Cloth and Other Environmentally Friendly Diapers?

I am also pregnant and plan on investing in Bum Genius all in ones. After a lot of research I have found these to be my favorite. I have a few friends who also use them and they seem to be having great success with them. I have read that potty training is easier when you use cloth diapers. Best of luck! Also look on ebay for new diapers. They seem to be priced well.

I just read somewhere that the carbon footprint from cloth diapers is actually larger than that of disposable. It was in the past week, seems like it was a story on MSN.

We have used fitteds with wool covers, kushies all in ones, fuzzi bunz and bum genius. we now use almost exclusively fuzzi bunz. They dry very very fast (so lower energy costs with the dryer), wick moisture away from kiddo's skin, and I find the snaps hold up better than the velcro (on the bumgenius). yes they are sized but they are a little trimmer than the bum genius one size, and you may find that you never need a size bigger than medium (b/c kiddo might be short & chunky and then get taller & skinnier, and with all the snap configurations a medium will accommodate both). also as far as potty training they say that cloth kiddos might potty train earlier since they can feel some moisture and it's uncomfrtable - so they start making the connection earlier.

the problem with all the "research" showing that cloth is the same as or worse than disposables is it doesn't take into account the fact that cloth can be used for more than one child. Maybe not your own but when you're done you can sell them (diaperswappers is great). Gdiapers are a great idea but they never worked well for us. plus we have really old plumbing and were not going to try and flush the inserts.

for washing, I just toss all my dipes in (shake out inserts), run a cold rinse w/ no detergent (or vinegar or anything), then a hot wash with just a little detergent (but be careful what kind you use - look on pinstripesandpolkadots.com for a good summary). we do have the sprayer thing attached to our toilet and it's great.

feel free to email me at jpgmarks AT gmail DOT com if you have further questions! Oh and I agree with the previous post about buying a few of a couple different kinds and see what you like to start out with.

I used cloth diapers on all but my third. She was in disposables because my then potty trained two year old decided to revert back to wetting her pants to get my attention.
I love them. I do not know all that is out there now as I went to buy just cloth diapers last month for dust cloths and Sears no longer carried the ones I liked. My youngest is 7 so it has been a while.
As for potty training a child in cloth or regular. It will depend on the child not what's in their bottoms. My eldest and 3rd were the hardest to potty train, one was exclusively in cloth he's 19, and my 3rd is 11. My 2nd and 4th were very easy and within a week of starting they were pretty much trained. Both of them wore cloth unless we were traveling on a plane. Good luck to you I think you are making a commendable choice to use cloth. It's better all around.

We have used Mother Ease diapers with both our boys. They are cotton terry cloth, so they are very absorbant and rarely get rashes. The diapers are one size fits all, and then there are covers in differ. sizes. I love them!!

Hi A.,

We chose to use cloth diapers with our child and plan to use them again with our second (in April). The initial investment was hard because of the expense and so we slowly built up our stash of diapers. We were given some Kushies and then we bought a Kis-A-Luv and Bum Genius all in ones. We were really happy with all of them but really decided that the Bum Genius was the one for us. We did use some chlorine-free disposables when our daughter was very young, especially when we travelled, but do not plan on using any with our second (or only on very rare occasions).

I like the Bum Genius all in ones for several reasons - we did not have to continue to buy different sizes and while I would love to be a stay at home mom, can not at this point and the child care center she attends was happy to use the cloth diapers. I could send them already put together and it was no different that changing a dispoable diaper except that they put the used diapers in large ziplock bags (that I provided) instead of the trash can. We actually talked to two different child care centers and after showing them the diapers, both were willing to use them.

We did not have much trouble with leaking diapers. With our very first Bum Genius we did have some trouble with the elastic, but as someone else has already mentioned, the company has offered to replace it free of charge. I have found the company, Cotton Babies, very easy to work with and they offer great advice on cleaning to keep smells down. Some of which I didn't know with the first diapers as we got them through E-bay and so some have kind of an odor (after she peed once in the cleaned diapers - not something that stayed with them after cleaning)but it is not terrible as I did not get complaints from my daughters school or my in-laws when they kept her.

