cloth diaper ???

[Pata]

Let me first say that I know nothing about cloth diapers. I read another thread on them and I was totally lost with all the lingo. I used disposables with my dd and had planned on doing the same with this guy except for the fact that disposables are very, very expensive where I live overseas. So, can you guys help me think through this?

 

Here's the questions I have...

-I have no hot water in my washer and I have no dryer, would I have to bleach the diapers to get them clean/disinfected? Is it ok to let the diapers to air dry?

-what do I wash the diapers in? would baking soda be enough to clean/disinfect them thoroughly? (Baby safe detergent is also expensive and I'm not really sure that it's baby safe :))

-I have no idea what I'm doing, are cloth diapers really as easy to use as disposables? (exluding the cleaning process)

-how do you store the dirty diapers? do they smell after awhile and if so, how do you get the smell out of them? (I'll probably wash them everyday or every other day as my washer is small and water is cheap)

-how do I get started, specifically what will I need to buy? (I'm overseas, so I'm not sure that I'll be able to get specific brands or the latest adavances in cloth diapering, so what are the most basic cloth diapering materials that I would need to get, ie. what should I look for when I go shopping for baby stuff this weekend)

-once I get all these supplies, is there anything I need to do to them before I begin to use them?

 

I would appreciate any help/advice you guys can give :)!

Edited March 30, 2010 by Pata

[Mrs Mungo]

Here's the questions I have...

-I have no hot water in my washer and I have no dryer, would I have to bleach the diapers to get them clean/disinfected? Is it ok to let the diapers to air dry?

 

I don't think you would need to bleach them if you rinse with vinegar and dry them in the sun. The sun is a pretty good disinfectant. Bleach will mess up diaper covers and will break down the fibers in cloth diapers.

 

-what do I wash the diapers in? would baking soda be enough to clean/disinfect them thoroughly? (Baby safe detergent is also expensive and I'm not really sure that it's baby safe :))

I don't think baking soda would be enough to get them clean, I think you need something soapy. But, I know a lot of people make their own soap flakes using Dr. Bronner's.

 

-I have no idea what I'm doing, are cloth diapers really as easy to use as disposables? (exluding the cleaning process)

Almost, as long as you are using fitted diapers.

 

-how do you store the dirty diapers? do they smell after awhile and if so, how do you get the smell out of them? (I'll probably wash them everyday or every other day as my washer is small and water is cheap)

I filled a bucket with a lid with water and kept them in there. I washed diapers every night.

 

-how do I get started, specifically what will I need to buy? (I'm overseas, so I'm not sure that I'll be able to get specific brands or the latest adavances in cloth diapering, so what are the most basic cloth diapering materials that I would need to get, ie. what should I look for when I go shopping for baby stuff this weekend)

Honestly? I suggest you go to mothering or amitymama. There are SO many choices!!!

 

If I had my choice of any cloth diapers? Snugglebottoms were my favorite diapers and the Bummis Whisper Wraps were my favorite covers.

 

-once I get all these supplies, is there anything I need to do to them before I begin to use them?

 

You might wash the diapers ahead of time, just like anything else. But, that's it.

[Amber in AUS]

Peta i used to make and sell cloth nappies here in Australia. I will take you through what i would tell my clients as basics.

 

There are various types of modern cloth nappies. You have prefolds and covers, fitteds and covers, pockets, one size fits most and all in ones. The cheapest option is prefolds and covers. Pockets and all in ones are the most convenient. One size fits most will fit bub from about 5kg until toilet training in most cases. I always found cloth more reliable that sposies for newborn pooplosions.

 

For washing you should empty solids into the toilet.

Place nappy into nappy bucket, i used a large rubbish bin with tight fitting lid.

Do not soak your nappies it will breakdown the waterproofing in the covers.

Rinse your nappies before washing, my washer had a prewash rinse cycle.

Wash in regular detergent but use 1/3 to 1/4 the amount you would for a normal clothing load. Too much detergent will lead to a soap build up on your nappies and that will smell.

Do not use soaps like Lux, do not soak in bleach.

Wash on a regular cycle then hang in the sun to dry.

