Gerber prefolds and vinyl covers

[soxthecatrules]

I'm in my 3rd day CD w/DD. I'm just curious....are any of you happy with just the simple Gerber prefolds and vinyl covers? The kind our mothers probably used on us? I don't find this process difficult so far. And, its cheap. I have a total of $18 into CD so far. Don't know why I didn't do this before now. DS is 28 mths and DD is 7 mths, so I have a good couple of years w/her. With DS we are starting the potty training process so I'm not sure I will bother CD on him. Or, am I doing a disservice to myself and DD by not trying some of the other options? Perhaps the pins and covers will get old? Any thoughts??

[Michigan Mama]

My only experience for Gerber prefolds is using them for burp clothes - and even the spit up soaked through.

You might try a few DSQ (diaper service quality) prefolds from an actual cloth diaper store - you will be amazed at the difference!! They absorb very very very well and I think they'll hold up better.

I like a wrap style cover myself, just cuz I had a few bad experiences with smeary poop trying to take off the diaper pants - but many people use diaper pants without any trouble.

There's a lot of fancy stuff out there but prefolds and covers are the 1st choice of many mamas!

Another nice little thing that a lot of people like are Snappis, no more pins! I like them, convenient and hold well for us...

Good for you for starting cloth! I was so happy when I switched. I'll never go back!!!!

[bremen]

proraps are some of the cheapest covers out there, and they are what i mainly use. they hold everything in, almost never leak, and you don't need to pin or snappi the diaper. you just fold it and lay it in. it is so easy!
i haven't used the gerber prefolds or the vinyl pants, but good prefolds and proraps are the next step up, and work great.

[Mom2SammyJoe]

I used this system til DS was 9 months old. At that time he soaked through like crazy. It was cheap, easy, and available. But there is lots of better stuff out there. I also like proraps, but to stretch my stash for less money, I liked Dappi pull on nylon covers. I them from cottonbabies.com for $5 per 2 pack. But I have seen other places that them cheaper. They are more breathable than the vinyl and didn't leave red marks on baby's skin. The vinyl seamed so hot in the summer!
For new baby I will use my Gerbers again and then move to premium Chinese prefolds for babies 15-30lbs. I also have been able to find lots of velcro covers cheap, so we will mostly use those this time around.
I say if what you have is working, go for it. Especially with so little $$ invested!

[eastkygal]

You'll get lots of folks that say they don't work. They absolutely work for us. I have the prefolds and birdseye flats that I clasp with a snappi. I take a prefold and double a flat inside it for extra absorbency. It works just fine. I do have other dipes for nighttime and long outings. When I just use the flats I use 3 at a time with one doubled in the middle. It is not bulky at all. I don't like their vinyl covers though. I use Dappi velcro covers with the polka dots on them from babybestbuy.com or something like that. I don't like Dappi fitteds though they aren't absorbent. So, in short... I really find Gerber diapers great for the price and money saving for us even having used other prefolds.
Also, for your toddler... I love Gerber training pants that pull on and off like underwear, but not the kind with the vinyl cover... just the padded underwear. If I needed to, I'd put a cover on when using them, but around the house they just went in the underwear and pants. It helped with potty training. Once we started at 3 DD1 was potty trained in a month.

[fruitfulmomma]

I use prefolds almost exclusively but the CPF kind. The ones from Wal-Mart are really thin and made with a foamy insert that doesn't really absorb much ime. I prefer covers that can be opened because when there is a big mess I don't want to be dragging it down the baby's leg. Other than that issue I don't have any problems with the rubber pants.

[soxthecatrules]

Thanks for the hints!!

I feel like I'm satisfied enough right now with what I have that it buys me enough time to try sewing some of the alternatives. The prefolds I have are really thick, definitely not thin. We've had a couple of blowouts already and I have to say the mess was probably better contained than it would have been in our disposables (we buy cheaper diapers, no Pampers or Huggies here). It almost sounds find of fun (if you can call diapering fun) to experiment with the different fabrics and see what you come up with.

[Adsullata]

I totally agree w/ you OP that cloth diapering is fun. I love it!

I do have some Gerber prefolds, but hardly use them- they are for last resort. I use Indian cotton unbleached prefolds and IME they are much much more absorbent than the Gerber will ever be. IMO the Indian cotton is also more absorbent than Chinese. I think it would be easy enough to make some tho if you started with good quality cotton and just sewed them thicker like the diaper service quality prefolds. If I were making them, I might want to pick up a couple Indian prefolds so you can see the difference and see how they're sewn.

On the covers, we avoid vinyl at all costs. Vinyl usually contains PVC and Pthalates which have been shown to affect various hormonal systems in the body. Since that's a known, I don't want it next to baby. That said, I'm sure there's probably something not that great about PUL but to my knowledge it hasn't been proven yet and it seems better than vinyl, so that's what we use.

Thirsties, prowraps, bummis are all great and can be bought new for around $11. You can also check diaperswap sites and ebay for good seconds on decent covers.

Congrats on going cloth! We love it too and I would never go back to sposies.

[beansmama]

All that matters is if YOU are happy with your cloth diapering system. People will try to talk you into more expensive products that you may or may not be happy with it...i'd stick with what you already know you like! Why waste money (like i did the first time around) and try out a ton of stuff when you are happy with your gerbers?

I'm expecting my new baby in july and this time i'm sticking with dsq prefolds and thristies wraps and snappis. I'm keeping it simple. I've used gerber prefolds when in a bind, and they do work in a pinch, but if you're looking for something more absorbant but still affordable and simple just try some chinese or indian prefolds. You don't need the expensive cloth-ease ones in a million sizes either

Good luck and yay!

[Drummer's Wife]

I agree, if you are happy, then don't worry what anyone else thinks (or what works for them).

Personally, I tried regular Gerber prefolds when I first started cloth diapering and they were ok, but not nearly as absorbent or soft as Chinese or Indian prefolds.

The ones you buy in stores generally have poly-filler insides, which means they will hold less urine. Gerber's DSQ which I ordered online years ago, are all cotton and a bit better, still not comparable to high quality prefolds. The only thing I liked about them was their size, as it was good for the time when infant's were too small, and premium's too big.

The vinyl pull-on covers don't allow for air circulating and remind me too much of shower curtains. Plus, the one's I had left awful red marks on my baby's thighs. Just my experience, though, my mom used them with flats and had no complaints.

ETA: and I actually LOVE pinning. But with a good quality, all metal pin like Dritz you order online. Not the gerber or similar with a plastic head. They just don't slide into the fabric near as smoothly.

[Ifluffedthree]

I used this combo for years with success.

But I must say, when I found fitteds and nikky's covers I really liked the easy of use.
Premium DSQ prefolds are worth the splurge.