I want to switch to cloth - what do I do - where do I start???

[Mummabear]

Hi Mammas,

My gorgeous boy is 5 months old and I have been using disposables since day 1. The reason behind this is purely ignorance and lack of education! I thought cloth nappies were still like the 'old days' with soaking, folding, pins (ouch!), etc. I need some enlightenment girls - and plenty of direction!

Veve has already started me on my way (thanks chicky!) with a few website for fitted nappies - what are my other choices? What do I need. I must also ask for you to please pardon my ignorance as I have NO IDEA. What are snappies, etc. I also don't want to use baby wipes anymore either, but I need help on the logistics of the water and washer method. Do you use the face washer just the once and then put it in with the nappies to be washed? Do you have a bowl of water sitting there - where do you sit the bowl? Oscar would have it all over the floor in a matter of seconds, lo. His change table is a secured mat on top of a chest of drawers (so beautifully and lovingly made by his daddy).

Please help me girls - I really want to make the change. I don't have enough money to bumble my way through on my own, buying everything on the market, so your guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Remember, I know nothing - so be gentle with me, lol :D

[cosmic]

Hi Larissa,

I can't help you with all the logistical issues since I haven't got the actual baby yet (minor technicality :p) but I have been researching cloth since I fell pregnant and just wanted to say that I have read over and over again that the absolute best for overnight are pocket nappies.. particularly Fuzzibunz and Swaddlebees:
www.theweewuns.au.com
You can boost them as much as you need and they don't need any cover.

Others that I hear are very good are Tots Bots:
www.cleverpants.com.au
That site also sells snappis so you can have a look at them - they are basically a 3-pronged thingy that has 'claw' things on the ends to hold the nappy in place IYKWIM.

I have heard that prefolds are very good either to use as a flat, folded nappy (check them out at the wee wuns while you are there) and can also be used as boosters in your pocket nappies. For stuffing you can also use plain terry squares.

Hope that helps for starters.. a lot of people say don't stock up on a lot of one nappy until you've tried it on your bub, but I am ordering totsbots and fuzzibunz before bub arrives and will just have plenty of flat terry squares on hand until I confirm they are ok and order more.

Have fun! The new cloth nappies are GREAT!! :)

[Jaileth]

Hey NewMumJuly05,

I too don't have the bub yet, but as for having water on hand, a friend of mine suggested going down to the two dollar shop and buying a sauce thingy. (You know, the type you see at saussage sizzles) and having that filled with water. You just squirt out as much as you need, and bubs can't knock it over. She's also used the Pump water bottles when out (the type with the pop top lid), so maybe something like that would help.

Sorry if I'm a bit vague. Really don't know what to call them.

[JanetF]

I don't have bowls of water. I wet a couple of face washers (69c each LOL) and put baby soap-free cleanser on one and use the others for washing/rinsing. Nothing to tip over there! Those washers just go in the buckets where I dry pail. No soaking, no chemicals :)

I use terry flats with a series of covers and also have some fitteds. I buy secondhand where possible because it's cheaper and nappies are REALLY hardy. Even my flats came from a friend so they've really been reused and recycled! I use a stuffable for a night nappy but your bub would probably still be pooing every nappy and need changes overnight, yes? I have bought some secondhand newborn fitteds (most bubs grow out of the them really quickly) and my sister and I are going to go halves in a heap of others as our babies are due about 2 months apart and it will save us lots of money!

[H&B'sMum]

I just want to congratulate you on making a conscious decision to change.
I changed to cloth about 10 months ago and haven't regreted it. I started out by watching ebay and looking for nappies that I have heard were really good. Everyone who uses cloth will tell you which is there fav and you need to buy a few of different types to find out which works best on your bub.
My favs are:
Greens pockets: they have different types for different uses. ie, funtimes are cute patterned nappy for day time use, or dreamtime which are fleece nappies and my fav for night time use. The advantage or pockets is that you can boost them to the absorbance you need for your bub. ie if he is a heavy wetter than boost with more, if light boost less.