If you nappies do get smelly you will need to strip wash and you will need hot water for that. It might only be necessary once every 6 months.

 

(You can google the bands i mention) If you are looking for a cheap option i would look at Bummis prefolds and covers. If you want a one size fits most then look at Baby Beehinds Bamboo which are fitteds and covers. For pockets i think Swaddlebees has a one size now which could be worth a look.

 

Peta please let me know if i can help further.

[Melissa in Australia]

I used cloth ones with all my children. we call them nappies here in Australia. what I used was the standard here. a big square of flannelette. there are many different ways of folding it, depending on the sex of the baby. I then used a plastic cover over the top. they need to be changed allot more than disposable nappies. in fact I went through 8-12 a day.

I just soaked them in a bucket with a lid, and chucked them in the wash once a day. I dried them in the sun, which bleaches them. I did use disposables at night , as they can hold a lot more, especially as the baby gets bigger.

I believe there are all sorts of fitted nappies now days that are easier to use.

[momofkhm]

I used cloth diapers with my 2 oldest, so many, many years ago!

 

Here's the questions I have...

-I have no hot water in my washer and I have no dryer, would I have to bleach the diapers to get them clean/disinfected? Is it ok to let the diapers to air dry?

-what do I wash the diapers in? would baking soda be enough to clean/disinfect them thoroughly? (Baby safe detergent is also expensive and I'm not really sure that it's baby safe :))

-how do you store the dirty diapers? do they smell after awhile and if so, how do you get the smell out of them? (I'll probably wash them everyday or every other day as my washer is small and water is cheap)

 

I soaked the put the dirty diapers directly into the washer (I had a top loader at the time). The soaked in water and bleach. I added regular detergent and ran a "soak" load and then without adding anything more, I ran a regular load. I kept reading the diaper companies who bragged they were rinsed twice. This rinsed them twice. Bleach didn't break down the diapers I used. I used the same diapers through 2 kids. I soaked them Monday through Friday. Ran the load as described on Friday and then used disposables at night and through the weekend.

 

-I have no idea what I'm doing, are cloth diapers really as easy to use as disposables? (excluding the cleaning process)

-how do I get started, specifically what will I need to buy? (I'm overseas, so I'm not sure that I'll be able to get specific brands or the latest advances in cloth diapering, so what are the most basic cloth diapering materials that I would need to get, ie. what should I look for when I go shopping for baby stuff this weekend)

-once I get all these supplies, is there anything I need to do to them before I begin to use them?

 

Other than changing them more often, they really were just as easy. I got several diaper wraps that the diapers just laid in. I think I used 5 wraps in each size. Maybe more. The wraps were not happy in the bleach, but the diapers were fine. The wraps only went in the washer early if they got poop on them. Just pee and they were left out to dry. You'll need to by wraps at all the different sizes but your diapers should be one size fits all.

 

I think maybe I washed them as they came home but then nothing else.

 

HTH

[Another Lynn]

You've gotten some excellent advice so far....

 

I also like snugglebottoms that Mrs. Mungo linked. There is also a snugglebottoms with velcro. These are some of the cheapest fitted diapers - and if you need more absorbency you can add a folded flat or something when baby is older.

 

A couple of quick definitions....

 

fitted diaper - a diaper with elastic around leg openings and usually either velcro or snap closure for ease of use - but no built in waterproof cover.

 

All in one - (AIO) - same as fitted except the waterproof cover is built in

 

Pocket - a diaper "shell" with a pocket for inserting the absorbency (sometimes microfiber, or you can use a tri- folded prefold diaper) - these can be and usually are AIO - with a waterproof cover built in.

 

Pockets are sometimes more difficult to launder especially if you use a microfiber insert.

 

Now.... flats and prefolds are easiest to get clean, but hardest to use (a bit of a learning curve with how to fold and pin).

 

Fitteds with a cover - is a nice happy medium because they are easy to use, but can still be washed well.

