Diapers Q&A

Cloth diapers?

I would just like to know the ins and outs of cloth diapers. How they work; what detergent to use; what kind of fold is best; best brand; best material; most economical use; where to get them; what do we need to use them;how to wash them; pretty much everything you could think of; we would like to know. thank you.

Public Comments

1. Save yourself the headaches and for at least the first two months get a diaper service -- then decide if you want the hassle of cloth diapers.
2. I know that you have to dump the poop into the toilet and then wash them in a no perfume no dye detergent. They also have services that will pick them up and clean them and drop them off to you. And keep in mind that at first your child will go through at least 10 diapers a day so make sure you have enough.
3. Cloth diapers were used by our forefathers and they've succeeded in using them without hassles and complaints. anyways, because of business, they produced these plastic, disposable diapers. you can buy these cloth from a bakery. these are bags used to contain flour. you just have to clean them thoroughly before using. use mild soap since the cloth is thin and the baby's skin is sensitive. my cousin, what she does is to take all those inserts in plastic diaper and replace it with the cloth. she uses this during daytime. it's economical and cost-saving. she uses disposable diaper at night, though.
4. i'm no expert, but just for kicks, i bought bum genius brand all-in-ones (meaning they need no cover). they do have a cloth insert for absorbancy. they are very cute, too. unfortunately, out of the 3 times i have used them, they have leaked twice. the first time i didn't use the insert, though. they are super cute though, and i might buy more for use at home because they seem to be very comfy. i just wash them with my other laundry. they have velcro, which is nice, and they are adjustable size so they will not be too small anytime soon. i got mine online for something like $17. i heard fuzzy bunz is a good brand, too, but if i got more, i would stick with bum genious because they are so darn cute. :)
5. I LOVE cloth diapering, my baby has never had a rash, and he's near one year. It has saved money, and been envirenmentally friendly...and they are sooooooo cute!
6. Judge for yourself...Do you have the time and sanity to pre-soak ,wash, dry, fold , stack and then get stuck with safety pins or possible your child? Well I've been there and done that. Don't go with a diaper service. They are handy but ask yourself... would I want to put a diaper on my body that had been on another person's, soiled and washed by God knows what means and what could it carry as far as diseases go? Having your own diapers is a big big big job, no matter how dedicated you want to be. My point is...I tried the gungho approach to this mess and after the toil and expense, I found myself and my partner with around 400 dollars worth of pooped stained diapers that we thought we could get clean, not to mention mountains of soap and bleach we couldn't use because of the sensitive little bottom we raised. Do yourself a favor and get an environmentally friendly brand of disposables and use your free time clipping coupons or getting them on line.. In the long run you will be happier. I'm a tree hugger of sorts but my sanity comes first. TRUST, ME YOU'LL GET THE PICTURE.
7. You buy them, use them, and then wash them. Repeat (except for the buying part, but plenty have fun doing that too!). It's that easy, honestly. I wash mine in hot water w/ a little bit of baking soda (for freshness), vinegar (to help soften), and whatever detergent is around (my son is not sensitive, so no problems here). I don't know what the best is, but I can tell you what I use. Baby Love (onesize) AIOs. They provide good protection from leaks (at night a doubler is used), are fast-drying, and really cute. Very comparable to a disposable diaper b/c of the trim fit and ease of use. Here is a great website to educate yourself about cloth: http://www.diaperpin.com/home.asp There is a dictionary, reviews, and FAQs. If you're interested in the Baby Love's I mentioned: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_ba/002-2655215-8708834?initialSearch=1&url=search-alias%3Dbaby-products&field-keywords=Baby+Love+Diapers <<EDIT- THERE IS A PROMO RIGHT NOW FOR FREE SHIPPING WITH THE PURCHASE OF 2 PRODUCTS. THEY ARE AS LOW AS $11.95 EACH. THAT IS A REAL GOOD PRICE FOR BRAND NEW. I JUST BOUGHT 6 MORE MYSELF WHEN I SAW THAT! I PUT A DIFFERENT LINK UP THEN THE FIRST, SO CHECK IT OUT.>> The best advice I can give is to just go for it! You will be happy you did and save thousands of dollars as well.
8. I used cloth diapers exclusively when my sixteen yr old was a baby. I used the prefolded diapers, they are just thicker and shaped so you just tuck the legs in and fold down ends. I can guarantee you will have incidences of leaks if you do not use plastic pants over them. Washing them is a chore, but not too bad if you do pre prep work. As soon as your baby poops in a diaper dump as much out in the toilet and flush. When the bowl fills again dip the soiled diaper in the water until most of the poop is removed , then twist then end of the diaper around your fingers and flush holding the diaper in the toilet but not letting it slip. Place the diaper in a covered diaper pail of bleach water. Thats nearly a full pail of water with a few capfuls of bleach. You must wash diapers everday so be prepared to do a load of diapers every evening or morning whichever suits you. Wash them in a baby detergent