yet, but my savings for cloth will be EVEN GREATER with baby #2. All that I currently have can be reused for #2. I estimate that at the end of diapering baby #2 I will have only spent maybe $100 more on diapers.
Maybe this wasn't made clear by any of us, but cost is not the only factor in deciding to use cloth. For us - Jacob and I- the environmental/health concerns (mentioned in Krista's post - go read the Mothering article, it's GREAT) were more important to me than the cost. Yes, we could probably buy store brand dipes for less, but I simply think cloth is better for the environment and better for Will. Besides using Huggies for sure would have cost us more!
You're right about the fact that no one has calculated in all those times we've still had to buy sposies. Let me tell you that those purchases do hurt!! It would be next to impossible to really track all expenses related to cloth. Bottom line again is that cost is not the only factor we considered.
2. Time factor - yes cloth diapering takes slightly more time than disposables. But it takes me maybe 15 minutes of actual hands on time to do one load of cloth diapers. That includes folding, the longest part. Currently I only was 2x a week. If a person doesn't want to do more laundry (or pay for a laundry service) then cloth isn't the right choice for sure.
I think there are many things we can choose to do for our family because they are healthier or better in the long run but might take more time. This is simply a matter of how willing a person is to make small sacrifices for the health and well being of the family. How willing a person is certainly depends on their level of conviction about the issue.
For example, the wheat mill I just bought will take me considerably more time to prepare fresh, homeade bread each week versus buying store bought loaves. But after research, I am fully convinced that this time is worth it when I consider the health benefits to our family.
4. Diaper rash. First of all, poop is the same in cloth and sposies. :) It doesn't go anywhere until the dipe is changed. The pee however might sit next to the skin slightly longer, but assuming your cloth diapers are clean this is not usually the cause of diaper rash. Rashes can be caused by so many things and it is definitely a myth that cloth babies are more prone to it. Will has had LESS in cloth than when we used sposies for sure.
About the rash cream - you're right in that you shouldn't put most rash creams next to the cloth diaper. However, there are diaper safe creams out there. You can also use a fleece liner (cut from fleece bought for next to nothing at walmart) to protect the diaper. Flushable liners are also available.
5. Smell - yes if you take disposables directly outside there is technically no smell left in the house. But I was WAY too lazy to do that when we used sposies. Sometimes I forget our cloth is there because there is virtually no smell (unless I have ammonia build up and that is rare). Yes, rinsing poo in the toilet is less than desirable to some but I find myself doing the SAME THING even with sposies to keep the smell down!!
Thanks for bringing up some good points. I think we are all so very convinced that cloth is the best that we might tend to overlook the fact that some parts might be considered negatives to some people!
Thanks for the response...
True that cost isn't your only reason for using cloth, BUT it is a major one that you guys are citing. I just wanted to clarify your facts with a few things that I thought you had left out.
As for the environment, landfills are not an issue as much as folks think. I was just reading an article about how landfills are very often turned into golf courses or even housing developments once they are full. In addition, there is literally tons of land available for landfills.
Yes it does involve convictions. And, especially when you have a newborn and you're barley getting any sleep, your time matters! If you choose to spend extra time on cloth diapers and bread mills, that is your choice.... but it is better for my family if I have time with them and also breaks every now and then. As a mom, my family is better if I have time to read, time to be with friends, etc. and don't spend every ounce of energy on stuff around the house.
I know the purpose of this blog is to share your ideas with people.... and it's wonderful that you all want to use cloth diapers! I'm really happy that you enjoy that. However, don't overlook that it's not the right decision for everyone... and be sure to present all the facts. Moms who are making the decision deserve to have all of the info.
Lisa,
Thanks so much for adding to the conversation. We have been praying that more people would comment on our blog - so you are an answer to prayer.
I am a firm believer that mothers should go into decisions fully armed with all the information and options available - that is actually one of the reasons we put our time and effort into this blog. As for this particular topic, disposables get a lot of attention by moms through tv ads and through easy availability in stores. Our goal here is to inform mothers of alternative diapering choices that they may not have been previously aware of (which was the case with all five of our authors). I stand by Krista's original post that the benefits of cloth diapering include: cost, health & environmental conservation. I would also like to reiterate that cloth can be done very inexpensively (see my post Leah's Current Stash); that for many the health/environmental reasons outweigh even the cost benefits; and that cloth can be reused on subsequent children, therefore increasing the value of the investment two-, three- (or more) fold.
Thank you for your desire to balance the conversation and I hope that your contribution will help more moms make better informed decisions.
Best of luck to you as well as you endeavor to honor Christ in your relationship with your family - a goal all of us are striving for. Thank you for the reminder that we each should seek to love our families as Christ has enabled us.
Thanks, Leah, I appreciate your comments. I was hoping that you guys would welcome discussion! :)
My main point was that I thought folks should have all of the information in order to make the best decision for their family regarding diapering..... which it sounds like you guys want that as well.
By the way.... love the name Leah (it's our daughter's name)!
Lisa,
As another author of this blog, I'd like to say thank you as well for "waking up the neighborhood" if you will. :) We were wanting more feedback, and now we've got it! So, hats off to you.
