First, if you haven't already, I encourage you to check out my cloth diapering journey. This post is especially helpful for those of you looking to start cloth diapering. Other posts that here helpful in my research process include:
- Sherry and John's post about cloth diapering Clara
- All of Rachel's incredible advice at Intentionally Simple
- Heather's review of cloth diapers
- Diana's cloth diapering experiences
On Monday, Suzy said, "it sounds like you didn't start with cloth diapers immediately (and we're thinking we might not initially, either). When did you decide to start and why/how did you know to switch over?"
We didn't start cloth diapering immediately. Because we chose to use one-size diapers, we opted to wait until Wesley was about 10 pounds. This happened when he was about 6 weeks old. Honestly, this gave us time to get used to the idea of having a baby, breast feeding, lack of sleep, etc. By the time Wesley was 6 weeks old I was capable of trying something new. This gave time for the meconium to pass and Wesley wasn't wetting 24 million diapers a day. It took a little longer for us to feel comfortable to leave the house with cloth diapers. Eventually we started leaving the house without disposables and now we can travel for 3-4 days without disposables! It's a process - you don't need to go all in at the same time.
Suzy's question was the only real question I got this week but I decided to answer common questions that I get asked regularly.
How often do you do a load of diapers? How long does it take for them to dry?
Washing the diapers is something people balk at all the time. We haven't found washing to be trying at all. We do about 2-3 loads of diapers a week or about every other day. This allows us to dry the diapers on the drying rack in the sun rather than in the dryer. Here in Texas, they can dry in the sun in just a few hours. A wetter or cooler climate would require more dry time.
Do they leak? Are there lots of blow-outs? Does he get diaper rash?
They do leak on occasion. Usually alerting me that they need to be stripped. Sometimes they leak just like a disposable would leak. They do contain the poop, which is awesome. We're still working on the best washing, drying, and cleaning routine to be sure that we're getting the most out of our diapers to eliminate the leaks. We do not experience diaper rash hardly at all. He gets a rash much more frequently in disposables.
We are now washing exclusively in Charlie's Soap Laundry Liquid
and using Kissaluvs Diaper Lotion Potion
on our cloth wipes. Do you have other cloth diapering questions?
Yes, I do have one now! You mentioned that you travel for 3-4 days without disposables, which made me wonder whether you wash the diapers during that time or just wait till you get home. If you wash while you're out, how do you do that? We'll be taking a weekend trip in a few weeks, and I'd love to take the cloth along if possible, but don't want to inconvenience others' washing machines. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteCheck out https://www.facebook.com/DFWClothDiaperGroup - I just recently "liked" them on Facebook since I love to learn as much as possible about others' experiences with cloth diapers!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Courtney! I just liked them too! Thanks for the recommendation!
ReplyDeleteDiana - It all depends on where we're going. We typically have plenty of inserts and run out of covers, so we've hand-washed covers in the sink before. We've also washed wet only stuff in a washer and dryer if we're staying with friends or family. Other than that, we have enough diapers if we wash every single one and bring them all with us. We usually leave the diaper he wore to bed at home and everything else is clean and comes with us. We wash as quick as we can when we get back. So far that's worked for us! As long as we don't have a lot of poop explosions, we're good!
Thanks! I hadn't thought about washing just the wet ones--that wouldn't be so hard on someone else's machine. Now I just have to decide if I think we'll have washing machine access--not sure I'm willing to wash by hand :)
ReplyDeleteHand washing the covers isn't bad at all. I'll toss a flip cover or two into a sink full of warm water and some detergent or baby wash and soak, swirl, soak, and squeeze! They dry so quick too. The covers, unless there's a huge poop, really don't get that gross...Because my view of gross has changed since having Wesley and I now think pee isn't gross. :-)
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