The diapers were very good at wicking moisture away from her skin as sometimes it was hard to tell if she was wet. We ended up with a little less than 2 dozen Bum Genius diapers that we used until we put all diapers away. I did a load of diapers 2-3 times a week (I think we usually went through about 5 a day).

Our daughter did not have any diaper rashes except yeast rashes that neither I nor the doctor attributed to the diapers. She also potty trained very early as she started staying dry at night before her second birthda (not sure that had anything to do with the diapers) and was wearing only big girl underwear by the time she turned 2, even at school. Now she still has accidents at times mostly when we tickle her too much or are playing too hard or she just gets too involved in what she is doing and doesn't want to stop.

We have currently loaned our diapers to a friend to use until our new baby arrives. She is also very happy with them and is considering ordering her own when we need ours back.She said she couldn't beleive how well they wicked the moisture away. I have another friend who used clothe diapers and I think she used Fuzzi Buns and was very happy with them but she did have to continue to buy larger sizes.

I think several people have offered good advice on trying a few different ones before committing to one brand. If that is an option for you, it would be great. As others have said, I would be more than happy to talk with you or to try to answer other questions about our experience. You can contact me through this site or directly via e-mail at ____@____.com

Hi A., I did paper diapers with my first child and am using cloth for my second. I didn't know how easy they were ... otherwise I would have tried them the first time around :-)

I shop through Comfy Cozy Diapers. Amber - is very helpful! I asked her a number of questions. Her site is: http://www.comfycozydiapers.com/home. I used the chinese pre-folds with a cover for my baby's first 6 months and now use the Pocket Change diapers ... this should last her through potty training. The reason for the switch is the pre-folds and cover are the least expensive way to go ... you are changing the baby a lot more then ... and switching to the pocket diapers after 6 months ... you shouldn't have to upsize anymore. Plus, I use the pre-folds as an extra layer in her pocket diapers. They do not leak any more than a full paper diaper would.

I would also suggest getting just a simple trash can that has a pop up lid to throw your diapers into (a dry pale). No need to rinse them in the toilet or anything. Then to wash - I put them on a rinse cycle first ... then wash ... then another rinse cycle at then end to be sure you get all of the soap out.

If you are trying to go more natural you might also appreciate shopping with the company I shop with on-line. They are environmentally green. I love so many products that they have, but I love love their cleaning and laundry line. I have absolutely no smell from my diaper pale and my diapers come out very clean. You can check out the sites below if you like.

D..
http://www.switchingstores.com/danipen
http://www.bizformomsonline.com/

We started using cloth diapers on our daughter when she was around 5 months old. I tried prefolds and Thirsties covers, fitted diapers and Thirsties covers, g diapers, and bum genius. I have to say, the bum genius diapers are what we went with. We got the one size pocket diapers. They have fit her from then until now and she is 19 months old. I think they are great. I had a few problems with the elastic in some and the velcro in another, but the company replaced them for free. I have the bum genius 2.0, but I know they have recently come out with the 3.0. We have several friends that have used these and say they are great. I ordered the dipes at cottonbabies.com. You do have to use a special detergent with the dipes and I would recommend a wet bag to keep the soiled ones in. If you have any questions or need any further advice, please let me know. I love using cloth diapers and think it's great you are looking in to using them! Best of luck in picking what's best for you and your little ones!

I used Chinese prefolds which I got from clothdiaper.com, and I highly recommend them. Not only are they the cheapest type of diaper, but they are very thick, yet not so thick as to take forever to dry. My SIL had some one-size-fits-all type of diapers that had snaps everywhere to go tighter or looser to let the baby grow up, and she liked them but they were **expensive** and took a long time to dry. Most AIOs (all-in-ones) are going to be in that category -- the diaper covers make them hard to dry; but ones like I use have separate covers. There are different kinds of diaper pants, but I get the nylon (NOT VINYL) ones from TLCare.com -- they are cheap and last forever -- and *they work*!

