Cloth Nappies - Any bargains to be had?

Brighid

Hello,

I'm new to the boards, and have not been on MSE for a while. But I am 20 weeks pregnant and trying to not break the bank on the baby!

We have decided to give cloth nappies a go, for the money saving benefits and I've searched the forums and found out lots about how to use them etc. But I cannot find any information on how to buy them as cheaply as possible. I was hoping you may be able to help?

We want to get a variety of types in newborn size to try out the different makes, before buying in bulk when she is a little bit older. (I've seen lots of advice not to buy the big kits in case that type of nappy ends up being unsuitable). We have a few months so I can spread the cost a little.

I'm willing to consider used ones, but not keen on buying from ebay when I cannot see how worn they are. Also we are going to the Baby Show in London later this month and I wondered whether I'd likely find any bargains there, or if they will be expensive and just made to look like an offer!

Any mums or dad's that used cloth I'd be very grateful for any hints and tips.

Thanks in advance
B

Derby2

I'm hoping to give them a go (eventually). Have a look at your council website. Our hires out a pack of different types, sizes 1-2 for about £25. It'd be a good way to practice with the different ones and see which suits baby and yourself.

I'm going to add it to my to-do list next week now you've reminded me!

P.s. I think they also give cash back if you send a receipt showing you've bought reusable.

michbright

I used cloth for all 3 of my children and will do so again when we have no 4 (eventually)

I would suggest getting a trial to see which ones you like. I used https://www.babykind.co.uk but it looks like https://www.thenappylady.co.uk also has a good trial.

You will need to pay a deposit and usually have to book the trial a few weeks in advance. Babykind used to give a discount in nappies if you had a trial first, although I'm not sure if they still do that - no harm in checking.

The Nappy Lady also used to have a classified section so it's worth looking there as well.

Good luck

marywooyeah

I've got a four month old girl and bought a load of cloth nappies, but I can't really get on with them. I've got some bambino mio ones and liners, one of them was £13 on it's own so it wasn't cheap but I'm not really sure how to use them.

I wouldn't be too concerned about buying them off ebay or the like as it's a lot cheaper than buying them brand new. Then it won't matter so much if you decide not to use them, and if you do get on with them then it will have been a bargain!

mr_knight

I would say if you don't buy the correct type it won't really work for you.

I would suggest filling in the nappy ladies questionnaire and finding which nappy would work best for you.

She does offer a hire kit too (not tried it). I think she has an offer on tots bots bamboozle packs at the moment too.

You could end up spending more buying lots of cheap ones from ebay I would guess.

I love my nappies and can't wait for baby two to have a big fluffy bum soon

If you do go for the nappies I would go for reusable wipes too, again nappy lady sells them but cheeky wipes often have offers. Oh and reusable breast pads

Crabapple

You may well have a local nappy library as well, which would give you a chance to look at different types and try them out on your baby. If there's a local scheme through your Council they are likely to know, or look on facebook.

To be honest, I'd avoid buying any newborn nappies! If you have a smallish baby they will be lovely and useful for a while. If you have a 10lber they will be next to useless.

The cheapest cloth is probably non-branded birth to potty pocket nappies. There's lots of places selling those on ebay.

There are lots of pre-loved nappies on facebook pages as well.

freebiequennie

Ocado have some online half price as part of baby event and if use a first shop code loads of £15 off £60 codes around could be a good deal the nappies are £7.50 each at the mo.

Mrs_Soup

I'm not sure that ebay allows sales of pre loved cloth nappies. I had various ones including a whole set of bamboo ones which barely got used and ended up selling them for 25 quid on Gumtree so might be worth looking somewhere like that.

Madmel

I used to advise on cloth nappies and sell them a few years ago. Good for you for wanting to give them a try.

IMHO, if you can be bothered with folding them, terry squares are the cheapest and most versatile. They handle explosive newborn poop and dry quickly. DD2 used both 50x50cm and 60x60cm and was less than 7lbs when born. I used nappi nippas so did not need pins. Once she was more wriggly (and because I needed to know about different nappy types) we experimented with lots of styles. The terries were used for stuffing pocket nappies or boosting shaped nappies overnight with a larger wrap over the top.

Both daughters are in their teens now so I don't have much to do with cloth any more. However, as someone else has said, councils can often point you in the direction of local people who can help you, or there may be a Real Nappy Network close by. Both will have details of trial kits, incentive schemes or hire libraries.

I agree with you that whole systems of the same type can be really expensive and if you don't get on with them, it's a lot of money to lose. I used to advise my customers to try a variety of different types in the newborn size as that is the size the baby is in for the shortest time. If they bought one of each type they liked, they could road-test them and decide which ones suited their baby and lifestyle before committing to a whole set. Many bought a dozen or so terries so always had something to use.

Much also depends on your lifestyle, and your washing/drying facilities. The more absorbent the nappy, the longer it takes to dry. If you are happy to run a tumble drier (I wasn't!) you can go for most types. If you have limited indoor drying space, you need to be realistic about how many you will need and how often you will wash them. My rule of thumb was 18-20 nappies in the first size with 4 wraps. Get the very best wraps you can (I detested Bambino Mio because their wraps were awful but may now be better) - most cloth will contain and absorb but the wrap is the bit that stops it going all over the baby's clothes, bed and you. You can expect to do up to 10 changes a day at first - you will need fresh cloth for each but you can air out a damp wrap and reuse it the change after. As the baby gets older, you will change less frequently so can get away with fewer inners.

Most cloth users have their favourites and few aficionados stick to all one brand or type. We used an Australian system with pretty wraps (sad, I know) but could get the wrap to match their skirts/dresses. As newer nappies were introduced, we loved pocket ones overnight as you could make them seriously absorbent.

Sorry for the epic - feel free to PM me if you need more advice. I have a couple of friends still advising who may be able to offer more up-to-date advice.

Brighid

Wow - so much information! Thank you everyone.

Unfortunately my council does not offer an incentive (they have concentrated on improving the recycling of disposables instead). But I will try out gumtree as that way I can go and look at the nappies before buying. Ebay don't allow second hand, but quite a few on there anyway, and I cannot fancy buying them unless I can see them and make sure they are not manky!

Will have a look at some of the sites mentioned too, at the very least I can find the cheapest prices they have to compare to any offers at the baby show, and then maybe buy 3or4 a month between now and Due date.

With Terry squares, how easy are they to fold? Can you recommend any good folds to look at as there seem a huge number.

Lara44

Hi Brighid

I use cloth nappies for my little boy who's 3 months old, and we really like them. I wanted to have new ones so I bought some unused from ebay and gumtree (spares that people were selling) and some lightly preloved. We went with birth to potty nappies (the ones with poppers to change the sizes), instead of several sets of shaped nappies. I think it has been more cost effective.

We use a pocket nappy for the daytime (Bumgenius V4s but there are so many different types of pockets and all in ones) and then a separate nappy and wrap combination for nighttime (Motherease one size with airflow wraps). I prefer a slimmer fitting and more user-friendly style for daytime and then something bomb proof for overnight. The Motherease are so huge though I don't think I'd use them in the daytime - I struggle to get clothes to fit over cloth bums as it is. If you're line drying that will definitely affect your choice - the bamboo Motherease I have take forever, and pockets dry more quickly than all in ones.

I have seen lots of bargains on Facebook selling sites - gutted I hadn't joined them before I purchased my stash. We used disposables for the first few weeks so could have easily tested a few out before buying them... but I don't think we would have been in the right frame of mind to get any bargains! We bought our buggy from a baby show - it was ex-display and had 25% off the already reduced price. I wonder if the nappy retailers do anything similar?