Diapers
If you had asked Sweets and me a year ago whether we would use disposable or cloth diapers for our as-yet-unplanned baby, we’d have scoffed at the idea of cloth diapers. Not because we’re against them, per se, but because we just couldn’t see dealing with them in our own house. Had you asked us the same question 5 months ago when we found out I was pregnant, we still would’ve planted our feet firmly in the disposable camp.
And yet, here we are, a few months away from Grasshopper’s due date and we’re considering cloth diapers. That’s right, Sweets and me. We’re considering cloth. I even laugh at ourselves, because I never would’ve imagined we’d have come full circle.
The things is, cloth diapers in 2010 are not the same as they were in the 1970s, when I was a babe. The extra thick cotton cloth that had to be shaped around a baby and then pinned, yes pinned, onto a squirmy little beast? The diapers that had no elastic around the legs and left plenty of room for leaks? The diapers that lacked really good absorbency and were a sure bet for soiled clothes? Those diapers are long gone.
Today, cloth diapers come with options. Like sized diapers versus one-size for all. And colors. And snaps or velcro. And different types of absorbency options. And there are attachments for your toilet, so you can spray off the soiled parts without touching them. And travel bags to carry soiled diapers until you get home. And, well, let’s just say a lot of thought has been put into this whole industry. The cloth diaper people are now armed with solutions to those things the naysayers (like I once was) don’t like. And so names like Fuzzi Bunz and Bum Genius are now becoming a part of my vocabulary.
And I’m confused.
I mean, I know at a minimum, we will need disposables for certain situations. Like daycare (some daycares won’t deal with cloth diapers). And maybe some travel situations, where doing laundry isn’t an option. And my head swirls around the Big 3 (Pampers, Huggies, Luvs) versus the more eco-friendly brands (Seventh Generation, Nature Babycare). And let’s not even add in the hybrid cloth-disposable diapers (gDiapers).
But, how do I choose? How do I know which diapers will work best for us without dropping huge coin first? Cloth diapers supposedly save money over time, but the key is you invest money upfront and spend very little after that. Well, what if I want to trial them without investing too much money? And disposables aren’t much better as you often have to buy them in bulk (what if I hate a diaper after one use, but am left with 19, 49 or even 99 remaining in the package?!).
And then there’s the dilemma with whether cloth diapers really save money. As a friend recently pointed out, you may save money on the diaper itself (over time, if you’re committed to using them). But, when you add in the costs for gentle cleaners (detergents not recommended) and extra liners and the extra energy and water required for cleaning (water to spray off the diapers and heavy wash cycles on hot to deep clean the diapers). And what about the “saving the earth” mentality that cloth diaper users have by not filling landfills with disposables? How does that argument stay cohesive when you’re using up one of nature’s precious resources, water? The argument for cloth diapers becomes murky, for sure.
So … this is where you, my readers and friends, come in to help me. Many of you are mothers. Many of you went through the process of choosing cloth versus disposable and then which brand once that decision was made. Tell me how you went about your process and what you wound up using. And remember, be nice … I know there are vastly different opinions on the subject … pretty please, try to focus on your experiences without slamming the other side. =) Thanks!
August 27th, 2010 at 6:59 am
I was in the same situation you were in when I had my first baby. I wanted to do the best thing for the environment and the best thing for my baby, and also stay sane. At that time I read a ton of studies and in the end most of them said that the environmental impact was about the same for cloth or disposable once you figured everything in.
Then I read some articles saying that sometimes babies can get more rashes or irritation with cloth because they don’t whisk the stuff away and are sitting in a wet diaper much longer than with disposable no matter how fast you change it. But then I read a study that said babies can be sensitive to the thing in the disposable diapers that makes it whisk the pee away so fast. It all gave me a headache and made me have no idea what to do. I seriously cried about how stressed I felt about this!
In the end, a friend gave us a huge amount of disposable diapers for our shower and our choice was pretty much made. With the twins I did disposable because I was having a hard enough time keeping up using disposable and couldn’t imagine having to do anything more than just throw it away. With my last I confess, I didn’t even look into it. I was used to disposable, had some leftover, and just went with it.
Whatever you decide will be what is best for your family. I don’t think there is a clear “right” answer no matter what you do. Whatever makes you and your baby happiest is what is best.
August 27th, 2010 at 7:23 am
I’m not a mother but my parents did use cloth diapers on me and I guess I turned out ok! That was back in the 80′s though and as you said, cloth diapers have come a long way since then. John & Sherry at Young House Love just did a whole post on cloth diapers. It’s worth a read if you’re considering them: http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/08/the-much-requested-cloth-diaper-post/
August 27th, 2010 at 7:27 am
i’m going to send my bestie over here (my god son’s mother!) to check out this post and give her .02. i know she thought tons about this and i’m pretty sure she’s happy with their decision to go disposable.
