Using washable nappies as well as disposables?

[chloejessmeg]

Hello. I have some washable nappies that I should be using but we used to use them full time but just lost interest in them when DD was at a bad poo stage (too runny to collect in nappy liner but too solid to go straight in wash) and we have now just been using disposables.

I hated having to carry around the washables though as they were so bulky. We have baby no.2 due in April though and DD is only 1 so dreading the cost of 2 babies in disposables.

Was thinking about just using the washable ones sometimes, like when we are at home and know we are not going out, and still using a disposable when out/at night.

So like tomorrow, we will be going to the liberary story time in the morning and then coming home for the rest of the day, so when we get in, I would change her into a washable and use them until after her bath when she would go into a disposable?

I am thinking though that it might become a PITA to wash them when I don't have a full load - can I put in with other washing? The washing side didn't bother me at all last time but we always had enough to put a nappy wash on every 1-2days as DD poo'ed so much!

But then also thinking that for every washable I use, that is one less disposable that I have had to pay for and one less in landfill? And less trips to costco! And might then lead onto getting back into them properly again?

Has anybody done this and did it work out?

I haven't done this, but it sounds like a plan, and you can put the reusables in with the normal wash

The way i look at it is this - if you were to replace one dispo nappy every day with a reusable - thats 365 nappies a year you're saving from landfil. Double, in your case.

I do exactly this - I just leave them soaking until the bucket's full - this can be up to a week (or more sometimes ) but it's always been fine.

I don't want to do soaking, that is one thing I am sure on. But happy to put them in with my normal wash load if there is no reason not to. Does this mean using Nappy san in every wash? Don't really mind this as we use it quite a bit anyway to get stains out or if we have pooed on clothes etc. Washer is on at least once a day, often more so I don't feel I need to soak and would find it a PITA to be honest.

Also, if I were to have a nappy bucket anyway, I would probably go back to my washable wipes too. I loved using these and only stopped because I wasn't using the Nappies.

Why don't you want to soak? It's for sterilising, i.e. killing off as much bacteria as possible.

Yes, but you can do this by just putting some Nappy san in the washing machine - much easier. If I were to have a soaking bucket - it would need to be in DDs room where we change her, so would need to bring it up and down the stairs full of water? And then have to get the nappies out without spilling the water everywhere? Just not something appeals to me when you can just stick a spoonful of powder in the wash. TBH I thought it was quite unusal to soak nowadays?

Oh and I will be using washable breastpads too so they can go in the same wash!

You're meant to soak them for 2 hours otherwise it doesn't sterilise properly.

Why would you have the bucket in your DD's bedroom? Ours is in our bathroom, we just take the nappies there and bung them in. As for water spillage - ?? You'd have to try pretty hard to spill it! I just lay newspaper under the bucket, wring the nappies out into the bucket and pop them straight in the machine! It sounds as though you're making it a lot harder than it needs to be.

Every cloth user I know definitely soaks - you should perhaps get some info from thenappylady website (she's an expert).

So you put your hands in a bucket of cold water which is soaking nappies with wee and poo and squeese them out?

We wouldn't HAVE to have it in DDs room, but our bathroom is the otherside of the house, at the back downstairs - DDs room is at the front upstairs which is where her changing table is.

I never soaked DDs nappies before and have never had a problem. We used to wash them every day and either wash at 60 or put nappy san in with the washing powder. And that was with messy BF pre weaned poo. They used to come out white - which I would think would mean they are clean enough?

Chloe, you're not serious. Please tell me you're not serious. Heard of rubber gloves?!

The sterility thing is not a question of looking clean, you need to ask yourself 'if I test these nappies in a lab would they be toxic?' At least, that's what I understand it to be about.

If your bathroom's downstairs there's no need to carry a bucket up and down the stairs, is there? You can easily have a placcy bag on hand in your DD's bedroom to put it in before you go down to the bucket.

TBH if you want to make this complicated for yourself I'm sure you will. Equally if you want to make it straightforward for yourself, I'm sure you will. Get some professional advice from the nappy lady and then decide what you want to do.

Yes , i too on baby number 2, with both still in nappies. I do use both type of nappies, when at home or only short outings, its motherease, rest of time disposables. I put dirty ones in nappy buckets, 1 for poo, 1 for wee,(kept under bathroom sink)I wish i had bgger buckets though!! i use napisan in the bucket, but must admit i do prefer the boots one instead.They fill up quite quick, but if there is a day or so break and not enough to wash i tip contents down the bath plug hole and refill with some more water. it does save the pennies, remember try not to use too much washing powder either cos it makes them go hard, the odd wash with no washing powder does them wonders!! good luck.

Have just read nappy lady's advice about wet/dry pailing and still think dry is what is best for us.

On the nappy lady website it states if you are soaking then you need to change the water every day, use stuff in the water etc. And thinking about it, I am not sure Ofsted would be happy with a bucket of water with Nappies in lying around (I am a CM) downstairs so if I did have it down in the bathroom, I would have to think very carfully about location etc.

Nappy lady has advice on dry pailing, pretty much confirming everything I thought before - that it is perfectly fine as long as you are washing every day or 2.
Info Here from Nappy Lady if you would like to read it.

