So I know everyone is asking themselves this: Why should I use cloth diapers? Aren't they more work?
Here is my question: Why not?
People look at me and think I am crazy for using cloth.....I look at you and think your crazy for using disposables! :) Here is why:
Cloth Diapering is one of the greatest things I have done. I would love to "convert" everyone to them...hence why I started this blog!
Here are my reasons:
Economical:
Cloth diapering is way cheaper than disposables. Depending on the system you chose you can save between $500-$2000 from birth to potty training.
And no...my power bill and water bill are not sky high from using cloth.
Comfy:
Think about it...would you rather have plastic chemical paper on your butt or soft cloth?
'Nough said! I think we can all agree on that!
Environment:
Disposable diapers take hundreds of years to decompose in the landfill. Bet you didn't know it takes that long, huh?
The US Census Bureau says there are about 309,633,416 people in America. Let's take a wild guess and say 25% of them are in diapers. (I am probably low balling that big time but for arguments sake...). That would total: 77,408,354 babies.
Okay now let's say each baby uses 6 diapers a day. (another low ball) That would total: 464,450,124 diapers a day in America.
All of that is going into our landfill and taking YEARS AND YEARS to decompose. Where is all that supposed to go exactly? We are going to eventually run out of space! Then we will really be screwed!
Health:
As some of you may have heard in 2010, Pampers released their new Stay Dry diapers. Well these lovely things were giving babies horrible rashes AND.....chemical burns! CHEMICAL BURNS! On poor little baby butts! I don't know about you but I would be pissed if I had a chemical burn on my butt!
Ever changed a diaper and seen little clear gel things on the baby's butt? That is a chemical! And we are putting it on our babies most delicate skin!!!!
Other random points:
-Most people assume cloth diapers leak leak leak! Well, yes sometimes they do but guess what...so do disposables! It happens on occasion! Though not as much as you would think.
All it takes is some trial and error to find the perfect absorbency for YOUR baby and changing the diaper every couple hours as you should be doing anyways.
-Ever dealt with a blow-out? I'm sure you have! How fun was that? Not fun at all huh? Well, cloth doesn't have that problem! Bryson has had some real chaos go on in his diaper.....but no blow-out! Yay! This point alone has switched many people to cloth!
Last but certainly not least....cloth diapers are C-U-T-E! I get compliments on them all the time! :)
The Basics
There are MANY different brands and types of cloth diapers. I am only going to talk about a few. The types I talk about are the most user friendly, basically they are the one's I think more people would actually use. I will just be explaining them to you and including my own opinion of them. I will have another post later explaining prices and where to get diapers!
Cloth Wipes:
Since you are using cloth diapers, you might as well use cloth wipes! We use baby washcloths and I have also bought some cloth wipes specifically made for diapering. You can make your own wipe solution or buy from the same place I get mine. I will include where to buy this stuff at a later date. I will tell you the honest truth though, we have a pack of disposable wipes around for those messy poops. Just to make life a little easier.
Wet Bag:
You can purchase wet bags to use when you are out and about. Just stick it in your diaper bag and put soiled diapers in there. It is a waterproof bag so nothing gets wet and it keeps the smell out of your diaper bag. Before I had one I used the 2 gallon bags from Ziploc. (I reused the same bag-we don't want to be wasteful!!!)
Cleaning Your Diapers
Dealing with Poop:
This is probably the reason most of you don't use cloth in the first place! Am I right?
It really isn't as horrible as you think. To me it is totally worth it! You have to change poopy diapers regardless to what kind of diaper you use, just think of it that way.
We have a sprayer that is attached to our toilet. All you do is plop solids into the toilet and use the sprayer for the residue. Breastfed babies have water soluble poop so you don't need to worry too much about getting all the poop off. (Note: This only applies to them being exclusively breastfed-like no formula supplementation and no solid foods)
Since Bryson gets mostly table food right now it is super easy. I usually just dump the diaper out into the toilet and I'm done. Sometimes when he is cutting teeth I need to rinse it off but it's not that often and it's not that big of a deal.
Detergent:
Cloth diapers are a little picky on what soap they want to be washed with! Use only diaper friendly detergent! We use Rockin Green Hard Rock. I also am about to sample some Lil Outlaws. Both of these can be bought online.