August 27th, 2010 at 7:35 am
I use disposable and quite honestly never even considered using cloth. I figured I would have enough laundry to keep up with without worrying with diapers and I have heard that the environmental impact is about the same either way. (Although I did not do any research on that)
To answer your question as to brand -- my son is 3 months old and I still haven’t figured out what my favorite brand is. We have leaks and messes occasionally regardless of whether he is wearing Pampers or Huggies. And then even within those brands there are different styles … snugglers, swaddlers, little movers, etc. Its so confusing!
As for cloth, I have heard that there are cloth diaper companies who will give you a free 30 day trial. That way you don’t make the investment until you decide that brand is right for you and that you are committed to cloth diapering. I don’t have any details because its nothing I considered but definitley worth researching if you decide to take the cloth route.
August 27th, 2010 at 8:07 am
We are 100% disposable diapers here. As gifts, we received all kinds of diapers, mostly Pampers, Huggies and a few packages of Luvs. So, that has given me the perfect opportunity to see which brand I prefer. For me, Pampers are my fave with Huggies coming in a close second. Mainly because Huggies coupons are a’plenty! Luvs aren’t terrible but not my fave.
August 27th, 2010 at 8:32 am
I’m not a mum and so this is probably way off for me to be thinking about, but I do anyway. I like the idea of trying cloth, but agree with you, how do you try without forking out a lot of money to begin with? I think some websites do trials, where you can get different sets and sizes to try before committing, and that’s probably a better idea, just in case it doesn’t work out.
August 27th, 2010 at 9:38 am
The seventh generation diapers are terrible. They just don’t work at all! My students who use them have blow-outs all the time, and they are always leaking. Don’t go there.
I’m kind of in the same boat you are. I want to cloth diaper, but I just don’t know what to choose or how it will fit into our lifestyle. We are planning on using disposables at first because…well…twins and all. I have enough to worry about in the first few months of life.
My friend used FuzziBuns, and she liked them a lot, but I wasn’t too thrilled with the idea of having to stuff the inserts into the diapers.
I have about 10 GroBaby (GroVia) diapers that I’ve gotten for super cheap off of BabySteals.com. I like that they are a cloth/disposable hybrid, but they seem a little more sturdy than the gDiapers. Also, gDiapers come in sizes, whereas the GroBaby diapers are adjustable. And, the inserts snap into place rather than being stuffed into a pocket. Obviously, I haven’t used them yet, but so far I like what I see. I’ll let you know how it goes.
I know you can also find people who are selling their used diapers. Seems gross, I guess, but might be a good day to try out some cloth without spending a ton of money.
August 27th, 2010 at 9:54 am
We’ve discussed this and you know we’re in a similar situation right now, but I will say one thing about the energy/water thing: we have resolved this issue in our minds because we have a steam washer that uses almost no water and is incredibly energy efficient. I don’t know what kind of state your washing machine is in but maybe the next time you upgrade you could look into steam washers? They are great and I am totally in love with ours.
August 27th, 2010 at 10:11 am
I’m not a mom (notevenCLOSE) but I would go with a mix. Cloth during the day and disposables during the night, at least for the first few months. As you grow into motherhood and the baby can go longer without shitting itself, you can make the switch to fully cloth.
Or you could do Eliminiation Communication, and skip the diapering question altogether. http://www.naturalbirthandbabycare.com/elimination-communication.html
August 27th, 2010 at 10:18 am
I am pretty eco-friendly. I am a vegetarian, I carpool, I recycle, take other people’s cans out of the trash to recycle them, too, buy organic, etc. But I am SO not keen on the idea of cloth diapers. I can’t imagine keeping the poop around until I get the chance to clean it. My thought: if I could, would I want to rinse off, wash, then re-use a tampon if i could possibly save the environment by doing so? I want to throw that bitch away as soon as I can and get on my with my life! Same thought, at current, with the idea of cloth diapers. With all that is going on with having a new born, I can’t imagine washing diapers -- nasty, smelly, dirty diapers -- to my to-do list. I have some friends who swear by them -- but none of them will admit that cleaning them STINKS ;) How how they even clean them in the first place. Do you scoop the poop? Ugh…
August 27th, 2010 at 10:53 am
No babies here, but my 2 cents as a non-mom :) My BF cloth diapers, and I thought it was totally gross….until I watched the little one. They were really easy to use! She uses these toilet paper-like inserts so you can just flush any solids. They make these mesh bags that go straight into the laundry, so you never have to touch the dirty diapers again to get them in the washer. For the people that say they are smelly, they clearly haven’t used them. If you have the right soaking container, they don’t smell one bit.