To boost a pocket you can use anything that is absorbant. Use terry flats, microfibres you can get from the cleaning section at Big W or Kmart, hemp boosters (my fav) or even a hand towel.
Most pockets don't need covers so are great for dad's to use as well.

For wipes I just cut up some terry flats and use them. I use a skirt bottle that has a tiny about of baby shampoo, sorblane (sp??) cream and then add water. I spray the wipe or Harry's bottom and then wipe. All this goes in the nappy bucket.

Dry pailing is the way to go as it reduces smells, water and chemicals.

I hope this has helped a little in your research. There are some great threads on here about other cloth nappies so have a look at them.

Good luck and welcome to the addication!!!!!!!!!!! LOL

[veve]

Good luck and welcome to the addication!!!!!!!!!!! LOL

oh isn't THAT the understatement of the year!!! addiction??? it is worse than ANY drug :D

[alissa-mareesmum]

I switched to cloth when alissa was 6 months and i haven't looked back.

If you have some money to spend then you will have alot of fun looking at all the cute designs. But if you are looking at the cheapest option (this is what i had to do) then go to woolies or kmart buy two 12packs of actil (i'm pretty sure this is the brand) of terry nappies, i bought 24 nappy liners from woolies in the little wishes brand name (they come in packs of one and have the triangle shape). Go online and look up nappy folds, i use the neat nappy fold it's quick and easy there is alot of choice in the nappy fold area or you could create your own nappy fold. I have the hygenic nappy bucket that i had bought for the dispossables that is now the dry pale. Also buy a couple of snappies they are instead of pins (triangle shape with white teeth that grab onto the nappy) snappies hold the nappy together latch on side, stretch the other side across and latch it on then pull down the bottom one and latch it on. Now you will need a nappy cover again you can buy online i am one of those who can only afford the cheap pvc ones :( overnight we put alissa in a double nappy. Extra tip if using the neat nappy fold, fold the nappy that is around the babies legs up into the nappy to allow extra mobility and to help retain any poos. I dry pale wees and poos get flushed down the toilet rinsed in trough then soak nappy and liner in a bucket overnight to be washed the following morning.

Hope that helps, Jade :)

[Mummabear]

thanks girls. lots for me to look into!

Jade - due to money restrictions ATM your option sounds like the way to go. hopefully in a while I can look at getting some of the other nappies.

can you buy these other nappies in stores rather than online? just thinking that i will prob only be able to afford to get 1 or 2 at a time so seems pointless and waste of postage money to buy online.

[cosmic]

Larissa, if money is tight maybe stick with terry flats during the day with a good quality cover and just get a couple of pocket nappies for overnight? I think they are about $22 each and you'd only need a couple if you are just using them for night.. and you just stuff them with your terry flats. Easy! :) (whenever I think they are expensive, I compare them to a box of disposables and think of how long they will last... and on more than one baby!!)

The other thing I've been told is absolutely get PUL or wool covers. No cheap PVC pilchers - yucky and sweaty 'cause they don't breathe. Worth investing in PUL. You can get some good PUL wrap-style covers at the Totsbots website ($18 each) www.cleverpants.com.au. I'm sure other cloth mummies can point you to other options or again perhaps try Ebay.

PS - not sure you can get good quality modern fitted nappies in stores. And if you did they would probably cost more because of store overheads etc...?

[JanetF]

I believe BubbaJ does nappy parties so maybe there'll be one in your area? Otherwise no, I've not seen really great nappies in dept stores. They all have contracts with sposies companies who won't permit it. Weenees is about the only one that gets in and they're not fitted.

[Mummabear]

thanks. is bubbaj online? where would i find them?

[JanetF]

http://www.bubbaj.com.au

[Tisme]

In some Target stores you can get a variety of nappy covers and such, as well as a brand called Pee Cee's ... these are a cloth type nappy that you put liners into ... if that helps.!

[Mummabear]

cheers eleanor. anything i can get at target is great by me - then i can walk my fat **** over there and buy it!

