Diapers Q&A - cloth or disposable diapers?

cloth or disposable diapers?

I am thinking about using cloth diapers, but there seems to be so many things to consider in my choice. Why did you choose cloth or disposable? if you use cloth now can you let me know where you bought them and what type you find work best. (prefold, flat, all-in-one, ect.)

Public Comments

I went with disposable just because we are always going and it made sense to be able to just throw them out and go.
I'm choosing disposable diapers because i don't want to have to deal with cloth ones.. You have to wash them and all that when you can just throw disposable diapers away and not have to worry about anything else..
We use cloth diapers, because they're better for the environment, for my baby's body, and my bank balance. I spent about $500 to diaper two children for their whole diaper careers, and if we have a third I won't have to spend anything.
I chose disposable for the main reason being convience and less leaks. I honestly don't understand the point in cloth diapers. The disposable are biodegradeable so it's not like we are polluting the earth with them. Plus, if you already have older children, who has the time fore cloth diapers? Just do disposable, they are so much easier.
I chose disposable because my best friend's baby used cloth and he seemed to get many rashes. Plus I consider them better, just a personal opinion.
disposables. easier to use, less headache, and less laundry
I have used cloth diapers on my baby girl since she was born (she is now almost 11 months). In the beggining, I used the ones that you safety pin on the sides, but then found ones that snap on the side. They save us so much money, plus they are tons better for the environment. Also, they don't have chlorine in them like disposables do, so they will cause less rashes, if any. I only use disposable diapers when we are going to be out of the house for a long period of time. I can get away with buying 1 jumbo pack of Huggies Supreme every 2 weeks (about 35 diapers). Plus, cloths diapers are not hard to keep up on. I wash them myself every day or so (they are kept in a bucket with soap and water while they wait to be washed-just rinse off poop in the toilet). I put them on the spin cycle to start to get out excess urine and water, then through a heavy wash cycle and extra rinse cycle, all on hot water to kill bacteria. Then dry them on high heat. Mine are still not stained. Wash them with a decent detergent and powder chlorox 2 (liquid bleach will deteriate the fabric). Trust me, those that think it's too hard are just lazy or not doing it right! :) Good luck! I'll check back for furthur details if you have more questions. UPDATE: Go to www.dri-line.com and view the semi fitted cloth diapers. I use these, they are extremely easy. I don't find they take anymore time putting on than a disposable. Just buy some plastic (vinyl) pants from the store to go over them. They snap on the sides and there is a lot of room for adjusting. My daughter started wearing them at 7lbs and still wears them at 19 lbs. and she'll still wear them for 15 or more lbs. I got a dozen with shipping for fifty something.
CLOTH ARE THE BEST BECAUSE THE BABY GETS FRESH AIR WHICH REDUCES RASHES & CUTS ON THE BABY COST AND ONLY USE DIAPERS WHEN YOU'RE TRAVELLING. JUST REMEMBER TO HAVE A COVERED CONTAINER READY EVERY MORNING WITH FRESH WATER AND DETERGENT SO THAT YOU CAN RINSE AND SOAK THEM READY FOR LAUNDRY THAT WAY THEY WON'T BE STAINED.
I chose cloth. At first I wanted to save money (several hundred $ for a birth to potty package vs. several thousand to buy disposables over the time needed). However, if you use a service the price is about the same. I also discovered cloth are not the kind our moms & grandmas used. They are so much easier! Later after using disp. that had been given as gifts I realized they all seemed to leak more often than I would have imagined - especially at night. With cloth it almost never happens. Finally, I never have to run out at night because I am running out of diapers. I just throw in a load of laundry when I am getting low, which if you purchase a good package, is rare. The down side in my opinion is that they are still bulky compared to disposable and hard to travel with. I tend to buy cheap disp. for long trips. Overall I have been pleased with cloth and would use them again for another child.
I chose disposable for the convenience. If I couldn't of afforded disposable I would of chosen cloth. It seems cloth diapers offer so much more work, rather than throwing them away your have to clean then and whatever is on them off. To me that seems kind of gross, you should see some of my sons diapers. Plus my son gets rashes easily enough I can't imagine him wearing a cloth diaper that doesn't pull away the urine away from his skin. It's like take a towel and strap it to yourself, pee in it then tell me how gross that would feel.
