Going Green: Need Cloth Diaper Advice

Hi S.,
Like the other mom wrote, I too used gdiapers. Loved them and only wish I had known about them for my first child too.
Good luck!

You will be changing your baby more often, which is a good thing. I've always found it a bit scary how long you can keep a disposable on. In terms of poop staying in, cloth diapering works just as well, if not better, than disposables...in my opinion. Just as disposables all rate differently on leakage, using different covers or diapers or techniques can affect poop containment. At night you'll probably want to use extra liners or pocket diapers (see below for sites to read about different diapers).

At first you might want to try a diapering service, to ease into the swing of things. Tiny Tots is a great service and they have a nice baby boutique - http://tinytots.com. They have a good tutorial on how to cloth diaper. We used them for a couple months before doing it all ourselves. We were very happy with their service.

If you decide to just take the plunge into buying and washing your own cloth diapers, here is a bunch of excellent online info.

*****DETERGENTS**********

For starters I'd recommend using a brand/company that makes green products. You also need to make sure it doesn't leave residue on diapers (which can cause absorbency and odor issues). Here are two sites that rate detergents in regards to cloth diapering.

http://www.momandbabyboutique.com/servlet/the-234/Deterge...

http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.com/detergentchoices.htm

*****CLOTH DIAPERING INFO**********

Parenting by Nature
http://www.parentingbynature.com/cloth_diapers.php

Excellent primer on all sorts of diapers and accessories. Also at the bottom of this page are links to more really helpful articles - how to wash, different diapering systems, etc.. I learned a lot from this site.

Diaper Pin - article on different diaper systems
http://www.diaperpin.com/clothdiapers/article_differentsy...

Diaper Pin - Product Reviews
http://www.diaperpin.com/diapers/diaperpages.asp

Great place to research diapering item, as well as find great online places to shop.

*****WIPES**********

You might want to consider buying reusable cloth wipes, as well as making your own wipes solution. Some cloth diapering sites have little recipes for it or you can buy premade stuff. I bought flannel cloth wipes and wet diaper bag from Sewing Mom Just Accessories Etc. (SMJAE). And I love Booty Cubes for wipes solution. I just learned about this and ordered a sampler pack. Quite a lovely product and the creator Cassondra is super nice!

SMJAE - http://hyenacart.com/SMJAE/
Booty Cubes - http://www.bootycubes.com

*****CLOTH DIAPERING ONLINE STORES**********

Some good diaper supply online stores are Nicki's Diapers, Jillian's Drawers, and Green Mountain Diapers. These sites also have great information on cloth diapering.

Nicki's Diapers
http://www.nickisdiapers.com

Jillian's Drawers
http://www.jilliansdrawers.com

Green Mountain Diapers
http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com

Best of luck to you!

Good for you! My son is big for his age too (maybe 23 lbs now at 9 months?). We've never used disposables, started with a diaper service. If you use the chinese prefolds, I recommend getting the toddler sized snappi--we found it online, the infant size doesn't work with these big kids.

I just switched to washing my own! A friend gave me her fitted cloth diapers and I tried a few other styles (bought some on ebay but bidders tend to inflate the prices there, so its been just as easy to get them new) but I like these, so I just got about a half dozen more. But you won't need more than a dozen or so if you can wash every day or two, and you will want to b/c they do start to smell.

Your child will use the L or XL, I bet! I hope for your sake his growth slows down (my kid hit around 22 lbs and then has stayed in that range for a few months now). Some sizes are adjustable and some are less so; some of the styles really work best for newborns and others are great for big babies and toddlers.

The websites I've preferred are Green Mountain diapers and Motherease but you should browse a bunch of them. good washing instructions available.

I have a selection of cloth diapers: about 10 Motherease one-size--like a lot of the fitted diapers, they have several rows of snaps you, and one size is supposed to fit kids up to 35 lbs, but my son at 25 or so has maxed out the snaps. I love the fitted diapers b/c now that he's so active he won't lay down for me to fold up a cloth diaper into the diaper cover. They have another style called Sandys that are a little thicker, I have about 6 of those, they probably will fit my kid longer. Both terry cloth and absorb a lot of pee! Motherease are well-made, all-cotton, and don't cost a fortune. Plus they're cute! We let him run around the house with just a fitted diaper most of the time (that also helps reduce diaper rash).

