Biodegradable gDiaper Input

Updated on February 06, 2011
A.M. asks from Bend, OR
9 answers

Are any of you Mama’s Biodegrable gDiaper users? I am hoping for some feedback about this product. I’m only curious about the Biodegradable as I am currently using a cloth diapering system.

First, how are they to use and how is clean up? I imagine they are fairly convenient, but any gripes about: blow outs, covers hard to clean, velcro wearing out, poor fit, loose gussets, &c? Also, do I need to purchase the addition snap inserts, or not; are there any benefits? Can they be used over night, or will they leak?

Second, what age did your child end up potty training while using these?

If your curious about the back story read on, if not your feedback to the above questions is greatly appreciated- so, Thank you!

We are getting to a point where it may be more cost effective to make a switch from cloth; we’ll be dropping to 30 diapers/week soon and it will cost us $0.48/diaper. Down the road, if he gets to 20/week it will cost us $0.70/diaper which I think is insane. (I do have a related post asking for feedback about this). At the 30/week mark we could save about $9.25/month by switching; the dilemma is that it may not pay off for 11 months because of the initial investment cost for gDiaper covers is anywhere from $80-$100. Although, if he drops to 20 diapers or less / week we’d save $23.50/month; it would only take 4 months to start saving in that scenario which would absolutely be worth it. So the worst case here, he’ll be 18-21 months before we begin to see a pay off. I’m hoping he’ll be on the road to becoming potty trained by that age so it may be a moot point. I also asked because one of the supposed benefits of cloth is earlier potty training (about 2 years) vs disposables (about 3 years); I don’t want to switch in an effort to save money only to end up using this product longer, that would be silly. Both of these options have a 35 lb weight limit, so if/when we get to that bridge we’ll probably have to find an entirely new option (he’s currently 27 lbs at 9 months, trend of 1 lb/month for the last 5 months, hopefully this tapers off). These are all the considerations I’ve taken into account, if you have any other reasons to sway me one way or another I’d like to hear about it. Thank you so much, Mama’s! Your feedback is invaluable!

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M.S.

answers from Portland on

I personally am not a fan of cloth diapers. Studies have proven that the cost on the environment is higher than using disposables once you factor in all the washing and drying and sanitizing. Plus, you have to change twice as often, so that doubles! Not to mention, it is way more expensive! Disposables at costco are 20-30 cents a diaper max.

Having said that, I do know that g diapers go on craigslist for a more reasonable price. The thought of used diapers might sound gross at first, but keep in mind that the ones from the diaper service have been on every cloth diapered baby in the area.

Good luck... And there is no condemnation from me btw... Just giving info.

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J.Y.

answers from Chicago on

I used cloth diapers with my son. However, I did try g-diapers. I really, really preferred the cloth. The g-diapers leaked horribly everytime my son wet his diaper. I don't think it had anything to do with the fit of the cover because I used them with a bum genius insert and had no problems. I actually kind of liked the covers. They fit my son really well. Another thing I didn't like was how rough the absorbant insert of the g-diapers were. It reminded me of wadded up really cheap toilet paper. Obviously I am not a fan. So, we stuck with cloth. My son potty trained himself in one day before his 2nd birthday. I really do think that cloth makes a big difference in when they are potty trained.

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R.K.

answers from Boston on

Skip the gdiapers and just go with cloth.

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L.R.

