cloth diaper dilemma

[camark4177]

Okay....so we tried cloth diapers when my daughter came home from the hospital and it was a NIGHTMARE!!!!! She wet through EVERYTHING - sheets, clothes, mattress covers and changing pad covers all had to be changed multiple times that night. We had a dozen cloth diapers and went through every last one that night. We decided right then and there to switch to disposables but are having a hard time with the whole idea of them sitting in a landfill for the next 500 years. So now we want to go back but are not sure which products to use (I'm sure there are tons out there). We have about 3 dozen cloth diapers that, until now, have been used as burp cloths. We also have some of the Kushies flushable/biodegradable diaper liners. But I would prefer not to use pins (they're too hard to get through the cloth anyway!) and am not sure about what types of covers to buy. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!!!

-Chris

[lao80]

Instead of pins we use a Snappi. It looks like a T and has little hooks kind of like an ace bandage. They are cheap and are all over the web.

As for wraps. All babies are shaped differently. As much as it seems like a pain it would be best to buy one of a few different kinds. See what you like best and get more of those. Sell the ones you didn't like on ebay, whamall.com, or orangestarfish.com. Those are also good places to find wraps.

Personally, when my son was smaller we LOVED the motherease rikki wraps. Now he's thinned out and I find them to bulky. I like the bummis better now.

[vegma]

A big thing is to make sure your diapers are "diaper-service quality" - I think that's what they call them. The diapers we bought at Babies-R-Us became burp cloths and I ordered some heavy-duty diapers on-line, along with some good, waterfproof, velcro-fastening diaper covers. Having said all that, we used disposables at night for a long time and checked AT LEAST hourly for "wet" during the day. Some babies are heavier wetters than others! Good Luck!

[go4green]

I am not the best person to give advice on this, because we used a disposable at night (and still do) and I tend to use a disposable when we go out, when my daughter was younger I used more bio-diapers than we do now.

I have tried a few brands and by far my favorite are the fuzzi buns, they have a fleece (not from sheep-the polar kind) inner liner that wicks away moisture, poo comes off easier and adjustable snap closures. They can be pricey-I bought mine at consignment. Another one we really like is the Kooshies ultra, it has a Velcro closure, and my daughter doesn’t wet through. Diaper basic and absolutely diapers have nice enough Velcro diapers that you need to use a cover with. I tend to alternate these with a Fuzzibuns because the urine sits right against the skin, also the diaper liner is a good idea because the poo is harder to wash out of these. In contrast I purchased a couple of Dr.Sweb new (very cute cover) and my daughter wets right through the supposed water resistant liner, so they require an extra plastic cover which I don’t like.

If you want to go organic, ecobaby.com seemed to have a lot of info when I was looking into it. Also check into your detergent, some of the earth friendly soaps have oils that ruin the absorbency of diapers. I use a tiny bit of this soap a lot of baking soda (1/2 cup) and 1/2 cup of vinegar in the rinse. Keep in mind I have a front loading washer that conserves water, you may need to use higher amounts. Vinegar is a great fabric softener that will not take the absorbency out of diapers or towels. In the dryer I use fabric fluffers-two rings I bought at ecobaby 2 years ago-that tumble your clothes, and last forever. No chemicals-they sound like you are drying a pair of shoes, but you get used to it;)

Sorry for the long post these tips helped a reluctant person like me…Jenna

[go4green]

As I confessed before we use a disposable at night, but I think the Kushies ultra would be the best bet, to last through the night. Kushies ultra has a great cover; if I had a heavy wetter I might put an addition layer in, for night.

Another thing I thought of after I posted on this...I didn't know this at first, but we store our diapers DRY in a 5 gallon bucket with a tight lid, between washing, this works better than our diaper pail. I use a squirt of bac-out in the bottom to keep the odor down. Before I tried this I thought they had to soak until washing, and then I had all the yucky water to deal with.

You all have inspired me to make more of an effort with the cloth :) Jenna

[bachlva]

Actually, sometime my son would leak through a disposable, so that wouldn't work for us!

We use prefolds and Bummis or Bumpkins wraps during the day, and Fuzzi Bunz at night. The only time I've had a leak with the FB was one weird time through the stitching on the label - he was lying on that side and it wicked through someone. That was only once. He stays in the FB for about 11 hours usually - from 7:30 pm to about 6:30 or 7 am.

Course, the breastmilk 'poo' is pretty much gonna leak out of anything, lol!

Good luck! ;)

[we dry pail too...]

[frenchie]

We use Kushies Ultra with the Kushies disp. liners. At night we use 2 Kushies doublers with a disp. liner. I also bought a nighttime pad for the bed. He will soak through once in a while, but mainly we bought the pad for those occassions when Kai spits up. The pad keeps any moisture from getting on the sheets.