[reAllytee]

Ive been looking at changing also i just dont know how i will cope :confused:
Im a basket case about cleanliness & having dirty nappies even in a bucket makes me shudder.
Ive seen the polar fleece type nappies at target that have the extra lining bit but im confused at how it all works etc i mean does that mean you still need to use liners etc. I was also told to save money use a chux or the likes to line the nappy which in turn can be soaked washed & reused has anyone tried this ?
I was also told by a mum at our mothers group that she doesnt even use nappisan or soakers just rinses the nappies after they are used then washes them.
Sorry im really naive about all of this as well as just plain confused. :o

[Mummabear]

Ally, come sit with me in the "totally confused" and "dunce" corner, lol.

I have heard several times that the home brand nappy liners wash up better than chux and the J&J ones.

I'm off to Target today to buy a snappie and a bum cover (are they called pilchers) and if I can convince DH to give me some extra pocket money (lol :rolleyes: ) some more nappies.

I have some nappies that I use for spew rags and was just wondering which nappies I use for bums? I have the smooth flanalette type in white and also the rougher towelling type in bright colours. Which ones are better for bums. I've seen the "terry towelling" ones referred to as better - once again ignoramus here doesn't know which ones they are (are they the rougher ones).

[Stacy]

Hi girls,

Just found this in the New Posts Section and thought that I would give it a read! I was leaning towards disp nappies as I only have tank water, an thus don't have heaps to spare.

But after reading your thread I am gaining confidence in coth. The dry pale. What does that involve. Is it that you just throw the nappy in a bucket with a lid and then throw that into the washing machine when it is full. Do you wash only nappies together and babies clothes seperate? How many nappies can you fit in a 7kg front load washing machine (Approx) How can I save heaps of water?

My gosh - so many questions.

This is my first bub and the first bub in my whole family since my cousin 15 years ago (a lot has changed since then)

Sorry if this is confusing and the questions are too hard. Maybe a good website I can read on the ins and out would be great!

Stacy

[Mummabear]

Hi Stacy,

Yeah - I think you've got it with the dry pail (that was my interpretation anyway!)

I would wash nappies separate from clothes, but not sure if you have to.

One of the girls in my mums & bubs does her baby clothes in one wash, saves the water, then does their clothes, saves the water and then does the nappies. So 1 lot of water for 3 loads. I don't really understand how you can do this, perhaps she has a twin tub. Would be impossible with a front loader wouldn't it?

Hope someone else can be of a little more help for you, lol.

I'd be interested in a website for beginners too, lol!

[Stacy]

Thanks for the warm welcome NewMumJuly05

I think saving the water would be impossible with a front loader, but the reason I bought one was because they are better on water and clothes than top load.

I found wa good site that tells you all about what you need and what to do. Have just printed off the 15 pages and will read it later in the airconditioned bedroom.
The Site is www.natureschild.com.au

The Nappy Folds search that I did was excellent (i used Google) Thanks to the lady to suggested that!!!
Stacy

[rebeccamum]

I've been using fitted nappies since my DD was born, they're great! Personally I don't think disposable has any greater convenience or benefits than cloth. Modern nappies are wonderful, require less work and much cheaper than disposable. You can save up to $1500 a year using cloths and that includes the cost of detergent, water and electricity washing cloths.

I'm using Tots Bots and some other hemp nappies. Tots Bots are great but a little bit bulky so my DD looks like she has a sizeable **** but I don't mind that LOL :D
Like other girls say, you can buy one of each brand and see which one suits your bub. A lot of them have 2nd handed nappies for sale on their websites or you can try Ebay.

About washing fitted nappies, I don't see why you can't wash them with other clothes. I usually wash my DD's nappies seperately but if I have space in the machine, I'll chuck some of adults' clothes in it to save water. Just remember not to use fabric softener or Napisan as they reduce the elasticity (sp?) and the fabric can get thinner. Also, you understand correctly about the term "dry pailing" :)

If you want to know more about cloth nappies, try this site www.allaboutnappies.com this is where I started my cloth journey :)
Good luck and enjoy!

[cosmic]

If you have a look through the nappies section (maybe it's been archived now) there's a whole thread on dry-pailing. Really!

And I believe front loaders are supposed to be the business when it comes to washing nappies, so you're in front already Stacy!