FWIW, my 2&1/2 y/o is almost completely potty-trained (still has some "timing problems" which causes accidents, and sometimes forgets to go because he's too interested in things, but wakes up dry most naps & night-times), and he has been in primarily cloth since birth (I used disposables sometimes when we went out and also at night so I wouldn't have to change him so often). My other son also p/t about this time, and I had him in cloth since he was about 9 m/o.

I've heard that some people think that disposables may be more environmentally friendly, but I don't see how that's possible, and would like to see all the research -- and who paid for it! -- before I believed it. How is it that cloth diapers, which can be used until they disintegrate (for diapers and then for cleaning rags), and use only a bit of water (renewable resource) and detergent are worse than hundreds or thousands of diapers which will hang around under the ground, leaching up chemicals for centuries?

Some cloth diapers can be **very** expensive, almost rivalling the cheapest disposables, because you have to have so many diapers AND covers of each size, so **definitely** do your research before you plunk down your money. I've spent probably about $150 on cloth diapers for both my boys, which includes diaper pins and diaper pants. I've seen some diapers that are $10-20 apiece, plus you have to spend $5 or so for diaper covers; and every few months you have to get more because your baby has outgrown them. I got newborn sized and regular sized diapers, and my 4-y/o is just now getting too big to wear them (he still wets the bed most nights).

I am using cloth diapers with my son, and have really loved them. We use primarily Fuzzi Bunz, though I tried the BumGenius and Happy Heinys. I find the snaps work better for us. What I would recommend is to try a trial pack from one of the cloth diaper retailers before you buy your stash of diapers. I was very overwhelmed with the choices available, and that allowed me to try out a bunch of different kinds and return the ones that I didn't like. I used www.jilliansdrawers.com. Although there is some conflicting evidence, all the research that I did suggested that the energy use did not "cancel" out the benefits to the environment of cloth diapers, especially if you have an energy efficient washer and dryer. Good luck to you!

Cloth diapers will save you TONS of money, and they aren't that much more difficult than disposables. I use contoured cloth diapers with prorap covers for my one year old. If I had it to do all over again, I would have invested in a bunch of bum genius diapers (the ones that go from newborn thru potty training) with my first child, and just used them again with my second child. If you're looking for affordability, then the best choice is diapers with covers. Check out www.diaperswappers.com and go to the FSOT - for sale or trade area. Also, you can sometimes find diapers and covers at children's consignment sales- that's where I found my prorap covers for $4 each. It's a great decision, if you have a store in your area that sells cloth diapers (there is one in Lexington, KY) it's worth going and talking with the staff to see the various features of each style. It also depends on your child- some diapers leak on skinny babes, but do fine on chunky ones. Good luck- if you do use cloth, you'll save an average of $1,500-$2,000 over disposables, and be helping the environment! Also check out diaperpin.com for more info.

We used the cloth prefolds with the wonderwraps and they worked good for us. The only problem was that our son has a problem with yeast and was irritated all the time. So now we are using a chlorine free diaper and are trying to sell the cloth ones. Piece of advice there if you decide to use cloth and change your mind they are hard to sell, just an FYI. Good Luck and Congratulations!!

I used cloth diapers with my first four (I have six), many years ago. I'm sure the options have changed. Back then I bought pre-folded diapers (which was a step up at the time) and plastic pants to go over them. We were also tight on money in those early years, and the cloth diapers helped our budget.

With the last two I went with disposables and, later, Pull-Ups. Those two weren't potty-trained until past their third birthdays. (The others were all trained by age 2 1/2.) I would never use Pull-Ups again.

One advantage of using cloth is that the child feels the wet and has more of an urge to use the potty when he/she gets a little older. Again, I'm not familiar with the current trends in cloth diapers. But I would recommend going that route.

I dont know alot about them. I'm going to try to make my own. But I wanted to tell you about Cafemom.com theres a few wonderful cloth diapering groups that have awesome advice!

