Cloth

[BBisHavingAnotherBBaby]

Can someone fill me in / educate me?

DC2 on the way, used disposables with DS but im interested in the saving to be had on reusables.

The main thing i find gross and off putting is the idea of having to soak soiled items for ages or leaky nappies all the time. Also concerned about what the outlay cost is (incase i dont get on with it) and carrying home soiled nappies etc, and how reliable they are? Also how much extra washing they will create? Just curious really!

We don't soak them, we dry pail with tea tree oil so they don't smell. Outlay for terry squares is about £3 each, you'll need around 24. You also need wraps, we have four, at about £10 each. Those are the prices for new goods, ebay or NCT sales will be cheaper. You need a bucket with a lid. You will need at least two special waterproof bags. Reliability has never been a problem for us. Washing is one load every 2-3 days.
Best site for help is thenappylady.co.uk

Blimey so it really isnt cheap as an outlay! Is anything of them disposable? Or will i be carrying containers of poo home?

Cloth nappies with nb are not that bad as the poo is liquid if they are bf. it's later on when they have solid poo they get gross. You use nappy liners which are paper then you bin the whole lot.

The net you can buy to put in the nappy pa il is also quite helpful. Have a look at green baby for that and the tea tree oil.

I found terry nappies v diddly and mother ease prefolds quite good.

I went the expensive route with a big bundle of birth to potty Bum Genius pockets. They are just like disposables to put on.

See if you can find a Nappycino near you- give you a chance to see a few different types.

The outlay does look big, but add up the cost of disposables over the approx time period your prefolds and wraps will keep ypu going for. Then compare that to the cost of the nappies and detergent, subtract the value of reselling the prefolds and wraps on ebay and it is a huge saving.

We used a very reasonable nappy service with DD, they provided a bale of laundered prefolds nappies each week and took away the old stinky ones. We provided the wraps (I bought them from Ebay USA as even with over seas shipping it was MUCH cheaper than UK prices) That was a good compromise.

This time I am washing them myself, no nappy service here :( Am expecting in the next week or so and have set up 12 indian cotton prefolds and 5 covers (also have some little clips, but we did not use them last time, just the wraps.) And we are also trying out a hybrid system (not sure if they have filtered over to UK, ther are a few over here in US) which called
Gpant it is an all cotton wrap, with a snap in liner that holds a cloth nappy soaker in place. It is much less bulky than a prefold. They also have disposable biodegradable, and flushable inserts you can use in conjunction. Bought it all off ebay for a fraction of the cost.

DEFINATELY use the liners once baby is having solids, as it means you are flushing the worst of the solid waste.

Good luck with it!

Our £2 a piece terry squares did DS and are now serving DD, so the outlay wasn't too bad.

Hmm its a lot to think about, on a practical level those of you who have used both, are cloth more work than disposables? DS is 2.8 and showing no signs of potty training yet so we are starting to notice the actual cost of nappies, but they are at least easy

TBH I think that unless you go for the cheapest option like terry squares, you don't save that much money unless you use them on 2+ children.

I have done both - disposables with ds1 then moved into cloth when he was 18 months, cloth for ds2, dd and ds3, then went back to disposables when ds3 was about 20 months. I was a real cloth convert, was a rep for a cloth nappy company and everything....but if I'm honest I would use disposables if I ever had another baby. However much I tried to persuade myself and everyone else that they weren't much work, disposables really are much easier. When I started using them again it was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders! Looking at the weather outside today I would have been tearing my hair out trying to get nappies dry on top of all the other washing!

I used sposies when she was newborn. They leaked every time she pooed.

With the reusable I take them off, put in mesh bag in bucket.

Put new nappy on goes on just like a disposable with velcro tabs.

When bucket full put in washing machine (no touching nappies).

When washed dry on unheated airer - dry in a few hours.

When dry stuff inserts back in and reuse.

Tbh, I've never dared work out the prices but she was having 12 nappies a day when teeny, then about eight for ages and now 5 or 6 (she is 2)

Hmm it sounds like a steep expense with the costs of new travel system in a lump sum etc, over and above that, the idea of carrying round a used nappy makes me feel a bit although I've a bit of a weak tum atm. This DC is likely to the last DP really only wants two so i doubt the outlay would be spread over two. I think id feel very odd buying those items 2nd hand, kind of like second hand loo roll? obviously not but best comparison i can make

If you were to give three positives and three negatives what would yours be? I was thinking of a cost and eco saving however this seems pitted against inconvenience and increased wash load.

I like the idea of a nappy service but im guessing this would be higher than the cost of a pack of nappies per week?

3 positives-

You feel virtuous
They contain poo properly
You can get some really gorgeous nappies that you won't want to cover up

3 negatives

Initial outlay is a bit scary (though less for terries/2nd hand) (and you can get some money back by selling again)

Once weaned you need to get poo off nappy before you wash (disposable liners can make this more bearable)

You will be doing a lot of washing /drying/putting nappies together - doesn't take long but is just one more thing.

I didn't find the washing a problem. I was in a flat with a washer dryer at the time. With a newborn you wash constantly anyway.
You have to boil them though. If you don't or if you put other stuff in it just all comes out smelling of wee. Milton sanitizer liquid helps too and is quite economical.