[alissa-mareesmum]

Hi,

Like others have said avoid the pvc covers if you can unfortunently last year we had financial hardship with bearly enough money left over for food each week (DF was on a traineeship) i hope you are in a better situation and able to buy the nice covers/pilchers. Although with a new job now we are looking on the up and up WoooHooo so i will also be on the hunt for nice covers and scouring cloth nappy web sites.

Jade :)

[Mor]

You are getting some great advice here. Good on you for researching cloth and asking people in the know for advice.

Baby BeeHinds (www.babybeehinds.com.au) and FuzziBunz also do nappy parties in most states. If you are in South Australia/Adelaide there is a shop stocking lots of modern cloth nappies too, their website is www.naturescradle.com.au

Have a look at www.nappycino.com too for some reviews and a discussion forum, and www.ozclothnappies.org has stacks of FAQs that might help you out with any questions and a directory of makers and sellers in Australia.

Here is the whole dry pailing discussion:
http://www.bubhub.com.au/community/forums/showthread.php?t=5145&highlight=pail

[H&B'sMum]

Lucy,
You beat me too it. I was just about to post same of those links.

Good luck in your search girls and I promose you, you will not regret going cloth.

[Rainbowbrite]

Dont want to hijack your thread but I too am sick of spending money on disposables. Cant afford it as much as i love the littleness of her bum in them :p

My question is

If you use flats, what fold is best & how often do you have to change bub? With diposables, i do it at feed times so about 5 times a day. Not through the night.

RB

RB

[reAllytee]

Damnit i so want those zappy nappies or the likes they seem so much easier to me shame ive gotta convince my partner of the cost hrmmmmz wonder what i can use as a bargaining tool hehehe :rolleyes:

[Mor]

Re the cost issues to set up cloth, there are a few ways to tackle this.

several WAHM sites and others have cost comparisons. I have put the following summary together,

Cost of Switching from Disposables to Cloth
Consider the cost: Disposables*
At 6 weeks old – you have 6000 nappies to change - $2400
At 6 months old – you have 5000 nappies to change - $2000
At 12 months old – you have 3800 nappies to change - $1520
At 18 months old – you have 2500 nappies to change - $1000
At 24 months old – you have 1200 nappies to change - $480
(*based on average 7 nappies/24 hours at 40c each for 2.5 years)

Compare with Modern Cloth:
Nappy packages, birth to toddler, including nappies & covers:
combo of flats and fitteds - $400 (approx)
24 quality fitted nappies - $750 (approx)

It is never too late to switch - you can still save money!
Don’t forget that you can reuse them for future children and they have great re-sale value (eg: Ebay). And you will reduce the amount of space required for landfill.

but here is just one of many places you can get similar info:
http://www.babybeehinds.com.au/FAQ/ClothVsDisposables.htm

Australian WAHMs are lovely, and most are happy to discuss payment options with you, such as layby. Many do great value packages. And another option is just to see it as 1 new cloth nappy for each week of disposables you don't have to use. I have a friend using pocket nappies and she has 8 and uses only them, and has no trouble with that number. She prefers pockets over fitteds, and because they dry incredibly fast, she can get away with only 8. So depending on what combination of nappies you get, you can still do it pretty cheap, and start out small, using them day time only, for example. If you are already using flat cloth nappies, you could suggest buying a couple of good fitted nappies and covers to get you through the night. Once people see how easy they are to use, they often find it practical to get a few more for outings, etc.

Re. nappy folds.
Have a look at:
http://www.thenappylady.co.uk/Advice/Instructions.asp?InstructionID=2

I know a lot of people who use the jo fold, top of the list there. I haven't personally, but many cloth users rave about it.

Re. changing frequency
I don't think I change more or less frequently than a disposable user would. DS probably gets about 6-8 changes/day, but it depends on poos and how heavy a wee session he has had! We never need to change him over night, as we use very good quality hemp fitted cloth nappies such as Baby BeeHinds, Bubba Nature and Erica nappies Very Baby Simply Nights - and a good wool cover. I think it's personal preference tho, as I have a friend who changes more frequently with cloth. With a good microfleece/polarfleece liner in the nappy, wettness against the skin isn't an issue.

