When we found out about baby #2, I knew I wanted to cloth diaper. My husband wasn't quite as on board, but more of a "you can do cloth, but when I change a diaper, it's going to be disposable". I saved money, and bought diapers gradually. I knew I wanted to do the pocket style - one size. Meaning, there is a place to put an "insert" (pad) into the diaper. No safety pins (a thing of the past), no special folds, etc. It looks like a "normal diaper". I thought I would like the pocket style because you can increase or decrease the absorbency if needed. I researched different brands, and yes, in general, they are quite expensive. I ended up buying two different brands, one because of the price, and the average reviews, and the other, because my midwife's assistant was getting rid of her stock-making me a good deal. (She used to be a retailer for this brand)
So:
I bought 12 Sunbaby Diapers with 24 inserts. These were the "cheapos", I think they were around $7-$8 a diaper. (price range depends on what kind of fabric you want for the insert)
I also bought 10 Bumgenius 4.0 with snaps diapers. I got these new, from my midwife's assistant for $15/diaper. (normal retail is around $18 I think)
I did buy some used Fuzibunz size small diapers off of craigslist, but ended up selling them (sold them for $15 more than I paid for them) because I decided to stick with the one size diaper.
I can go into what I like/don't like about each brand of diaper, but that would really call for a whole post of itself. So I will say, I use all of my diapers, Sunbaby and Bumgenius, I would recommend the BG diapers over the Sunbaby - and there are a million other brands, and lots of work at home moms that make and sell diapers to check out.
I have 22 diapers total, and would probably like to have about 4 more.
Here's a rundown of my cloth diaper regimen:
I wash my diapers on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday. Yes, I have it down to a strict system! I ALWAYS line dry my diapers. If the weather isn't nice, then we have a makeshift line in our dinning room. However, an occasional dryer isn't going to hurt them, so if I was in a pinch, I can toss them in the dryer. Line drying enhances the longevity of the diaper. I use All detergent, free of perfumes and dyes. I have a front load HE washer. I do not have the option to soak because it's HE, so I do two rinse cycles, then wash on "heavy duty" cycle, with an extra rinse cycle at the end. I do have some light staining that I need to research on how to get out better - but they do come out clean and smelling ok.
How often do I cloth?
Probably 80% of the time. Yes, I don't do cloth 100% of the time. I would like to get to that point though. We do disposables at night. At first I did this because Emri (my 3 1/2 month old) was sleeping through the night beautifully 12-13 hours each night. I was scared cloth wouldn't last that long. For some reason, she's back to her "infant stage" and waking up 2+ times through the night. So I really ought to try cloth at night and just see.
Also, we go to a Home School Academy on Monday afternoons. Emri goes to the nursery, and there can be 13 kids in the nursery. I feel bad asking the nursery workers if I can send Emri in cloth. However, she's famous for her blow out diapers in the nursery, and she doesn't blow out as bad in cloth, so maybe cloth would actually save them time. ;)
We've done 2 big trips since doing cloth, and did disposables during our trips. Each time I wished I had done cloth instead. For Thanksgiving, we'll be going up to my parents, and I would like to do cloth, however my whoooole family will be there (siblings, plus more grandkids) and I don't want to hoard the washer as we will all need to be doing laundry - so it will probably be disposables. (10 people under one roof)
What are the pros?
MONEY SAVINGS!!!!!!!!! Yes, the diapers may be expensive in the beginning, but it saves you tons (I mean thousand(s) of dollars) This was one of the biggest reasons for me to want to switch.
Health Benefits:
Have you researched the chemicals in disposable diapers? Did you know a lot of chemicals we (U.S.) put in our diapers, are ILLEGAL to use in other countries? And we are putting this on our babies skin? Which then is absorbed into the body? Obviously, I can't preach a whole lot about this since I still do disposables, but STILL!
Comfort:
Have you felt the inside of a cloth diaper? It's so soft, if didn't know what had been put on it before it was washed (hehe) I'd want to snuggle it against my face! I'd rather have that against my bum, then some weird paper/plastic stuff.
Looks:
This may not be a good reason to only go cloth, but seriously, a baby with cloth on it's bum, is just too darn cute! And they've got some adorable patterns now!
CONS:
With all my preaching about cloth, there are draw backs.
It is more work. I have a dry pail in our bedroom we toss the dirty diapers in. (I use disposable wipes and shake the wipes in the trash) The pail has a lid, but depending on how many poopy diapers are in it, you might be able to start smelling it by day 2. But with my washing regimen, usually they get washed before it's really stinky.
It adds 3 extra loads of laundry a week for me. More work on laundry, more laundry detergent, more electricity used, etc. However, still, it is more cost effective to go cloth.
Cloth to go - I try keeping Emri in cloth when we go to town. I carry a wet bag (small bag to put dirty diapers in, and keep odor out), and it's a little bit more to lug around. Between lugging the dirty diapers, and then the clean diapers in the diaper bag (which take up twice as much room as disposables do), it is more. I do enjoy the conversations it starts in the bathroom while changing her. "oooooh, is that a cloth diaper? Wow, they have changed, they weren't like that when I had kids". Great conversation starter while you are wiping a poopy bottom.
Is it worth it?
For me, and our family, and our situation...YES!! My husband is now sold on it, and will change little Em's diaper, and put cloth on her! Putting the diaper on, really is almost the same as putting a disposable diaper on, super easy. The only extra work is in the laundry, and you can't just "toss it in the trash". The savings is amazing. We can make a $6 package of diapers last over 2 weeks. That's $12 a month in diapers...only because we haven't been doing it full time. When Natalie was in diapers full time, we were doing $40-$50 a month. It's not that difficult, they are cute, and I like knowing what exactly is going on my kids' bum!
As a side note: Emri is exclusively breastfed. Because of that, I do not have to "dunk" her poopy diapers, spray them, etc. If we were doing formula, they would need to be sprayed before washed. (you can buy a diaper sprayer that attaches to your toilet, pretty easy!) When we start introducing solids, we will have to buy a diaper sprayer.
That's my take on cloth.
