Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Update on Our Diapering Experiment

We've been cloth diapering now for about 2 weeks. Going into it, I had several concerns so I thought now was a good time to share each one and the results.

1)Extra Laundry-- This has almost been a non-issue. I do so much laundry anyway with 3 little kids and a hubby who works outside that I don't even notice one extra load every 2-3 days.

2)Leaks-- So far, we have had NO leaks. Even with the cheapy covers that I have, we have had not one leak or piece of wet clothing. One day this week I was extremely busy and neglected to change Owen's diaper for...well, a long time. The diaper was sagging terrible, but still not a drop elsewhere.

3)Having to Change Diapers Much More Frequently-- I have to change him slightly more often, but nothing drastic. And as noted above, even when I forget, it works out okay!

4)Odor-- The diapers themselves have been fine. The covers however seem to retain odor. It isn't a BAD smell, just a stale smell. I'm not sure what to do differently about that. Maybe it would help to have more covers so they could air out more in between uses.

5)Storage of Soiled Diapers-- Since this began as an experiment, I didn't want to invest in a diaper pail yet. I've been keeping the wet diapers and the rinsed-out poopy ones together with the used covers in a plastic grocery bag in the hamper. It has worked out fine as long as I keep the bag folded over to contain the smell.

The one thing I didn't count on was diaper rash. I've read that babies who wear cloth rarely have diaper rash. Even the extra moisture next to their bodies is better for their skin than the chemicals in disposables. However, Owen got a yucky rash last week and we switched to disposables for a day. It didn't come back when we went back to cloth so maybe it was just a coincidence. Not sure.

I'm still not decided on whether we will stick with cloth for Owen or whether we will use cloth for the new baby. But for now, we'll keep plugging on.

3 comments:

  1. I am very interested in trying it out! Keep us posted!

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  2. Thank you for commenting on my post and for leading me your way. I'm sorry it will take a few days before I come back to you. We are all very sick today. :( But I'll email you in a few. Thanks again!

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  3. I use cloth on our youngest (first time doing that) and really enjoy it. I still don't have a diaper pail (but baby's only 8 months and not eating a toddler diet yet), and don't mind it. I use a 'wet bag' that I made from PUL (the same thing as many diaper covers) and (when closed) keeps any smells confined. Also, I can toss it in with the diapers when needed, so no scrubbing buckets or anything. :) Good luck with the continued experiment!

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