 

Another "brand" you might want to look at is MotherEase - It offers two basic styles - a "one-size" (meaning it will fit a couple different sizes depending on how you snap it) and a regular sized fitted called Sandys. They also have two styles of covers - the Mother Ease Air Flow is the most popular. Most of my experience with cloth diapering is during the toddler stage. I tried to use cloth with my last baby when she was a newborn and I had forgotten how often you change newborns (for cloth or disposables!) No matter what I was using on her, I was changing her all the time and it was a bit exhausting. I don't want to be discouraging.... if anything I would say that disposables won't allow you to change a newborn any less often! Going by diaper prices here it was not anymore cost efficient to use cloth in the beginning because they grow and change sizes so fast (if you're using fitteds or AIOs) - but that could be very different where you are.

 

One more .02.... when I was trying to use cloth on my newborn, I really liked the Mother Ease Sandys with the Mother Ease Air Flow cover.... they are side snapping with elastic across the front of the waist which made it the best newborn diaper to go under the cord (imho).

 

Oh, and someone above mentioned hot water for stripping.... For washing I think hot water is almost more important in the rinse than in the washing part. So, in your case - definitely get those dipes in the sun and if you notice an odor than you may need to arrange a hot water rinse. If they don't have parts that can melt you can boil them on the stove. If they do.... then set your wash cycle to low water and add some hot water from the stove. If you stay away from microfiber you probably won't have much trouble from this.

 

Blessings for a healthy delivery and for your cloth diapering venture!

[Pata]

Thanks guys, I've been researching like crazy all afternoon and I think that I can do this. It doesn't seem as hard as I thought it would be. Where we live, we don't see the sun all that often (maybe once a week we'll get a really sunny day) so that might be a problem with sun bleaching. I'm sure we can work around that though. Now I just have to see what I can find here in the way of supplies.

 

Amber, any chance you ship to Asia?

 

Anyone else have more advice?

[Another Lynn]

Thanks guys, I've been researching like crazy all afternoon and I think that I can do this. It doesn't seem as hard as I thought it would be. Where we live, we don't see the sun all that often (maybe once a week we'll get a really sunny day) so that might be a problem with sun bleaching. I'm sure we can work around that though. Now I just have to see what I can find here in the way of supplies.

 

Amber, any chance you ship to Asia?

 

Anyone else have more advice?

 

:hurray: Now remember, you have to come back and tell us what you buy - I haven't had "fluffy mail" in a long time!!! What fun!

[1GirlTwinBoys]

I prefered All In Ones for daytime on my babies and fleece with microfiber inserts for nights.

 

You can also get something called a mini shower and hook up to the toilet. This will let you rinse diapers off before tossing in a pail. I used a stainless steel pail with a foot press to open the lid and kept it next to the toilet. Every night, I would toss in a load of diapers. :)

 

The sun is a great way to bleach out the diapers.

[Amber in AUS]

Amber, any chance you ship to Asia?

 

 

I used to Peta, but i am not trading any more. I just don't have time for it with the kids!

 

I would think most other Aussie companies would ship to Asia. You could look at Darlings Downunder they have excellent service!

NB - I am not affiliated with any of the companies or brands i have mentioned in this thread.

[hsmom27]

I used to sell pocket diapers and they're great, for some situations. For myself, I prefer prefolds and flats. AIOs and pocket/inserts can be harder to get clean and take longer to dry. But they're usually more DH friendly. With prefolds/flats, you do need to learn the folds, but really that's not difficult. You can just rinse and store in a dry pail, especially if you are going to wash everyday.

 

Anyway, I like Green Mountain Diaper prefolds/flats and Bummis Super Whisper Wraps. If you use flats (easiest to clean and dry) then you can use the same diapers from birth to potty learning. You would still need to size up on covers though.

 

If you can sew at all, making diapers is very easy. There are lots of free tutorials for turning prefolds into fitteds. Also, if you can knit, you can make wool covers for your diapers. Alternatively you can get old wool sweaters, felt them, and sew them into covers. I LOVE wool and it is usually bulletproof for nighttime. Wool has special properties too, so you don't have to wash if it just gets wet. Just let them dry and only wash as soon as you start to notice any smell.

 

Good Luck!

[dirty ethel rackham]

Total thread hijack - funny juxtaposition when I went to open this thread.

 

diaper covers?? response by "littlewigglebottoms."