Some people like the polyester cloth (like fuzzi buns, I think) that wick away moisture; some kids hate wet diapers, my kid doesn't, so we use all-cotton.

I have some all-in-ones for overnight, because again, I hate wrestling him into the diaper& cover at night, and the all-in-ones are also good for when you're on the go. They are kind of bulky, but bulk means abosorbent, and one good one lasts all night. I tried a few kinds, and am really liking the AIOs that Motherease makes, but also like one called Sposo.

I also have some g-diaper covers and just fold up a little cloth diaper into them b/c I don't have the flushable liners. The g-diapers are pretty trim.

You should know that all cloth diapers are going to be more bulky than disposables and most baby clothes are made assuming kids are wearing diposies so they're too slim- fitting. Look for looser fitting pants and use t's instead of onesies.

As my kid has gotten older we have to change his diapers less, and his poops have gotten more solid so they just fall off the diaper into the toilet. We do about 6-8 changes a day. the poop stays in, the pee stays in, but you have to be sure the diaper fits snugly (but not so much that it cuts or rubs his skin).

Don't soak cloth diapers in a water bucket (yuk). Don't use bleach, it irritates baby's skin. Biokleen or other mild deteregents are best, and don't use too much soap, it seems to make diapers hold the smells. Use a presoak cycle and then wash them in hot water. I use the dryer to dry them b/c it softens the terry cloth, but if you have time to line dry it kills the bacteria that make smells.

We have been very lucky (or is it the cloth diapers?)--my kid only ever gets a mild diaper rash when he's cutting a tooth & he never got a yeast infection. It seems to help if you don't use diaper wipes; we use warm water on a soft rag and wash those with the diapers. Use a little soapy water first if the poop is sticky or stinky. We use a cream with zinc and the rash goes away within a day. Also, let the baby air dry as much as possible; the sun kills diaper rash & yeast, so if he does get it, let him play naked in the sun for a little while every day.

Good luck!

We used Tiny Tots diapers service. If money is not an issue then I would suggest this option for several reasons. 1) You don't even have to rinse the diapers. You just put them out once a week and the "diaper fairies" come and bring clean ones. 2)Whenever you need larger sized diapers you just call them and switch to a larger size. We used the Diapers wraps that you can buy from them (I forget what they're called) and at night we used plastic pants over the whole thing to prevent leakage.

i would say do a diaper service in the beginning, while their poops are messier..then switch it All in ones or pocket diapers. great investment. i use FUZZI BUNZ and LOVE them.

Hi,
I have just started using G-Diapers with my 2 year old. They are "semi-disposable" cloth diapers and we love them so far! The inner liner is 100% earth friendly and bio-degradable, so we can feel good about them. You can get them online at gdiapers.com, but for cheaper refills, I would go to diapers.com and you can get free shipping.
I also have a friend in Santa Barbara who runs an online all-natural baby store called paxbaby.com. She carries some really great, totally cloth diapers and can give you all the info you need on them. Cloth diapers have come a long way since we were babies! Anyways, her name is Jillian and she has 4 kids under the age of 5! Great resource! Good luck!
-L. Young

I love cloth diapers. My son has been in them since he was about 4 weeks old and my sister cloth diapered all 4 of her kids. I use tots bots which are from the UK (as I am). They are shaped flannel with velcro fastenings (basically pretty much like a disposable as far as putting them on). You then add a waterproof outer layer - I love bummis wraps. You can actually get some tots bots diapers at the tiny tots store in Campbell (?). However, they aren't exactly the ones I have - they are bamboo and I don't find them quite as absorbant, although they are very soft. I also buy online from cotton babies.