CLOTH - every time! I started off with disps, my son peed out the sides, the tops, everywhere, he just cant control his tinkle! The disps were smelly after just a short while and i tried many brands. I tried cloth now Im addicted to the different types and funky prints they come in. We have no leaks, even over night 14 hours! No nappy rash and no damp bums with crease lines on. His bum is always fresh and dry even after cloth been on overnight. Some nappies are fleece lined, if they are not i use a fleece liner in it. this sucks the urine away from baby and into the cloth nappy and it doesnt come back through. As for the poo, it just hits the fleecy liner, you plop it off down the loo, give it a blast with the cold tap and put it in a dry bucket to await washing. Simple. After all, what would you rather wear, paper knickers or nice soft cotton knickers? Donna x
We chose cloth diapers, because we didn't want to have to worry about destroying the environment and our child's health by using disposables. Disposable diapers contain carcinogens and other harmful chemicals, not to mention the pollution they cause! We use pocket diapers such as fuzzibunz and also use some prefolds. We didn't like AIOs as much, but other people have great success with them. I suggest looking for a local cloth diaper store or going to a large online site such as www.diaperswappers.com www.diaperpin.com www.barefoot-eco.com You might also want to look at a site that gives you lots of information on the pros of cloth diapering such as www.realdiaperassociation.org As for the washing, it is very easy to do. The diaper sites can give you directions as well as www.fuzzibunz.com (that is the method I use for washing all of ours) use an environmentally friendly soap such as Allen's Naturally. We are on the go a lot and travel often. We take our cloth diapers with us along with a wet bag to toss them in. Cloth diapering is so easy to do and you will save money! Congrats on wanting to do something good for your child and the Earth!
In my humble opinion, there is only one choice in this matter. That is cloth, cloth, cloth, cloth. The only real diaper is a cloth diaper. Cloth diapers are cheaper in the long run than disposables, true, there is a larger cost up front but each time you use those cloth diapers they become cheaper and cheaper until the are less than the disposables. Cloth diapers breathe where disposables won't. Even with wearing diaper covers over the cloth diapers, they breathe better. This means next to no diaper rashes. You just need to make sure that you change them right away. They are better for your baby's skin. Cloth diapers aren't that difficult to maintain. Under normal circumstances, for one child, you shouldn't have to do more than one or two loads of diapers a week. That really isn't that much when you think about how much better off your baby will be in the long run not to mention your wallet. Cloth diapers, when taken off your baby, should have any waste dumped into the toilet and flushed away, then they should be put in a diaper pail with water and white vinegar to cut down on the odor causing bacteria. Cloth diapers should be washed with a detergent just like your other laundry, don't use the kind that says "chemical free" because they leave a residue in the diapers. Make sure you use a 2nd rinse cycle. During the first rinse cycle put in a cup of white vinegar and let the 2nd cycle rinse it out. Cloth diapers should not be washed in bleach because bleach will break down the fibers in the diapers causing them to prematurely wear out and become nothing more than rags. Cloth diapers should not be washed or dryed with any kind of fabric softener because it leaves a coating on the fibers and makes them less absorbent. Cloth diapers can be dryed in the dryer but if you can, hang them in the sun, it is a natural bleach and helps get rid of stains and gives the diapers a very fresh clean fragrance. I use a drying rack instead of a clothes line to dry mine. That way I don't break my back reaching up to hang them up, I don't drop clothes pins and I don't hang myself on the clothes line. Yes, I say mine, I'm incontinent and have to wear diapers 24 / 7 due to a medical condition. I wear cloth diapers all the time. The only time I will wear disposables is on a long trip where it isn't easy to wash or store used cloth diapers. Since I have worn both I feel I can fairly judge both. The other thing is, since I'm an adult, I can relate to you what it feels like to wear each type, a baby can't do that. A baby can't tell you he's uncomfortable in a disposable diaper when a cloth one would be better. Give them a try, I think you will like them, today's cloth diapers are not your grandmother's diapers any more. There are so many different styles of diapers and diaper covers that are just as easy to use as disposables. Myself, I use contour diapers that I made myself with elastic in the waist and leg openings, to help keep any mess inside if need be. I use the old fashioned plastic pants over the diapers but there are so many newer types of waterproof covers and they are probably better than plastic pants but it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks, I grew up with using plastic pants when I was little, I guess that still sticks with me to this day. Good luck.