to think reusable nappies are a lot of faffing about...?

[Wigglewoo]

Hmmm. Willing to be converted...

My ds is 5 weeks old and I decided to buy a range of reusable nappies to give them a go... Tots bots, little lambs, fuzz bunz, smartiepants....

So far they have sat unused on the side. I am tempted to return them.

I love the look of them and I'm not bothered about getting closely aquainted with ds's poop but I just find myself reaching for the disposables everytime I change his nappy as it just seems somehow easier.

I'm not even sure its cheaper... The little lambs took ages to tumble dry when I pre washhed them so that has to cost a fair bit... And the actual nappies themselves cost quite a bit now esp the all in ones!!! But then I guess you do buy them once ...

What do others think? Just being nosey really.

That's very interesting about the wool covers!! I can't imagine how they wouldn't feel wet - or itchy on ds... How weird! :) I like the look of them...

Well I've got my bum in gear and got ds in a little lamb fitted nappy with a gen-y (if that's what it is!) Cover... Very cute with little space invaders on it :) .. He's sleeping soundly so he must be comfy! (Does seem very bulky though especially after the paper thin pampers!)

I've got the rest of the nappies in the wash right now... So I hope we like them as they are unreturnable now so I'd have to sell them if not!

On first impressions I think the fuzzibunz seem the nicest of the ones I brought... I like the slimness of them. The tots bots bamboozle are so soft and lovely but look massive on ds!!

I will let you know how we get on and how much of a faff I find it!! Or not :)

Good luck!

i think you need to give it a week, personally, with 2 washes in between.

no wavering till the week is over.

we throw everything in the bath - we've got a washing up bowl in the bath, where we put the poo-ey ones (soaking in water), and all the wets and wraps just go in the bath.
then every 2 or three days, we put the whole lot in the machine (wraps are only supposed to be washed at 40max, but the nappies and liners can go in at 60).
then hang them on the washing line.
they take longer to dry inside, but if you leave them in an airy room, about 24 hours in summer.
you just have to make sure you've got enough to cover 1 or 2 days' laundering.

oh, and don't forget that it takes at least 6 washes until they're at their full absorbency, so you might think "they don't last long, do they?" for a week or two.
don't use fabric softener.

Oh wiggle you have a gen-y? We are total gen-y obsessives in my household!

Their universal wraps are so versatile and fun, we use them with fitteds, inserts and disposable inserts. Can't go far wrong for a wrap system really.

If you need any help, give me a shout. I've tried and tested all a few of the brands out there so could point you in the direction of a few different systems.

I've been using my reusables for about 2 months now - love them, and so does LO's 12 week old bottom.

I don't find them a faff - you just need to be a bit organised. I do a wash of nappies about every three days. I use the Bumgenius Flip system, which cost me £116, and Cheeky Wipes which were £25. Big saving on what I would spend otherwise on disposables.

I love them because I am far too lazy to empty rubbish bins more often than strictly necessary! DD is 19 months and has been in a selection of tots bots and motherease since she was big enough (2 months ish). We use ones with wraps most of the time, but have a set of one piece and pocket ones for nursery - all kinds of strange combinations and buttoning arrangements were coming back before we started doing that.

I also have to confess that we have a power shower and I really quite enjoy sorting out pooey nappies (I do work with sewage from time time though so am probably immune to the yuckiness!)

Hope it goes well OP!

We didn't use our reusables at first but probably started at about 6-8wks. We had a nappy bucket with a mesh bag in, shove the whole lot in the machine. Dry on airers or on radiators rather than tumble dry, where possible. I'd wash every other day at the start and change the nappies often. DD never had nappy rash in washables either.

We used Itti Bittis on DD as they're so compact she didn't need much bigger clothes in order to fit over them. But we used the more bulky Tots Bots Bamboozles at night where we needed more capacity and were less concerned about size.

On hols we used disposables and sometimes out & about too. No shame in using a mix. For us, it was brill knowing we'd never run out of nappies, no late night dash.

Can't bloody stand disposables - I bought some for a trip away last weekend and they were a pigging nightmare. More breaches than Wikileaks...

We've used Totsbots Easyfits from day 3 (while I was still in hospital - Husband washed and dried them at home) and love them. Running low? Just bung a load in the wash. No having to run to the shops. And if you line dry reusables in sunlight it bleaches out any stains. We use bamboo wipes too, but not sure of the brand.

The Commanderling is breastfed and I've never bothered rinsing the dirty nappies as it all just dissolves in the wash. I'll probably use liners once she starts solids.

And if nothing else the health visitor gets very excited about which colour nappy the Commanderling is wearing when I take her to be weighed

YY to excited HV at baby weigh-in!

A PP mentioned Cheeky Wipes - we use these too. They smell gawgeous.

OP- saw you've started using your stash of re-usables. Good luck!

This is how we do it:

Used nappies and wipes go in dry nappy bucket (cotton wool ball taped to bottom with a drop of tea tree oil on it) lined with mesh bag. Velcro tabs are folded in or the outers are apt to go bobbly.

Full bag goes in the wash on 40C cotton cycle - just washing powder and a little scoop of Vanish; no conditioner.