Things I suggest you need:
1. 15-20 diapers, depending on how often you wash. I have 22 and wash about every 3 days (I wouldn't recommend going longer than that - it gets smelly when you take them out of the bag into the machine!).
2. 6-8 wraps. I use fun colored wraps during the day and plain white ones at night
3. 'boosters' if you baby is a heavy wetter at night
4. Flushable liners, so the poop goes straight into the toilet
5. a diaper pail and liner bag - I bought mine online from cotton babies

For washing, I do a cold wash, then repeat with a hot wash. i don't use anything on them apart from maybe a tiny splash of detergent in the second wash. make sure you check what you can use with the diapers, because some tell you not to use things like bleach or vinegar because you damage the diaper. I sometimes put a few drops of tea tree oil in as a natural sterilizer. I line dry then finish them off in the dryer to fluff them. The line drying is the key element to making cloth diapers environmentally friendly (IMHO).

It sounds like a lot of stuff to get, but its really pretty simple. I'd start with a few bits and pieces and then expand. I was bought most of my diapers and wraps, but then I've added a few bits because I found the bummis wraps, which I really liked etc. If you look at cotton babies, they have tons of stuff you can play with.

I cloth diaper even when we're out and about. I have a few waterproof bags, so I flush the liner and tote the diaper home for washing. We're about to go away for a long weekend and I'm using the gdiapers. We drove to Tahoe for a week a few months ago, staying in a rented house, and I just took all the cloth diapering stuff.

Sorry that was so long! I do love to cloth diaper and am happy to give you more help if you want :)

E.

Edited to say: I realized I didn't answer most of your questions! here goes for the ones I think I missed!

So are the diapers adjustable? (what if he gets even bigger?): Yes they offer a weight range so check that. You might want to go for the largest size to start with.

How do I clean them (we have a front loading machine), and which detergent works best? You shouldn't need too much detergent. If you use too much it actually builds up on the diaper and can make the smell worse. I put oxyclean in with my washable wipes and that goes into the machine, but not too much.

What about diaper rash, how do I avoid it? He has had a yeast breakout before...: Diaper rash is no more likely with cloth than disposables.

Will I be changing him more often? Maybe. Cloth does get wet - you can feel it, it isn't locked away. He is soaking first thing in the morning. But hey, we change him and he is fine.

What about at night? We change him just before we go to bed and add an extra layer (booster) to his diaper. We might need to step up to two extra layers, soon...

And does the poop stay in? Yep. Never had an explosion with mine (although they have elastic around the legs and waist which some other cds don't).

Plus you don't get that sweaty pink effect you do with disposables. I don't miss that!

Hi S.,

I've been cloth diapering my daughter since her umbilical stump fell off and it's been surprisingly easy. There are lots of options for diapers. For the most part I use traditional cloth with a snapi closure and a moisture proof diaper cover. I also have some Happy Heinys pocket diapers that I use at night and when we have a sitter since they’re so easy (but expensive.) How to deal with poop is of course the biggest hurtle but it is so much easier now than when our mothers were dealing with it. For me the absolute easiest way to deal with it has been the disposable diaper liners. I don’t know if you’ve seen these. They are basically a heavy tissue (they actually look like dryer sheets) that you lay in the diaper against your baby’s skin. Pee passes through them but poop doesn’t. So when you change a poopie diaper the liner (and the poop) goes into the toilet. Not only does this make washing the diapers easier, but it cuts down on diaper pail odor and the poop ends up where it should (the sewer) instead of a landfill. If the liner only gets wet you can wash with your diapers and reuse it. The packaging says that you can get up to 3 uses out of one liner if they only ever get wet. I’ve found that if you lay them out to dry instead of putting them in the dryer I can get up to 5 uses. The ones I get are from diaperaps.com

As for the washing. I usually wash my diapers as part of a larger white load so I use bleach and hot water. Some people use oxyclean instead of bleach (never use both, it can create chlorine gas…very dangerous). I throw everything in the dryer except the liners, my pocket diapers and diaper covers. The heat will start to break down the plastic moisture proof fabric leaving you with a diaper that leaks. If one sneaks into the dryer while you’re not looking it’s not the end of the world but regular drying will destroy them. For soap I’ve been using Costco brand free and clear detergent. It works great and my daughter hasn’t had any problems with it. She’s also never had diaper rash (except from some disposables we were using while we moved.)

There are lots of size options and depending on what kind you buy some (like my expensive pocket diapers) are one size fits all. My daughter is a little over 20 pounds and still has a lot of growing room in hers.

