When we first found out we were pregnant one of the first things my dad told us was... I hope you plan to use cloth diapers. Mr Cheapo was shocked when we said we planned to use disposables. My parents used cloth diapers for my brother and I. But that was back in the 80's and they had a diaper service so things were a little different.
Too be honest the thought of cloth diapering grosses me out. I love the fact that I can throw a nasty diaper in my diaper genie and be done with it. I can't imagine throwing a nasty, poop filled diaper in my wash. I also didn't think that cloth diapering would be any cheaper than using disposables once you factor in the added laundry and increase on your electric and water bill due to that.
However I saw a friend on Facebook who is very frugal comment on making the switch to cloth diapers because after spending 80bucks or more on diapers and wipes each month, cloth diapers were way cheaper
So I decided to look into it but u have no idea where to start. How do you know which cloth diapers to get, how many do you buy and how does cloth diapering even work?
Help!!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
You should check out Mrs. Ma'am she uses cloth on her baby girl!
ReplyDeletehttp://cajunbombshell1.blogspot.com/
We use cloth diapers, and I love it. We will never go back. And I definitely do not throw poop into my washer. :) I have done several posts on using cloth diapers if you want to check them out. Or if you have any questions I don't mind answering them.
ReplyDeleteThe first thing I want to say is you don't throw poop in your washer. Some people say you can, because both breastmilk and formula poop are water-soluble, but it's gross. I put poop in the toilet, where it belongs! All my diapers go into the wash completely poop free. You can get a diaper sprayer that attaches to your toilet, or you can do what I did (much cheaper) and get a longer hose for your shower head and just use that!
ReplyDeleteWe recently switched to cloth from disposables. The easiest way I can tell you how great the savings is that one of my friends bragged when she got 118 diapers for $20. That will last what? 2 weeks at most. I buy one cloth diaper for $20 and I can use it until my son is potty trained.
If I sat here and explained everything to you, it would take me forever, but I can give you a rundown.
First let me say, that you can buy sized or one size diapers. Obviously with sized, you will have to buy more as your child grows, but one size are said to fit from birth to potty training, because they are adjustable. I find that most fit from 10lbs+. I prefer one size diapers.
AIO (all in one) diapers are the most similar to disposables. The absorbent layer is sewn right into the waterproof outer. The easiest diaper to use, but the most expensive (also my favorite) (usually $20+ per diaper)
Pockets - Look like a disposable but have a little pocket where you put the absorbent inserts in and then remove them when time to wash. Also very easy to use, less expensive than AIO, and moderately priced (usually $15-20 per diaper) my second favorite, and a majority of my stash is made up of pockets.
AI2 (all in twos) - Similar to AIO but the absorbent part is separate from the waterproof cover (usually snaps into the cover, or can just be laid in there)
Fitteds - looks like a diaper, but not waterproof, requires a cover. I'm also a fan of these, but they can be quite bulky
Prefolds - The old fashioned diaper. A lot of people still love them today, but not me. You just fold them up and stick them in a waterproof cover and you're good to go!
Those are just a few (and all I use, so it's easier for me to talk from experience)
I can leave you with a few resources that might help you though! If you have any questions, please email me! amanda.maupin (at) hotmail (dot) com.
http://www.diaperjungle.com/index.html
http://www.kellyscloset.com/
http://allaboutclothdiapers.com/
I hope I helped! Good luck, once you get into it, it becomes an addiction!
Cloth diapering is SO easy!! I NEVER thought I would EVER want to do it, but after I had my first I saw someone do a blog post on it and realized how crazy easy it is. So I made this one after my second was born to show how easy it is: http://harmonsquad.blogspot.com/2010/09/cloth-diapering-de-mystified.html. It's not the same as it was when our parents were doing it. And there isn't any noticeable difference with our power or water bill. Granted, we are hybrid users (we do cloth at home and disposable when we go out and about), but since we're home 90% of the time we don't use many disposables. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteWe are using the gDiapers and love them so far. With those, you have a cloth diaper outer, a waterproof snap-in liner, and then you use either a disposable (yet biodegradable) insert that you can either flush or throw away or a cloth insert that you then wash. What's so great about them is that sometimes you have to get rid of (or wash) the insert, sometimes it's the insert and the liner that have to be washed, or sometimes it's everything. If you have extra liners, you can just toss the dirty one into the wash, snap in a new one, add a new insert and go about your way.
ReplyDeleteWashing the dirty diapers hasn't been gross at all. In fact, it's been very convenient. I usually do a tub clean cycle after I wash ours, and I've never seen any trace of poop either before or after that.
I order our gDiapers from Babies R Us, but you can also order them from Target online or diapers.com.
Good luck!
Young House Love had a big post on clothe diapers, maybe check it out : )
ReplyDeleteBaby Rabies has a lot of good information on cloth diapers as well - http://www.babyrabies.com/category/green-living/cloth-diapers/
ReplyDeleteWe're doing cloth diapers. There's A LOT of information out there and you just have to start sifting through and learning. What really helped us was going to a cloth diaper demonstration run by a local shop. They explained the different types and the care. I'm super excited to use cloth diapers!
ReplyDeleteI think it's all in what you really want to put the effort into. My best friend did cloth diapering for a while. She spent probably $160 on the diaper inserts and the covers... And I think it was for about 8 of them. Then you have to think about how often you'll be washing them, which is more often the smaller they are. And you are supposed to buy a special detergent to use for the diapers. It all adds up after a while. You can get diapers for a STEAL from diapers.com and by couponing. My SIL got diapers from CVS for like $2 once...just by using coupons. I'm pretty sure they don't hand out coupons for cloth diapers. We're going to do disposables and I'm going to try hard to get them for cheap. But like I said, it's all in what you're willing to spend your money on: disposables or water, detergent, inserts and covers.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a cloth pro, we tried a few pocket dipes- and I seemed to like them a lot, but I never took the plunge! Google your local mommies group-ours has a whole group devoted to Cloth Diapering and they ALL were more than willing to answer any ?s I had!
ReplyDeleteIf you're doing it just for $ reasons, there are a few ways to save on diapers and wipes-plus I've heard of a lot of people using cloth wipes so that's an option. We always buy in bulk using Amazon Mom & Subscribe and Save. Just the other day-$20 for 56 dipes at Target, $30 for 136 dipes shipped to me from Amazon...it's amazing! Good luck with whatever you choose!
Disposable diapers are considered much more convenient than cloth diapers, especially while on the go. You don't have to worry about soaking or rinsing off disposable diapers.
ReplyDeleteKitchen Benchtops