Everything is pretty dryish by the time the spin cycle finishes and it all either goes on the line or in the tumble dryer on the lowest temperature.

Once dry, the bamboo 'tongues' just need folding back in on themselves to make the nappies ready for use.

Meanwhile the bucket has been fitted with the spare bag and off we go again!

I love them and I am a lazy sow. Disgustingly lazy. Nothing cuter than a cloth bum and even when I think I've fucked up everything else as a mother, I know I am doing one good thing. Also, there are A LOT of cute owl nappies out there. Just saying.

i use cheeky wipes as well they are really good

forgot to add when you wash them only use 1/4 of the detergent you would normally use for the same size load as they can get a bit bogged down with detergent

I never got on with cheeky wipes - far too expensieve for what they are, imo.

Instead i used the pound shop baby flannels - they come in a pack of six and are a really good size - just bigger then my hand, they are very soft and squishy and they wash and wear very well indeed - i'm still using some that i bought for use with my son two and a half years ago, and theres no stains or signs of wear etc.

I keep them all in a lidded plastic box, again from the pound shop, and when i need to use them i spritz them with some normal tapwater kept in a squeezy bottle - 65p from Home Bargains - and the jobs done. For out and about i keep a hand ful of dry wipes and a small travel spritzer bottle in a drawstring wetbag that was less then a pound from Wilko's.

How did you get on with them yesterday and overnight, wiggle?

I do the same as deemented with wipes, I really don't see the point of paing so much for a few flannels and a couple of plastic tubs! I have one of those plastic wipes refill tubs at home so I can (If I can be arsed) soak the flannels in camomile tea and fold them so they come out of the box like tissues do. In reality the wipes are scattered around between laundry mountain, the washing line and the clean nappy box so I just grab what I need and run it under the tap.

Another reusable fan here.
DS has been in his totsbots easy fits since he was about 6 weeks. Both DH and I didn't like the idea of so much wast going to landfill. Dont find it too much if a faff either now, just bung the mesh bag full of nappies in the machine and let it do it's thing. The version 3 easy fits dry really quickly too.

I bought a whole load of them when DD was born, but didn't actually get round to using them until she began eating solid food because it was just too much mess to deal with!

Even when I started to properly use them I still used disposables at night because no matter what I tried, the washable ones leaked.

Oh, and I've never used wipes, just lots of those really cheap flannels from ikea, which I'd use once and then stick in the bucket with the nappies to be washed.

It's early on in your baby's life, things are busy and there's no reason why you will be wanting to make a big change. BUT there is an easy way to try it out.

Start with one. Really. Just use one re-useable nappy each day. Do disposables the other changes. Why? Because even in doing this you are reducing your household waste by 7 nappies a week or 365 a year.

About poop? Do you empty poop from disposable into toilet? Because you should. Putting a pooey nappy in the bin is no different to pooing in the bin yourself. If you read the pack, and no one ever does, the instructions say to flush solids. Which is exactly the same as with a cloth nappy. In fact, a cloth nappy is way easier to deal with because you can use a flushable liner.

So far so good.

Next thing. Today's cloth nappies don't need to be soaked. Rinse, then pop in with the family wash. No extra cost.

Drying? Yes that costs. Cheaper than another disposable though.

Folding? Doesn't happen. New, cool nappies don't need folding. You don't need to go to the shops to buy another packet. In fact, you need to do very little more than you would with your own knickers.

So maybe try it, one a day.

Good luck

Oh, and it is FINE to wash in cold water. But helps to collect up the nappies and do a hot wash say every 3 weeks to soak off any residue soap power as this can irritate baby's skin.

Hello! :) wow thank you so much everyone.. So many good tips :)

I'm interested in the wipes ideas .. We get through a horrendous amount of wipes!!! I brought a pampers pack of 6 a week ago and we're getting through them so fast!

Well.... Last night he was in the little lambs and the gen-y cover which was ok, no leaks! - but - he looked a little red round the legs... Despite him being 10lbs 4 and the cover supposedly being from 13lbs (they were out of stock of extra small) so if anything I thought it would be loose ... He doesn't have tree trunk thighs! I might have to fiddle with the poppers etc a bit...

Today he started in a fuzzibunz but after 2 hours this leaked with the small booster up his back ... Hmmm. Not sure what went wrong there. Maybe he needs more boosters... It came with 2 maybe I should use both together... Again it also looked a bit red round his back where the elastic was. Maybe I had it too tight ?? But I couild still get 2-3 fingers down the back.... Confused.

So now he's having a nap and wearing smartipants... So will see what he's like at the next change... I forgot to put a liner in this one though so if he does a poop it will be interesting!!! :)

For redness, don't panic. If it looks like your back when you take your bra off, it is only as uncomfortable as that.

For wipes, I bought a 2nd hand fleece dressing gown off Ebay, in the biggest size I could find for 99p (think was 20-22, lots of material for your money )

Fleece doesn't need sewing as it doesn't fray - just chop up with scissors. Got about 60 wipes out of it. I rounded the corners when cutting as well, made it look a little nicer!

I had a lot of leaks when my babies were newborn. If the nappy itself isn't soaked then it's just down to the fit. There's a lot of trial and error, particularly as baby is growing all the time!