I nanny for twins that use cloth diapers. They are now 14 months. I have not been a huge fan and find that even though you are saving money on the diapers in the long run and keeping diapers out of landfills that you are using a heck of a lot of energy on washing and drying them. They are also a lot of work because you have to clean them out before you can wash them. We run them through a rinse cycle. Then they are turned back on with detergent and vinegar to help with the smell to wash with an extra rinse. Then dried. So the water and energy used is pretty signifigant. I have read some studies that show the impact on the environment to be equal to putting diapers in a landfill. I think if we put them outside to dry it would help get some of the smell that never seems to come out of them but we don't have any place to hang them so we don't.

With that said I will give you the tips I have for making it easier to use them if that is what you choose. I would highly recommend buying the ones that grow with the child because otherwise you have to keep buying different sizes at least we did and it happened pretty quickly. When they start eating solid food I highly recommend buying diaper liners. We use the diaperaps ones and they can be washed if they just get wet and you can get at least one more use out of them. They make flushing #2 so much easier. You can also get a diaper sprayer to hook to your toilet that looks like a kitchen sprayer. We got one but never did get it hooked up. I have not found a way to contain the smell. The amonia smell is horrible by the second day and we have two kids so they are washed every other day. I think with one child you would have to just wash small loads to keep the smell from getting to be to much. I walked in the house yesterday and could smell the diapers the minute I walked in. Now if you are in there you get used to it and don't notice but it is still bad when you walk past the diaper pail.

I hope I have not offended I just wanted to give you the whole truth from my point of view. I have a baby due in Febuary and will be using disposible diapers because I can't do this whole cloth diaper thing again.

Oh by the way we use Fuzzi Bunns.

I have used Kushies on my now 3 and 1 year olds. They are very simple and very adjustable. We do have two separate sizes and about 15 of each. You can order them online in packs of 5 from walmart.com for about $8 each. (You can even pick up in store and save the shipping!)

Kushies are definitely the easiest and most reasonable I have found.

I also usually dry mine outside which naturally bleaches and airs them out.

I'd be glad to answer any more questions.

Check out the Nature Kids Mercantile, a relatively new small business in the Rocky Hill district of Knoxville. They have a variety of supplies and classes on picking the right diapers for you. They also have other environmentally friendly toys and clothes. Good luck!

http://www.naturekidsmercantile.com/

There was another mama that mentioned www.diaperswappers.com as a source. Definately go there. Not only will you get wonderful info from other mamas using cloth, but you can also find great deals and mamas that make diapers. I went there and just read and did research for about a month before I started buying cloth. One word of advice do not decide on one type and then buy a whole bunch of them. I did this and wasted a lot of money b/c I ended up no liking them. Buy 1 of several different clothes that you like and try them out on your 1 yr old to see what you like. I thought I would like the velcro closures and ended up not liking them and going with snaps. Also, the AIO systems take a VERY long time to dry so I would get a couple of these to use at church, with grandparents, babysitters...b/c they are easy to put on.
Also, you need to decide what type of fabric you like. I only use hemp and bamboo (microfiber starts to stink after severa uses and it is hard to get the stink out). I love using cloth and would not go back. It is a bit overwhelming at first, but don't worry you catch on real quick. If you need any more advice please contact me here or on diaperswappers. My user name there is rdossmann. You can send me a private message on that site also. Have fun exploring the world of cloth!

Hey A.,
I used Happy Heinies and Fuzzi Bunz, and liked them both a lot! I liked the velcro on the Happy Heinies a little better than the snaps that the Fuzzi Bunz have, but the Fuzzi Bunz turned out to be a bit better for us in the end. My son has a skinny build, and somehow the shape of the Fuzzi Bunz was slightly better for preventing leaks. They're both very similar though, and I found them to be a great alternative to disposables! We still used disposables sometimes... when we were out of town, for instance. But otherwise, the cloth diapers were great and I'm really glad we made that choice!
Best wishes to you and your family!