I hope this helps and if you have any questions feel free to send me a personal message (though I’m usually not on-line on the weekends.)

Good luck,

A.

I used Tiny Tots Diaper Service, which was great!
http://tinytots.com/
They drop off clean diapers and pick up your dirty ones each week. So easy!

I would suggest Katie's Kisses (www.katieskisses.com)
because you can purchase a larger sized baby package. You can get unbleached Chinese prefold diapers and the packs come with a whisper wrap (my personal favorites are the bummis wraps) and a snappi. A snappi is the most awesome thing ever. I actually forgot how to do diaper pins once I got the hang of the snappi. It's a stretchy 3 way clawed latex band (sounds scary) that grabs on to the diaper. You have to fold the diaper in a trifold to use it this way, perfect for a little boy who makes a lot of wee in front! Anyway, this makes for fast diaper changes.

I actually don't like the AIO (all in ones) and bought a lot of different options on Ebay before I was confidently able to say so. If you are at all crafty, you can actually sew your own multi-layer absorbent diapers. I did like the hemp pocket inserts I bought from canada to stuff my AIOs though. They basically "double" the diaper up for extra absorbency, but what they are really awesome for is as a reusable pad for periods or for lochia.

A lot of my friends use the Kissaluvs AIO, which seem pretty awesome for every day but expensive if bought new, however they are messy for travel. We actually just used 7th Generation disposables (unbleached, not a ton of gooey gel inside) and they were the greatest for trips. 13 bucks will buy a pack of about 24-36 in the larger sizes. These are also great if you don't have your own washer and dryer, but they can get expensive if used routinely.

Your baby is a big boy!!!! My kid seems so teensy in comparison.

Congrats for making the switch to cloth, I think you will really like it! As for the yeast: grows less in a cloth diaper situation because there is more airflow. Also, you will probably be changing more often for wee, but not for doo, unless your kid is sporadic.

Don't be nervous! You are about to ROCK A$$ in the Queendom of Mom. Do a little dance and shake it out if you start to freak out about it.

Also, when you are changing a poopy diaper, knock the doo out into the potty after a change, and keep a bucket full of water by your laundry center to "soak" any poopy diapers. I wouldn't use any bleaches, and wouldn't use any detergents in the soak water. The best detergents in my opinion are Tide original and purex, I also liked the non-scented/non allergen types. Powder worked better for the diapers than liquid soap, but if you have a front loader you will have better luck with liquid (and your clothes gets cleaner anyway with a front loader, and that makes all the difference.) You can also set the machine on presoak if that's available to the front load system. You will probably have to wash every 3 days. You will need about 15-36 diapers between wash cycles, depending on how much output your kid can make a day. If you are breastfeeding exclusively, it's probably on the lower end since those kids tend to poop every other day.

if you buy new prefolds, you will need to wash them on hot for about 3 runs before you will be able to use them (you are shooting for a gauzy/puffy texture.)

If I were you, I would scout around on Ebay and grab up someone's used stuff. Just run it on hot and dry it in the dryer for the first round (in the summer you can hang the diapers out on a drying line to get stains out with the sun.)

Not sure what cloth diapers are out there now just make sure they dont have perfumes or chmicals in the. Try buying your own not from a service that washes them because you do not know what they wash them with. Now I have been researching for many years products online and others that are green.
There are so many to choose from you can become confused. But in 2005 I came across a company that is green and all the bottles are to be recycled. The products are also safe and non toxic. They range from cleaning products to bathing and extras. Here are some sites that I think you will like.
www.melaleuca.com and saferforyourhome.com If you have questions and want to know how to get these products you can respond. They have done many tests and have the information to back up their claims on their products. I have talked to many people around the U.S that have had great health results.

Hi S.. There is a great group called Natrual Mommy at http://naturalmoms.ning.com/. Someone there would definitely be able to answer all of your questions.

I know you didn't ask about this but your son being 30 pounds at 5 months is a little scary. My biggest kiddo was 19 pounds at 5 months and the doctor was running thyroid and other blood tests. I hope the doctor is watching him closely or sending him to an endocrinologist for a close look as to what's happening.