Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Cloth Diapers anyone?

So lately every time I take a bag of diapers out to the trashcan I think to myself  "Sorry environment!". I take a grocery bag full about once a week. I have never really thought about using cloth diapers until as of late. Now that Inara doesn't have that nasty runny baby poop anymore, I have been thinking more about it. The problem is the start up costs. We spend about $15 in diapers (We use the Target Up and Up brand) about every 3 weeks. I know it is suppose to be cheaper, but its more expensive now, and I am not sure we have the money to spend now, in order to save later.

You have to understand, this is a big step for me even thinking about it. I have always been in the "ew thats nasty camp". But now I am starting to see it may be cheaper...and honestly I feel awful all about all the waste we throw away. So what about you cloth diapers moms:

1. What brand cloth diapers do you use, and why did you pick that brand?
2. What were your start up costs and what did that give you?
3. How many diapers do you have?
4. How often do you do laundry?
5. Has there been any costs in up keep?
6. Why do you cloth diaper
7. What is your estimated savings by cloth diapering


20 comments:

  1. i have all the stuff to cloth diaper jack... i just don't. i have the old fashioned pre-folds that require a snap and cover. i got sucked into disposables and stayed with them. with the next baby i am going to invest in bumgenius or something similar, because they're AIO (all in one, don't know if you know the lingo) so they're as easy as disposables, but are cloth.

    i feel guilty every time i throw away a diaper.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I use bum genius 3.0's (they now have a newer version out 4.0's) I picked them b/c I had heard some good reviews. Diaper Pin is a good place to start looking at reviews. I first bought like 6 diapers which was close to $100. I wasn't sure how great they worked until I bought some prefolds and covers from Jen (earthbums.com) Kali's skin was too sensitive for those b/c there isn't a layer to wick away the moisture like the bg's. So 6 could get me through almost a day. But washing them every night wasn't what I wanted to do so I bought more, now I have 20 or so and I get through two days before I need to start a load so there will be clean ones for the next day. I started out like you, just not feeling right about throwing away so many dispoables, but not excited about having poop in my washer either. I talked to Jen and to Melissa Talbert (super nice) and I decided to try it. We don't cloth diaper at church, or when she is watched by the inlaws. But since I'm home with her most of the time it works out. I've bought other diapers but they haven't worked for us as well as the bg's. you can buy gently used diapers on diaperswappers.com i've bought and sold some diapers there. I figured out how much we would be saving when we started but now I don't remember. We still buy disposables and I use them when she gets diaper rash, b/c you can't use regular diaper creams on cloth. The best thing for easy clean up are disposable liners. they can be flushed with the poop so you don't have to dunk the diaper to get it off. I love talking about cloth diapers, and I know Jen does too. Check out some of the websites below for more info. Hope that helps!

    http://www.bumgenius.com/
    http://allaboutclothdiapers.com/
    http://www.babycheapskate.com/category/essentials/cloth-diapering/

    ReplyDelete
  3. 1. What brand cloth diapers do you use, and why did you pick that brand?
    we have several- a bumgenius organic aio (it was on sale and one of the most popular brands), prefolds and thirsties covers (bc cost effective), thirsties pocket aio(i liked the thirsties wraps and liked the idea of an aio with the stuffable pocket option- i love these for going out of the house for jackson), softbums (i loved the idea of an ai2 and liked the way they are adjustable and trim), smartipants(cheap pocket that you don't have to unstuff to wash), flips(again liked the ai2 and these were cheaper with great reviews), and an econobum(got for free with a coupon code- wouldn't get any more).
    2. What were your start up costs and what did that give you?
    hmm...dozen pf's $24? 3 covers $30 that would give you a good start.
    3. How many diapers do you have?
    for mackenzie: 2 flip covers and 6 inserts, 3 softbums covers and 9 inserts, 1 econobum cover and 1 insert, 1 bg aio, 1 smartipants
    for jackson: 12 prefolds, 4 covers, 2 thirsties aios
    4. How often do you do laundry?
    every other night
    5. Has there been any costs in up keep?
    no.
    6. Why do you cloth diaper?
    it's way more fun and super cute. i felt just like you and didn't like throwing away so many diapers and how much money was 'wasted'.
    we also didn't like the fact that there are so many chemicals in diapers.
    7. What is your estimated savings by cloth diapering?
    no idea, but i know we're saving. as babies get bigger and go to larger sizes of diapers, there are fewer in packages/boxes so you'll potentially going to be spending more as she grows. we use disposable at night still bc i haven't found a good nighttime diaper. i like the one size diapers best bc they will last longer. let me know if you have any other questions.

