Please read this post as an “I’m learning” post and not a “do what I do” post. I have no clue what I’m doing! Which brings me to point #1: cloth diapering is hard!! Disposables are easy. You put the diaper on. You throw it away. The hardest thing is realizing you might need to jump up to the next size. Cloth diapers take so much more knowledge – from choosing brands to getting the fit right to the laundry. The learning curve is steep, but I’m hoping once we get to the top it’s all downhill from there.
We started cloth at about 2 months, although not full time. I wanted to ease into it and not put too much stress on myself. Also the diapers seemed HUGE on Mazen until about 2.5/3 months, so I wasn’t very confident they would actually work with his clothes and things. So we started using one every now and then and I decided that I had to jump in full time before I could really see what it was like.
People have asked me “Do you like it?” At first my response was that switching from disposables to cloth was kind of like going on vacation and eating whatever you want and then coming back home to healthy again. Disposables are like being able to eat cake all day long. I did not like the cloth at first compared to the disposables – who would, it’s more work. But like healthy eating, I knew it was the right thing to do for the earth and our wallets moving forward, so I kept at it. Now I can say that I DO like cloth. As much or more than the disposables. I just wish I could get all the kinks out of our process.
We have about 15 diapers that we cycle through. Some of the others in the stash that Stephanie gave me went to another blog reader and some were too small once we started cloth. These 15 are the perfect amount for a wash-every-3-days cycle, although I’m washing them closer to every 2 now.
At first, we were having tons of trouble with leaking. I have been washing them in Rockin’ Green detergent but as many of you said, I probably needed to strip them. Stripping a cloth diaper means washing it 5 times in hot water with no detergent to get out any residue that might be repelling liquid. (Here is a great guide on how to strip cloth diapers!) I didn’t think our diapers were repelling, but I did this anyway. There are many ways to strip, but I just washed them in hot water with oxiclean about 5 times in a row. The leaking improved.
Now 2 weeks later, we’re leaking again, on and off. It’s SO annoying to pick your child up and feel a wet bottom. Not only do you need to change the diaper but the whole outfit too. I can’t imagine I have to strip every 2 weeks, so I’m wondering if it’s just a fit issue. Not all of them leak, and the Baby Land diapers leak more than the rest, so maybe they are just not a great fit.
My favorite diapers are the Bum Genius velcro ones. I love these because the velcro is just so easy to adjust. Stick it on and you’re done. The snappy diapers are hard because I end up snapping and unsnapping several times to get the diaper snug. The only downfall to the velcro is that to wash it you really need to push the tabs down so they don’t stick to everything, and that’s one extra step when you have a dirty diaper to touch. I also hear that it wears out more quickly and that your baby can learn to take these off himself, which would not be good! These Bum Genius are least likely to leak as well.
I also like the Blueberry brand. They don’t leak that much and they fit pretty well. We have about 6 of these and I find myself reaching for them often. I hate all the snaps, but I like the rest of them.
With the pocket diapers you have to stuff them and remove the insert when it’s dirty before putting it in your wet bag. Both of these tasks are a little annoying, but I want to work with the diapers we have and am not going to buy a whole new set just to get all-in-ones or another type. Plus I wash my hands after anyways, so although it’s kind of gross, it doesn’t really add that much extra. I like that the pockets dry fast too (I hear that’s the number one drawback for AIOs).
We discovered the hard way that you better have that whole insert tucked in or you’ll have leaks out the back from moisture wick! Another plus for the Bum Genius and Blueberry ones – they have a flap to hold the insert in.
On the topic of inserts, the kind we have are adjustable with snaps. When Mazen was smaller, I was using them in the shorter position, but they were SO bulky inside. I started just unsnapping them and kind of shoving the rest of the insert in there, and they’re fitting a lot better now.
Here’s one of our Baby Land diapers. I love the single row of snaps (the less snaps the better!) but these guys just don’t fit as well.
I also bought some of these Babykicks hemp inserts hoping for magic absorption. I washed them 3 times before use as the directions say. They’re super thin so I was hoping for less bulk. The verdict is that they are just OK. They come as a duo pair sewn together and I tried separating them to singles and we had a big leak, so I think they really need to be two at a time in there, which means they’re about the same as the microfiber ones!
It didn’t take me long to transition to cloth wipes either. A few times of trying to separate dirty disposable wipes from the cloth diaper into two receptacles and I knew cloth wipes were the answer to all of our problems.
We have two packs of these OsoCozy ones and like them a lot. They are so soft!
I researched cloth wipe solution one day and came up with this solution as the most simple for our family: this squirt bottle with 2 drops of our lavender baby wash inside. I was also using tea tree essential oil, but I just couldn’t stand the smell. I sometimes spray this right on M’s bottom and other times spray the wipe depending on how….wet….the bottom is 
I do prefer this to pre-soaking the wipes or having to go wet one in the bathroom, which both seem like a step of extra work.
The wipes go straight from laundry to this cloth bin within reach of the changing table.
We’re very happy with our PlanetWise Wet Bag. I do wish I had one more to rotate with the laundry because on laundry day I find a pile of diapers from that day on the dresser with no place to go because the bag is in the washer! I’ve also thought about just getting a pail to lift the lid for, but this is just sleeker and takes up less space. Unzipping it is a bit of a pain, but so would taking a lid off, so it’s just a fact of life.
I did buy this diaper genie for disposables, which we do use on occasion – nighttime, when we’re out sometimes. I have no idea if we’ll be 100% cloth in the future, but for now I’d say we’re 90% cloth. I really like this Arm & Hammer model.
Hmm what else.
OH – laundry!!!
I actually don’t mind washing the diapers that much because I like doing laundry. And something about folding and stuffing clean diapers is soooo satisfying. But what is driving me nuts is that they still seem to stink a little bit after the load. I’ve been doing rinse – wash – rinse. I use the Rockin’ Green and oxiclean in the wash. I’ve tried drying them in the drier and air drying (which I would prefer not to do because of the timing). I haven’t yet tried putting them in the sun because we haven’t had many sunny days lately! I was trying to go every 3 days between washes, but I’ve switched to every 2 and that might be helping. Any tips on getting rid of stink?
**{Edited to add}**
Just washed them in my parents’ new Kenmore washer and dryer with the same Rockin’ Green and I swear some of the stains have lifted and most of the stink is gone. Maybe our older W/D (which came with our house) are to blame? I find that hard to believe, but perhaps there is just something off about the way the cycle works on ours?
This site, Padded Tush Stats, has been a good resource for learning more about cloth diapers. I think I’m actually going to switch to powdered Tide next because it seems to be so highly rated for cloth diapers.
Another problem we have: overnight. BOTH the disposables and the cloth have been completely soaking Mazen, his PJs, swaddle and the sheet by the morning {edited to add the next size up of disposables has helped…somewhat}. SO annoying when I’m picking him up to nurse and have to do a complete costume change before he can. I guess we have a heavy wetter? Other than changing his diaper halfway through the night, what else can I do to get the cloth work for 10-12 hours? I have tried doubling up inserts and that didn’t help. I’m also concerned about the wet fabric being against him all night long. Are there any cloth diapers you swear by for nighttime? Should we just use disposables for nights?
I’m thinking about buying 3-5 more Bum Genius diapers, but I’m also open to hearing any that you all love. I’ve heard good things about Glow Bug, Flip, and Thirsties. Which do you like?
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