I’m not crunchy by any means, but the idea of filling a landfill with disposable diapers horrifies me. It’s also WAAAAY easier to potty train a cloth kid since they can feel it when they are wet. Finally, I have 3 CD friends that say they have NEVER had a major blowout. My disposable friends say they have a huge blowout at least once per week.
If you go to a store that sells CD, they often have a starter pack that has 1 or 2 of a handful of different styles of cloth diapers. Good luck!
August 27th, 2010 at 10:56 am
We bought a couple BumGenius at the beginning but found they didn’t work that great for the tiny, scrawny newborn stage so we switched to Pampers Swaddlers. Once Noah grew a little we tried the BumGenius again and, even though we had the best intentions, it just didn’t take. The extra steps during the changing process (and laundering process because you have to use special soap so as not to decrease the absorption effectiveness and then when they’re clean and dry you have to fit all the parts back together so you have them at the ready) just proved more than I could handle at the time.
However, if you’re interested in it, try it out! Buy a couple all-in-ones/adjustable cloth diapers and give it a go. If it doesn’t work out, no harm done.
And for the record, we used Pampers Swaddlers (newborn and size 1), switched to Huggies Snug & Dry (size 2 and 3) because the Pampers (purple/pink box ones) all smelled like baby powder and it drove me nuts, and now we’re in Target brand (Up & UP) for size 4. Of all of them, I like the Target the best. No leaks, no issues, holds up at night, and no smell. Can’t beat the price either.
August 27th, 2010 at 11:12 am
I really have no idea since I’ve never had a child, but I know all my friends use disposable. I think for them it’s a lot less work especially when you are barely getting any sleep (they told me once the kid comes, you’ll be lucky to get 4-5 hours of rest during the night), breast feeding, feeding yourself, making food, etc. And then of course some of them went back to work which means their kids have to stay with someone or in a daycare.
I’m guessing on this, but if I ever do have a kid, I’d probably go with disposable. I’ve changed quite a number of diapers (babysitting, looking after my baby cousins) and let me tell you, I appreciate the fact that I can throw that dirty diaper away!
August 27th, 2010 at 11:59 am
Obviously, I can’t give you any first hand advice, as I don’t have a child (yet), but everyone around me who has children uses disposables. I haven’t even heard anyone talking about the option of using cloth diapers.
I really like that you are at least considering this option, as it does sound like a environmental friendly option… although with the extra detergent and water use (would you wash the diapers in the same washer as your clothes? It just occurred to me that I would find this very… uncomfortable.), the environmental impact might be the same after all.
I hope some other people have some valuable input for you.
August 27th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
My brother and sister in law went the cloth diaper route, but definitely use an eco friendly disposable when they travel. But the kid had absolutely NO diaper rash that gets so prevalant with babies. She credits that to cloth diapers. Dunno.
What would be so wrong with getting say -- 5 or 6 of the cloth diapers at first and see how you feel about them? Buy a pack of disposables, too. See which ones seem to jive best with your schedules/wants and needs. If you don’t end up using the cloth ones, gift them to a friend later.
August 27th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
Oh, and Cowgirl swears by Target brand diapers.
August 27th, 2010 at 12:49 pm
We’re all Huggies all the time with our little one. Except for when we’re not. And just recently we’re trying those pull up thingies as we’re trying the dreaded potty training. Oh you have so much to look forward to ;-)
August 27th, 2010 at 1:11 pm
I respect and admire your thoughtfulness on the issue and agree it’s a difficult one to make, especially when there seem to be opposing views for both. As a new mother myself (my son is 6 months old) I would suggest you think about both sides and inevitably use your instinct to decide. For some, disposables offer the complete, no-argument, most sanitary way to go, while the biggest perk for cloth is its lack of waste.
For me, I didn’t think using cloth diapers was enough of an advantage to risk the idea of bacteria build-up, rashes, and using (for all intents and purposes) used diapers. I felt that disposable diapers were the most sanitary, not to mention the most convenient, practical, and efficient form of diapering. I have used Pampers Dry Max since my little one was born, and I have never regretted that decision. (By the way, you might find helpful “mom” reviews on diapers.com if you decide to go this route.
Best of luck with your decision, and I’m sure whatever way you go will be the right one. The best advice I ever received before becoming a mom was to, above all, listen to my own judgments and instincts, and I couldn’t go wrong. Good luck!!!
