How To Cloth Diaper: K.I.S.S.!! (Keep It Simple, Silly!)

 How To Cloth Diaper:  K.I.S.S.!!  (Keep It Simple, Silly!)

I always knew I wanted to use cloth diapers because I'm an environmentally conscious person, I wanted to save money, I didn't want diaper-manufacturing chemicals all over my baby's skin 24/7, and I thought the cloth would feel better on my baby's bottom.  Trouble was, when I was trying to figure out what to buy and how it all works, I was waaaaaay overwhelmed by all of the information out there.  There are so many types of cloth diapers (so it seemed), and I wasn't sure where to start.  What would be best?  They can be pretty expensive, so I wanted to get what would work best for us.  But what was that?? Luckily, I had a friend who cloth diapered, and she even had a bunch of small size diapers that she let us borrow.  You can't beat free, so we tried those.  They worked great!  We played around with a few different options for awhile, but this is what ended up working best for us.  Here's what works for us (my daughter just turned one, so we've finally got our methods down!!)

 Step One:  The diapers.  I recommend using what are called Pocket Diapers.  They are very easy to snap or velcro on and off.  They are made (usually) of microfiber, hemp, or bamboo, and they come with an insert that goes into a pocket (hence the name).  Here is a picture of our stash.  We have several different brands, from cheap to expensive.  They all work about the same, to be honest.  You should buy and try out a few different brands to see what fits the shape of your baby the best.  How many diapers should you get?  Well, we usually have about 25 of them, give or take.  You can buy them used; there's a strong market for used diapers on e-bay and craigslist.  It doesn't really seem kosher at first to buy someone's used diapers, but it really is done all the time, and it'll save you lots of money.  Reduce, reuse, recycle, right?  You could get away with having fewer than 25 cloth diapers, but you'll be doing laundry more often.  I do diapers about twice a week.  The crappy (sorry for the pun, I couldn't resist) thing about cloth diapers is that you have to fork out all the money at the beginning.  But, you may spend a couple hundred dollars up front, and then be done with it.  People have calculated that the cost of using disposable diapers over 2-3 years costs anywhere between $2500 and $3500, so you can do the math.  :)

 

The second thing (besides the diapers) you'll need is a "wet bag".  They aren't cheap, and I don't know where you can get one for cheap (they cost around $30), but you need one.  Get a big one, so you don't have to do laundry every day.  You put the soiled diapers into this when they come off of baby.  The bag has a plastic lining, so nothing wet will seep through.  The zipper also keeps the smell in (rather surprisingly). 

Here's what you do when the dirty diaper comes off:  (you can see the "pocket" in this photo; see the insert sticking out, at the bottom of the photo?)

 Remove the Insert, to make washing and drying easier/faster.  (See below)  Place everything in your wet bag for washing later.  (Note:  This diaper just has pee-pee.  If you have a poopy diaper, here's what you do:  If your baby is under 6 months old and is just eating milk, you do nothing.  Really.  You don't have to use a liner or scrape it off (although you can if you want).  That poo is really runny and it comes right off in the wash.  Don't worry about doing anything with it.  When your baby starts eating solid foods and has more "adult" poop, then you'll want to at least attempt to get off the big chunks.  I take the diaper into the bathroom and shake it out over the toilet.  I usually use a bit of toilet paper to wipe off the diaper, but I don't freak out if there is still a fair amount of poo stuck to it.  It'll come out in the wash, I promise.  And no, your washing machine will not be gross or ruined.  You can still use it for your regular clothes, even though it has washed poo!  You can handle the ick-factor.  Just think of all the landfill space you're saving, and get over it.  If you can't handle a little poop here and there, you're probably not qualified to be a mom.  :)  More sentimentally, you want to leave a clean Earth for your child to enjoy someday!)