I bought those washing balls and dryer balls to help with the cloth nappies - they are both useless!

I agree re them going through more than 1 kid. I bought my mother ease from a friend who had used them on at least 2 of her 4 kids. They look pretty good actually - they do stand up to the washing marathon!

Buying 2nd hand has got to be the first point of call I reckon. eBay don't allow 2nd hand nappies any more so check local paper/fb groups etc etc or there is a selling page on here. I found it hard to get my head around all the different jargon though!

I have never boiled my nappies! They go on a 40deg cycle with prewash. And they don't smell :) Have never tumble dried either.

Ebay doesn't allow second hand nappies, but there are loads on there. Just look under new and read the descriptions :)

Oh and the Natural Mamas forum has a second hand nappy sale board....

scarred how odd that ebay.com do allow used nappies to be sold but I guess from what you say not. co.uk

I have bought loads of used on htere and you can sort them by used and unused. It is worth checking the US site though as even when I was back in UK first time round it was much cheaper to buy and ship them from the US.

Definitely second hand - easier to try different brands that way. Also Freecycle! A lovely lady gave me about 20 nappies, 6 wraps and dozen booster pads, which had been used on her 3 kids and are now on my second, having been on a friend's ds in between mine. I've spent about £50 on a couple new wraps and some extra nappies which were less than £5 each.

I find shaped nappies are a bit bulky but totally poosplosion-proof! Have never had a leak. Ever. I was also given piles of terries but never used them so put them on Freecycle.

40 degrees, rarely a prewash, paper liners once they do real poo and those last about 6 washes so a £10 roll lasts about a year!

I used reusables with DS1 and was reasonably happy with them until he became 1 or so when they leaked on a regular basis. I ended up giving up and using dispos. I had pocket nappies, shaped like dispos, they looked great and were very easy to use, although they were pretty bulky.
Now with DS2, I can't really be arsed to use them. My washing machine seems to be always on and the cycles are quite long (2.20 h) so it would not be convenient especially when I go back to work. I don't think I would be able to keep up with the amount of washing! Without a tumble drier, I would not go there and with a washer drier, it's worth bearing in mind that the machine will be always on.
HTH

I had no choice re the boiling etc - god! Maybe dd has really noxious wee

I had some really pretty prefolds with bright fluffy covers that leaked every time. I sold them on eBay for more than I paid! Maybe dd was a weird shape because others really rate fluffibunz type nappies.

Thanks for the advice i dont think cloth is for me, im too slatternly to fuss with all the washing and have a bucket lingering, plus cost wise im not sure it would be much of a saving (as i couldnt use second hand) as I use little angels, thanks for the info on it though

You can buy 2nd hand from eBay - just stick the word 'used' or 'pre-loved' in the title.

I agree the initial outlay can be eyewatering. I bought some from ebay for DC3. Like you, I didn't want to spend too much money as she is our last baby. There are a lot of new ones for sale there though, especially in the smaller sizes. I suspect a lot of people buy them or are given them but never use them. I think that costwise the best savings are to be made if you buy a nappy that is birth to potty, even if it doesn't fit until the baby is a few weeks or months old. You just don't recoup the initial outlay on the tiny cloth nappies. I bought some size one tots bots and DD fitted them from about 8 pounds and is almost out of them at 18 weeks. The motherease ones that I bought fitted her from about ten pounds and will last for a long time to come. If I had my time again I also wouldn't buy motherease velcro wraps in the small size. DD grew out of them at about twelve pounds. I bought some with poppers that are also small size and they are still going strong and have got some growing room left in them. I also hear that terry squares are the most economical option of all as you can change the fold as the baby grows but haven't tried them myself.

I searched around around for as many bargains as I could find.

I bought 20 Bumgenius nappies off Ebay for 170. A few used a couple of times the rest not used at all. They are fab condition and look brand new.

I need double the amount of nappies (having twins). I waited until Little Lambs had a sale and I recently bought 20 Little Lamb cotton nappies in size 1 and 7 size 1 wraps for only 57 pounds! I will get size 2 nappies when they have another sale in 6 months or so. So in total I spent 230 for two babies. I am quite chuffed with my bargain hunting. It can work out to be affordable if you are patient and shop around.

There was a report in the Guardian newspaper a few years ago (so costs may be higher now) that worked out that using disposables and baby wipes from birth to 2 1/2 works out at £1884. So the initial cost of cloth may look high but over time will definitely save you money. The Women's Environmental Network calculate that washing costs are 60p per week (£1 if you use a tumble drier).

If you choose a quick drying nappy then drying isn't an issue. My best selling set of 20 nappies (Tots Bots Easisfits V3, so very qick drying and very easy to use) cost £295 plus £25 for all teh other accesories. So this will give a huge cost saving over the time.

My husband worked out that using babywipes and cotton wool costs £250 for 2 1/2 years so buying a set of washable wipes will also pay for your nappies.

Using them is exactly the same as using disposables - except that every 3 days instead of putting a bin of disposables into your dustbin outside, you put a mesh bag fromyour nappy bucket into your washaing machine. The washing machine does all the work.