[camark4177]

Thanks for all the advice!! I just bought 10 Kushies Ultra All-In-Ones and I'm waiting for them to get here to try them out. I bought them used, and they're size medium. I hope they fit her, because she's about 20 lbs and they fit 10-22 lbs. She doesn't seem to be gaining as rapidly as when she was a newborn, and I don't think she'll be 22 lbs for a few months. Does anyone know about the fit of the mediums? Is it pretty generous or should I get the next size up? Thanks again!

[frenchie]

My son is about 20lbs. right now, and he's in the 10-22lb. diapers. I'm getting ready to order the toddler size, which is the next size up. I buy from BasicallyBaby.com. They have free shipping, and the best prices on diapers, doublers, and disposable liners. The cool thing about the disposable liners, is they can be washed and reused a couple times. The poopie ones I just flush down the toilet, but the pee ones I put in the diaper pail to be washed. I also bought a matress pad from BasicallyBaby.com for 20.00, it's waterproof on the underside, and soft cotton on the top side, just incase Kai's diaper leaks. I think you'll be happy with your purchase:)

[sophie]

Hi everyone!
I'm on baby number 3 and before he was born I decided to get some new nappies (diapers) as the others were getting a little old. Unfortunately I tried to save a few dollars and got some cheaper nappies which soaked through everything in about 20 minutes! I was really annoyed. Anyway, I have continued to use the old ones but didn't have enough and found myself using more and more disposables which I hated. After reading through the posts here I thought "enough!" and went out and bought a load of thick towelling nappies, which are excellent. I feel so much better and I bet my baby does too!
Also, I found a New Zealand company
http://www.naturebaby.com
which is excellent, and it imports the Kushies. I was thinking of ordering a few of these as they sound good, even though they are very expensive. Anyway, I was wondering a couple of things. Firstly, with the kushies classic, do you need an over wrap as well? Secondly, do the ultras take long to dry (ie longer than a regular cloth diaper) and thirdly, around what age would you switch from a medium to a toddler size? My baby is 4 months and weighs about 18 pounds, should I get the toddler size or will the smaller one fit for a while? It's just hard to judge when I haven't seen the sizes.
Well, thanks in advance, and thankyou everyone for inspiring me to get my act together and go back to 100% cloth.

[frenchie]

Hmmmmm, not sure about the Kushies Classics, but I use the Ultras. I put my diapers in the dryer, and 15 takes about 35 minutes to dry on high setting. They are an all in ones, so they are thick and have the outer waterproof barrier as well. The infant size is 10-22 lbs. My son started to wear them at about 2 months. He's 5 1/2 months now, and I'm about to get him the toddler size. He was 17lbs. at 3 months, so he's a big boy too. I would say to maybe get the toddler size, and just use the diapers you have now, then when he'll fit in the Kushies, use those!

[addysmom]

For the inside I have some Hemp, which work well, but are kind of big for newborn and I use Under The Nile, which are expensive, but work well, and also, your basic chinese cotton.

Have you tried using a vinegar rinse to make them more absorbant? You should do it EVERY time you wash them.

I would stick to velcro or snaps, I think your asking for leaks with the plastic diaper pull on.

good lcuk!
Sarah

[camark4177]

Well, we tried them and they leak!! We used TWO liners with the all in ones, and she still wets through. I'm not sure if it's because I bought them used, but they don't seem to be that absorbant and she already seems too big for them (she's only 20 lbs and they're supposed to go up to 22). So I decided to just buy the prefolds and wraps in the next size up since they're cheaper than the AIO's and use those. Frenchie, thanks for the tip about BasicallyBaby.com. They have the lowest prices and free shipping! I highly recommend them. Thanks again!!!

[Krystal323]

www.diaperpin.com
it's a website which has reviews of every cloth diaper product imaginable--very useful if you're unsure of what to buy--Iwas, and so I tried everything!!! Get DSQ prefolds (anything less will probably leak), or kissaluvs has nice fitted dipes--. For AIOs the only thing that is nice and trim, and actually holds up to heavy wettings is Mother-ease. Fuzzi Bunz seem to be so popular, but what I've found is that their quality is inconsistent--I have FBs that I love, but I also have FBs that look totally different, made w/different quality material, that are just awful--it's a gamble to buy from them. For covers--I am partial to polar babies because they're a wool alt. that is made from recycled pop bottles and they're SO cute! Imse Vimse Bumpy covers are good, as are Bummis Super Whisper Wraps, but the best PUL (non-wool/non-fleece)cover I've found is actually from a WAHM: www.hunnybuns.com She'll tell you how to take your baby's measurements and you can pick any pattern under the sun, and she'll make you a custom cover for only $10--what a steal, huh??!!