Time to wash:  When your wet bag fills up, starts to stink, or you run out of diapers, it's time to wash!  We seem to do this about every 3-4 days.  It's super easy.  Just wash on your regular cycle, using hot water.  Be really stingy about the detergent (not only because baby detergent is expensive, but because the diaper instructions say to not use any more than necessary.  I use about 1/4 of the capful, MAX).  I have always used baby detergent.  Seen here is the Kroger brand of Dreft.  They make detergents specially for cloth diapers, but I haven't ever found those necessary.  They are expensive.  You just want to be sure you have something super gentle, for the diaper fabric and also for your baby's bottom.  :)

Unzip the wet bag and dump all of the contents into the washer.

Then, throw in the wet bag and close the lid.

Voila!  Wash and dry as per your normal routine.  Use again and repeat.  It's really very easy.  Just as easy as using disposables, in my humble opinion.  Sure, you have to throw them in the washer every now and then, but if they were disposable, you'd have to throw them in the trash!  It's not that much more work to throw them into the washer!  When they come out, you can replace the inserts all at once (my daughter likes to "help" with this, so we do it this way), or you can just pull out one insert and one diaper and put in the insert each time you do a change.  That way, you can just pull them out of the dryer and dump them into your "diaper drawer".  No mass folding or assembling required.


Soooo.......now that I've sold you on cloth diapers, what about wipes?  Go ahead and buy a ton of wipes and throw them away constantly if you like, or you might as well go the (short) extra mile and use washable, reusable, wipes.  Otherwise known as washcloths.  Your baby will love the warm washcloth on his or her bottom, and they're also great for wiping down dirty hands, faces, and feet!  They take about 2 minutes to put together, and you throw the dirty ones in your wet bag and wash them with your diapers.  Here's our stash of wash cloths, waiting to be used.  Just get your run of the mill cheap wash cloths.  Go to Wal-Mart or Target and get the mega-pack.  Baby washcloths that you got for your shower also work super, since they're a little smaller and less bulky.

Here's what you do:  designate a large plastic container (read: Tupperware) for wipe-making.  Place some wash cloths in it. (You can DO it!!!!  =) )

Next, pour on some soapy water to get them soaked.  I do have special little soapy pieces that are made especially for this, but any gentle soap or liquid baby wash that doesn't irritate your baby's skin will do.  I mix up a gallon jug of soapy water in an old milk container, and that makes it really handy for when I need it.

You'll need a wipe warmer to store the wet rags in.  You plug it in, and it keeps your wipes (disposable or re-useable) nice and steamy.  Here's mine, it's Prince Lionheart brand, and costs about $20.  In the middle of the night especially, you'll be thankful that you don't have to shock your little baby with cold wipes on his/her nether regions.  Wipe warmer = seems like a luxury, but is really worth the money.

So, you take out the soaking wet rags from your tupperware and give them a good squeeze.  You just want them nice and damp, not soaking wet.  Then, I roll them up and place them in the wipe warmer.  Voila!  Ready to use.  It takes a couple of hours for them to heat through, but it holds enough wipes (depending on the size of your wipes) to last at least a couple of days.

Some FAQs:

Will the diapers stain? 

 They may, a little.  Some fabrics worse than others.  I hear line-drying them in the sun will remove the stains, but I've never been that concerned with it.  The diaper in the top pictures has been used for years (I got it used myself), and doesn't show any staining. 

I heard you can't use diaper rash cream with them.  Is that true?

You don't want to totally lather it on with cloth diapers.  The zinc oxide that makes the barrier on your baby's bottom will also make a barrier on the cloth, and can keep it from being absorbent.   However, I sometimes do use it, and have never noticed a problem.  I just wouldn't lather it on every time.  If your baby is suffering from bad diaper rash, or a yeast infection, switch to disposables for a few days, or until it clears up.  Here's a tip I didn't know until it was too late:  yeast (as in, yeast infection) is really super hard to kill.  It can live in your cloth diaper and even the normal hot wash cycle will not kill it.  If your baby gets a yeast infection, switch to disposables until it clears up, and sterilize your diapers by adding bleach to your wash cycle.  I'd probably wash them a couple of times in the bleach, to make sure the yeast was dead. The bleach won't discolor the diapers at all. 