I am not making it complicated for myself, I just don't think it will work for US. It might work well for you and that is fine, but there is no reason why I should have to soak.

Um, I am a bad real nappy user as I don't soak mine either unless they have had a really bad coating. I use napisan in the washing machine and wash at 60deg sometimes, 50deg others. Haven't noticed any problems...

I also gave up using washable nappies at night with DS when he started producing too much wee to be contained - changing a wet baby who was technically asleep became quite traumatic as he would wake fully up and then refuse to go back to sleep. So now we use disposables overnight and cloth during the day. I take cloth ones out with me, I have little nappysacks to put the wet ones in; but if we go away for any length of time I resort to disposables again because I don't want to be lugging wet nappies around.

We use Nature babycare nappies - they're pretty good.

I don't mind having to carry the dirty nappies - it is more the space they take up. I find that I can get a days worth of disposables in the nappy bag easily with wipes, 2 changes of clothes, food for the day, wet bag etc. But if taking out washables, the nappies take up all the space! And that was just for one baby! I often eneded up with 2 seperate nappy bags which is a PITA.

I am just looking into getting some more washables, but I want onesize so I can have one lot for both babies. I have a few Onelife ones which I really liked last time (pretty much the same as the motherease ones).

Thinking about it, I was thinking I could start DD back in washables tomorrow but I don't think I have any big wraps! I have some somewhere in the loft but finding them is a whole different story!

I use a brewing pail for my nappy bin - it has a really tight-fitting lid and contains very nicely one washload. (It's a 25litre one)

Well I'd never heard of drypailing before tonight!

However, chloe, you did complain about not wanting the hassle of carting the bucket up and down the stairs! Don't get cheeky, now! It sounded very much like you were looking for a reason not to soak, but I'm glad you've found the expert advice you needed.

hi, thumbs! We use Naturebaby nappies too!

Night, night y'all.

But it is a reason for us not to soak? It is far easier for me to have a nappy bucket by DDs changing table upstairs and just bring it downstairs when she goes to bed at night to wash, and take it up again when we go to bed. It would get on my nerves if I had to take the nappy down everytime as it is hard enough carrying DD down the stairs, without other stuff too (there is usually a whole pile of stuff waiting to go downstairs!). As I said, Ofsted wouldn't be happy with me having a bucket on the floor downstairs, so this is by far the better option for me. Don't really think I was being cheeky, you asked the reasons why I didn't want to soak and I gave you a few of the reasons?

CJM, don't take it to heart, MrsGMMH is a lovely lady, she's not trying to give you a hard time.

I am not taking it to heart, sorry if it sounded like that. Just didn't really understand. Oh well!

We have never soaked our nappies, and not had any problems (I think it's stinkier if you soak, too )
Also, the time we had two in nappies was the time we most appreciated using washables: you have to wash more frequently, so they get less pongy, and the feel good factor is way greater because your bins would be SO much fuller if you had 2 in 'sposies.
Stock up on one-size nappies now and enjoy

Yes you can put nappies in with other washing. DS goes to preschool so he uses disposable pull ups there and he has a disposable on if anyone but me is looking after him like my mum, friend, sister, cousin etc. We use reusables the rest of the time. Is there a reason you don't want to use reusables at night time. I found they leak much less than disposables.

I rinse all the nappies under the cold water tap (not hot - it sets stains). then i put them all in the nappy bucket which is filled with cold water and sometimes some nappy fresh. i don't use vinegar or lemon juice cos it can damage the elastic or any oils cos they can make the nappies start replling liquid. i wet pail cos it breaks down the urine and loosens stains so the nappies last longer. i don't soak wraps though cos this affects their waterproofness.
i try to do a wash every day because the longer nappies remain wet the quicker the fabrics will break down.

i do a prewash with no detergent, a 30 degree wash with half a tablet or 1/4 the recommended amount of powder/liquid (we use the ecover non-bio original washing powder because it is the only one that doesn't contain dyes, enzymes, perfumes, whiteners, brighteners or phosphates which can damage nappies. if the nappies are a bit stained i use some nappy fresh or ecover laundry bleach aswell.) and an extra rinse if the final rinse of the wash programme still had suds in it. i don't use fabric conditioner cos it coats the fibres and so reduces absorbancy. i hand wash wraps cos it makes them last longer.

i'm another fan of line drying as much as possible, but if not then i line dry inside on an airer near the radiator or in the airing cupboard. i don't put them directly on the radiators or tumble dry as this can damage them in the long run and tumble drying also makes the nappies hold onto smells more. after i've hand washed the wraps i wipe them out with a towel to remove excess moisture and dry them as per the nappies.

I always dry pail my nappies - after hearing a tale about a lady's brand new stair carpet and a wet pail bucket accident Nor do i use napisan. I keep my used nappies in a bucket in the bathroom at the moment - we live in a bungalow, but when we move it'll go by the back door, in the kitchen probably.

I dry-pail and then wash on 40 with some vinegar in the softener drawer. I don't sterilise anything in this house!

urgggghhhhh- poo soup!!!

never soaked a nappy in my life, never washed my nappies with napisan or equivalent, usually wash at 30 with a 60 every now and then, line dry them oh and i use ecoballs.

So far all five children have survived this slatternous nappy behaviour