When can I realistically put a newborn in reusables

[MtnBikeChick]

I am planning to use reusable nappies, however I have heard conflicting advice about how practical it is with a tiny newborn. I think I am likely to have a fairly small baby based on growth so far and I was very small when I was born. I was planning to get some Itti Bitti SIOs to start with, but also have some newborn Bambos so I can get to grips with the reusables. However, I would appreciate some honest adivce about how practical it is to use resusables with newborns as my understanding is they can get through 10-12 nappies a day. I am not sure that in my post-partum state I'll be up for washing every single day, but maybe every 2 days. Baby is due end of July so the drying weather should be good, however. Also, is newborn poo liable to leak a lot? Has anyone 'mixed it up' between reusables and disposables with their newborn? Should I realistically expect to wait until little one is a couple of months old or so? Thanks so much!!

I think try it and see. If you've already got the nappies (make sure you've washed them a few times to increase their absorbency!) just give it a go for a day and see how you feel. I also used newborn Bambos but I can't remember quite when I started on the reusable Bumbles, think it was possibly after a few weeks. I only washed every couple of days. Re poos - if you are bf, these are very watery. I can't remember if there were things that would help you avoid leaks but they only happened to me a couple of times and those times could just as easily been when using the disposables.

I'm due again in a few weeks time and plan to do the same this time, start with a few Bambo disposables then back into using Bumbles. Having been nearly 3yrs since last baby I can't remember too much about the newborn days!

I used as soon as the meconium had cleared with dd (a few days). tbh, newborn poo is easier to clean from them than weaned child poo! My dd pooed so often that I'd have had to change her nappy 12 times a day regardless of what kind she'd been in, so it really didn't matter.

DD1 went into reusables during the day at about a week old, but we kept her in disposables at night for a bit longer, just to make life a bit easier while we were getting used to life with a baby. I only had 15 nappies to start with so I was washing every other day at the beginning and managed this fine (it was december so drying was a bit more tricky).

DD2 is currently 3 weeks old and we put her into reusable nappies as soon as we got home from the hospital. This wasn't a problem at all for us as DD1 is still in nappies so we're in a good routine with washing them etc, so have just had to adjust to washing a bit more often (am currently washing every other day as with the 2 of them that's how often I get enough for a full load).

I find newborn poo much less likely to leak with a reusable as if it leaks out of the nappy then you've still got the wrap to catch it, so things are actually a bit easier in that respect with washables.

I would advise you to buy enough disposables for the first 1-2 weeks and then see how you go. You can always start using the washables part time whenever you feel ready and work up to using them full time.

Many people here seem to use reusables from birth. I really wouldn't. Your new-born can poo an astonishing amount (I once counted up 27 nappies in a 24 hour period), which would mean an enormous amount of washing when you're shattered from the birth.

My advice is, don't even buy reusables until after the birth. If you buy them before, they'll make you feel guilty if you're not up to using them. They are extra work, and you may find you just don't feel up to it.

I sound a bit negative about reusables, but I did use them without any real problems for all four of my DC. I just think it's a good idea to be realistic about them.

I got on fine once the meconium had finished too. Did get through more wraps than anticipated - but that does pass.

DD2 was in them from day one. Didn't wear a disposable for about 8 weeks I think.

No issues with meconium, and newborn poo just washes straight out so it was bung them in an empty bucket, then in the machine on a rinse, then the proper wash.

I did have a hell of a lot of nappies though

I have a 3 week old and had her in reusables straight away from hospital. We also had some disposables to use in case we didn't feel up to washing and sorting them but we haven't used them yet as they have been so easy to use.

This is my second baby (DD1 was in disposables) and I was under no illusions at the frequency and downright violence of newborn poo BUT to my surprise the reusables have been far better at containing the poonamis.

So all in all I would say go for it from the start but get a few types and have a pack of disposables ready in case you're just not up for it!

Thanks so much - oranges, do you mind me asking which reusables you are using? Thanks again!

10 minutes old. DH just took dirty ones from hospital, washed them overnight and brought me clean ones in teh morning. I took 10 in with me and that worked fine. I was in for 4 days.

I started at 4 weeks- I was in no state do be dealing with them before then. I have 18 Bum Genius 3.0 and do a wash every day and line dry indoors. Could really do with 3/4 more but are v expensive.

DS was about four months old - we didn't actually intend to leave it that late, but when he was two months old we ordered a full set online and they had shipping problems so we didn't get the set till then!

We had a couple of trial nappies that we used occasionally from a few weeks old, though, with no problems. And DS was breastfed and still completely on milk when he went into them, and they were far far better at containing everything than the disposables were.

MtnBikeChick, assuming your main concern is washing, have you considered a nappy service? Ours was fab fab fab: never any risk of running out of nappies and never having to deal with the poo. All we bought was some tea tree oil to sprinkle on top as the pile grew.

