Cloth Diapering

[ebwy2]

I used bambino mio and loved them. I think all in ones would be easier now he's a year old and wriggly though!

 

[NotInThecity]

I use Bum Genius and Fuzzi Bunz. I think the Fuzzi Bunz have a little more adjustment when the little ones get bigger. Can use regular flat-fold diapers for inserts too if needed--just fold and insert into the pocket. Works great.

Although I purchased from diapers.com, cottonbabies.com has a lot of information.

 

[stilldeb]

My daughter uses the new cloth diapers with her daughter (our first granddaughter) who is now four months old. They are on a well and septic, and she knows exactly how to wash them to keep them absorbent and everything (no fab softener, etc.), and loves them. They are very cute, the covers come in all kinds of prints, and very different from the old fashioned 'pin-style' cloth diapers.

deb g

 

[Wink]

2.5 kids out of 3 were cloth diapered....(I started late with my first kid)... I like them a lot. When we bought our new washing machine, I liked it because it had a "sanitary cycle". I have regular prefolds that I bought used, and have serviced me quite nicely, in conjunction with bummis whisper wraps. I even made my own for awhile, too. I have a "bidet" type of hose attached to my toilet so when there is a poopie diaper, I spray it off first, then put it in the diaper pail. Wash them in mostly vinegar and light detergent. Dry for ten minutes, line dry the rest of the time. Used to be a lot more gung ho with them, but my bummis are getting old and are not as waterproof (my third babe likes ripping them off if I don't have pants over them), so we don't use them in public outings anymore. He also poops a ton, too, (20 months, he's on the verge of potty training) so he gets a disposable if we go out somewhere long term or a nighttime diaper. But I thoroughly suggest cloth diapers!

 

[chawk]

I LOVED using cloth diapers.. I liked Bummis too. I had no problem using them! Good luck with your new bundle of joy

 

[ChooksinChoppers]

a Link for sheepskin for babies http://www.kiwi-sheepskins.com/baby-bedding-baby-care.asp?gclid=CICt8aa-1KkCFYsd2god-zti4g

 

[Mamaperreca]

HI all.

I am currently expecting baby number 4 so I have quite a bit of experience with cloth diapers.

For newborns that you have to change about every 2 hours (in the beginning) the best way I have found is prefolds with covers. They are the cheapest and you can have a lot of diapers on hand that way. Of course systems like FUzzi bunz and Bumgenius are great too especially since they have the one size options now. They are just more expensive.

Here is my favorite brand of prefolds (flat diapers): http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/diapers.htm
For a new person I would get about 12 newborn and 12 infant size to start with. You can use covers and also the snappis (same website under accesories). They are great! No pins!

You can use the prefolds inside the Fuzzi Bunz or Bumgenius diapers since they are pocket diapers. I recommend both brands for older babies. THey are awesome. I prefer snaps on them instead of velcro. The Velcro will gather lint and cause issues. Also my kids learned to open the velcro and take the diaper off. Snaps are harder for them to mess with.

You only need a dry pail for the diapers. If you breastfeed and the poo is basically liquid you don't have to rinse if you don't want to. You can get spray hoses that attach to your toilet at the hardware stores if you prefer. I just tossed them in the pail and washed every other day.

For washing it depends on your set up. I have a traditional top loader, so I just wash every other day and the diapers go about to medium load but I use high load of HOT water. One wash and rinse is plenty. Only use about 1/4 the amount of soap you use on laundry to avoid build up. I also us Biokleen Bac-Out. It uses enyzmes to break down bacteria and such. I put a generous squirt of it in each load.

If at any time you notice the diapers don't smell fresh or your child gets a rash from them you may need to "strip" them. When you do this wash once with a generous squirt of Dawn dish soap (just one big squirt). Then wash a second time with NO soap. This should solve the problem. Sometimes they just get laundry soap build up or just aren't getting all the ammonia out of the diapers in the wash.

I haven't had much success with homemade diaper soap. I just use my regular laundry soap.

Oh and very important: NEVER use fabric softener on diapers. In fact you shouldn't use it on your regular laundry either when you cloth diaper as it can be on the walls of your dryer and such and get on the diapers. It causes the diapers to repel water and not be absorbent.

Any other questions you can think of I am happy to help, on the thread or PM.

I have spent about $200 on my fist child and again between #3 and #4 about $100. I haven't spent any this time and baby will have plenty of diapers. If you take good care of them you can easily resell cloth diapers for at least 50% of the original value. Sometimes more for newborn or small sizes that are only worn a few months.

 

[PamsPride]

My favorite isBumGenius! I like how they clean up and how well they work!

 

[rilly10]

OMG mamaperreca THANK YOU! I am printing out your post for reference. That was sooo helpful, especially your care instructions. I really appreciate it!

 

[AyeUpChuck]

I LOVE cloth diapering!

I'm a huge fan of prefolds with covers to begin with as well! You can indeed look into diaper services which charge you for the number of diapers you use in a week. Basically they drop off prefolds at your door and give you a bag to put the dirty diapers in. The morning of or night before your pick up date you leave them in a designated spot and they leave you spanking new clean ones! It's pretty nice if you're first time parents and you can request a week or months service as a shower gift usually.

As far as covers for the prefolds, we were extremely partial to the Thirsties brand. We tried a few different types but for the money and overall value prefolds with snappies and thirsties covers were where it was at!

As for night time once he got a tiny bit older we were fortunate enough to acquire a set of BumGenius Elementals which are an organic AIO. We then decided to purchase BumGenius 3.0 AIOs and we loved them. In fact I highly recommend that you go to www.cottonbabies.com That's BGs actual website and if you signup for their newsletter you get emails when they put their seconds on sale which is a KILLER way to save money! They now have the 4.0s which I heart because to me it was the best of the elementals and the 3.0s combined.

As someone else mentioned, you DO NOT want to use regular detergent on cloth diapers. It can strip the waterproofing and ruin your diapers. We use Charlies for ours http://www.charliesoap.com/orderNow.asp?cartID=D926FA43DB484094B7467CB8E5FE9417 though there are other great ones like Rockin Green and I think BG make their own as well.

Another tip with CDs is using a little vinegar with each wash. I use about 1-2 Tb of white vinegar which I jazz up with vanilla beans or other smelly good herbs. Only natural things though. Anyway.... I do a prewash and extra rinse anytime I wash diapers which is every 2-3 days. If you have hard water you may want to only use about 1/2 the recommended amount of detergent. I also "strip" my diapers about every 3-4 months. You use a solution of original blue dawn (1tsp for HE and 1Tb for reg) combined with about a 1/4-1/2 Cup of regular bleach. You wash your diapers in it and then rewash (I just use the quick cycle) 2-3 times to make sure that all of it has been rinsed. If you still see suds.... wash them again. It's good for your machine too! It strips all the residue that builds up from normal washing in your machine as well.

I hope this is helpful! There are a TON of CDers out there and they love to share their wealth of knowledge!