answers from Portland on

I used gdiapers with both of my daughters and loved them!! I mostly used cloth inserts in them so don't know about the biodegradable inserts. I also began using them when it was a new company and they have gone through at least one new generation/style change since I stopped using them.
Most of the time leaks and problems are really a fit issue. People too often try to fit them like other cloth diapers but they just don't work the same. There needs to be some give in the outer pant for the inner liner to be fit right. And then like all other diapers some times they just don't work for your child. That is why there are so many followers devoted to different types of cloth. What works for one will not work for another. The inner liner is meant to contain the mess so yes you have to change it with most every infant bowel movement until they become more firm. With a proper fit you do not get a mess on the outer pant though so it is not as much laundry as you may think.
I highly recomend joining the gdiaper yahoo group (it is NOT owned by the gdiaper business) to ask questions there as there will be current users that are helpful and happy to answer questions. They will tell you the good bad and ugly about all the gdipe options. They also share coupon codes to help defray some of the costs. There is quite a bit of non gdipe talk but that is because it is a community of mommas who use the gdipes and want to help newbies figure things out and it would be pretty boring if they only ever answered the same questions again and again. They are good at labeling things as OT and if you do sign up for it definitely use digest as it is a very chatty group!
There are several places to look for "used" gdipes/cloth. Craigslist, the gdiaper yahoo list diaperswappers etc. Since the part you are buying is not the part that goes directly on the body it didn't seem as "icky" to me to buy used gdiapers. And once I got in to the g's I got in to other cloth options and finally did buy most of our stash used. I just made sure to run a few sanitize washes before using them. Out of all of the covers I used I most definitely preferred the gdiapers!!!
My oldest was 18 pounds at a year old (she started walking at 10 months) and my youngest was 24 pounds at a year (she started walking at 14 months).
I also used elimination communication and both of my girls were successful using the toilet full time on their own (no night time diapers) by the time they were 2. Again though each child is unique and will have their own developmental timeline and physical capability so I would not take what happens with one as the way it should/will happen with yours.
Best wishes
L.

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D.W.

answers from Gainesville on

I bought gDiapers thinking they would be a great on the go option for us. I hated them. Everytime the baby poops it goes everywhere so you have to change everything-cover, liner, and of course the bio liner. With my prefolds, the clean up was so much easier and less of a hassle! And for nighttime you will have to use at least 2 liners and depending on how yourlittle one wets it still might not work overnight.

You must be using a diaper service? That's the great thing about buying your diapers right off the bat. They are yours, they are easy to care for and you have them ready and waiting for the next baby. I've been using the same prefolds(2 dozen) for my daughter since she was 4 months old and she is now 31 months old.

Little ones potty train when their body is ready. My daughter started showing interest at 17 months so I went with it but she is just now starting to remember and ask when we are out and about to use the potty/stay dry. She does really well when we are home and we only use diapers for nap and nighttime.

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B.O.

answers from Portland on

I hated the gdiapers. They leak badly and the covers never seem to get really clean. I also did diaper service for awhile, and loved it. But what I ended up doing in the long run is just buying my own set of cloth diapers and washing them every 2-3 days. I highly recommend purchasing your own set of cloth diapers.
A dozen cloth diapers will run you about 30 bucks, and you can buy them through the diaper service or online somewhere. Also, if you are going through Tidee Didee in Portland, they have a discount bin in their store of diaper covers for 50 cents a piece.

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S.R.

answers from Seattle on

Hi,

We love the gDiapers ourselves and have never had a blowout problem. The worst is just that the oustide cloth part gets dirty and we have to change the whole thing. At night I do have to be sure that my 1 year old has a clean liner before he goes to bed and change him pretty quick after first nursing or he will sometimes get damp pants. I do have one friend who could not use them because they hurt her very chunky daughters legs, but that is the only negative feedback I have heard. You definitely need the snap in nylon liner for the cloth outside, that is the part that holds in all the stuff you don't want leaking out. The cloth covers come with the nylon part and the 2 packs come with 3 nylon liners, so you aren't having to buy those separately, although they are available separately as well. Can't answer the potty training question as we are not there yet. Good Luck!

S.

P.M.

answers from Tampa on

I was very interested in gDiapers... so it seems maybe the covers work great, but get another type of insert (I personally was not interested in the biodegradable one and was going for cloth inserts) from a different cloth diaper company?

I have 6 months to decide which diapers to go for.

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C.C.

answers from Eugene on

i absolutely love the gdiaper! in my experience, they protect against blowouts better than cloth or disposables because of the elasticized waistband. they are less bulky than cloth (i'm also bum genius fan). you can flush the inserts (admittedly, it is kind of a pain to open the outer layer and dump the inner cotton into the toilet.) i have been using for about 5 months (my second is 6-months-old). i was looking for something in between cloth and disposable, b/c i was concerned about the amount of laundry i have to do each week.

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