[DiannaK]

But I need some assistance from you gals!

I'm considering changing over to CD for my 17m (22lbs, 31inches tall at last check). It was mentioned on the Frugal board as a way to save money.

After checking out all of the possibilities

: , I think the AIOs would fit our needs the best. I'm most interested in FuzziBunz, or BumGenius.

Here's my questions...

1) Can someone PLEASE explain to me how CD is cheaper than disposable? For the life of me, I can't see it .... and I need to explain it all to DH.
We use "off brand" Target diapers ... DH figured it to be about .20/diaper.
FB runs $20 per diaper, plus I'd need inserts, etc.

2)What do I need? By that I mean, how many diapers, inserts, etc. Where do you get pails, liners, wet bags, etc?

3) What do ya'll do with the diapers, once your LO has peed/pooped? Hate to sound like a spaz, but I recall my mother rinsing out cloth diapers, having a foul pail, etc.

4) Do CDs get stained??

Sorry to sound like a brainless twit ... but I'm a bit overwhelmed ......

 

[katie9143]

the cheapest way to cd is with prefolds and covers. get 2-3 doz pfs and 3-4 covers. aios and pockets are significantly more expensive, but if you dont mind doing a wash everynight you could probably get away with having only 8-10 of them....but that is still a couple hundred dollars. right now my baby is 8 mos and i use pockets in the day, i feel they are easier for her to move in and i use pfs and covers during nap and at night. i have 6 pockets with 8 or so inserts and maybe 12-14 pfs and 3 covers.

i only need a pail and maybe 2 xl bummis wetbags, i alternate them. i only scoop poo into the toilet then the dipe just goes in the pail - usually not covered it lets the air in and is less stinky i think.

they do get stained, but you can either bleach (i hate bleach) or some say that the sun naturally bleaches stains out. i dont really care as long as i know they are clean (i wash on hot and my water is super hot)

hope that helps

 

[Juliacat]

Fuzzi Bunz probably aren't going to save you significant amounts of money unless you can find a really great deal somewhere. They're some of the most expensive cloth diapers. BumGenius OS pockets would be slightly better because they are one-size-fits-most so you wouldn't have to buy a larger size later. But prefolds and covers are a better way to go if you're doing it to save money. They will run you maybe $2 per diaper, $10-ish per cover, and you can re-use the cover again and again until it gets poopy, so in the long run it's way cheaper than disposables.

I would say 36 diapers and 6 to 8 covers if you can afford that. Proraps seconds are cheap. Bummis Super Whisper Wraps and Thirsties are the most popular. Wool is expensive but the only natural choice and the most breathable.

Here is one of the many places to buy diapers and accessories.

I put the used diapers in an XL Bummis Tote (after rinsing the poopy ones with my trusty mini-shower that I would never be without). I wash them every two or three days with a cold short wash no detergent followed by a hot heavy wash small amount of detergent extra rinse.

Yes, cloth diapers sometimes get stained, but line drying in the sun works wonders.

 

[alysonb]

1. I stink at math, but consider these additional factors (I also switched about the same time frame as you). First, I think most FBs come with the insert, so that isn't an additional cost. I know that my BG did. You can also find cheaper ones. Second quality (still new, just minor cosmetic defects) FBs run about $12 each, though with those you need to buy the inserts, but you can get those fairly cheap if you look around. I only have 10 dipes right now and get by just fine washing nightly. You also need to include, especially now, the gas expense to drive to Target to pick up dipes, especially if you run out and have to make a separate trip just for them. And the biggest beauty of CDs is that you can sell them when you are done, so include that in the cost factor.

2. I'll let someone else answer that. I use an old stainless steel stock pot as a dry pail. Never an odor. I bought a Bumkins wet bag for $4 on clearance at Amazon. I'd start out with about 8-10 dipes if you can wash every night.

3. When ds wets a dipe I rinse it quickly in the bathroom sink and plop it in the pail. When he poops I knock it off by shaking and if it is not soaked just put it in the pail. If it is soaked I rinse it in a utility sink.

4. The only time I've had stains is when I went two days between washings.

Hope that helps!

 

[CaraNicole]

If you do not mind used, www.diaperswappers.com has tons of dipes, and a great WAHM forum....

