my lo is 18mo, does anyone think there would be any point investing in some cloth nappies now?

[lucysmam]

i considered them when i was pregnant but didnt have money for them at the time, now she's 18mo and always constipated, leaves skidmarks on disposables and wants changing when she does so we're spending a fortune we really cant afford going through about 8 nappies a day.

does anyone think there would be a point to investing in some now, even if it's only terry squares for through the day.

Any thoughts or recommendations would be appreciated. tia

Defintely worth it if you think you might have another DC one day as you can reuse.

How do you feel about using second hand nappies? There are several place where you could buy some relatively cheap second hand if you wished.

She may well not potty train until she is 3 so you could save an awful lot of money if that is the case. My disposable reared DD1 trained at 3.1 and DD2 is nowhere near at 2.3 so I'm glad she is in cloth! You can always sell your nappies once you have finished with them and recoup some costs and you may find you have a local incentive scheme to help you by cloth nappies look here and search for incentive shemes in your region.

One thing I would recommend is that you buy something thin fitting. I found that at 18m finding girls trousers that went over cloth nappies was quite hard. If she wears dresses or dungarees a lot then you'll be fine.

Wonderoos are on offer here until 31st July so be quick if you want some! They are thin fitting, quick drying, very easy to use, lots of colours to chose from and one of the more reliable pocket nappies. They give a good fit on a child 18m plus IME and can be used from birth for the next one if required. I guess you could buy some and try just one or two and if they didn't work out sell the rest as brand new, unused. I have seen them cheap individually on ebay recently if you want to try just one (which is what I'd normally recommend at first).

thanks bigbadmousey, i wasnt sure if it would be worth it but reading you post it probably would. we're planning to try for another later on this year so they'd definately get some more use.

thanks for the tip about thin fitting ones as well, i didnt think of that but its hard enough to find trousers to fit over a disposable as it is so will keep in mind and have a look at whats around

bump

I bought cloth nappies for DS at about 18 months, he is 2 tomorrow and nowhere near potty training so think it has been worth it.

I ended up buying new as he's fairly large and a local firm made some generous-sized ones for me. I do use some disposables, but I think on balance it has saved some money. DC2 is due in December, so hoping to get more use out of them in future.

I switched to cloth when my first was 15 months and almost 4 years later the same nappies are onto their third baby. I figured what I'd paid out originally probably equalled the amount I'd have paid on disposibles between switching ds to cloth and potty training him (but obviously there was washing costs on top of that). I bought a few more nappies for my second child, and a second nappy bucket for 3rd child (as currently have 2 in cloth). I'm convinced we've saved a HUGE amount.

If it's cost that's concerning you, I'd say if you're thinking of having even one more child it's definately worth it. Do consider buying secondhand too.

Yes is worth it and lurk on ebay - I have over a 4 week period collected Bambino Mio:

24 x size 2 nappies and
9 x med, 5 x Lrg & 6 x XL wraps

All new for £158!

RRP of wraps alone would have been £160.

thanks, just wanted a bit of reassurance really i guess as mil wasnt overly keen on the idea but we need to save a bit of cash in the long run and if i can buy cloth a bit at a time then i think i will be doing. thanks

Well it's not really up to your MIL is it. My MIL was very sniffy about my decision to use cloth nappies. I think it is because when she was bringing up her kids disposables were seen as the luxury / aspirational nappy (which she couldn't afford then, but would have loved to).

One thing I would recommend if you are getting nappies for an 18 month old is to go for something with a popper fastening rather than velcro. I use mostly velcro nappies and wraps which were great for getting a snug fit on a tiny baby but now that she is old enough DD undoes the velcro and takes her own nappy off (cue baby toddling around the library holding her nappy aloft!) so I have invested in a couple of popper wraps for under dresses.

My mum was rather about my choice of nappy but when she last visited she saw them all laid out ready for DD2 and was quite pleasantly surprised to see how much things had changed - think she had visions of me boiling tired old terries on the range all day long.

