Reusable nappies suggestions

[sapkot]

Hi, I am 31 weeks pregnant & preparing for the arrival of our rainbow baby at the end of March. This is my first pregnancy, so I am new to everything.

I have been researching a lot about reusable baby wipes & reusable nappies. But getting lost with so much information available.

I will really really appreciate some suggestions on reusable nappies on the following topics -

1. Which brand of reusable nappies did you buy that worked for your child?
2. What materials worked best?
3. How many should I buy to start? - I am thinking I will have a pack of disposable handy just in case it becomes too much for me at night time as we may or may not have any family support in the early days
4. Did you buy all in one or 2 piece nappies?
5. What size should I buy?
6. How do you clean the dirty nappies so that they don't smell?
7. How frequently to wash the dirty nappies?

If you could recommend any blog or site that gives me all this information, then that will be great. But I am also looking for tips & suggestions from people who have experience

I already filled a survey on nappy lady but all my answers were like I don't know. So not sure what they will suggest

Thanks in advance for your help

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The Bambino Mio nappies are amazing. My friend uses them and they’re completely adjustable so you can use them from newborn right up to toilet training a toddler. She’s got a 6 month old baby and she’s been letting me practice on her baby with these nappies and I’m blown away by how good they are. My first baby is due in April so I’ve got the Bambino Mio starter kit off their website.

The Bambino Mio nappies can go in the washing machine (use laundry cleanser in addition to your normal detergent to stop your machine from stinking) and then air dry quite quickly. Straight on the washing line in the summer or on a clothes horse by the window in the winter.

Little lamb fitted bamboo pocket nappies for day and their two part bamboo nappies with a booster for night. 3 night times and 20 pockets were perfect for me. You’ll need to buy another set at around 9 months but it’s worth it, they were utterly bomb proof!

Store dirty ones in a nappy bucket with a lid, was at 40 and dry outside where possible. I washed at least every other day.

I used mine for all 3 of my children. Saved a fortune and tons of waste.

Hi @sapkot

I'll start off by saying I've been cloth nappying for 15 months now and have been a member of several FB groups. My favourites being Clean Cloth Nappies, Pumpkin Patch, and Bells Bumz Parenting and Cloth Nappy chat. There is SO much info and they're all super friendly. I started off using Nappy Lady but I wasn't keen on their cleaning advice, or choice of nappies.

1. Which brand of reusable nappies did you buy that worked for your child?

I love Modern Cloth Nappies, Bells Bumz, and Bear Bott as they really suit our needs and the prints are gorgeous.

1. What materials worked best?

Hemp, Bamboo, and 100% cotton boosters (for flooding). Avoid microfibre like the plague! It absorbs like a sponge but also compresses like a sponge.

1. How many should I buy to start? - I am thinking I will have a pack of disposable handy just in case it becomes too much for me at night time as we may or may not have any family support in the early days

I'd say you'll need at least 20, depending on how often your main wash is. I think we have about 35-40

1. Did you buy all in one or 2 piece nappies?

We have both. All in ones can take longer to dry, but pockets are a bit of a faff to stuff so its totally personal preference.

1. What size should I buy?

I would begin buying large muslins (Muzlin brand are very good) and newborn wraps. Then when baby is about 10lbs they should fit nicely into a 'birth to potty'.

1. How do you clean the dirty nappies so that they don't smell?

I follow Clean Cloth nappies. My schedule is as follows: Rinse pooey nappies down the loo with shower head to get rid of anything 3D (no need to do this for pre-weaned poo), then place in nappy bin (best to use an airy/holey basket) Daily: 60 degree 'daily wash' which is about an hour long, with half dose of bio powder (Daz or Ariel is our go to) Every 3-4 days: 60 degree loooong wash (at least 4 hours), full dose powder, with intensive function selected and 1400 spin (fine for front loading machines but reduce spin for top loading)

1. How frequently to wash the dirty nappies? See above

Let me know if you have any more questions. I know it's a minefield when you're starting out

I’d see if you have a nappy library near you – they usually have kits you can hire to try out different brands and see what suits you. They should also offer advice/troubleshooting. Also check if your council offers a starter kit or money off on reusable nappies.

