BumGenius created a one size pocket diaper that can convert any family to cloth. This is the gauge that we judge every other diaper against here in my house, not because it is the best at any one thing, but because it is above average in every category. If you just want to start cloth diapering without thinking about it any more than you have to, or if all reasons to cloth diaper are equally important, this is the diaper for you.
At $17.95 each these are not the cheapest option, but they are far from pricey. A full set of 20 will run you $339 at www.cottonbabies.com and would be plenty to cloth diaper with them full time. They come packaged with a newborn insert and a full sized insert, and the one size means that your baby can wear these from birth through potty training. You simply adjust the snaps on the front to a small, medium, or large setting. Realistically it takes a few weeks for your baby to really fit well in them. We actually have both some of the 2.0s and 3.0s and the 2.0s were fitting my daughter at 2 weeks while the 3.0s didn't fit until closer to a month. It has stretchy Velcro tabs which allow you to get a nice customized fit each time, and you can get them on a squirmy toddler lightning fast. They clean easily, even if you have to scrape poop. Stains sun out very well, but they do seem a little more prone to staining than some of the others that we have. These are the most like a cloth version of disposables and the easiest to switch a dad (or mom!), grandparent, or daycare who is perhaps less interested in cloth diapering. The pocket covers last very well if line dried, and decently well if put in the dryer on medium heat. I line dry the covers overnight and dry the inserts on medium heat in the dryer.
Here are our only cons. Some of these diapers are made in the USA, but some are also made in Egypt. The inserts are made in China. This is not a make or break thing for us, but some people find it a sticking point. We always try to find a balance between local and economical, and I do think BumGenius does. The other drawback is that they do not have a natural fiber version. Some children, like mine, have skin that is sensitive to microfiber. This means that we cannot use these exclusively.
A lot of reviews talk about elastic issues and Velcro issues, but these are easily dealt with. I bought 2.0s which had been used for nearly 2 years and had perfect Velcro because they were always line dried. The did have loose elastics, but I got my 2.0 elastics replaced by this very talented lady named Deann Hadley for a very reasonable price which you can find here.http://bloomingbums.blogspot.com She also posts picture tutorials to do it yourself, if you have sewing talent. I do not. I'm happy to pay her to do it.
A word on used... If you choose to buy used, know what you are buying. Please read the blog about used diapers.
http://www.cottonbabies.com/product_info.php?cPath=98&products_id=1279
Showing posts with label pocket diapers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pocket diapers. Show all posts
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
The beginning, part 2. Types of cloth diapering systems, care of cloth diapers, and how many you need.
There are many many many websites out there to help you figure out the intraquacies of the different systems, but I will give a quick and short overview of the different types of cloth diapering systems. Not a lot of people that I know have ALL of one type, but that is certainly a way to go. I tend to like one diaper for one thing and a different diaper for another, so I have a few of everything.
First you have systems which require a cover.
One is the basic prefold and cover systems. You buy prefolds, which are the usual cotton cloth diapers that you may remember as burp cloths or car rags. They can be folded many different ways or just folded into thirds. These absorb well, but you need a cover to make them stay on and not leak through. There are also other types of inserts which can go inside a cover, and some are even stay dryso that your baby doesn't feel wet. You just lay them right inside a cover and snap or velcro the cover on the baby. Stay dry liners are also available to go over the cotton prefolds.
Pros and Cons? These are very inexpensive. You only need 5 or 6 covers as they can be wiped clean and reused. You can get good prefolds for $2 each and good covers for $15 (or fully functioning cheap covers for $5). If you have limited laundry facilities this is a great way to go, since you can get 5 dozen prefolds and 5 or 6 covers and still save lots of money. Also, they are super easy to maintain and any stains sun out quickly.
Also available are fitted diapers which have gathered legs and snap on the baby themselves. You still need a cover, and these can run to be pretty expensive options (Goodmama fitteds can be upwards of $30 each), but these can really contain a messy breastfed poop or heavy wetting baby. Contours are the same, but wihtout snaps or velcro to attach to the baby and less expensive.
