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diapers question...?

2K views 15 replies 12 participants last post by  monkeywrangler71 
#1 ·
Question. We are getting ready to adopt a baby soon & needing some help with some information. Is it cheaper (by a lot or by a little) to use cloth diapers (not the old ones my mom used to use but those really cute convenient ones they have nowdays) or to use the walmart or whatever brand of "regular" diapers. We will probably switch out for when we go to church, family etc to "regular" diapers & if we use the really cute cloth diapers I will probably be the only 1 changing baby. Not sure if this is the only baby we will adopt (we will eventually adopt older ones too but ...). What do you think? I need to add in the cost of washer/dryer etc...

Anyone else have any info on this? Thanks!

Kim
 
#2 ·
I did cloth with my 2nd baby. Even buying fuzzibunz which were the expensive ones, they were worth it. You can re-use them for any other children you may have and re-sell them when you no longer need them. I wish we had done cloth with both. You can hang them on the line to save on energy costs. Really its more convenient to wash a load of diapers than to have to drive to the store to buy more. They are so much cuter too. Don't forget cloth wipes to go with them. Another alternative is to sew your own. You can buy waterproof PUL fabric at Jo-Ann's now. I am sure there is a ton of information out there online.
 
#3 ·
The cost of the washer dryer? Would you need to buy a washer and dryer? or do you meant the cost of washing and drying the diapers?
 
#4 ·
Cloth diapering worked really well for our family, and was well worth the up front expense. Most of our "stash" were gently used dipes purchased from other cloth diapering friends. We also used cloth wipes. If you have a local cloth diaper store nearby, I'd encourage you to go check it out, ours was so helpful/informative and a meeting place for like minded families.
 
#5 ·
i loved cloth diapers for my son, but my daughter pitches a fit everytime i try to put one on her! I despise throwing out diapers so much, ugh. We do use cloth wipes still, and I haven't parted with my cloth diapers yet, i'm still trying to use them, lol. But i do love fuzzibunz also! I think its worth it, but i prefer sized diapers, not one size.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the input ya'll!!! Yes, I meant the cost of washing & drying them not the cost of a washer & dryer (we have amazing ones of each lol). & I know about cloth diapers online but not "regular" stores that sell them?? How would I find them? Well, I guess I could ask my friends on fb couldn't I lol. Thanks ya'll!!!:big glass:

Kim
 
#10 ·
Try looking up mommy groups for your areas. Some use 'meetup' to organize coffee dates/play dates/events. Some have message boards. I think they'd be a great source of local info. HTH

And congrats on the adoption! :)

ETA: my former coworker cloth diapered her son. He loved it and when she tried to use the disposables for convenience, boy was he one unhappy camper and wasn't afraid to let everyone know. She did notice that as soon as she put a cloth diaper back on him, he was all smiles & giggles. Go figure.
 
#11 ·
I wish that I had advice about the more "modern" cloth diapers, but I do not. I have used cloth diapers for all of my 10 children and the ones that I like best ( absorbency/convenience) would have to be the tshirt/sweatshirt diapers that I made myself. I found old tshirts/sweatshirts at garage sales which amounted to about 1.20 a doz. What I like about these diapers is that you can fold them to fit your ever-growing-child:)...no matter how big the baby gets, you can still fold the diaper to fit him/her. Also, you can use bleach when you wash them...the others you can not.These are so simple to make. pm me if you are interested in how to make them. they are so easy that you can even hand-stitch them.
 
#12 ·
Congratulations on your adoption, a double miracle!

We've been cloth diapering for 18 months now and loving it. We use BumGenius 4 one size.

I have a store near me. Diaperlab.com that does a ton of internet sales. They offer a 30 trial kit for 159 (at least that was the price in 2010) it gives you a chance to try lots of different diapers and snaps vs. Velcro vs. Tabs type comparisons. After 30 if you don't like any of them or cd'ing doesn't work for you, they refund you 149, so it's quite a deal.

I think a number of places offer the trial. Cottonbabies.com is another one.

At 18 months, DD is starting to be interested and is using the potty. They say cd babies train earlier and that has been the case for us.

No one believed we would stick with cloth diapers so no one bought them for our shower. It was about 400 for 24 diapers and we did 2 to 3 loads of diaper wash per week. In the warm weather we hung them out to dry.

Fwiw, we did the snaps because I thought they would hold up better in the wash. Now that she's a wiggly toddler, I do wish we had done some velcro tabs as they would be easier to get on her!
 
#13 · (Edited)
It is nice to not have to have diapers as a regular part of our grocery list.

The savings is in the long haul. We bought enough diapers to last about 2 days in between washing. So a diaper load goes every other day. I have no idea what it does to our electricity and water usage.

I use a variety. I find all in ones that go on like a disposable diaper (no extra parts) are the most convenient. However, I do find that a doubler is a necessity. I have had a few times where the baby went just moments after I changed her and she was drenched through the diaper and required a new pair of pants/shorts since they were drenched.

Cheaper if you can find them second hand. I bought mostly new, but also had a few second hand ones given to me.

edited to add: Not all diapers are created equal. Some don't work for your baby or your life style. It is a better idea to sample a variety if you can and decide than to just pick one company and go all in. It is expensive to later change your mind.
 
G
#14 ·
I agree that it depends a lot on the cost of the diapers. For my first, I bought 2 dozen cloth diapers and did cloth diapering about half the time for the first year or so, and disposable the rest of the time.

When using disposables, I figured my average cost was $6 a week. So a year is $312. If you pay $400 for the cloth diapers, I think once you factor in additional laundry costs that it may come out more expensive. If you can get them for free or a lot cheaper, it's very different. Also depends on how long you are using them. If you have one baby that potty trains at 18 months, that's different than if you're planning on have 3 babies and using the same set for all of them.
 
#15 ·
Check diaperswappers.com and ask them. They know the best and least expensive diapering methods.

I wouldn't use disposables on my own child. I can't stand the thought of spending all that money only to throw it away. I use disposables on my daycare kids, and even that kills me (even though they pay for them)

Sometimes, I change the same child twice in 10 minutes.

The least expensive/easiest system I have is prefolds and covers. The covers are super cute.
 
#16 ·
I preferred prefolds and wraps over the fitted diapers. They were also cheaper, lasted longer as the children grew, and had more uses after the kids were toilet trained. There are a stack of them sitting next to my leaky well pump right now.

I always hung the diapers out to dry - winter or summer, long before I ever considered hanging regular laundry out. I just found that they took way too long in the dryer, and they came cleaner in the sun. It was only 2 extra loads of wash a week, and we had low water rates. So, any increase in utility bills was negligible.

The initial cost of my diapers was equal to about two months of disposables.
 
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