Bumgenius nappies

[firsttimemum2010]

Hello,

I'm new to this site and not sure of the best place to post my question!

I am pregnant and the baby is due in August.

I wish to use reusable nappies and have heard good reviews about the bumgenius one size nappies.

Being new to all this, wonder if anyone can answer the following questions based on personal experience:

(1) Do you need to use disposable liners?
(2) Do you need to buy outer wraps to cover the nappies?
(3) We live in a small flat with no washing line or airing cupboard. Do you think it would be OK to dry the nappies on a heated towel rail? Is this likely to cause damage?
(4) I'm thinking about buying 20 nappies - do you think this will be enough?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Many thanks

Hi, link to the nappies section here.Lots of advice there.
I use bumgenius, they're great. They are what are known as pocket nappies, so no wrap needed, it has a pocket that the stuffing goes into. If you put them in the airing cupboard, bumgenius will be dry overnight/ about 14 hours.
My suggestion would be to buy a few different ones to see what you like using best. I started with 12 shaped 2 parter nappies(motherease sandys), which you use with a wrap, and 6 bumgenius, I washed every other day and found this was enough.
Basic nappy types - 2 parters that you use with wraps, all in ones with attachable pads(no wraps needed) and pocket nappies inserts in pocket(no wrap needed).
nappies made with microfibre(the bumgenius inserts) dry quickest, followed by, cotton terry, hemp and lastly bamboo.
some good nappy sites,www.twinkleontheweb.co.uk/
www.kittykins.co.uk/ www.nappyzone.co.uk/
Often people use two parter nappies at first as it contains the runny poo very well. You can also use washable wipes/flannels for cleaning and wash with the nappies- they cope much better than the disposable wipes!
Hope this isn't confusing, there's a lot of info out there and every one has their own ways and nappies they like best. once you have figured out how you want to go about it, it will seem easy though!

I have been using bumgenius for a year and half with my daughter and really recommend them.

1. Normally, you don't need to use liners, except if you have to use a nappy rash cream. (The cream could make the nappy water resistant in the wrong place). We have hardly ever used liners. Some people don't like the idea of having to clean up the dirty nappies without a liner to chuck away, but we just pull the shower head over the toilet and rinse everything down, then put the nappy straight into the nappy bucket.

2. No, you don't need any outer wraps. The outside part of the nappy is waterproof.

3. We live in a flat and for most of the winter have been drying the nappies on radiators (and occasionally by tumble dryer). They dry quite quickly and have suffered no ill effects.

4. I think 20 nappies sounds about right. That's about what we started with, I think, though we have more now, because of the advent of number two!

One more tip: be careful of which detergent you use. Some can damage the waterproof outer part of the nappy. There are instructions about this on their website, but they assume that you're American, with access to American brands. We have found Ecover to be good (either the liquid or the powder). You don't need much detergent and can wash on a high heat if the nappies are very soiled. It's a good idea to do an extra rinse to prevent build of detergent which can affect absorbency. If you think they are becoming less absorbent over time, give them a couple of detergent-free washes and that should help.

Hope that helps. Let me know if you have anymore questions.

i use bumgenius too. Once DS got a bit bigger started to use them with fleece lined boosters from ebay. They do make the nappies a bit more bulky but seem to keep DS really dry and don't need changing any more often than disposable. He's never had a nappy rash either!