    ReplyDelete
  4. oh, and i wouldn't ever buy a cloth diaper at full price or pay shipping. there are always sales or coupon codes for discounts or free stuff with your order and several sites always have free shipping. a good site to look for sales is diaperpin.com then click on sales and announcements.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I didn't use cloth, but if you have a sewing machine I've seen tutorials on making cloth diapers on some of those bargain sites! (Do you have a sewing machine?)

    ReplyDelete
  6. wow thanks so much guys! Those websites are super helpful Lauren. And while I DO have a sewing machine, I am no master of it! I don't think I want to make the diapers even if I could.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I havent started using cloth yet, but I will in October ! I have a 2 year old now and I hate throwing away diapers as well. Check out http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/newmom.htm
    This is a great site, I will be using the prefolds with covers and some of their workhorse fitteds !

    ReplyDelete
  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I give a second vote for Green Mountain Diapers as a great source of information. That is also where I buy all of my diapers. We use their unbleached prefolds and let me tell you, they are wonderful. We have been using them since my son was a newborn and we are now on the third size (M) up at 4 months. We have no problems AT ALL with leaks and they are super easy to wash and dry. Use a Snappi and you get a nice, snug fit. We used Bummis Super Brite for the newborn and size small diapers - they are nice and little and worked well. Now we are using Thursties Duo wrap covers and like them a lot. We also have some of the Bummis Whisper Pants, which are like some of the old fashioned pull on diaper covers. These also work well and are more flexible than wrap covers. We bought them because they are cheap and our daycare requires a clean cover with each diaper change.

    We have 3 dozen diapers (you could get away with 2 doz) and 12 covers (you really only need about 6, we need more for daycare). We do laundry every other evening. No biggie.

    Also, I would highly recommend cloth wipes. So nice for baby's bum and probably easier than disposable wipes if you are doing diaper laundry anyway. We put them in a Prince Lionheart warmer and they are fantastic.

    Good luck!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. I tried to answer your questions but Blogger says my response was too long. I posted my answers (with links) on my blog. http://makingofamodernmommy.blogspot.com/2010/08/answering-cloth-diaper-questions.html

    Good luck! I LOVE cloth!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I have many brands, my favs: SoftBums & Grovia. I have ~25 dipes, but many are ai2(multiple use) I used prefolds & covers starting out- cheap but not trim (i like trim fit) also you can start slow, don't have to do 100% of the time, just one cloth dipe/day can save you ~$70/year. I was every 2-3 days with Charlies soap or Rock n green. because they are cute- green & we save $

    ReplyDelete
  13. Ok, i have been cloth diapering for almost two years and I am a dihard Fuzzi bun fan especially of their perfect fits... then I discovered the FLip made by cotton babies!! I only have one cover but it saves me 3-5 diapers a day on my older girl depending on when she poops because all I have to do it pull out my inserts, wipe out the cover and put in new inserts. I wish my whole stash was these. I also reccommend staying a away from velcro. I am in the process of converting all my Bum Genius 3.0's to snaps.

    ReplyDelete
  14. hi!
    1. started out with chinese prefolds and thirsties and bummis covers. This was the cheapest way to go originally. With my second we are doing Kissa luvs fitted and covers same brand, and fuzzi bunz and bumgenius. I didn't like prefolds with my first so i wanted to go easier and just use pocket diapers. Picked the brands due to ease of cleaning and use. and cute colors hehe.
    2. 2 dz prefolds and 4-6 covers were about $150-$200. Some of my stash for my second one carried over from my first so for the rest of the fitteds, covers, and one size pockets it was about $300. I started late with my first so I had to buy things to cd a newborn.
    3. i have 18 diapers 4. laundry every 2-3 days. 5. no 6. i cd due to cost savings. my husband lost/changed jobs and has taken pay cuts and we can't afford disposibles. 7. I was spending 200.00/mth on my first. So i have already saved a TON. We do disposibles at night since i haven't found a good night time solution, but 8.00/every 3 weeks or so is doable. Hope this helps! here's my email if you have more questions. varliefrog@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  15. 1. I use mainly Bumgenius 3.0s and Bumgenius AIOs (the regular kind, not organic), but I also have a few Fuzzi Bunz and GroVia thrown in there. I have a small collection of Smartipants diapers also. The Bg AIOs are probably my favorite, simply for the ease of use since they don't need to be stuffed. I always use a Bg pocket diaper stuffed with a couple of hemp inserts for nighttime though. The Bgs fit my son the best, so overall I am a big Bg fan.
    2. I probably spent about $400 for my startup costs, which got me my wetbags, a starter set of cloth wipes, and about 18-20 diapers. I bought some of the diapers retail, but most on Craigslist. I've actually gotten most of my diapers on Craigslist, and with just a few exceptions, they've all been brand new in the package.
    3. I actually have about 45-50 diapers right now, but I really only need 20 for my son. 20 diapers allows me to do laundry just every other day. I ended up with so many because I wanted to try some other brands, and I pick them up here and there just to prepare for future babies.
    4. I do laundry every other day, which I pretty much did anyway.
    5. No cost in upkeep.
    6. I think cloth diapering is actually way easier than disposables (we used disposables for the first 11 months after my son was born). The house smells much better, and I don't have to worry about running out of diapers, wipes, diaper genie refills, etc. The diapers are also cute, we save tons of $$ in the long run, and it's environmentally friendly.
    7. I don't know exact numbers, but general estimates are that you save between $1,600 and $2,500 total when you cloth diaper a single baby (depending on the brand of cloth diapers you use). The savings get bigger for each subsequent baby. We won't save quite that on our first because we used disposables for the first 11 months.