:D

[Oscar's mum]

Don’t forget that you can reuse them for future children and they have great re-sale value (eg: Ebay).
:D


I think this quote is a strong selling point to convincing others to use cloth! :)

[Mummabear]

Thanks for all the info girls. Well, I've made a start, albeit tentatively!

I can't afford any of the fitted or pocket nappies at the moment so I'm going with the flats as I already had some of them that I use for spew rags. I went to the shops yesterday but couldn't find snappis so I had to get pins (ouch). Luckily I went into a second hand baby shop today and found a snappi for 20c - I was so please as I NEVER find bargins, lol. When I did the food shopping at woolies they had heaps of snappis so I grabbed a couple of new ones too. Unfortuntely I've had to go with the el-cheapo pvc pilchers at the moment, but I'm hoping to get some of the PUL's soon. I'm also hoping to build up a collection of fitted and pocket nappies over time, as I can afford them.

I started with the oragami fold as I was familiar with this from using it on young cousins years ago. I didn't do too well. The I tried 'corners' which wasn't a huge hit either, so i'm still looking at folds on the net tonight. I don't know if it's just because i'm used to the snug fit of disposables that I think the cloth folds are looking too loose and small or if I am in fact doing them wrong. I'm not a fan of the pilchers either as they look so uncomfortable and it gets all steamy in there. I was rather surprised at the difference in absorbancy between disposables and cloth. I had to change his cloth after just 1 wee - I only switched over to the cloth this arvo after I got home from shopping and from 4pm til 6.15pm he went through three nappies :eek: . Oh well, I'll persevere for a few weeks and hopefully I'll get the hang of it.

I'm still just fumbling through though, lol.

Thanks again girls.

[Mummabear]

Just a quick one. Mor - thanks for all the info, I just tried the Jo fold and found it much, much better - very easy and much snugger fit.

Cheers :)

[Jaileth]

Great thread - thanks so much! Glad I'm finding this out now, can't wait to see how well it goes!

[cosmic]

Larissa, 20c Snappies?? :eek: I love your work!! :)
All this talk of cloth nappies got me inspired to wash all my terry and flannel flats yesterday. I was thinking of pre-folding them all into little jo-folds before I put them away. Not sure if that's being super-organised or just pathetic. :rolleyes: :p

[reAllytee]

cosmic - I would just call you keen & excited :) Who could blame you though !!!!
Id do it what the hell mind you come a month before bubs arrives you will probably rearrange bubs things if not a few times then a few times after that. Im still rearranging bubs room lol im a basket case !

[Oscar's mum]

I was rather surprised at the difference in absorbancy between disposables and cloth. I had to change his cloth after just 1 wee - I only switched over to the cloth this arvo after I got home from shopping and from 4pm til 6.15pm he went through three nappies


Hemp is more absorbant I have found.

[cosmic]

Ally, I think you're right. The baby has a couple of little drawers full of clothes in various sizes and I have already had them out a couple of times, resorted them and put them back. :p

[Mummabear]

Oscar's Mum (or anyone else, lol) - can you get hemp flats?

[JanetF]

I don't believe so but you can buy hemp and sew them yourself. But you'd have all that fabric over their hips not being used if you used them in conventional folds. I prefer booster pad shapes :)

[waawa]

Darlings Down Under carry Jam Tots hemp blend flats. Butterfly Cheeks used to stock them, but the server is down at the moment so I can't check. Snazzipants and Greenbeans in NZ also have hemp flats.

There are a few vendors of hemp prefolds around, too.

Lara

[Mummabear]

Thanks girls.

[Nathans mun]

Here is another supplier to try, http://www.eenee.com/ Australian designed eco friendly nappy - I use cloth nappies with the eenee liners (totallly flushable). Before bubs was born I brought 500 pack of liners which we are still using (the liner is huge so we tear it in half)- he is now 5 months.

[Oscar's mum]

Nathan's mum I love those nappies! lol :D Except I use a folded flat nappy instead of the pad.