FIL was very bemused by all the patterns and colours 'just to wrap round a baby's bum'

lmao@ boiling tired old terries!!! i get paid tomorrow so am going to boots to get a couple of the single nappy trial pack type things they sell (although there's sooooo much info out there now i'm actually looking i don't really know what to go for)

LuLu, you're right it is up to me and not mil. i think she's just a bit concerned about us paying out for terry nappies and then potty training lo and not really getting money's worth out of them but i was going to use them for our next child so would be saving money there as well anyways!

thanks for your thoughts and opinions, my mind is made up and i will be investing, just for daytime until we both get used to them to start with but it will still save us a fortune on disp nappies just for daytime use atm

bigbad, Slight hijack, but would flexitots be suitable for a 25 lb 2 year old? They say that their size 2 goes to 35 lbs....

Would then use on (younger) DS, so wouldn't be a waste of money...

Waitrose currently selling motherease wraps off at £6 each. 2-3 of those, plus 12 terry squares (@ roughly £3 each), plus nippas, plus liners (£4 per 100) = about £60 all in.

That's about 400 pampers size 5+ (if bought in Jumbo boxes of 66 @ £10)

400 pampers = 80 days, roughly 2.5 months.

So, basically if you anticipate another year of nappy wearing, then yes, might be worth giving cloth a go.

Of course you have ongoing costs of washing nappies (about 1 load every other day at 60c).

Then there is the environmental cost. Whatever the arguments regarding the amount of energy required to manufacture & clean cloth nappies v. disposables (the jury is out), it does feel great to put out half the weekly rubbish in your black bags

You might be lucky and find someone who is happy to sell on some shaped nappies. I use motherease one size and they are great on older kids as less bulky.

www.nappymania.co.uk is run by a very helpful nappy devotee, who is happy for you to ring up with questions & her website has lots of info.

good luck

thanks for link anonymama, unfortunately we don't have a waitrose near to us but boots and mothercare do the 'trial pack' things for about that price so was going to get maybe 6 of those to try out so i can see how we get on with them.

didnt actually work out the costs but now its written down it will save money, regardless of washing costs as my towels usually go in machine on a 60c wash anyways so they'd go in with them.

ilovemydog - yes should be fine and not too bulky. I think they are a bit bulky at the lower end of the weight range - Size 1 I tried certainly was IMO. They are lovely and stretchy so should go up to the higher limit easily (unlike other totsbots in the past). They are really soft and squishy - there are a few cropping up on ebay cheaper than RRP if you want to try one but you have to be quick to catch em.

thanks Big Bad - am wondering also about a good night nappy.... even with a potty trained toddler, one still needs a night nappy?

Ilovemydog - my personal choice is the popper fit ellas house bumhugger becasue it is fleece lined, has a pocket to stuff if you need to. It is very absorbant and not too thick (as night nappies go). Works best with an airflow wrap IME. It takes a while to dry, you'd need 3-4 if you are line dying only. They are hemp so need a lot of prewashing too - I tend to buy anything hemp second hand so all that is already done for me .

If your DC is potty trained then you might find the Minki YoYo is more accepted because it is a nice soft pull up pant. They are too small for my DD2 atm so not tried them but I hear they are very good. Other Minkis I have had have been lovely but didn't suit DDs shape . I would stuff with a bamboo terry for night use (nice and cheap to buy, very absorbant and dries relatively quickly because it is flat).

Have a look here

I'm just switching over to cloth with my 18mo as I've finally worked out that disposables are the cause of his bad eczema/nappy rash.

Another Mnetter loaned me a huge pile of nappies to try and I've been working my way through them for the last week or so.

IMO pocket type nappies seem to be best for the day. Wonderoos are fab, they're my favourites in terms of fit, slimness under clothes and speed of drying (pockets are dry in a couple of hours, microfibre inners are dry in 12 hours or so on the airer). They also do up with poppers which are essential in a toddler nappy - velcro/aplix comes undone far too easily . Drybees and Happy Heineys are good too but only have velcro tabs.

I also like Motherease Sandies which can be lined with a disposable or fleece liner, so even if she skids but is dry you can just whip out the liner. They take ages to dry though. They fit well but are bulky under clothes.

Night time, my absolute favourite combo is an Ellas House Bumhugger with wool shorties as a wrap. The wool doesn't leave any too tight marks around the thighs or waist and they look SO cute! Ds2 hasn't had a single leak wearing the wool wrap.

Minkis are also good for night times, so is a microfibre Bambineo Teddy.

I'm not as keen on the shaped Totsbots/Bambineo/Motherease type because they are really bulky for daytime.