What is an "all in one" diaper?

"All In One" is a variation on the pocket diaper.  They look about the same, except the insert is permanently sewn into the pocket, so there is no assembling and disassembling.  The main downside to these?  They take forever to dry.  You also can't usually add any "stuffing", if you prefer to stuff your diapers with two inserts (like for night time).

Speaking of Night Time.....

I admit, we use disposables for night time.  There's something highly un-natural about them that soaks up an ungodly amount of liquid, so they can be on for 12 hours at a time and (usually) not leak.  When your baby sleeps through the night (read: doesn't eat all night and thus pee all night anymore), then you may as well switch to cloth at night.  Some people double or triple stuff their diapers for night time, but I've never had much luck with this.  I hear hemp liners are more absorbent, but haven't tried those yet.  Buying disposables sucks; they are so expensive!!  It makes me really glad I don't have to buy them for daytime use.

What about if you're out and about with cloth diapers?

Some people choose to use disposable diapers if they're going to be out for most of the day.  I usually will, if we're going to be gone through several diaper changes.  However, most of the time, I stick with cloth.  They make small purse-sized wet bags that you can get for around $10, and you can just put your dirty diaper in there.  With pee-pee diapers, it's no big deal to carry that around in your purse, but if you get lots of poop while you're out, you might be glad you went with disposables for the day.  For just a short trip to the grocery store or park, I don't hesitate to stick with cloth. 

What about sizing?

Some diapers are sold as Small, Medium, and Large.  Others are "OS", or "One Size".  OS diapers have lots of snaps on them, and you can snap various combinations of snaps to adjust the physical size of the diaper.  I have used both kinds.  I'd say for tiny babies (for the first few months), stick with sized Small diapers.  One Size diapers are just too big, even snapped down to their smallest setting.  Later, you can get into some larger OS diapers.  It all depends on the size of your baby, I suppose. 

Any special requirements for newborns?

You'll probably want to use disposables for the first week or two.  Definitely until the meconium (tar-like first poops) are passed, and most likely until the umbilical cord falls off (you don't want anything touching that umbilial cord, and Newborn size disposables have a little cut-out so the diaper doesn't touch the cord).  After the cord falls off, go for it with the cloth.


Resources:  Nobody is endorsing me.  I'm just letting you know what I've used and continue to use.

Wet Bags:  http://www.bummis.com/us/en/large-fabulous-wet-bag.php?adr=1

FuzziBunz:  We were given size Small to use at first.  They fit her for 4-5 months before she outgrew them (she was born right at 7lbs).  Here's where you can buy some "Seconds", new from the manufacturer:  http://www.fuzzibunzseconds.net/store/WsDefault.asp?Cat=Small7-18lbs
Otherwise, shop for used on e-bay. 

Cheapest Pocket Diapers:  direct from China, for about 1/3 of the cost.  You might need to double up on the thinner (cheaper) liners, but we haven't yet, and it hasn't been a problem.  They are only "One Size", so they wouldn't have worked for us at first, but when our baby grew out of the Small size diapers, we went to these, and I can see them continuing to work for the future:  http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=babyland+diapers

Bamboo Diapers:  the newest thing we're trying.  Also fairly cheap and direct from China.  Slightly a bigger "One Size" then the ones above, so continuing to fit baby better, as she grows.  Also, the bamboo fabric is really nice and soft.
http://www.ebay.com/sch/Diapering-/45455/i.html?_ipg=&_from=&_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ssn=dingxiu_clothing2012

Wipe Warmer:  https://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=prince+lionheart+wipe+warmer&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&cid=10523685903545336777&sa=X&ei=_ExNULWkCOiDywH-8YDYDQ&ved=0CCEQrQQ


That's all I can think of for now!  Questions?  Email Me