Disposable or Reusable nappies?

[Newlywed123]

Firstly what will you be using and why?

Wanted to use reusable for my daughter but didn't know which were better etc so used disposable. Thinking of using reusable with this baby.

Does anyone know what brand is reliable but affordable?

Tia

I use Little Lamb fitted nappies with either motherease or blueberry wraps on top. I sometimes use terry squares if I'm running low which are also really quick drying. And a decent wrap protects against a slightly dodgy fold.

I always struggled with disposables, the worst leaks I've had have come when baby was wearing disposables and I hated running out of nappies and having to drag ourselves out to the shop (I am a little disorganised). I do tumble dry sometimes but most of the nappies we have were used on my first, so I feel I've offset the cost/eco side a bit

I do know a few people who do a mix of cloth and disposables. Cloth wipes are so much better than disposable baby wipes too, they clean rather than smear.

reusables are really easy, I have spent in 21 months about £200 on reusables and reusable wipes. the extra washing isn't as bad as I thought, and is obviously great in the summer as they dry real quick.

you can also make money out of the by selling them on after use.

the two part system works well for keeping in leaks, I do still get them occasionally, but I've never had a poo leak or a poo explosion up my boys back, which my friends have who use sposies are always complaining about.

I love it that I don't have to keep emptying my bin because of the smell of dirty nappies, also DS doesn't really smell when he's got a dirty nappy.

I wash my nappies every third day, I do them at night and extra rinse in the morning and then peg them out. in the winter, I put them on a heated dryer in the bathroom, I only put the inners on here and hang the rest above, I switch my washing habits and wash during the evening and dry on the dryer over night.

oh and I have never run out of nappies .

OK reusable fan club will be quiet now.

Reusable mainly. Wonderoos are great but little lamb more budget friendly.

We used disposable when travelling so not loads of nappies being packed

Didn't find it stinky or a chore. Lidded Bin with mesh liner in bathroom, nappy and reusable wipes straight in bin. Every other evening pull while mesh bag out and throw in wash ( so no touching dirty nappies). Wash, and hang out to dry before bed ( indoors inside airing cupboard), dry by morning.

We had around 40 one size pocket nappies in total. That covered x2 babies in nappies at once, leaving some in changing bag, and having enough whilst some in the wash.

With newborn and 1 year old we used around 15 nappies a day. So we could have just covered with 20, but wouldn't have allowed for extra if needed overnight when 15 in wash, or to leave some in bag and we washed every 2 days etc.

For just one baby 25 is about right. 10 a day is about right for newborn, so allows for some in wash and some worn

I used washables for my elder two and intend to for this baby too. Although I may use some disposables as well for long days out etc-just to save space in the bag and to avoid carrying dirty ones around all day.

My favourites were bumbles/ bimbles and mother ease airflow wraps. No idea if you can still get either of those though.

I initially went for Velcro nappies for similarity to disposables but they are far too bulky around baby's middle, much prefer a nippa nappy. Quite liked basic squares once I'd mastered the bat fold.

Thank you all for the replies, the main thing putting me off reusable is the washing! I like the idea of using disposable first for a month to get used to a newborn and nearly 2 year old

My friend, who gave me her old Motherease wraps and the template for the homemade nappies, gave me a good hint. Get a 25L fermenting bucket, like this www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/25_ltr_Fermenting_Bin_Lid.html#.Va9sw_mqqko - I found that when it was full, then it was a full washload in my machine. Helped a lot, and the air-tight lid meant that it mostly didn't smell (except when you open it to put another nappy in of course).

Another thing to consider is whether you wet-pail or dry-pail - I dry-pailed but would always then do a pre-soak in Napisan in the fermenting bucket before washing. Some people prefer to wet-pail (keep liquid in the bucket the whole time so the nappies never dry out) but I couldn't be doing with that because I couldn't lift the bucket when it was full of liquid as well as nappies.

