What do I have, and cheap insert ideas

[KempsMama]

Pardon my ignorance about CD's, I've done a lot of reasearch, and we PT CD with DS1 using FuzziBunz, and I'm getting a sampler trial deal for DS2 when he gets here as I plan to full time CD after I recover from birth.

My SIL sent me several diapers, they are Thristies, size Large. They have velcro closures, no snaps of any kind, and they look to me like a pocket diaper similar to our Fuzzi Bunz but with a thicker lining that the FB's. Does this sound right, or am I way off base? They don't look like anything that's on Thirsties website currently.

My second question is, could I go pick up some flats to stuff these with, since she did not send the inserts? Is there some other cheap alternative to ordering inserts? We are on a very tight budget, but if I could pick something up for cheap to stuff these with we could step up cloth to 3/4 of the time with DS1. He's a pretty heavy wetter, if that matters. (He's not ready for potty learning-we've made several attempts, but he doesn't seem to understand the need to "go" before he's "going" kwim?)

Thirdly, I have no idea how SIL cared for these diapers, and they haven't been used in years. How should I prep them before I use them?

TIA!

[Nicole730]

I think I have some Thirsties like that, it's a AIO, but with the option to stuff more if you want.

You can get cheap stuffers in the automotive dept at Walmart, microfiber towels. You can get microfiber towels other spots too, but the automotive dept is pretty inexpensive. I would think flats would be way too bulky, but they might work.

If you do use these, they really take a long time to dry IMO, and we get stink issues with them. What I have found works best is making sure to not overload the washer and turning it inside out to dry.

To get them ready for use, I would probably a cycle with no soap, a cycle with soap and vinegar in the rinse, and another cycle with no soap (same as our wash routine) - then see how they work. If they work fine, then great. If not, I'd do a cycle with dish detergent, then repeat the washing process, but with extra rinses until all the soap was gone.

[DevaMajka]

I use flats as inserts sometimes. I just fold in fourths, then trifold. I use the flats from granitesmith on ebay for daytime diapers. The ones I have aren't super absorbent, but they are quite trim.
I also have LL flats that I "trifold" for nighttime use. These held up at night for my ds at his heaviest wetting stage, but I don't think he was ever a "heavy wetter." Ds is 1yo now, and they are a bit bulky, but he we often put them on only to find thay ds is not ready for bed and he plays and get around just fine in them. They aren't perfectly square, and I trifold them the wide way. If you could make them longer (ie if your ds has a longer rise) they would be trimmer between the legs.

for prepping, what type of detergent do you have? Personally, I'd do a wash in Tide (about 1/2 to 3/4 of what you use for clothes) then rinse a lot until all the suds are out. I try not to use Tide very much, but when cd's are dirty or stinky, it seems to do the trick then I can go back to using more natural detergent for a while.

[KempsMama]

Thanks for the tips! I'm going to prep them and try without an insert for during the day and see what happens.