Attn AZ and FL: Both states have hard water! So I would suggest the Hard Rock from Rockin Green. They make it in Classic Rock and Soft Rock but the Hard Rock is for hard water so use that if this is the detergent you chose.
Attn Military: The Commissary has a detergent called Country Save. That is diaper friendly and pretty cheap actually.
For Rockin Green or Lil Outlaws use the amount of detergent that they recommend. I use 2 TBSP of Rockin Green. For Country Save use about the same 1-2 TBSP per load.
Do not use too much detergent as this will leave residue on your diapers and they will no longer absorb moisture. If it happens there are ways to strip the diapers. I will go over that if someone asks.
Washing:
This is MY PERSONAL wash routine. If you researched this you would find about a million ways. I obviously prefer the way I do it, I suggest you just do it this way. It's easy!
Note: When washing diapers you want the most water possible. So set your machine to Oversize load or whatever the largest load setting is.
1. Cold Rinse
2. Hot wash-use the heavy soiled setting with detergent
3. Additional Cold Rinse
Viola! They should be nice and clean!
Drying:
The best way to dry your diapers is to line dry. You can just hang them inside or put them out in the sun. Putting them in the sun is great because it helps remove stains and it also disinfects them even more! I do this as much as I can, Florida weather is a little nuts so sometimes I can't.
If you can't line dry then the dryer works just fine. You must only use it on the low heat setting so you don't damage the PUL or elastic. Also, NEVER EVER put a dryer sheet in with your diapers. This will leave a nasty residue on them. For our dryer, I put it on low heat and set it at 60 min. This is because I have a lot of hemp inserts and they take a little while to dry. To cut down on dryer time just lay your thicker fabrics down for a little to dry out some and then put them in the dryer.
As some of you know, line drying makes the fabric really stiff. I usually pop them in the dryer for a few minutes to soften them back up.
Diapers:
Fitted:
A shaped diaper with elastic legs. Has either aplix (velcro) or snaps to secure on baby.
Needs a cover to be waterproof.
**Fitteds have been my all time favorite diapers for almost 2 years now. They let their skin breathe a lot more than pockets and they absorb more!
Pocket:
A 2 layered diaper with a "pocket" for inserts. The inner layer is usually a stay dry fabric that pulls moisture into the insert where it is absorbed. The outer layer is the waterproof layer. They come with aplix or snaps. Most pockets you buy will come with an insert. This diaper is waterproof by nature so no extra cover is needed. You need to change the pocket and insert with each changing.
**I used to like pockets until I found fitteds. They are good for on the go but absorbency wise, they aren't the greatest for us. Oh and I HATE stuffing pockets all the time!
AIO (All in one):
This is pretty self explanatory. It is just like the pocket diaper except the insert is sewn in already. So no need to stuff unless you need to add extra absorbency. Like the pocket it is already waterproof so no cover needed. These are the most user-friendly diapers.
**These are pretty easy as well. They are the closest thing to a disposable. The only complaint I have about them is that they take forever to dry. Line drying these is the best option so you don't have to run your dryer for a super long time.**
AI2 (All in two):
These are similar to AIOs but have a removable layer that cuts down on drying time. The outer layer is waterproof and the absorbent layer is snapped in place inside the diaper directly on baby's skin. This is also waterproof by nature.
**These are pretty awesome as well. The only complaint is it is somewhat hard to add extra absorbancy. Most babies don't pee as much as Bryson though so they shouldn't be a problem**
Inserts:
Inserts are what you will stuff into a pocket diaper. Inserts are what actually absorb moisture. They are many layers of different types of fabric.
Microfiber: These are the most common insert. NEVER EVER place directly on baby's skin as it will dry their skin out. These work really well.
Hemp: I LOVE hemp inserts. They are super absorbent and thin.
Prefold (as insert): These are typically made out of cotton. You can just fold it into thirds and use as an insert.
Terry: Think of a bath towel. Pretty absorbent but not the best.
**We use a microfiber with a hemp insert in each of Bryson's diapers. At night time we use a prefold, hemp, and then a terry insert. We do that because microfiber can release liquid if it gets squished after a long time of use. I found that because Bryson moves around a lot to sleep, the microfiber was squishing and releasing moisture causing the diaper to leak.**
Covers:
These are needed when using a fitted diaper.