I'm very much a novice but they're my findings so far!

I too switched over at about 17 months and I'm pleased I did. He can't yet speak properly and is no way anywhere near potty training, so I don't see it as a waste. Go for it.

I worked out that even if I spent £200 on nappies and he trained at 2.6 I'd still save over £150 and that's using Tesco's own nappies. I won't have another dc (ds2 is my 3rd) but figured I could sell them on and make a few quid back then.

lucysmam - which trial packs are you thinking of getting? The boots own reusable nappy is an all in one nappy - no wrap required. It is really, really baaaaaaad. Boots also do Bambino Mio trial packs and these aren't too good either if you have an older child as they tend to move about and leak - the mohercare ones are similar but slightly more reliable - still not excellent though.

What I am trying (and failing I think ) to say is don't buy more than one to try out if you are on a limited budget - especially the bambino mio, mothercare and boots own ones - because, although they work well for some people, there are an awful lot more people who find them leaky and a PITA. I would really recommend you get some expert advice tailored to your own needs. Plenty of people will give that for free and, in the long run it will save you a lot of money. Unfortunately most of the brands you see on the high street are not the best available.

hth

thanks bigbadmousey, i've decided that i'm going to do some research on the internet first and then maybe buy just a couple to try out. i didnt get into town this week and am glad now after reading that!!

they were the bambinomio trial packs i'd seen in boots and was thinking about trying but as i didnt get there i didnt get any.

i didnt know that about the ones on the high street either so will def do my research over the next couple of weeks until oh gets paid and then try out a couple.

just out of curiosity, what would you buy if you were buying for a tall (just over 2ft!!!! no idea where it comes from!) 18mo who wont sit still for more than half a milisecond

am going to write a list of the ones people have mentioned on here to look up i think as a starting point

ONE WONDEROO then, if it suited her shape, I'd buy lots more .

I just pinned down my DD1 who is 4.3 and 106cm and got one on her no problem (she's not talking to me now (peace at last ).

You have just one piece to put on (no wrap required), they are thin fitting, high rise, birth to potty (in case you have another ), very quick drying. They aren't too expensive as pocket nappies go - you may be able to find some on offer. Also you can use them as a pull up pant becasue they are popper fastening - takes a bit of practice at first but perfectly possible.

On thing to look out for is make sure they are the new Wonderoos by Hip Hip Baby - they used to be made by wonderworks and those often fell to bits and/or leaked.

As a pocket nappy, they are more prone to leaks - the key is to find that one that suits your DDs shape. Wonderoos are generally reliable though. Bumgenius are another popular type but I think they would be too low rise for your DD.

hth

using it as a pull up sounds a good idea, think i'll have a look at those!! she's a nightmare to put a nappy on at the mo, constantly on the go!

they look like the sort of thing i'm after for my lo. is it just the one piece you need or would you need liners as well?

also, i assume the other poppers you can see are to adjust the fitting for a smaller or larger child?

i looked at totsbots (i think) and bamboozles (again i think) when i first gave birth to her but as she was so tiny then (10 weeks early) i didn't trust my judgement as to size. i'm starting to wish now that i'd just gone for it .

i had a look at the link you posted the other day as well bigbadmousey for incentive schemes, my local authority don't appear to have one which doesn't surprise me at all.

With those you need that nappy and a pop in insert that goes inside the pocket - a liner is optional.

There are some for sale on ebay without the insert - but the link I sent you includes the insert too. The insert is a two piece thing and you use the smaller one when you have a small baby, then later you use the bigger one, then after that you can popper the two together to make a super-soaker insert.

The nappy itself is fleece lined so there is no need for a separate liner unless you want to use a paper one. Some people find that the poo comes off the fleece very easily, while others prefer to use a paper liner to make life easier - depends on the individual child IME.

The popper system is very simple to use once you get the nappy in front of you. There are three rows to adjust the rise (you have a choice of 3 rises) then there are a set across the top to adjust the waist. Your DD will probably need them on max rise (which gives the neatest fit IMO) so fitting will be very easy indeed as you won't need to use the rise poppers at all.

If you have used totsbots you would probably have found them not to have suited so well. They are a relatively low rise - My DS has outgrown his size 1 bamboozles at 9 weeks.