    Regardless, I love cloth diapering and will never go back! We're also a two-working-parent household, so it is possible to do it with mom working and day cares, etc.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Could always try the relatively new Kawaii one-size pocket diaper. (One-size means you can adjust the size as the baby grows, if you don't know the lingo). They're also pretty inexpensive at around $6.99/diaper. Usually have to buy 10 to get that price, but still... They're velcro fasteners, so they should be just like disposables, IMO. Have not used these yet myself, but you can check out reviews on diaperpin.com.

    http://www.theluvyourbaby.com/8-36lbsHeavyDuty621.htm

    ReplyDelete
  17. 1. What brand cloth diapers do you use, and why did you pick that brand?
    Smartipants pockets and DreamEze AIO's. I have tried a ton of different brands and we liked these the best.
    2. What were your start up costs and what did that give you? About $400. I have approx 30 diapers, a diaper pail, 2 PlanetWise pail liners, 3 wetbags, RnG laundry detergent and a diaper sprayer.
    3. How many diapers do you have?
    Approx 30
    4. How often do you do laundry? Every 2-3 days
    5. Has there been any costs in up keep? Our water bill went up about $10 since we started cloth diapering.
    6. Why do you cloth diaper? It is better for the environment, cheaper for me, and my baby had a bad reaction to the new Pampers DryMax material.
    7. What is your estimated savings by cloth diapering? Not much yet since we just started, but we will probably save $1000 by the time my daughter potty trains. And we plan on having more kids so we will save then as well.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Rumparooz and Bum Genius are very reputable brands and easy to start with. Both have velcro or snap options. My recommendation: 1) check your local area for a retailer and see if you can take a peak at their stash. 2) Check the Real Diaper Association for a Circle Leader in your area. Both can help you answer questions locally. Check out www.theecochic.com for more info!

    ReplyDelete
  19. I started out with prefolds and Thirsties Duo covers. They are great for newborns. Now that my LO is a little bit bigger I really like Flip diapers and BG 3.0s. We use the Flips during the day. I love that you can reuse the cover and the Stay Dry insert seems to keep her dry. I like the pocket diapers at night as they seem to hold a bit more and when they're prestuffed they are easier to change. I've spent about $200 on Flips, BGs, and wet bags (2 pail liners, 1 travel bag) and I do laundry every 3rd day. It's working great for us and I'm so glad I don't throw all that nasty trash in the landfills and my baby's bum isn't being exposed to chemicals.

    ReplyDelete
  20. 1. What brand cloth diapers do you use, and why did you pick that brand? I've tried many many brands, but my favorite are Bum Genius OS, FuzziBunz (sized version, not their one sized version), & Tiny Tush

    2. What were your start up costs and what did that give you? Since I have purchased more diapers than we need it's not very accurate

    3. How many diapers do you have? way too many, I would say after the newborn stage you could get away with about 18

    4. How often do you do laundry? I could go 3 days, but with the stinky factor alone I wash every other day, with 18 diapers you'd probably be washing every day to 2 days

    5. Has there been any costs in up keep? nope

    6. Why do you cloth diaper I started b/c I was curious of the cost, but after doing research I really wanted to keep the chemicals off my baby's bum

    7. What is your estimated savings by cloth diapering, not as much with my first, but I'll be saving a ton with my 2nd, because I don't need to buy any new diapers, they'll last through his use too

    ReplyDelete

I would love to hear what you think!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...