PUL:
The waterproof fabric commonly used for making diapers and diaper covers. PUL covers can be air dried and reused in a day's rotation unless soiled with poo. 3-6 covers are usually adequate for a full diapering stash.
Fleece:
Another waterproof fabric. Cannot be "wiped down" like PUL so it would need to be changed if it smells like pee or of course gets poo on it.
Wool:
Also waterproof, though these are knitted with wool.
Diaper Pails:
Go to Walmart or Big Lots and get yourself a plastic bin. Just throw your dirty diaper in the pail and leave them there until you are ready to wash. Your pail isn't going to smell overly pleasant so I suggest you sprinkle a little bit of baking soda in to control the odor. We keep our pail in the laundry room.
Cloth Wipes:
Since you are using cloth diapers, you might as well use cloth wipes! We use baby washcloths and I have also bought some cloth wipes specifically made for diapering. You can make your own wipe solution or buy from the same place I get mine. I will include where to buy this stuff at a later date. I will tell you the honest truth though, we have a pack of disposable wipes around for those messy poops. Just to make life a little easier.
Wet Bag:
You can purchase wet bags to use when you are out and about. Just stick it in your diaper bag and put soiled diapers in there. It is a waterproof bag so nothing gets wet and it keeps the smell out of your diaper bag. Before I had one I used the 2 gallon bags from Ziploc. (I reused the same bag-we don't want to be wasteful!!!)
Cleaning Your Diapers
Dealing with Poop:
This is probably the reason most of you don't use cloth in the first place! Am I right?
It really isn't as horrible as you think. To me it is totally worth it! You have to change poopy diapers regardless to what kind of diaper you use, just think of it that way.
We have a sprayer that is attached to our toilet. All you do is plop solids into the toilet and use the sprayer for the residue. Breastfed babies have water soluble poop so you don't need to worry too much about getting all the poop off. (Note: This only applies to them being exclusively breastfed-like no formula supplementation and no solid foods)
Since Bryson gets mostly table food right now it is super easy. I usually just dump the diaper out into the toilet and I'm done. Sometimes when he is cutting teeth I need to rinse it off but it's not that often and it's not that big of a deal.
Detergent:
Cloth diapers are a little picky on what soap they want to be washed with! Use only diaper friendly detergent! We use Rockin Green Hard Rock. I also am about to sample some Lil Outlaws. Both of these can be bought online.
Attn AZ and FL: Both states have hard water! So I would suggest the Hard Rock from Rockin Green. They make it in Classic Rock and Soft Rock but the Hard Rock is for hard water so use that if this is the detergent you chose.
Attn Military: The Commissary has a detergent called Country Save. That is diaper friendly and pretty cheap actually.
For Rockin Green or Lil Outlaws use the amount of detergent that they recommend. I use 2 TBSP of Rockin Green. For Country Save use about the same 1-2 TBSP per load.
Do not use too much detergent as this will leave residue on your diapers and they will no longer absorb moisture. If it happens there are ways to strip the diapers. I will go over that if someone asks.
Washing:
This is MY PERSONAL wash routine. If you researched this you would find about a million ways. I obviously prefer the way I do it, I suggest you just do it this way. It's easy!
Note: When washing diapers you want the most water possible. So set your machine to Oversize load or whatever the largest load setting is.
1. Cold Rinse
2. Hot wash-use the heavy soiled setting with detergent
3. Additional Cold Rinse
Viola! They should be nice and clean!
Drying:
The best way to dry your diapers is to line dry. You can just hang them inside or put them out in the sun. Putting them in the sun is great because it helps remove stains and it also disinfects them even more! I do this as much as I can, Florida weather is a little nuts so sometimes I can't.
If you can't line dry then the dryer works just fine. You must only use it on the low heat setting so you don't damage the PUL or elastic. Also, NEVER EVER put a dryer sheet in with your diapers. This will leave a nasty residue on them. For our dryer, I put it on low heat and set it at 60 min. This is because I have a lot of hemp inserts and they take a little while to dry. To cut down on dryer time just lay your thicker fabrics down for a little to dry out some and then put them in the dryer.
As some of you know, line drying makes the fabric really stiff. I usually pop them in the dryer for a few minutes to soften them back up.
