Convincing my partner to use cloth nappies

hob_nob_bob

Solarjunkie said:

I timed myself one day how long it took dealing with nappies, and it was 15 minutes. That included folding, changing, washing, for a day. The best piece of advice I was given was to keep a pile ready folded, this was terry squares and I used the "origami" fold which can be adjusted as the child grows and puts the maximum thickness between the legs where it is needed. The only time I ever used disposables was the day before we went on holiday so they were all ready to go! I hated the waste.of single use nappies.
We used thin liners known as paper liners, if they were mucky they were binned if not they were rinsed and reused. Nappies went in a lidded bucket of water, no Napisan as we'd heard it rots the fabric, popped in the machine each night, put on the line in the morning if possible, tumbled if we had to. Not only did we save money we also felt in control, if we were low on nappies we just washed some, no dashing to the shop before it closed. I have never used a baby wipe, I used muslin squares which were washed along with the nappies, having been used as thin nappies for newborn in the first place.
Now there are shaped nappies, nippers, bamboo and all sorts, I do wonder if they take longer to dry as they can't be unfolded, but I think the myth that washables are hugely time consuming is completely wrong. 
Best of luck with your future family, go with your instincts and you'll do fine.

Thank you, this is all so useful!

Clouds88

Congratulations hob nob. I would say lot of info changes over time, I used to soak nappies 10 years ago between washes in a bucket but they say not to now. Have a look on a 'real nappy' website like the nappy lady, you can fill I'm a questionnaire and they can point you to which ones may suit you based on your answers. Also there are lots and lots of videos and how to guides online.  

hob_nob_bob

Thanks @Clouds88, will definitely check that out.

seeroo

We cloth nappy and I have to say I don't think it's cheaper really just better for the environment and baby's bum. Nappies are very cheap now if you buy supermarket own brand. When you factor in the cost of the nappies and all the washing it's probably more expensive or the same. You can use them for a second child which is where the savings would come in.

If you're buying cloth brand new you're looking at £12 to £28 per nappy. You'll need at least 15 day nappies and 5 night nappies. It can be quite a minefield to navigate but the Nappy Lady website is great. 

Most people use disposibles for newborns as its expensive to buy newborn specific for a short time unless you get them second hand. There are a few cloth nappy selling pages on Facebook which are good for picking up second hand ones (you can do a strip wash, instructions on nappy lady website, before you use them).

We're breastfeeding so the poo is water soluble until you start weaning at 6 months. You can just stick the nappies straight in the washing machine. The nappy lady website has some great instructions on how to wash. They also have a Facebook page where you can ask other experienced users questions (extremely helpful it's called "the nappy lady pregnancy, parenting and baby group"). Once you start weaning the poo becomes harder and you can plop it in the toilet. We actually started sitting our little boy on the potty at every nappy change since about 4-5 months old and now he knows what it's for and does the majority of his poos on there (lookup elimination communication). We only started doing it because he kept pooing on the changing mat but it makes my cloth nappies a lot easier to deal with. 

Most childcare settings are familiar with cloth nappies now as well.

I hired a trial kit from our local sling and nappy library (you can lookup local ones online) which was invaluable because you quickly learn which nappies you get on with best as they all fit differently so depends on the baby.

My stash is a mixture but mostly birth to potty all in ones and pocket nappies. We use disposible at night because I never got round to buying night nappies. 

My husband wasn't on board with the cloth nappies. I have to say he hasn't really come around either (even though he doesn't deal with the nappy bucket). He mostly likes using the velcro ones for ease but you get a better fit with poppers.

One thing I would say is I'm a massive fan of reusable wipes. So even if you don't cloth nappy give those a go. So much easier to use than disposible. I have a set of cheeky wipes and a set of the nappy lady wipes (soft fleece on one side and Terry on the other) I prefer my nappy lady ones they're bigger and the soft fleece is great for comfort and the Terry for getting stuck on stuff off.

You might also find that the nappies you love in the beginning you don't like when the baby gets older as they may not be as absorbent for an older child. So my favs are called Motherease Wizard Unos because they're a lovely fit and not bulky. Others have said they're not as absorbent when the baby is older (because they're not bulky).

Another thing is I say they're not cheaper than disposible but they are if you factor in second hand values. You can sell them after and they usually sell for about 50% of the retail price. If you have a rare or in demand print they can sell for more than retail.

hob_nob_bob

So helpful, thanks @seeroo! I'm keen to use cloth nappies and wipes more for the environmental aspect than saving money, I can't bear the thought that any nappy any of us has ever used is still in landfill somewhere, and I really don't want to add to that if I can help it!