Then there are systems with the covers integrated. All of these will run you a bit more money, but give back to you in ease. You can have an all in one system (AIO) which has the leakproof cover, the absorbant stuffing, and the liner all in one. An all in two (AI2) system usually has a cover that you snap an absorbant liner into.Pockets are the cover and liner in one piece, and they have an opening in the back where you push an absorbant cloth into the pouch.
AIOs are the easiest to use, and for those coming over from disposable diapers they are the most intuitive switch. They often take a long time to dry in the dryer. Some can take 2 or even 3 full dryer cycles, which is a lot of extra energy and time. They also only get used once per washing, so you have to buy quite a few, and they are not a cheap option.
AI2s take one more step, but dry much faster since the air can circulate through that absorbant stuffing better. You buy a few covers to reuse and lots of inserts, which is a more cost effective solution. The drawback is that breastfed poo can be loose and often gets on the cover, making you change those covers far more frequently and kind of negating this benefit with smaller babies. For that reason these tend to be better choices once the solid foods are introduced. If you can reuse the covers and only buy more inserts these are a middle ground on pricing between AIOs and the prefold/cover systems.
Pockets are, for many people, the best of all worlds. They are easy, the inserts dry in one cycle, you can line dry the covers/liners which dry very quickly, and they only take the one step of stuffing them. They are, however, also fairly pricy and have to be fully replaced each wearing meaning that you need a lot of them to make a system.
There are now a few hybrid diapers out there, like the gDiaper, Flip, and the Gro Baby (now Gro Via) diapers which allow you to use a system with cloth that can be converted to a disposable insert when needed, for instance when travelling.
An infant will need 10-12 diapers a day. A toddler will need 8-10. I wash my cloth diapers every other day, and if you are using synthetic fibers I would really reccomend trying to keep that up to avoid stink. If you are using cotton prefolds with covers you can really stock up on them and wash only once a week. Just get great diaper bags that will seal that smell up and make friends with Mr. Sun to remove stains!
So, how do you care for your diapers? There are some brands which require lots of special attention, but I stay away from those. Here is my diaper routine.
1. Cold soak. Sometimes I use 1 tablespoon of diaper friendly detergent, sometimes just water. It depends upon how long the diapers have been sitting around. I keep the water level at high regardless of how many diapers are involved.
2. Hot wash with a cold rinse, extra rinse turned on. For this one I use 2 tablespoons of diaper friendly detergent. (In an effort to conserve further, this is the point where I throw in the rest of her laundry to make a fuller load. If you do diapers every other day you'll have room for it all.)
3. Seperate into dryer load (inserts, cloth wipes, and for me the AIOs) and hand dry (pockets and covers, AIOs for some people). I do not line dry the AIOs unless it is a very sunny hot day or they have stains. I live in the Pacific Northwest and it just takes too darned long for them to dry on a line.
4. Dry the dryer load on medium heat with 2 Nellie's PVC free dryer balls and 3 wool dryer balls. (More on those later!)
5. Hang the covers and pockets up to dry, which usually is done by the time that the dryer is.
Once a month I take all of the microfiber inserts and bleach them with 1/4 cup added to the wash. I have a great system for remembering when to do it as well. My daughter was born on the 20th, so I always know when she is another month older. That week I do all of the things which get done monthly, insert bleaching included. I then find the sunniest day that week and lay out pockets and AIOs to dry in the sun, which is also a great sanitizer.
So, what system do you use?
First you have systems which require a cover.
One is the basic prefold and cover systems. You buy prefolds, which are the usual cotton cloth diapers that you may remember as burp cloths or car rags. They can be folded many different ways or just folded into thirds. These absorb well, but you need a cover to make them stay on and not leak through. There are also other types of inserts which can go inside a cover, and some are even stay dryso that your baby doesn't feel wet. You just lay them right inside a cover and snap or velcro the cover on the baby. Stay dry liners are also available to go over the cotton prefolds.
