Are cloth nappies really gonna save me money? (Considering rising energy prices)

[Zenlifeforme]

Hi all,

I’m pregnant and due in April. I used cloth nappies last time from 6 months onwards. This time I was thinking to start them sooner so I don’t have to buy nappies. But will I actually save money? Has anyone does the maths on this?
(Especially considering rising electricity prices.)
Last time I just felt pleased to be doing my bit for the environment. But this time I’m not sure I have that luxury. I’m wondering if I’m better off doing Aldi disposables?

If anyone has any calculations/analysis they’ve done on this I’d appreciate hearing them.

To factor in:
Cloth nappies already purchased (gifted actually)
Have pop catcher roll and wet bags
Have reusable wipes also
Have nappy bins to store them in

Thanks :)

Have you looked into Elimination Communication.

The price on disposables will rise don’t forget (the price on everything will rise!). I reckon your cheapest option would be cloth nappies with EC - therefore reducing the number you use.

I found one in cloth nappies was only 2 extra washes a week, I didn’t tumble dry them.

Provided you don't tumble dry & use the eco setting on your washing machine, I think it will still be cheaper (especially if disposables go up in price).
We are still planning to try them - hiring a set from a nappy library for the first month or so as first time parents, & will then buy secondhand.
To be honest I am doing it more for environmental reasons than purely financial costs though, so I'll be happy as long as I break even.

I worked out (many moons ago) that reusable cost me about 1/4 of the cost of disposables not taking into account that I sold them once I no longer needed them for a profit.

Everything is going up, disposables will too. I would suggest using them as soon as the ones you have fit at least

Get lines, racks and retractable indoor for winter, to save more

To be honest I am doing it more for environmental reasons than purely financial costs though, so I'll be happy as long as I break even.

Yeah same - the nappies in landfill were the main motivation for me.

im in a couple of cloth nappy groups on facebook, we've all been crunching numbers recently and worked out that it's cheaper than supermarket disposables if you aren't tumble drying

Can you air dry them, install a sheila-maid in a warm airy room for instance? The drying rather than the washing will eat up electricity.

I started with cloth nappies but I live in a wet area with a damp house so needed to tumble dry fairly often. It worked out cheaper to buy Aldi/Lidl disposables instead.

Maybe a bit of both? Cloth nappies if when the weather is good and can be line dried. Disposable when it's damp weather pissing with rain.

Thanks all.

Very helpful to hear all responses.

I have researched my tumble dryer and we have a heat pump one, which is half the cost to run of a standard tumble dryer. I like the line drying if weather ok idea.

The nappy lady says not to use an eco setting for washing nappies though, I did try it last time and the urine smell was still in them. I read an interesting fact on which?.com (2018) that said it’s 18p to run an eco load and 40p to run a long run on 30C. And also said the spin is better on a long run so it cuts drying time. So perhaps eco is only good for time saving rather than money saving 🤷🏼‍♀️

I will look into EC, I did join a fb group on it last time but didn’t do it. That would def save money and time. Thanks.

Has anyone done cloth nappies from birth? We’ve been gifted a couple of packs of newborn disposable nappies so I might use them for first two weeks and for nights then try the cloth in the day from week 2-3. They say they are for newborn size but I guess I will find out eg if I get weed or pooed on 🤦🏽‍♀️😂 (might help with the EC learning tho…). 🤷🏼‍♀️

Commit to toilet training and save a year's worth of nappies compared to many other people.

Yes def, agree with you there 😁

Different nappies dry at different rates so it’s worth looking into. All in one types are often slow. We have settled on pre folds (all bought second hand!) with covers because they dry fast and soak up well. We’ve used them since about 6 weeks (we used a cloth nappy trial before then). We don’t have a tumble dryer but we do run a dehumidifier and hang them on an airer in the utility.

Also used EC from birth (not rigidly). Daughter has rarely pooed in a nappy and by 8 months was signing for poos. We don’t try and catch the wees other than offering potty at nappy changes though

Yeh our nappies are quicker drying and not all in ones. You take out the inserts so the rest is just a shell. The shells dry super quick.

Good to know you did it from 6 weeks 👍🏼😄

I am def looking into EC. My firstborn only pooed every 5 days so it was only 1-2 (huge) nappies to worry about per week, but I’d like it even more if there was none! But then cos she pooed so infrequently it’s harder to catch it/know she’s doing one I imagine 🤔

I loved EC and can’t wait to try it again, it kept so many of our reusable nappies dry for much longer then off course they are out of them so much sooner too.
I gave mine away so had to start again but got v good deal on eBay for new Little Lambs that had been washed but not used. Baby due next month and planning to use the washing line (we don’t have a dryer anyway)