If you don't mind, allow me to further explain a few things regarding the cost breakdown:
1.) We knew that Huggies was one of the most popular dipes out there, and that's why we chose it. I know that a lot of my friends that use 'sposies rely on coupons and generic brands to help buffer the cost, and as a notorious couponizer myself, I understand how much of a difference even a little coup can make. So, yes indeed, you are right in saying that the comp would be cheaper. Putting every brand and even considering coupons would have made the post EVEN LONGER and would have caused for more headaches, especially on my part. Now that the estimates concerning number of diaper changes etc.. is out there, every mother can do their own little math 101 and figure their own family spendings into their budget.
2.) I agree with Christina on her comment that she made that there's no way that we can truly be so precise concerning every single dollar we spend toward diapering, specifically the vacation diapers or the emergency sposies we keep on hand. But a ballpark figure is what we're aiming at. These are all great things that you are bringing up and great reminders for the readers to keep in mind.
3.) I will comment in more detail this week about my routine that I do concerning cloth, but for me personally, I would not say that cd-ing is all that time consuming. It's just a tinsy bit more of a time commitment, but not a big one. I don't scrape poo off the dipes at all, I peel. :) I peel off the rice diaper liner that covers the diaper(very, very cheap) and throw it in the trash and the diaper in the wet bag. The washing machine is my best friend and does all the hard work for me! I just dump in detergent. I will have to say though...that you DO need to be mindful of the time that the washing machine takes so that your family's laundry doesn't get backed up. That's probably my number one combatant with washing my own dipes. I like to get out of the house to walk or visit friends, so that hinders my time at the washing machine starting another rinse, putting the dipes in the dryer or on the line.
4.) I echo your comment on our babies not having diaper rashes with sposies. My 10.5 month girl hasn't had one diaper rash yet and we didn't start cloth diapering until she was about 4 months old. We had a rough first few months, and I was content to stick with sposies until I felt able and willing to take on another task of Motherhood.
Thanks again Lisa for your input! We look forward to hearing from you again. Blessings!
Christina,
I will have to say that that little pic of Will at the end of your post is SUPE CUTE!
(I keep forgetting to answer all the questions from our comment-ers! ha!)
Anna,
I'll ask my husband if he'd like to put in his .02 concerning cding. But it really didn't take too much coaxing to get him to agree with cloth. He trusted my judgement. He does however, like the fitted diapers that we have(Snug-to-fits from Greenmountaindiapers.com) because they function just like a disposible, except you have to put on a cover. After I showed him how easy it is to put on a prefold and encouraged him with the fact the more he does it, the easier it will get, he's open to prefolds too. I also made mention of friend of his who's son and daughter are in cloth and that if he can learn to do it, then it can't be THAT bad. Lastly, we are in no position to be buying sposies right now since I quit my job. He and I both love the fact that cd-ing is working and meeting our needs.
You'll probably see another comment from me again soon. ha!
Thanks for all your info; very helpful!! Just wanted to say that I hang-dry my Bum Genius diapers outside and they always smell fresh and the sun bleaches out any of the poop stains. It also saves on the energy bill since I don't have to do the dry cycle!
As Leah's wife, I will put in my opinion.
1 No way disposable diapers are cheaper. Cloth saves money, it is just a matter of how much.
2 As for time, we spend our time together regardless of what we do as a family, fun or not.
3 The environmental factor alone should be enough to tip the scales in favor of cloth. God gave us the land to care for it until He comes and redeems it (Is. 66, Rom 8).
4 We should be wary of what is easiest in life and what is marketed to us. Parents are inundated with ads from diaper companies. To be fair and balanced would require the blog to discuss cloth diapers for the next 2 months.
but these are only my obviously biased opinions
ed payne
Thanks Ed for giving us a hubby perspective! Thanks too for the scripture references, although I haven't had a chance to really read them yet.
huh...very interested in all you all have to say! :) Our daugher is 5 months today and I am still learning all I might need to learn about cloth. It takes me multiple times to read something before it sticks...so thanks for continuing to reiterate facts about cloth. Cloth diapers are my heart...now if I can just get my brain to get in the groove too!
Love you all! Gi
Thanks for your blog. I'm looking into cloth for my son (Feb 2008) and interested in the rice liners you mention. Hubby is hesitant about cloth and wants some disposable option...Thanks, Joyce
I know this is an older post but seeing that you use BumGenius, I was wondering if you could tell me what your wash routine for them is? we just started with cloth a couple of months ago (and from reading this blog it looks like i may need to strip mine) but with all the warnings and "no don't do that because it'll ruin the diaper" i've been a little timid to do the vinigar/baking soda/chlorine things. However at the same time I don't feel like the diapers are really CLEAN. egad! any help would be so greatly appreciated.
Thanks~!
Maly
Maly,
If your diapers are getting that ammonia smell, then yes you should strip. Bum Genius really seem to get this FAST for us, but maybe b/c this is our main overnight diaper?
I am still using the same wash routine that I outlined in this post (or maybe a separate about laundry - can't remember). A couple things:
1. Baking soda will actually ADD to your ammonia problem. It's the chemistry of it all - so don't use that.
2. Vinegar is what will neutralize the ammonia. BUT this is what some say can ruin elastic and PUL making it not waterproof. That said, I have been using vinegar with every wash for months now and have only recently had one PUL cover that seems to be loosing its waterproofness. I'm cutting back on my vinegar use and only using it every couple of washes to keep ammonia away.
3. So normal washes consist of a cold rinse, hot wash with 1/4-1/2 tsp of Dawn (depends on size of load) and one to two rinses (again depends on size of load)
Good luck! Feel free to ask anymore questions.
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