such as dreft. This will wash the bleach out and I guarantee the diapers will be clean and white when they come out of the wash. You can buy diapers today with plastic coverings and velcro fasteners. I used diaper pins, placing a two fingers between the babys skin and the backside of the cloth diaper to keep from pricking baby. After a while you get very good at diapering baby just as quickly as using a disposable. You can buy cloth diapers at wal-mart or any baby store. The other thing you need to be warned about is your baby will wear bigger clothing than most babies his/her age because of the bulk of cloth diapers compared to disposable. Baby cloths are designed these days to accomodate a disposable not a bulky cloth diaper. The pros are your baby will not be exposed to chemicals used in the manufacturing of disposable diapers. You will know when your baby's diaper needs changed each and every time he pees or poops, it's not as easy to tell with a disposable because of the absorbency. The cost is way lower than disposables obviously. You definitely won't be harming the environment. The cons: They aren't as absorbent as disposables, You may experience many more leaks than you want to, especially on an outing. You will have to carry much more gear with you, cloth diapers take up more room and instead of one change of clothing you will need at least two or three depending on how long you intend to stay out. While driving and shopping you aren't as keen on keeping an eye on your lil bundles diaper status and leaks happen. You may want to ask yourself if it's worth the extra labor and washing expense to use cloth since you can get a box of a 100 diapers at walmart for 15.00. Good luck and search your soul, I have a nine month old and this one I used disposables on. I'm too old to deal with cloth diapers these days.
9. The kind of cloth dipes you use will depend on how "high tech" you want to get, and the amount of many you want to spend. I use a bit of everything, AIO's, pockets, fitteds, and prefolds. Prefolds have become my new favorite. I honestly don't follow any particular fold; I just get it on my son as it fits him best. I wash my son's dipes in plain old Era, just a VERY small amount. I do one hot wash, and then just an extra rinse to ensure the bubbles are gone. I haven't had any problems that way.
10. With my 3 kids I used disposable ones the first few weeks while I recovered and the baby stopped pooping that thick black tar stuff every other diaper. Plus people always give you diapers so might as well use them up. Then I used Gerber pre-fold with absorbent center with the Gerber vinyl over pants (Wal-mart). They non prefolded ones are like tea towel material and are not as absorbent. I would still put them into a disposable one for bed so they wouldn't wake up soaked. I would also use a disposable if I knew we were going to be away from the house for a long time. Plus it helps you to stick with it if you know you have alternatives. I washed mine separate but with my regular baby detergent, occasionally adding vinegar to rid any smell (you could use bleach but I'm not a bleach person). I had a little garbage pail with a lid that i put them in till I washed which was usually every night. Do think about where you live though. It may seem that using cloth diapers will save the world but if you live somewhere that has drought issues and water shortages then your impact on your local environment would be far more than if you used disposable. Also if you can afford it I would look into the cloth diapers that are made with the vinyl covering on them and velcro fasteners. They can be quite pricey though, If I would have known I was going to have three I would have invested in them.
11. You can use a gauze like absorbent cloth diaper. Three fold diaper.Soiled cloth diaper should be initially washed in the sink and placed it in a pail with water and bleach solution. Spin dry to get rid of the water.Wash in warm water, detergent and bleach. Double rinse and dry it with the dryer.
12. good things- they seem expensive at first but after the months of use you'll see that they are worth it. they are economical friendly bad things- you will have to pay to get them cleaned i cant think of many more but hope this helps I'm 13 btw so that's why i don't know much but all the same hope it helps good luck,x
13. Cloth diapering is great! I use Tide free and clear...although I am not happy with it and am probably going to switch to Pruex F&C. I use pockets most of the time (pockets have inserts that you slip in the top). I like pockets because they dry really quick. I also use perfolds and flats at home. I love flats because they aren't bulky and they absorb very well. Here is a great site about the folds you can you with flats. http://www.thenappylady.co.uk/public/articledetails.aspx?id=140 For pockets, I love Happy Heiny's and Drybees. I also love Green Acres Design. For Material I would suggest suedecloth because it is sooo soft. Economically speaking your cheapest route is going to be with prefolds and flats. You will need a waterproof cover with these I buy all of diapers onilne I love www.abbyslane.com and www.jilliansdrawers.com You really don't need much to use them, just a washer and a dryer. You will want to invest into a wet bag though and a pail. I wash my diapers every other day and I do one cold rinse no detergent one hot rinse with detergent one cold rinse no detergent Then I line dry if possible. If not I will dry in the dryer on low heat. I love all of the cute designs with diapers! if you need anything else just ask!