August 27th, 2010 at 1:31 pm
This is not going to help you at all because I can argue both sides…LOL. For us, we used disposables always. Luvs. That’s our brand. I love Luvs. They’re soft like Pampers (I hate how hard huggies are BUT they are the best for absorbancy, imo) and just as absorbant but OMG cost 1/2 the price. BLING! You’re right though…cloth diapers have come a long way and my friends that have them swear by them. I basically chose disposables to save time and because I wasn’t going to be home with my babies all the time. I had to go back to work and I didn’t wanna bother M’s mom with that task of washing diapers or even just having to set them aside for me to wash. And honestly, I just didn’t want the hassle. Green or not…I just didn’t wanna deal with it. I think that choosing either or is just like choosing bottle or breast. Either way your baby is gonna have a dry bottom and that’s what’s most important :)
August 27th, 2010 at 2:20 pm
You will be tired and have your time consumed in all these new ways that are not really accurately imagined at this point. I think it may be a decision you make after the baby comes and you see if you have the energy to do those extra step-etc. You may change your mind no matter what you decide now.
I could not have done cloth but I am about as undomestic as I can be. I don’t even like to do normal laundry--this would have put me over the edge. We use Pampers and Huggies and have leaked so few times I cannot even recall when it might have happened. Luvs are just fine (imo). I just liked the way the Pampers and Huggies held SO much pee. When we lived in hot, hot Texas, she drank a ton. Those brands were better for us in that way.
August 27th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
I have a ton of opinions on this, but I’ll just tell you what we do. I’m happy to give you WAY more detail than you need, but I don’t want to eat up your comment section with a novel!
We do a combo of cloth and disposable. The idea was cloth at home and disposable at night & while out. It’s turned into cloth when we’re not being lazy, and disposable the rest of the time. That being said, we actually find cloth easy.
When he was a newborn, we did Kissaluvs & Thirsties fitteds and prefolds with covers, along with Pampers swaddlers. They’ve changed the pampers since then, so I don’t know if we’d use them anymore. When he got older, we switched to BumGenius 3.0′s (and now 4.0′s), Fuzzibunz, & Grobaby (now called GroVia). For disposables we use Huggies.
Stuffing the diapers isn’t a big deal. Washing the diapers isn’t a big deal (we use a slightly less recommended soap--All Free and Clear I think--and just use it for all our laundry). Putting the diapers on is super easy.
We chose to do it this way for two reasons--one, to save a little money. Yes, cloth is expensive, but my BumGenius that he was wearing when he was 3 months old he can wear until he’s 3 in theory (my monster child may prove that wrong). Two, my thinking was along the lines of…every time he wears cloth, that’s one less diaper in a landfill (which are filling up in our area), and one less diaper I have to buy.
If we were in daycare, I might have thought differently, though I know a lot of the daycares in my area are ok with cloth as long as they’re the easy ones, but this has been working for us.
If you’re interested in it, I know there are a couple of online stores that do trial programs--it’s like $100 and they send you a sample of 5-6 different diapers for you to test for a period of time. When you’re done, you can send them all back for a refund minus like $10, or you can keep what you like and send back the rest and get a credit for the ones you like. That always seems like a good way to test it if you want.
August 27th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
I am not well versed in the subject, but there is a Diaper Service that is in the Chicago area. It may be a possibility as you consider the options.
http://www.bottomsupdiapers.com/
I am looking forward to what you and Sweets decide.
August 27th, 2010 at 4:35 pm
This is something we’ve been thinking about too. I like the idea of saving some money with cloth, but I was discussing this with my mom and she said I had horrible diaper rash with cloth. She’s of the opinion that disposable technology can’t be beat as far as diaper rash goes. So, I’m keeping that in mind.
Here’s a post I found once with a ton of info (I thought) on cloth diapering: http://thepigbear.blogspot.com/2008/02/cushy-bunchy-bums.html She’s a fan of the prefolds though, which I think a lot of daycares don’t want to deal with.
We might still think about trying cloth, but will probably start with disposables.
August 27th, 2010 at 5:31 pm
Do you have cloth diaper delivery services in Chicago? Here in Vancouver there are companies that do a weekly diaper run -- pick up your soaking, soiled cloth diapers and drop off a week’s worth of clean ones. You don’t have to buy a supply of diapers and you don’t have to do any washing. It’s definitely something I will consider if I have ever have kids because they’ve made it so convenient (though Vancouver is quite crunchy so that likely plays a part.)