Pros and Cons? These are very inexpensive. You only need 5 or 6 covers as they can be wiped clean and reused. You can get good prefolds for $2 each and good covers for $15 (or fully functioning cheap covers for $5). If you have limited laundry facilities this is a great way to go, since you can get 5 dozen prefolds and 5 or 6 covers and still save lots of money. Also, they are super easy to maintain and any stains sun out quickly.
Also available are fitted diapers which have gathered legs and snap on the baby themselves. You still need a cover, and these can run to be pretty expensive options (Goodmama fitteds can be upwards of $30 each), but these can really contain a messy breastfed poop or heavy wetting baby. Contours are the same, but wihtout snaps or velcro to attach to the baby and less expensive.
Then there are systems with the covers integrated. All of these will run you a bit more money, but give back to you in ease. You can have an all in one system (AIO) which has the leakproof cover, the absorbant stuffing, and the liner all in one. An all in two (AI2) system usually has a cover that you snap an absorbant liner into.Pockets are the cover and liner in one piece, and they have an opening in the back where you push an absorbant cloth into the pouch.
AIOs are the easiest to use, and for those coming over from disposable diapers they are the most intuitive switch. They often take a long time to dry in the dryer. Some can take 2 or even 3 full dryer cycles, which is a lot of extra energy and time. They also only get used once per washing, so you have to buy quite a few, and they are not a cheap option.
AI2s take one more step, but dry much faster since the air can circulate through that absorbant stuffing better. You buy a few covers to reuse and lots of inserts, which is a more cost effective solution. The drawback is that breastfed poo can be loose and often gets on the cover, making you change those covers far more frequently and kind of negating this benefit with smaller babies. For that reason these tend to be better choices once the solid foods are introduced. If you can reuse the covers and only buy more inserts these are a middle ground on pricing between AIOs and the prefold/cover systems.
Pockets are, for many people, the best of all worlds. They are easy, the inserts dry in one cycle, you can line dry the covers/liners which dry very quickly, and they only take the one step of stuffing them. They are, however, also fairly pricy and have to be fully replaced each wearing meaning that you need a lot of them to make a system.
There are now a few hybrid diapers out there, like the gDiaper, Flip, and the Gro Baby (now Gro Via) diapers which allow you to use a system with cloth that can be converted to a disposable insert when needed, for instance when travelling.
An infant will need 10-12 diapers a day. A toddler will need 8-10. I wash my cloth diapers every other day, and if you are using synthetic fibers I would really reccomend trying to keep that up to avoid stink. If you are using cotton prefolds with covers you can really stock up on them and wash only once a week. Just get great diaper bags that will seal that smell up and make friends with Mr. Sun to remove stains!
So, how do you care for your diapers? There are some brands which require lots of special attention, but I stay away from those. Here is my diaper routine.
1. Cold soak. Sometimes I use 1 tablespoon of diaper friendly detergent, sometimes just water. It depends upon how long the diapers have been sitting around. I keep the water level at high regardless of how many diapers are involved.
2. Hot wash with a cold rinse, extra rinse turned on. For this one I use 2 tablespoons of diaper friendly detergent. (In an effort to conserve further, this is the point where I throw in the rest of her laundry to make a fuller load. If you do diapers every other day you'll have room for it all.)
3. Seperate into dryer load (inserts, cloth wipes, and for me the AIOs) and hand dry (pockets and covers, AIOs for some people). I do not line dry the AIOs unless it is a very sunny hot day or they have stains. I live in the Pacific Northwest and it just takes too darned long for them to dry on a line.
4. Dry the dryer load on medium heat with 2 Nellie's PVC free dryer balls and 3 wool dryer balls. (More on those later!)
5. Hang the covers and pockets up to dry, which usually is done by the time that the dryer is.
Once a month I take all of the microfiber inserts and bleach them with 1/4 cup added to the wash. I have a great system for remembering when to do it as well. My daughter was born on the 20th, so I always know when she is another month older. That week I do all of the things which get done monthly, insert bleaching included. I then find the sunniest day that week and lay out pockets and AIOs to dry in the sun, which is also a great sanitizer.
So, what system do you use?
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