Cloth Diapering: Good Intentions and Initial Supplies.

The baby is due in just over a week, and everything is pretty much ready for an early arrival.  We've been intending to use cloth diapers since, well, forever-- the idea of using disposables seems awful to me, both for the amount of $$ it would cost to supply ourselves with disposable dipes, and for the frightening ecological cost of disposables in terms of manufacturing energy, materials, distribution, and of course, landfill space. A lot of friends have been asking me about the range of useful types of reusables, so I thought I'd share what I've learned so far, and then track what works and what doesn't as the baby grows and we figure all this out.

(And for those who argue that the ecological cost of disposables is about equal to the cost of reusables when you factor in the water and electricity necessary to wash them, check out these two articles: Article by a Dartmouth ecologist and Article from Slate).

I should add the obvious caveat, though, that our baby isn't even born yet-- we've done a lot of research, and have prepared what we can ahead of time, but the fact is that different diapers work for different babies, depending on the shape of their legs and bellies, and whether they're heavy or light wetters, etc. etc.  So I'll be updating here periodically with what has worked, what hasn't, and what we'd do differently next time.

First, the options.

All cloth diapers have two parts: the absorbent inner layer, and the waterproof outer layer.  There are three main types of cloth diapers:
1) "prefolds" with separate covers
2) pocket diapers
3) All-in-ones.


Let's start with the most basic:

1) Prefolds and Covers.

Prefolds are what our parents used on us.  They are, essentially, big squares of ultra-absorbent, multi-layered cotton (or hemp, or whatever) that you fold and then fasten around the baby.  These are by far the cheapest option, since even organic cotton prefolds only cost a few dollars apiece.  This is also the type of diaper most commonly used by diaper services, so if you think you'd want to avail yourself of a service, you should get comfortable with this type of diaper.

Our initial stash includes a LOT of prefolds in various sizes and from various brands.  Here's what we have to start:

The yellow and red bordered dipes are organic cotton "cloth-eez" prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers.  Yellow is the "small" infant size (bigger than newborn, though you could fold them down to use on a tiny newborn if you wanted.  You'd just end up with more diaper than baby); red is size medium.  We won't start using either of those regularly for a while.  (12 of each)

The blue-bordered white diapers are cotton prefolds by Oso-Cozy (purchased on Amazon), newborn size. (12 of these)

The plain, bright-white diapers are cotton prefolds by Gerber for newborns. (12 of these)

The slightly off-white borderless dipes to the left are organic cotton prefolds by Bummi for newborns (6 of these).

So we only actually have 30 newborn-sized prefolds at the moment; plus 12 each of slightly larger sizes.  I'm sure we'll add to this stash later once we decide what brands work best for us.

But that only covers the absorbent inner layer.  What happens when baby pees?  Yep, it soaks up and wicks right through onto your lap, or the car seat, or the crib sheets.  So you need some kind of waterproof outer layer to contain that mess.  Again, there are several options, and almost all of them come in really cute patterns and colors.

1) You can make your own wool or fleece covers, or buy knitted covers online or from natural baby stores.  (I suck at knitting so I didn't even consider this option.  Maybe I'll commission  a more talented friend to do this in the future.)
2) Various brands of diaper covers made with Polyurethane Laminate (PUL), which is soft and flexible, unlike the scrunchy plastic pant-things that our parents used on us.

We went with option (2).  And here's the thing: you don't actually need to change the diaper cover every time you change the prefold.  This depends on how messy the diaper is, obviously-- if there's yuckiness on the diaper cover, change it.  But I'm told you can get away with using just a couple diaper covers in a day.  Here's our initial diaper cover stash:

3 newborn-sized lite wraps (hand-me-downs from friends).

3 size small lite wraps (hand-me-downs from friends)

TwoThirsties "size one" (fits 6-18 pounds using those adjustable snaps)

One Bummis size small (fits 8-16 pounds, again with adjustable snaps and velcro)

We also have a couple larger-sized covers for later on, but this should give a sense of the range of styles and colors.  

But wait!  You want to know how to fold these things and attach them to a baby, right?  There are a few options.

The easiest is this-- just fold the prefold into thirds and tuck it into the diaper cover.  If it doesn't quite fit, just fold down the extra cotton at the back before folding it into thirds.

Alternatively, you can attach the prefold to the baby using the modern equivalent of diaper pins, called "Snappis," and then slap a cover on over that.

(Clearly, that is not my baby.  Thanks to Green Mountain Diapers for those images.)

