Reusable/washable/cloth nappies

LilMissEmmylou

you can get an agent from team lollipop or baby kind to come to your house, or find a nappichinno in your area to go to

ThriftyT

My friend also had Bambino Mios and gave up for similar reasons to you bylromarha, when I visited her over christmas I showd her my Fuzzis (agree on them being a great nappy!)and she is now back into cloth and loving it. She is also able to use her some of her small prefolds as inserts and is selling on her large ones (she bought a birth to potty pack!).

Elle00

Re OP:

1 he is 2 - likely to be in nappies for another year and need the XL size for that whole year. Is it worhtwhile on the basis that we're getting a years worth of wear out of one size

It may well be but only if he doesn't surprise you and demand to wee on the toilet in three months time like Mummy and Daddy do.

2 I work - and can't be at home handwashing stained nappies all day - strangly I have to earn the moeny to buy the dammed things

3 I hate faff - see above, hate housework also

In this case I would seriously recommend against prefolds and terry cloths as these are time consuming and very faffy indeed. If you want a simple nappy that just slides on with no folding and messing around then the Motherease all-in-one would be the most suitable nappy for you in my opinion.

4 he is very skinny and alot of disposables leak!, I've read a few reports suggesting that skinnylegged/waisted kids are a nightmare to fit with nappies

This is very, very true however the older they are, the easier it is to get a reusable to fit and going for an all-in-one will mean a better fit than a cheaper prefold or terry nappy. An all-in-one is a whole nappy that is created in the same shape as a disposable (although bulkier of course) that then has an outerwrap worn over it. With an prefold system, you just have a cloth section between the legs with a waterproof outerwrap over it and they move easily as the inner prefold becomes wet and expands and this is where skinny legged kids come into trouble because leaks come out through the gape between the prefold and the outerwrap if you don't get the exact right fit.

5 He is in nursery - how likely is it that they will use cloth nappies

They have no choice - they have to comply with your wishes on this one. You'd have to supply a nappy bucket and take the dirty ones home everyday though.

6 How expensive are they? at the moment disposables cost me £5 a week, £260/year. So cloth nappies would have to come in at less than that including washing machine bills

You could do prefold or terry nappies for the year for around £80 all in realistically speaking but this is unsuitable based on your other requirements plus that price is provided you buy second hand. I can't recommend prefold nappies to anyone based on my own terrible experiences (I also have a skinny baby) and other people on here have said similar too.

If you opted for the system I think might suit you could still save money but not as much. Motherease XL all-in-one nappies are £12.95 each bought brand new from a store though you can buy them for £7.50 each from the ebay store "Time2Change Real Nappies". You'd need 12 based on doing a wash every two to three days which would cost £90. Then you'd need 3 outerwraps costing £23.97, 2 nappy buckets (1 for nursery) costing £10, inner disposable liners costing £35 for one year's worth (to catch any soil), a few boosters for long trips or nighttime for about £10 and washing and drying expenses would come to about an extra £40 for the year. So that's a total cost of £208.97 meaning you're only looking at saving £51.03. You would also get money back from these though and the resale value of Motherease is quite high so you could easily get £60 back for the nappies and wraps when you're finished with them. It'd be cheaper if you bought them second hand to start with but they're hard to get hold of sometimes and wouldn't have a resale value afterwards as they'd probably been too worn out.

I know some people will swear blind you can do it all oh so cheaply but I'm afraid this has not been my experience. The only time people really save money is if they manage to buy the right nappy first time round in the form of a birth-to-potty pack (c£250 - £400).

7 how on earth do you dry them during the winter?

With great difficulty LOL. You can put the cloth parts in the tumble drier no problems but you have to hang the wraps on an airer as it damages the waterproof coating to tumble dry them. Outerwraps don't take too long to dry though and there's always the bath tub for airing them in if it's wet outside!

8 any good cashback/freebies out there?

I've not come across any from the retailers unfortunately, probably because they don't want expensive freebies being ordered just to sell on ebay, however there are some local councils offering trial runs so do ask yours.

I've spent ages writing this so I hope it's been helpful!

ThriftyT

Elle83, a very thourough reply re prices etc!! I still think for ease of drying a pocket nappy would be better for her, and they have a higher resale value at the end, also they are fleece lined so she wouldn't need to buy liners (unless she paticularly wanted to use paper ones which aren't really nessesary as fleece works as a 'stay dry' layer and solids come off it easily). They have the same benefits as a AIO but with about 1/2 the dry time and as an added bonus they come in cute colours and patterns!! A set of 12 Fuzzi Bunz would cost £144, you can pick up nappy buckets from pound shops (any lidded bucket would do!) for around £3 and they resell at around £6 - £8 thereby recouping a huge amount of the initial investment.

halia

Elle that was VERY useful thanks :T
those were the kind of figures I needed. It has to save me more than £1 (£50/year) a week to feel worth while for the additional time input
- looks like I may not go for it afterall but will see. If I can get some to try from freecycle or somewhere I'll do a trial run and see how we go.

would this be a reasonable pack to try it out with?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/12-x-MOTHEREASE-NAPPIES-4-AIR-FLOW-COVERS-MOTHER-EASE_W0QQitemZ140121380343QQihZ004QQcategoryZ26269QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

missk_essington;
thanks for the useful comment :rolleyes:
yes he is VERY likely to be in nappies until age 3, one of the side affects of his particular special needs.

Justie

halia wrote: »

would this be a reasonable pack to try it out with?

something like that would probably be good (and whatever you pay for it you'd probably get back selling it on) - just check that the wraps will be big enough for him when he's 3 or you'd have to spend more money again - and bear in mind that not all babies suit all nappies so there's a chance that they won't fit him snugly and then you'd get leaks - there's also the fact that now you've posted the link every other viewer of this thread who wants nappies will be bidding for it


I would seriously recommend finding a lollipop agent http://www.teamlollipop.co.uk/ in your local area as she will have a selection of nappies so you can find out which fit your son best - you can then look for them online once you know the brand and style you want.

katglasgow

I have bought all second hand in preparation of my 2nd baby (used disposables for first). I found the EBay lots on the whole did not go for much cheaper than buying brand new, but I got some good deals from ladies who advertised on the for sale board of the Nappy Lady Website and would reccomend that to be a more cost effective method for buyers.
I have spent £100 and got 20 Motherease one size, 5 small wraps and 10 boosters. I am counting on reselling after use too!

wheeze

I agree with much of Elee83's advice but you def dont need such an expensive bucket, they can be picked up quite cheaply. Also if you go for Motherease All in Ones, you dont need wraps, as they have a wrap attached,saving another £23.

Have you considered a nappy trial? You can borrow nappies for a two week period and see how they fit, wash and dry.

Try https://www.babykind.co.uk - I am an agent for them so think they're the best lol, but obviously other sites offer trials too.
HTH

halia

thanks wheeze - I Like the fact that even washed I get 70% back so my cost would be £10 + postage.

From what i can tell motherease Sandy's should be a good bet so I'm also on the lookout for any second hand packs to try.

ziggy2004

i would definately do a trial as my toddler refuses to wear reusables most of the time:rolleyes: I have bamboozles and love the slim fit I truggle to get normal trousers over the bumbles I have allhough I like the bumble fit better on my toddler

oh and as for being :eek: at a 3 year old being in nappies ???? even without special needs that sounds fine to me