1. We used a mix – bought a few different things to try, most of them worked, so we just kept using the mix.
2. We had bamboo, cotton, and bamboo/microfibre mix. They were all fine.
3. I think the standard advice is a minimum of 15 day and 5 night washing every other day –but for newborn that number would probably mean washing every day. Personally, I'd prefer a few more day, but could get away with 3-4 night if I had to.
4. We ended up using mostly two piece ones (shaped nappy, then wrap). A little bit more faff to put on, but we found they were more adjustable and reliable as baby grew and changed shape.
5. If you want to use cloth from birth, you will probably need newborn or size 1 (we used muslinz under a wrap, but you can also get shaped newborn nappies cheaply secondhand). The birth to potty nappies are great, but aren’t actually quite ‘from birth’ except for bigger/chubbier babies.

6./7. Store dirty nappies in a bucket or wet bag. No need to soak them. We wash every other day – first do a rinse cycle (some people do a quick wash instead), then do a long 60 degree wash (usually cottons or baby clothes is the best setting). Once baby is a few months old, you can go down to 40 degrees. For most nappies, a non-bio powder is best, although a couple recommend something different. Measure the powder. Nothing should smell afterwards!

Mummy of 4 uk has good videos on cheeky wipes and cloth nappies. Watch lots of her videos to learn.

We use little lamb 2 part nappies (with disposable liners once weaning has started!). I'd recommend getting 20-25 nappies in size 1 with 10-15 wraps.

Fairy non bio is the best powder. No gels or fabric softeners allowed.

Also a tots bots nappy bucket with 2 mesh bags is a good idea, as is a mucky bag for out and about. Buy lots of vest extenders (little lamb website again).

Good luck. It's expensive getting all set up but once you've got going it's absolutely brilliant! We made the switch from disposable when ds was 18 months but I'm due our second baby soon and I'm really looking forward to getting started from the newborn stage this time around. I'm truly converted haha.

Oh I just thought of something else, night nappies! Not sure if you thought of those? We've tried a few and our favourites by far are Chuckles night nappies with either a Motherease Airflow on top or a Bells bumz z-wrap. Chuckles are incredibly soft and stay soft with hard water too, and they're roomy enough to last from birth to potty. We also like Bells Bumz hemp night nappies but they're not as soft as Chuckles.

Also if you're going to use non bio (not necessary but some people prefer if you've sensitive skin in the family), then wash at 60 degrees. We use bio and still wash at 60, but you can wash at 40 with bio.

We used cloth on DC2 from 9 weeks to 2.5 years.

It's worth baring in mind that what works for 1 might not work for another so see if you've got a nappy library nearby to try some before you spend a fortune! You might also find that as your baby grows you need to switch to different nappies so don't put everything in to one type.

My daughter had some bad skin reactions to the fabrics in some so we had to play around.

0-6 months 2 parter - prefolds fastened with a nippa under a Motherease airflow wrap. 6-18 months - Little Lambs fitted pockets with charcoal bamboo boosters. 18m -2.5 years 2 parter - Motherease one size dry with extra bamboo booster and Motherease Airflow wrap.

Always used a silk liner in cloth and disposables at night as her skin would flare up.

I had a dry bag from sports direct on a hanger on the back of the bathroom door, flick anything solid into the toilet and/or rinse under the flush then chuck in the bag.

Wash every third day - cold rinse, full dose of powder on a 60 wash and extra rinse then line dry. Rain softens and sun reduces stains so it's all good 😁

Run your regular monthly machine clean cycle - hot wash with vinegar and you shouldn't have any issues with smells.

I found our local nappy library and cloth Facebook groups very helpful.

We use terry towels and mother ease or little lambs wraps.

20 terry towels has been more than enough and we have about 5 wraps in the size were currently using.

When baby was newborn we used folded muslin squares and had 3 wraps in newborn size. You don’t need to change the wrap every nappy change. Only if it’s particularly wet or have poo on it.

I like the two part system because the towels dry quickly and it further reduces the amount of plastic (the wraps). You also really don’t need to buy that much.

We do a wash roughly every other day, or every 2 days. It’s been really manageable

I used bumgenius pocket nappies with all three of mine and loved them. 21-23 nappies was plenty for a 2 or 3 day wash cycle. Although sold as a birth to potty option though I found them way too big on a newborn. And you have a lot going on with a newborn. So I used them from 4 or 5 months onwards with each of them. A normal wash was fine to keep them clean and non smelly. I’d rinse them in the toilet flush, squeeze and put them in a bucket with mesh bag until wash time. Some of the systems I see recommended online are v complicated and never seemed necessary to me. You will need liners for when they have nappy rash, as it’s best to keep barrier cream off the nappies. I used fleece ones. Some people use them all the time because then the bit with poo on it that you need to deal with is smaller than the whole nappy. I’d see if there is a local nappy person or library near you. I went to a demonstration when my eldest was a few weeks old. The lady kept it clear and simple and told us what to get and it worked for me through all three kids. There are lots of forums online but a simple question from someone new to reusables can elicit so many and such complicated responses that I can imagine it’s quite off putting. Hearing it direct from someone you can ask lots of questions with is so useful if possible. I’m not sure we’d have ever started if I tried to figure it out online by myself!