We used washable till 2.5 when she grew out of them

What works for one doesn't necessarily work for another. Much like with disposables

But we used Totsbots easy fit for day. Totsbots bamboozles at night with an outer wrap. But the best ones were little lambs with a. Outer wrap. But I only discovered them late on and couldn't afford to buy loads of them

I used little lambs for DS when on mat leave. Now use a mix with disposables. However currently use more disposables as DS does hideous poos. Very large and not contained by the liner so I have to sluice an unpleasant sticky nappy at least once a day. They're fine for wees and he doesn't soak through at night (bamboo size 2).
Other key issue is getting stretchy clothes as he is quite short for his age. Pregnant again and plan to use for new baby.

watching this thread with interest, do reusables really make your machine smell like shit?

No!

Reusables, they are great. I can recommend Motherease, Totsbots or Bumgenius, especially when starting out. Try and find second-hand ones, lots of people sell them on (lots of Fb groups, or eBay/Gumtree), you can save a lot of money that way.
They do not make your washing machine smell! And I never washed other clothes together with the nappies, so that should not be a problem either. If you have enough, you only do a nappy wash every 3 days or so, which I reckon you do with a little baby anyway.
For being out and about, get yourself a good nappy bag - no leaks, no smell, no fuss.

I did biodegradable disposables for the first month then tried little lambs pockets which failed miserably and were a faff although others like them. found little lamb Velcro microfiber with motherease airflow wraps are bombproof, affordable and dry v quickly inside or out so no tumbling.

I still.use disposable at nights as I found bamboozle night nappies took forever to dry as they are made of more absorbent bamboo.

I bought cheap wet bags from Amazon for a couple of pounds each and they are brilliant.

We also use washable wipes which save a fortune and are great.

hopefully someone has recommended the nappy lady questionnaire and hire scheme?

Definitely don't make your washer smell your washing at a high temperature and I tend to put some essential oils in either a few drops of lavender or tea tree so always been fine. Might do an empty maintenance wash once every couple of months but honestly it's been fine. DH was a bit unsure when we got them for DD. Who was our first and if we were to have another he's all for using them again as it does save u a small fortune inn the long run

Modern nappies and machines typically don't nees washing at more than 40 degrees. You can get special nappy powder that acts as antimicrobial - you add a tiny bit and tub lasts for ages. Just check that whatever you use is compatible with your nappies as some aren't bamboo friendly

I'm intending to use re-usable nappies. I'd prefer to use flat cloths with a cover rather than some of the newer versions, simply because it would be difficult to get something that thick dry in our flat in winter (which is when I am due). I'll have some disposables on standby as well, but plan to use flushable liners (once weaned) to make poo disposal easier. Any time you don't use a disposable, that's one less in a landfill

I think the main problem with disposables is that most people are too lazy to put the shit in the toilet, and just chuck it into the bin instead with the nappy. That is absolutely horrendous and unforgivable.

Right. Perfect timing for this thread :)

First baby coming up. We got a pack of newborn disposable for free off freecyecle for hospital.

The moment we come home its going to be reusables. They are all bought for dirt cheap on offers or preloved in great condition. Bin with laundry bag ready. All nappies lined and boosted ready in DAY stacker and NIGHT stacker. DH in charge of laundry in this house anyway and we have a nice spread for laundry every 2/3 days.

We also got given 6 rolls (!) of free disposable paper liners so will use those to start with.

After plenty of research here is the spread we are starting out with (if doesnt work all can be easily resold on Facebook or Ebay)

0-6 Months - Little Lamb Microfibre and Lollipop pockets by day and Little Lamb Bamboo by night. All size 1 fitting newborn to 5/6 months.

6 months to potty - Tots bots Easyfits, Wonderoos, Little Blooms, Dudeybaba by day, and Lollipop Bamboo by night.

Got about 8 wraps for the ones that need wraps (LL and Lollipop).

