Cloth virgin!

[mishkamoo]

Hello. Need some help/advice please! Want to use cloth nappies and have had the real nappy chap from the council come round to give us a demo and a trial pack. Trial pack contains terry, pre-folds, and a variety of shaped nappies (some cotton, some fleecy type, some hemp, variety of different fastenings) and 2x motherease wraps. Have tried all of them and now have some questions....

• All the shaped nappies LOOK huge but I think are probably a little on the small side as struggling to do some of them up! And then once you put a wrap over the top it's even bigger.
• The pre-folds in a wrap looked a lot better than the shaped but DS did a little poo (not one of his HUGE early morning poos!) and it leaked out of the side-am I doing something wrong?
• DS does massive poos and am concerned that no cloth nappy will be man enough for them!
• He also wees for England and am worried I will spend all day changing nappies. I know its very lazy of me but at the moment, in disposables, he doesn't even know he is wet and if he starts crying when he's wet, it will add another factor to consider into the 'why is he crying now' conundrum!!
• We don't have a tumble drier so drying is an issue.

Any advice?? PS DS is 8wks old, weighs 12lb and is quite long if this helps!

prefolds are more likely to leak than shaped nappies. Did you fasten it or just fold it inside the wrap?

Most real nappies are bulkier - I think the big bum look is cute!!

I have had more leaks on disposables than with real nappies - even with massive poo occasions.

microfibre nappies dry quickest, hemp / bamboo dry slowest.

I would try out all you have for a week to see what you like.

Also have you prewashed them? They will not be at full absorbency until 3 or 4 washes. Do not use fab softener.

I think finding the right cloth nappy for your shape child is a nightmare - especially relatively soon after giving birth - personally speaking my mind was like jelly and I couldn't make a decision on anything.

I recommend Ebay for getting inexpensive samples to try and work out what is right for your baby - buy one of a brand, try it, if its good get more, if not, flog it on Ebay again.

What you need might also change as the child grows - some become right wrigglers and a quick whip of the velcro is easier than poppers, for example.

I started off with something from the local nappy project - they were designed to be hard wearing 'cos project also ran a laundry service. But they were a complete disaster - I had bad leaking problems with skinny newborn legs and they rubbed and cut in terribly. I'd say try a shaped nappy and a wrap with good leg gusset. If nappy seems a bit gappy and wees are big, try an extra booster pad - good anyway for bulking out a nappy on a wee one. Bamboo offers great absorbance, but does take a while to dry.

Twinkle Twinkle will give very good advice over the phone if you can find someone in the office.
www.twinkleontheweb.co.uk/about_us.htm

1. With regards to them being huge, I think they look lovely. Also they hold the baby's hips in a better position than disposables and there's more padding when they start toddling and falling about.

2. I think prefolds tend to be the worst cloth nappies for leaks. I like the fitted option (i.e. shaped fitted nappy + wrap). I found at that age that Mother-Ease Sandys were great for containment and were very adjustable. Mother-Ease Rikki & Airflow wraps are really good too (would recommend the airflow when they get older as it has poppers so no need to worry about them undoing it!)

3. Trust me, when he starts doing those poos sitting up you won't want him in a disposable - think poo shooting up the back

4)Have you tried using fleece liners? Get a length of fleece or a fleece blanket (v cheap - Ikea do them) and cut it into rectangles roughly the size of the inside of your nappies iyswim. They help keep the bum drier.

Hi there, thought I'd add some comments as a real nappy user! (Well, my son is...)

• With size, some are slimmer. Bumgenius, pop-ins etc are quite slimline. But tots bots originals look quite big. The wraps can sometimes make them look bigger!

-Shaped nappies hold liquid poos better than anything else. And that includes disposables; I've had leaks in disposables but not in shaped nappies. I've not used prefolds. I think this is generally true - pay a visit to the cloth nappy users thread where everyone will tell you that shaped washables hold poos better!

• Wees: it's a matter of us getting used to the wet nappies, I think. i.e. if you've used disposables, you're used to him being dry to the touch, but with cloth nappies he will be wet. It doesn't cause allergies or rashes here (some babies have more sensitive skin), and DS doesn't cry when he's wet. But as nuttygirl says, fleece keeps them dry to the touch. You don't need to change him more often; every 3 hours or so (or if there is a poo!).
• I rarely tumble dry, but hang nappies on one of those radiator airers. I have the pop-ins, and they take ages, but others (not bamboo) are quicker. My answer is to have lots of nappies - 28 in total! Obviously more expensive, but with a quicker drying nappy, you'd get away with fewer.

I have now heard my little son do a big poo so must go...
We don't have a tumble drier so drying is an issue.

Just a quick report back. That poo was massive but all contained.