1. Baba and Boo for day and easypeasy bambeasy with a motherease airflow wrap on top for night is my fave combo. We used newborn baba and boo until 4 months then progressed to BTP.
2. Bamboo > cotton > microfibre for absorbency. But microfibre > cotton > bamboo for speed of drying. Bamboo and cotton perceived to be ‘nicer’ next to skin. Very generally, the higher the content of bamboo the more expensive the nappy will be.
3. Depends if you want to cloth from birth. Husband and I were not confident with wrapping muslins (would be now) so we instead bought newborn fitted nappies. DS was born in a hot spring/summer and 20-25 only just did us as newborns poo so much. If you either use disposables until BTP fit, or use muslins and wraps, about 20 or so BTP is plenty (pooing settles down a lot by 4 months ish).
4. We have a mix, but my fave nappies (baba and boo) are 2 parts. They dry relatively quickly and you can get more absorbency. My second fave nappies are blueberry simplex which are an AIO. Much slimmer and more beautiful, but take longer to dry and not as absorbent.
5. See points 1 and 3
6. Newborn poo (formula or boob) doesn’t smell or stick. Dump it straight into your nappy bin/bag until wash day. All goes into the washing machine. When weaning starts, the poo gets a lot more…adult like. Scrape as much poo into the toilet as possible then store until washing.
7. We do a quick wash every day at 60 with detergent. We then do a long wash every 3 days at 40 with detergent. You’ll need to wash far more often with a newborn though. FYI washing routines seem to send people into a bit of a tizz and people can get a bit militant about their washing choices

Ps good luck for the rest of your pregnancy and you won’t regret cloth! I’ve loved it and, once baby gets out of the newborn stage and you find a rhythm, it’s very easy x

We used easy peasy bumbles and toys bots. I liked both!

I've been using cloth nappies for 6 years. My fave brands are close pop in, and Bambino Mio, but I've always added a booster to the Bambino mios. For night time I recommend a 2 part nappy like little lamb bamboo fitted nappy and wrap. Change every 3 hours, store in a dry bucket, wash every 2 days on a long wash with powder detergent.

Every baby is a different shape so don't buy too many of 1 brand, so you can see what fits when baby arrives.

Birth to potty nappies are unlikely to fit until baby is around 8 or 9 weeks so maybe invest in some newborn cloth nappies or hire a kit from your local nappy library for the first few weeks.

I can really recommend cheeky wipes from day 1, they are ace!

I started using reusable nappies when baby was about 12 weeks old. Bought a few different types to try then gradually added to my collection. So don't feel you need to buy the whole lot at once if you aren't sure what ones to buy, you can see how you go.

I've always stuck with disposables at night. For day I use tots bots (I have a mixture of all in one and two part nappies). I wash them and the cheeky wipes twice a week (baby is at nursery a few days now). No issue with smells. I use fleece liners inside the nappies too.

Yes - I also meant to recommend cheeky wipes. Great for nappy changes and also hands and faces once they start eating.

Part of the fun of cloth nappies is you get to try out lots of different styles.

Its a a LONG time ago mine were in nappies but I loved Totsbots and a plain old-fashioned Terry square (though had some wonderfully colourful ones)

Liked wool wraps the best but they were better for small babies and summer time for older.

I tried all sorts of nappies though some we loved and some were a no way.

We dry pailled and had nappies in a lidded bucket adding a few drops of tea tree oil took the smell away then just washed when the bucket was full.

Wow.. so many different brand suggestions. And really great cleaning advice. I am a little less overwhelmed now with all your suggestions. At least I am not under pressure to buy everything right now with the risk that it may not work with baby

Thanks so much for the nappy library advice too. I had no idea about it.

I also would not have concluded by myself that I could buy a mix initially to try & buy cleaning/storing bucket & accessories separately

Really appreciate all your advice

(I think I am already sold on cheeky wipes)

@sapkot I have 2 kids (17month gap). Both in muslins+wrap (wool overnight). Worked for a nanny, for a nursery, for out and about, for everything. No extra space (I have about 25 muslins and 6 wraps that I could use newborn to potty. First one potty-trained pretty much as second was born so I only had a short period with two in nappies (and for potty training and night naps for the older one I switched to nappy pants. Muslins all the way. And cheeky wipes for sure.