An Idiots Guide to Reusable/ Washable/ Real Nappies Needed......

[JRsandCoffee]

Can anyone help? Sorry for long post ahead.....haven't found one that seems to cover it, if there is one happy to be pointed to it!!

I'm expecting number one and likely to be only child (due to my age and the fact that this one has taken a lot of effort to get this far, so feel it is fairly unlikely that a second will just turn up unassisted IYSWIM). In childcare terms I'm best treated as a total idiot, can identify baby and requirements of baby, I'm feeling pretty maternal and getting all organised ahead of birth, reading lots etc, but zero experience, no immediate family have had any children and friends with mostly live too far away for any practical experience to be gained. So sligthly nervous and keen to try and get as much as possible thought out beforehad so that my pea like brain doesn't overload with so much new stuff flying at it.....

One of the things we want to avoid is sending lots of disposable nappies to landfill and therefore want to look at real nappies, I've got about three months to come up with a plan...,. I've heard both good and bad things about them and if anyone could give steer on what is good/ bad/ indifferent/ worth investing in and on the questions below in I'd be thrilled to hear from you.

Clearly the first weeks are going to be hectic and a bit mind blowing. Am I being unrealistic to think I can start out using reusables or should I just use disposables until I'm a bit more in the swing of looking after a baby and switch then? If I went for that are there decent more biodegradable nappies out there that are significantly better than the standard ones?

New babies grow quickly and given the likely singleness of this little one I don't want to spend fortunes on every single different size to accomodate her growth and I'm thinking fit is pretty vital to success! I know that there are companies that supply, deliver and launder etc which is another thing I'm considering for the first weeks and would take care of the issue of buying masses of nappies I won't need in a months time. Any recommendations on such companies? I'm in Wiltshire if that helps!

At what point if using a supply service is it realistic to buy in a stock that will fit and last a good few months and switch to DIY laundry - or is there not there a point like that?!

Brands/ types of nappies? Any advice, not the most dexterous of folks so nothing too complicated would be good! I'm fairly up to speed on the nappy plus wrap requirement but seems there are many different ways of doing the same thing!!

Does the cost work out cheaper/ more expensive or roughly the same?

I think that's it, all replies very, very gratefully recieved!

Try to get a few different nappies preloved so you can see which ones you get on with best then you can buy more of the ones you like.

You can get flat terry squares which you fold and use a waterproof outer. They last from birth to potty.

You can get all in one or all in 2 nappies which have the waterproof outer combined, some are all in one with the absorbant stuff sewn in and others have the absorbant part separate so it dries faster. These are either sized or birth to potty (usually use poppers or something to fold down for different sizes).

You can get 2 part shaped nappies which have a terry nappy that goes on like a disposable and then a separate waterproof outer, Again these can be sized or birth to potty.

I used cloth right fro the start no problems, it isn't that much work. You pop your nappies in a bucket. No need to soak and with bf poo no need to rinse (that comes when they do proper poo). when bucket is full stick them all in teh machine, do a cold rinse then a hot wash with a tiny amount of non bio.

I second getting a couple of different ones preloved to try out, its definitely better than spending lots on one type and then not liking them. Google used nappies or preloved nappies and there are a few sites selling them, I think people sell them on eBay too, or try freecycle. The nappy lady website has loads of info and a questionnaire you can fill in and she will suggest nappies that may suit you. I didn't start using washables til DD was a year so can't comment on using them with a newborn. I used beaming baby and bambo nature biodegradable disposables which I would recommend.

Everyone will have a favourite. I recommend reading lots of reviews and trying a few before buying loads. Either with a nappy trial, or pre-loved.

I share your concerns about landfill (am wnvironmental engineer). This is what woeked for me. With both my babies I used disposables for the first few weeks, then washables.

With DS I used second hand tots bots Fluffes, size 1 and size 2, missing out size 0 completely. I then sold my nappies as I wasn't going to have any more babies!

When DD was 2 months old I was thinking about washables again and found some Tots Bots Easyfit in Mothercare on 3 for 2 and half price! They are all in one and birth-to-potty size (they have poppers to adjust the height and waist is Velcro). I have been using them since January with no problems at all.

It is a very personal thing. I never got on with the nappy/wrap set up. And neither did DD1's bottom. We moved over to Bumgenius and have used these pretty much from birth with DD2.

We like pocket one-size nappies because they are just like a disposable at point of use (other than sticking in a liner). Especially if you go for velcro (some people like poppers because they stay pristine longer, but I like the infinite adjustability of velcro). You also only need to buy once. They come apart to wash and dry, so they don't take days to dry like the all in one nappies. And, if you have a super wetter (step forward DD1 from 18 months), you can add extra boosters. As hinted above, I also like the fact that they are dry to the skin because of the fleece type interior.

Don't buy white if you go for Bumgenius. They quite literally look shitty very fast! I like the green, blue and yellow.