QueenJess

Hiya. I started using cloth nappies recently for my second and it is a bit of a scary upfront cost. I went through The Nappy Lady website to get their recommendations on what to try (I tried my own research, but frankly the different options were incredibly confusing). I did buy them in dribs and drabs to make sure it’s definitely what I wanted.

I didn’t start the process until DD was about 4 months old because I was in and out of hospital and it felt impossible to just live day to day, let alone do extra washing too. It would have definitely been very difficult in hospital with all the COVID restrictions as well.

I did it mainly for environmental reasons, but it is also saving us money (and frankly hassle in keep buying nappies etc) in the long term - although not as much as if I had used it with my first. DH wasn’t keen, but after a number of nighttime incidents with leaking nappies, we actually found the cloth ones were the only ones not to leak (maybe she has a strange shaped body??) and so he is now converted. TBF - we did have a few leaks too with the disposables in the day and I noted this in the Nappy Lady questionnaire which hopefully meant why I ended up with the recommendation that I did.   I do find the reusable wipes better and you don’t need as many.

I never bothered with my first as we had no end of problems and in and out of hospitals for well over a year and when I could think about it, it just felt pointless as he was about to toilet train. As you never know how it will be or your preference, I wouldn’t rush to conclude or buy loads of kit. Have the child, take your time and get to the right nappies for you in your own time.

sue1871

We used cloth nappies on our daughter (now nine) and I would recommend to anyone!

• We had a nappy bag within a lidded bucket, and I threw a few drops of essential oils on the bag so it smelt nice.
• The rinsing/washing of the liners was really not a big issue at all, and we did nappy wash every other day or so (we had about 12 nappies if I remember, so we always had a few dry ones ready to go.
• We used eco eggs to wash them and they came up nice & clean, and we were happy that our daughter didn't come into contact with any chemicals on her baby bum.
• She never had nappy rash.
• If you are considering them, I would recommend the ones with press-stud buttons, as the velcro ones got a bit tatty, as we used these nappies for years.
• The ones we bought cost, I think, £300 but we were able to sell them on afterwards. She didn't fit into them until she was 8lbs, so keep that in mind.
• They come in really cool designs so if she wore a dress we could have a matching nappy underneath. They are bigger than disposable nappies - a bit bulkier, but her clothes still fit and she looked really cute!
• Also, we did have a stock of disposables for when we went away for a few days if we didn't have access to a washing machine/clothes dryer.

Like I said, I would definitely recommend!

Drhds

A PP mentioned a soaking bucket but you don't have to soak then before washing now. I'm using cloth now, big benefits for me are poo containment- blow outs are much less of a thing, potty training should be a little easier as the nappy feels wet whereas disposables feel dry so they get the association easier and cost- I got mine 2nd hand

kimplus8

This may have already been suggested but is there a nappy library in your area. Usually you can borrow a selection of cloth nappies to try for a period of time to see which ones suit you. You have to put down a deposit and sometimes pay a small fee but it’s well worth it. 

Here you can find if there’s a nappy library near you - http://www.uknappynetwork.org/find-a-library.html#
personally I use brands, bells bums, modern cloth nappies and some cheaply ones off Amazon called Alva. They are all really good, I do use a disposable at night just because my babies hate heavy wettest and night and I don’t want to wake them to change. I have used them for all my babies and have found they have less nappy rash and potty trained really well as they could tell when they felt ‘wet’. 

I would say however that buying second hand is best for saving money as you don’t make much back on your first baby’s use if you buy new once you factor in washing on high temp, drying ( if you don’t have space to air dry in winter) and powder etc.
if you buy pre- loved just ensure you do a sanitation wash before you use them- instructions here- https://cleanclothnappies.com/sanitise/
hope this helps, please feel free to message me if you have any further questions. 

:-):smile:

hob_nob_bob

Loved revisiting this old thread thanks to the most recent response!

So my baby is now thirteen months' old today, and we've successfully had him in cloth full time (with the exception of overnight) since September. I'd bought lots of birth to potty ones while I was pregnant but he was such a small boy for so long (0.4th centile for weight) that they just didn't fit him until then. My partner is on board too now which I'm thrilled about!

Got to say that I find the whole process so much easier than I'd expected. We did buy a bidet sprayer which we fitted ourselves to our downstairs loo, and this is what we use to rinse off the nappies before we pop them in a large wet bag ready for washing every few days. I'm yet to do any calculations though on how much it's costing us in electricity but we've not noticed any significant change to our bills. I would say that the nappies adds two loads of laundry per week for us.

I'm also now pregnant with our second baby so I'm looking forward to clothing again for a second time! I think I'll probably use disposables for the first few weeks, or perhaps look to hire a newborn kit from a nappy library, rather than fully investing in new nappies to fit a newborn.