And yes, newborn poo leaks a lot. It seems to come out an enormous rate of knots! We bought a mattress protector for our bed (we were co-sleeping) -- it helped a lot.

I started at about one month, but started trying different ones out after a couple of weeks. I did not end up with the ones I thought I would get when I was pregnant - actually they leaked every time on my DD so I'm glad I didn't buy 15 of them before trying them.

I used reusables (Motherease) from day one. However I didn't do any of the washing myself until DP went back to work, 2.5 weeks in. I've never found it a problem to do a nappy wash every 2-3 days. For about four weeks, that's all I would do and I would be very proud of myself . It's great now that they can dry on the line.

the only time I've ever had a poo leak has been the odd time she's been in disposables.

We did mixed disps/reusable for about a week after DS1 was born, I had the nappies beforehand.

We washed every other day (had around 20-25 nappies).

I switched totally to reusables the day the pampers leaked yellow bf poo all down my new nightie, the freshly-washed duvet cover, pillows etc.

Never had a leak.

With DS2 we used reusables exclusively from when I came out of hospital - 3-4 days old.

from birth - one wash a day roughly - but not a problem as i had about 24 nappies - put thhe wash on with 6 to go - 3 hours later ready to wear again....became part of our new baby routine.

glad i did, as Dd got v. red whilst using disposables.

though if i had my time again i'd buy pocket nappies (coolababy or blueberries poppers) from start (I had Kushies for DD) as they dry much more quickly and adjust down and up in size beautifully.

though there are some real nappy-heads on here who could give you more recommends...small size motherease also good for a newborn.

MtnBike Chick- Am using a mixture of Bambinex Teddys that dry superfast and a couple of little lambs. However, if I'd known that I was going to have a near 10 pound baby that is growing at an alarming rate I might have skipped the little lamb size 1's as they come up quite small. The Bambinex are amazing, wash well, dry almost instantly and seem pretty bomb-proof, especially when mixed with a Motherease wrap.

I have 12 nappies in all and wash most days but expect that to be less when I'm not changing her throughout the night.

Every new mum is different. With my DD (first child) I found the culture shock of new parenthood, and trying to cope with little sleep, crying, breastfeeding an awful lot to deal with for the first month or two. Though I planned to use reusables I'm glad I didn't try and through that into the mix as well, though all credit to the new first time mums who do.

At around the 6 week mark I felt as if I had a bit of mental space as well as a bit more time to research, try out, and move DD into reusables (we went full time reusables at the 2.5 month stage). That for me worked well, and DD by then was big enough to fit into birth to potty ones. To do any earlier would have meant more money for newborn sizes. I also felt I appreciated the geek side of reusables by then, and now they are something I very much enjoy using.

Good luck whatever you choose, have fun, but just remember in the long game of nappy wearing a month or two at the beginning is not a big deal one way or another.

I'd give both a try whenever you feel up to it but don't worry if it's a while before you can manage cloth nappies.. I planned to use washables from about 6 weeks, but it was more like 4 months before we properly got going with them, partly due to ordering issues, partly because I had my hands full with a non-sleeper! We had a while where we used both cloth and disposables until I got the hang of cloth.

Newborn bf poo is pretty explosive. But I'd use cloth much earlier next time as I spent at least some time every day scrubbing poo-stained baby clothes with Vanish, so I might as well have spent the time putting on a nappy wash instead. I've found leakages onto clothes are much less frequent with cloth than with disposables.

I use Bambinex Teddies with Motherease wraps, same as Oranges, but with Motherease one-size for night-time. I love how fast the Teddies dry, but I find the Motherease hold more liquid for nights.

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From about 4-6 weeks with both of mine, with DS (first baby) I used prefolds from a laundry service for a while. With DD she just went straight into bamboo squares washed at home (which looked comically enormous on her to start with).

I agree that reusables are great for catching bf poo, and also both mine seem to have fairly loose poo even after weaning, so would much rather they do the dirty in cloth than in a leaky disposable.

I do use disposables for night time as DS didn't sleep through until 2yrs and DD is following the same trend. After not having a decent night's sleep in four years, I don't want to be faffing with nappies at night.

I used as soon as the meconium cleared. And I used muslins for the first few weks after that - they clean really well and dry really quickly.

But as someone else said, just try it for a day or 2 and see.

Make sure you do it before the baby is too big e.g. 6 weeks - or you may never get round to it.... know loads of people who did that

post meconium here too.

I had big birth weight babies but they still needed teeny nappies at first because they were so skinny and tall! I found bimbles/bumbles absolutely fab (I never personally use bimbles as my dds weighed in at 10lbs)

you should do what works for you!

i waited a couple of weeks with ds1, but really only because I thought i'd have to and had got disposables in and wanted to use them up!

the next 2 were both in cloth from the word go. I used muslins first, then terries, then shaped nappies