Basically nappy laundry services will generally just do nappies and wraps - i.e. traditional style nappies. They don't normally do things like bumgenius.

You might find it helpful to have a look at some of the nappy websites and the trial packs they do. A lot of those are small businesses who will be very helpful. Two I have bought from in the past are cheeks and cherries and fill your pants.

I don't think it is unrealistic to use reuseables from the beginning. You get in the swing pretty fast. I'd wait until the black poo stage is over though!

Similar position for us - DD is now 10 weeks old, and is highly unlikely to have a sibling, short of a natural miracle. Plus zero prior baby experience! We had intended to use disposables for just the first couple of weeks, but its ended up being a bit longer. We are lucky enough to have a good trial scheme locally - I picked up the trial pack last week and have had fun (if thats the right word!) trying out the 8 or so different varieties that came in it, and have just ordered the ones that we liked best, a birth-to-potty variety, so no need (hopefully) to buy different sizes in future. They are all-in-ones, so no separate wraps making them super easy even for DH to use . I initially thought the two-parters with separate wraps would be my favourite, but having tried them I much prefer the all-in-one style.

I've also found that overall, they are a lot easier than I was expecting - I dry pail them until there are enough to wash, and simply pop them in the mesh bag straight from bucket into the machine - easy peasy way easier and less gross than I was expecting. Quick drying too.

People can tell you what works best for them, but each baby is different, so if you can get a trial pack, or buy some preloved in a variety of makes and types, that is the best way to go (you can find them on ebay, although they will all be listed as "new" because ebay won't allow sale of second hand nappies - the descriptions will give you the "used" status).

I know a couple of people who spent hundreds before the baby arrived on whichever make caught their eye, only to find their LO hates them, or they leak terribly because the fit is wrong. That said, another friend has been using hers from birth with no problems!

It should work out cheaper longterm, although it is a big outlay initially. The big motivator for me though was seeing our bin rapidly filling up each week with bags full of disposables - much more satisfying to see the reusables out on the line drying in the sun .

Thank you everyone for all your replies . It seems that trial would be the key word!!

One thing that the more I think about it is going to be key is ease of use. There is reynauds in the family and in cold weather hands cease to work as well as they might so anything too faffy won't work for us which I think knocks out the two parters and wraps option unfortunately which does look to be the most cost effective option.

With this in mind I've been looking at the bumgenius ones and weighing the cost etc and possible problems with leakage at night with the fact that they seem to get really good reviews generally and look super easy to use. If we have to use some biodegradable disposables (thank you for the recommendations) for nights then perhaps we might need to be pragmatic. pointydogs what brand of all in one style did you go for?

Thanks again for all the advice!

Your local council may run a trial scheme. Ours did when DS1 was born and they gave me three different types of nappy and wrap to try out for free.

Leaking at night is unlikely to be a problem unless (i) you are having leaks anyway because something isn't right; or (ii) your baby is older and doing monster wees. No harm using disposables at night (we did with DD1), but I think it's mostly an issue with older children.

If ease of use is key, something like a bumgenius might be good. How would you find stuffing them though? All in ones (bumgenius do one) are super easy to use, but take a year and a day to dry.

We use Nature Babycare when we have to use disposables. Bear in mind even eco disposables don't really biodegrade in landfill (though would if composted) so it's of limited use. I like them because they smell less horrible and chemical than standard nappies (which make me heave).

On cost, you probably don't need as many nappies as most websites suggest. If you are willing to wash frequently and aren't using them for the first few weeks.

My DD wee's for Scotland, and I use bamboo boosters (with a bamboo two part nappy, but other system could be used). The bum may end up higher than the head with all the boosting, but it can be done.

It is worth 'liking' all the nappy brand and shop websites, as, for example, little lamb do some fabulous offers on occasions, that are only open to Facebook crowd.

If you don't want anything fiddly, maybe best to avoid poppers. Velcro (for some reason always called aplix in nappy- speak) is easy - try tots bots easyfit or mio solos - fill your pants 'try cloth for £10' promo includes both of those and is well worth doing. Both dry quickly too, a day on the clothes airer and overnight in the airing cupboard does the trick for me.

JRs, we went with Pop N Gro all in ones in the end, as they are really simple to use - I picked up 10 unused going cheap on ebay. I didn't want all of one sort though, so was also going to buy some bamboo nappies with wraps, but as luck would have it, we were doing a car boot sale at the weekend, and the lady on the pitch next to us was selling a bag of old cloth nappies, terry cotton pockets with a fleece liner (popolinis I think), plus a load of wraps - 20 for £20, bargain of the year!! Hopefully that should do us now - although LO does look enormous in these new ones!

Hi, thank you again for all the replies, really, really helpful! I've been in touch with several relatively local people/ organisations so hope to go and see some demos and trial kits before the baby is born and then post trial go back for some help fitting if I need it. Thanks again everyone!