August 27th, 2010 at 10:07 pm
We have only used cloth on Ladybug. I have used all kinds -- prefolds, pockets, all-in-ones, PUL, bamboo, organic, Indian, Chinese, pins, snappis, wool covers, nighttime, daytime, naptime, travel -- you name it. I will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have and help you decide what’s the best starter stash for you. We also were the first family at her daycare to use cloth and never had ANY problems there.
I will say that at 16 months, Ladybug is fully potty-trained and wearing big girl panties. It wasn’t something we pushed her to do, she did it herself (we actually had to catch up to her potty-control intelligence!) I think the cloth had a lot to do with that.
August 27th, 2010 at 10:09 pm
Oh, and we don’t use special soap. Plain old fashioned liquid Gain or powder Tide.
I have all kinds of tips, hints, secrets…LOL!
It’s easier than you think!
August 28th, 2010 at 9:55 pm
Nilsa, I don’t have babies, but a blog I read had a posting about them on Monday. Go to 4 little men and girly twins. The post was Mon., Aug. 23rd. After reading her post I would not use cloth diapers. My gosh it sounds like a lot of work.
August 29th, 2010 at 7:56 am
oh diapers. SO CONFUSING, you’re right. Even this time around, I’m trying out different ones, just to see what’s out there compared to last time (even in 3 years, disposable diapers have changed!)
First- I’ll say it: I could NEVER do cloth. After dealing with poo accidents in underpants during potty training… just… NO WAY. It’s not for me. There are some things that just NEVER. COME. CLEAN. ha. But I admire those who commit and do it. (I also have the daycare issue, pretty sure they’d laugh at me if I asked them to spray off my kid’s cloth diaper and put it in a baggie for me!)
So! Disposables it is for us! When I was pregnant with Maggie, I got samples of pretty much every diaper ever made from various things I signed up for online. I’m not even sure where they all came from! They’d arrive in the mail, 1 or 2 diapers (TEEEENY TINY!) of all different brands. And then at my shower, we got a lot of packages of diapers, different sizes and brands. First we started with the Huggies newborn ones, with the little belly button cut-out for when she was really really small. Then eventually, when we moved up a size, they weren’t fitting her as well anymore- gapping around her legs and leaking quite a bit. So, we switched to Pampers Baby Dry and used those until the end (WOOHOO!)
But it’s true- you will end up with some packages where you’ve only used a couple of diapers, then what do you do with them? I gave them to friends I knew who were pregnant and/or used those brands. Or, you can always save them for a Diaper Emergency- when you’re suddenly OUT OF DIAPERS, ZOMG! and can’t make it out to the store (that only happened once to use and I *just* made it to when Dan got home with a pack, whew!)
Not sure if any of that helps, but there ya go :) Good luck! And if you’re confused about diapers, just know that you’re not alone! heh
August 29th, 2010 at 8:31 pm
I think you have to try a bunch out to see what works best for you. That’s how most mothers I know settled on the ones best for them. I’m biased toward Huggies because they’re a client, but in the end it’s what works best for the individual
August 30th, 2010 at 9:16 am
Pam’s recommended post on cloth diapers is great!
http://www.4littlemenandgirlytwins.com/2009/08/cloth-diapering-101.html
August 30th, 2010 at 9:37 am
Diaper delivery service in Chicago: http://www.bottomsupdiapers.com/
August 30th, 2010 at 11:47 am
I don’t have kids so I have not made this choice for myself but I can tell you there are pros and cons to both based on my friends experiences. And the choice may be made for you because some babies have reactions to disposable diapers. A couple of my friends experienced that for themselves.
August 31st, 2010 at 11:38 am
I was going to direct you to the Young House Love blog, too -- their article was great and it made me think I could handle cloth diapers if the time ever came.
I don’t know if he’s right, but Mr. W always tells me that household water consumption only accounts for like 2% of the water used around the world. Agriculture is a big water suck, along with different kinds of industry. So I think maybe it might be greener to wash cloth diapers than throw disposables in the landfill. Just a guess.
August 31st, 2010 at 4:05 pm
Sweets was a cloth baby. Care was pretty easy. Rinse ‘em out in the toilet, put them in a large plastic bag on the porch once a week and the diaper fairy takes them away and leaves you a new, clean supply. Years later they make great absorbent polishing cloths. Add to your registry wish list 3 or 6 months of diaper service.
September 2nd, 2010 at 12:06 pm
We loved cloth the first year, and now do disposables or G-diapers. The choices are overwhelming, dabble in a few different set ups, including disposables and G-diapers. See what you like, no one family is the same! ;)
I did like BumGenious and Crickett’s cloth the best!