Have washed and dried all quite a few times, no probs drying. We also have a tumble drier for those winter months and a spare room for our laundry anyway. That might make a difference.

I love the amount we spent, I love how they look!

Try EC/nappyfree technique/etc.

Focus - you don't need the paper liner until you start weaning. Milk poo (esp BF poo) is fine just to fling in the wash.

Washables - BumGenius. Love'em. Using them on DC3. Used Bambino Mio on the other 2, worked ok on DC1 but DC2 was a heavy wetter so only lasted a 18 months.
They did leak a bit for the first couple of months, even though DC3 had chunky legs. I put it down to stretched elastic as they were 3rd hand. But I haven't had a problem since those early months.
I just wish I'd found out about the mesh bags to chuck in the wash for DC1, and washable fleece liners.
My washing machine smells fine.
Good luck!

My one is almost nine now but we used disposables. Sorry, environment, but it was more convenient.

I got given a lot of reusable nappies, but have also spent £80 on little blooms. I got loads of liners, both microfiber and bamboo - going to bamboo at night and microfiber during the day.

I also bought some biodegradable disposable ones for the first few nights... not really sure how long they'll last for but I figured I would prefer to have them to fall back on if it all gets too much initially.

My two main motivations for using reusable are the environment (landfill especially) and cost. We'll be on a tight budget so if I can reduce the amount we spend on day to day stuff by reusing things then so much the better.

I also spent £40 on cheeky wipes (reusable wipes). Again the same two considerations but also, both me and my dh have terrible eczema and I want to minimise the amount of chemicals the baby's skin is exposed to as much as possible.

I have no idea if this will work, but we'll see! I'm 32 weeks, so got a bit of time to wait.

Have washed and dried the nappies and they seemed to dry relatively quickly. It's true though: bamboo does take longer to dry!

Just had a quick look on ebay for reusable nappies - after reading this thread I'm now quite interested in giving it a go.

Can you buy like a pack of what you need from ebay or do you have to buy separates? I guess we'd need the nappies, wipes if we're using them and the net thing for the bin?

Thanks for all your comments, really interesting!

Thanks for this thread, it is really useful!

For those who use reusables without a tumble dryer, how long on average do your nappies take to dry on a clothes airer?

Clara

I will be using reusables again - and sticking to totsbots unless some pretty patterns tempt me I will also be using cheeky wipes. You'll find you do loads of washing with the baby anyway, so I never found it particularly onerous, and some dry really quickly (others are a bit more of a mission in the winter). I would recommend tea trea oil in the bottom of a (dry) nappy bucket with a mesh bag. And newborn poo is fine to just go straight in, no need for a liner.

I'd also recommend some raw silk liners for later on when they start teething and getting the associated nappy rash. They worked really well, as did no nappy time (and kamillosan when needed).

I will be having a section, so may have to take sposies into hospital, as dh has no experience of reusable nappies so feels a bit mean to send him home every day to deal with them whilst I'm in hospital. But as soon as we are out I'll move to a cloth bum now just got to pick which designs I want

goodnessgracious - that made me smile - I think it's an after-effect of using cloth nappies, that I do always tip as much poo out of a disposable as possible before binning it. There was a thread on here some while ago about this, and people were astounded that anyone would bother! But I agree with you, get rid of as much as you can down the loo, where it belongs.

Flushable liners - I never liked the paper ones, they always seemed so hard! But I was "lucky" because my mum, who died before DS1 was born, had a colostomy and she left a ton of dry wipes that she was given for it. We tried to return the stuff but they wouldn't take it, and even if they had they would have binned it, so I used these dry wipes as liners. Not really flushable - they went into the nappy bin and were washed, some types were re-usable, others needed to be binned after one wash (but they don't take up much room in the machine). I realise my situation was pretty rare though, so unless you know someone with a colostomy and a bunch of spare dry wipes, my info is pretty useless, sorry!