There are different ways of folding prefolds, but since I think we'll at least start with the standard fold-it-into-the-cover method, I'll wait to describe alternative folds until I actually try them on a real baby.

That's it for prefolds and covers.



Now, 2) pocket diapers.

A pocket diaper has the same basic parts as a prefold and cover: an absorbent inner layer and a waterproof outer layer.  But a pocket diaper's outer layer has a pocket in the waterproof part that you tuck an absorbent layer into.  These are a great option for people who feel intimidated by all the folding that goes with prefolds and covers.

And here's what we have the way of pocket diapers to start with:

This is a Bum Genius 4.0.  These are adjustable for babies 10 pounds to toddler-- basically from shortly after birth until they're potty trained.  Awesome, right?  That's what all those snaps are for-- you choose the row of snaps that creates the right fit on your baby.

Here's the inside of the Bum Genius 4.0 with part of the absorbent layer pulled out at the top.

The Bum Genius 4.0s come with two inserts-- a newborn and a regular.  You can double them up when the baby gets a bit bigger if she/he is a heavy wetter.  

Last, but not least, 3) the All-in-One Diaper, often abbreviated AIO on diaper websites.  

Unsurprisingly, these tend to be the most expensive variety of cloth diaper, because each one has both the absorbent inner layer and the waterproof outer layer.  Some daycares that generally won't do cloth diapers will accept all-in-ones because they basically work just like disposables.  

Here's what we have to start with All-in-Ones:

This is a Tots Bots all-in-one by Bummis.  From the top pic, you can see that like the Thirsties cover or the Bum Genius pocket dipe, it has snaps so that you can adjust it to fit different sizes.  And the inside, as you see in the bottom pic, is all fleecey-soft layers for absorption that's stitched right into the waterproof outer layer.

And that's it for our initial stash of diapers.  

Last thing to note: Diaper Changing Station.

 If you're doing cloth diapers, it's best to have a changing station in the bathroom so that you can rinse baby poop into the toilet easily before tossing them into a diaper pail.  And not just any diaper pail-- you need some kind of washable diaper bag that won't get too stinky between laundry loads.

Here's our set-up:

We have a Simple Human brand trash can with a locking lid (because we have an inquisitive dog...).  It's lined with a Kissa Antibacterial pail liner, which promises to be washable and to keep smelliness to a minimum.  I'll let you know how that goes.

A few final points to consider, including extras:

- diaper wipes and wipe solution.  Disposable or reusable?  We decided that it was silly to use disposable wipes when we're already going to be washing the diapers.  So we got some cheap, soft flannel and sewed some double-sided squares.  What about the spray, you ask?  Nothing easier.  Diaper wipe solution is just water, baby wash, baby oil and possibly some essential oil for scent.  Mix it up in a jar and transfer it to a spray bottle.  Done.  (There are plenty of recipes online, but for the record, we're starting with the most basic: 2 cups water, 1/2 cup baby oil, 1/2 cup baby wash.)

- Diaper liners-- washable.  What if baby's a heavy wetter?  We have some washable hemp diaper liners that basically look like ladies' panty liners, only smaller, and cloth.  You just throw it into the diaper for some extra absorption.  With luck, it'll help keep the rest of the diaper from getting quite so gross.

-Diaper liners-- biodegradable. The flushable, biodegradable diaper liners are another option.  We have some of these to start, too-- they should be particularly nice when we're traveling, because you can keep most of the poop confined to the liner and just flush the whole mess, and have less mess to deal with in the wet/dry sack in the the diaper bag.

-Diaper bag, etc. Everyone knows you need a diaper bag to carry clean diapers, wipes, change of clothes, etc.  What they don't tell you is that your run-of-the-mill messenger bag or backpack will probably do the job just as well, and for a lot less money.  (Plus, my old messenger bag is black, as opposed to paisley or pink, and doesn't look like an over-sized purse, so my husband won't mind carrying it.)  I'll update later on about whether the messenger bag works as well as I expect.  If you're cloth diapering on the road, you'll also need a wet/dry bag to store dirty dipes in when you're out and about.  It needs to be waterproof, obviously, should be washable, and should have some kind of closing mechanism that will keep the smell from permeating the rest of your bag.  We have two to start: a Planet Wise size medium, and a Bummis size small.

Future diaper posts to look forward to: Taking cloth diapers on the road; Diapering a newborn; How many elite academic degrees does it take to change a diaper?