Reusable nappies

[Pantomime]

I am really sorry if this has been done to death!

I am expecting a DC in March and I have been looking at my options regarding nappies. I was wondering how people had found using reusable nappies. Doing a bit of reading up on it I am hearing a lot of positive things but I would like a balanced opinion.

While I get that disposables are easier I was thinking about the possible long-term benefits (Cost, no bin bags full of dirty nappies).

What are your thoughts?

I began on disposables because we were in the middle of having an extension built when DS1 was born, and I swapped to cloth at about 6-8 weeks. Cloth nappies are just as easy to put on as disposables (no more safety pins!), plus you never run out, which was one of the biggest positives for me.

You have to have a slightly stronger stomach with cloth nappies I suppose once they're weaned, but I'm sure most people have developed that after a few months of parent-hood!

If you don't mind 2nd hand, look out of people offering cloth nappies on Freecycle.

I figured as I have a dog (a husky/german shepherd) picking up and cleaning up poo wasn't going to be a huge issue. Then again I could be wrong! :D

We're about to start using reusables and DD is 4 weeks. I'm just waiting until we get to the famed rare poos from my breastfed baby - we currently see poo at every nappy change! We might still use disposables when we go out/overnight.

The Nappy Lady website is really informative, as are the nappy boards on here.

I was given some little lamb nappies - they're shaped just like disposables and came with some bamboo boosters. I've bought some liner to catch any solids (these are flushable) and got some wraps from eBay.

Most companies sell a starter pack and some councils give you money back.

We used from about 3 months and are getting on great. We only use by day as too wet at night.

It's ace not having to buy nappies all the time.

I'm due in jan and plan to cloth nappy from the v start. I used them years ago with dd.

I have muslinz with motherease wraps, and nappi nippas for the first few weeks. Ill use flushable liners for the first few days as the poo is a bit tar like and can stain the nappies.

For 10lbs+ I bought bamboo little lambs in size 1 and will use these with the bamboo boosters and motherease wraps. I also have a handful of all in ones ( totbots easy fit v2) for DP /babysitters to use. I have been given some prefolds though I feel these are bulky ill give them a try.

You could always buy a few and use them just at home and have disposables as back up or when out and about to start off with. Everything I have nappy wise, except the muslinz, is second hand. I also bought a few wet bags plus some face cloths to use as wipes. I spent just under £120 altogether and that should see us through til dd is 15 months or so. Obv there's laundry costs on top of that too.

I would have liked to have done this. We recycle everything and try to be as green as possible with things like food miles, organic produce, not using chemicals where we can avoid.

But honestly I don't think I could have done without disposables. Bad enough to start with with a small ebf baby with frequent but innocuous poos. But now with a weaning 8mo with horrid nappies I just can't imagine it. I already seem to do a wash a day for just me, DH and DS (weaning creates so much mess) so would be constantly washing if doing nappies as well.

I know lots of people do this and manage just fine. But I'm glad I didn't opt to fight this particular battle!!

Good on you and good luck if you do it.

I've used reusables since 3weeks but recently gone to dispies overnight as she's wet through too often. I've found it really easy and rewarding. I use Bumgenius Elemental. They're an all in one (and come in gorgeous colours and super cute designs) and apart from a rare poonami we've had no leaks.

Yep, sounds like you're well innured against poo, Pantomime! As I had the nappies, they were used on DS2 from day 1.

PuddingAndHotMilk I've been known to use 2 wraps overnight to make sure ...

I tried and failed at 3mo with DS1. Tried again at 1yo and cracked it. I now have two kids in real nappies (DS1 2.5yo, hoping he'll be ready to potty train soon!! and DS2 5.5mo). Going through using real nappies from the start with DS2 makes me realise how awesome it is. No poosplosions as two-part nappies contain everything most of the time. And appropriately boosted they last all night (despite DS2 feeding through the night at least 3-4 times sometimes more).

My best advice would be:
-try out different types before investing, different ones work for different babies (especially the all-in-ones), just the same as disposables really
-buy second hand if you don't mind
-if something isn't working (leaks etc) ask advice, don't be like me the first time and assume real nappies are crap and don't work!
-talk to someone face to face who knows about nappies (if there is a nappy library near you that might be a good start) or a place that does nappucinos/nappy demonstrations
-don't get too addicted, it can end up being expensive

Thanks for all the advice guys! I think I will give them a go I didn't know there were different types so it looks like I will have to experiment when the time comes.

3 children from day 1 wouldn't have done it any other way. So much cheaper and my first 2 trained before they were 2.

I did for the first year after the first few weeks but I used gnappies, they have biodegradable inserts that rot down in 150 days, loved them but more upfront costs. I stopped as she went through two sizes fast and lost confidence that the outlay for the third would be worth it. The bamboo ones are lovely too, they look like little bears in them. Toddler poop is much worse than a bit of baby poop!

Three children here too - used the same set for all three so you really save a lot of spondulicks in the long run. We used disposables overnight as well.

Try your local council - they've often got trial sets or grants/loans etc to help you try them and buy them.