 

[TypingMJ]

There are a few "hidden" costs to disposable diapers. Don't forget about disposable wipes! We used disposable wipes for awhile (before I realized it was nuts with cloth diapers) and we were spending $25 a month on wipes, so that's an extra $300/year. You can buy enough wipes to last you the rest of your little one's diapered days for anywhere from $10 - $50, depending on the brand and style you choose.

Also, factor in extra trashbags or special liners for a diaper pail. We use a hanging wetbag that cost $20. Again, that'll last us til he's out of diapers.

For the most part I use Fuzzi Bunz, and I buy 18 everytime I'm buying a new size. Eighteen is enough to let me wash every other day. You can do it with fewer, and I wouldn't recommend too many more. Fuzzi Bunz are sold complete with their insert. I've gotten great package deals online from Soft Cloth Bunz and Wildflower Diapers.

Here's what I do with dirty diapers:

Pee: pull out insert, toss diaper and insert in wetbag.

Exclusively Breastfed Poop: same as pee procedure (

)

Solids-Eater's Poop: Shake off solids in toilet, pull out insert, toss diaper and insert in wetbag.

About stains: When my son was exclusively breastfed and his poop was liquid, his diapers would stain from time to time, but the stains were easy to get out. Now that he's eating a lot of solids, his poop doesn't really "stick" anymore and it never stains.

HTH!

 

[lyttlewon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiannaK 1) Can someone PLEASE explain to me how CD is cheaper than disposable? For the life of me, I can't see it .... and I need to explain it all to DH. We use "off brand" Target diapers ... DH figured it to be about .20/diaper. FB runs $20 per diaper, plus I'd need inserts, etc. Most places you buy FB the insert comes with. This is the cheapest I have found fuzzi bunz http://www.cottontailbaby.com/pages/fuzzibunz.htm and it with the package it works out to $17.50 with insert. DD doesn't really fit in diapers so I have to buy pull ups which is way more than the x-large fuzzi bunz 3) What do ya'll do with the diapers, once your LO has peed/pooped? Hate to sound like a spaz, but I recall my mother rinsing out cloth diapers, having a foul pail, etc. I don't rinse I just wash even 4 yo poops. 4) Do CDs get stained?? No they haven't.

....................

 

[tallanvor]

CDing is pretty much guaranteed to be cheaper, if for not other reason than the fact that you can sell the diapers when you're finished. For example, I spent $140 up front for 6 months of diaper. Sold all those for $90, so in reality I only spent $50 for 6 months of diapers. A large part also depends on what kind of diapers you buy. Is your child in daycare? Are you on the road a lot? These affect your diapers decisions. Since we are home most of the time, we have very few covers, as dd goes coverless and I just change her more often. If she were in daycare I would have more fitteds and covers or AIO's.

What you need depends partly on often you want to wash. I have 12 prefolds, 7 contours, 8 fitteds (3 are nighttime dipes), 3 hemp doublers, 2 AIO's, and 4 covers. This will get us through 3 days of diapering and the washing routine. I don't have a wetbag. I just put the dirty dipes in a 5 gallon bucket and then dump them into the washer.

For dirty dipes, the wet ones go straight into the pail, the poopy ones get swished in the toilet, though I have on occasion not rinsed them and they still came clean. As for stains, mine rarely get stains and most of those were from Butt Paste. Most of the time stains will sun out or you can use bleach or oxy-clean.

And I would recommend cloth wipes. For some reason it never occured to me to use cloth wipes until a few weeks ago. I mean, you're already using cloth diapers, so you might as well use cloth wipes. A lot of ladies just use terry washcloths, some just use flannel squares. Not real expensive.

And I most definitely second the diaperswappers.com site. Just be careful because CDing can get addictive! lol

Crystal

 

[maybe]

Hi

If you go to diaperpin.com and click on the tab that says calculator, you can enter your numbers and find out your expense. I would recommend purchasing just a couple at first to make sure you want to invest. Even if you alternate between cloth and disposables, you are still saving money. Resale value on all in one and pocket diapers is highest, but prefolds and covers are less expensive. Cloth diapering is actually a system. You will need the diapers, some cloth wipes or baby washcloths, a wetbag if you intend to cloth diaper all the time and a diaperpail liner. If you are just going to start with a few diapers, you can wait on the pail liner and just use the wet bag. The wet diapers go strait to the pail. Messy diapers are sprayed off with a diaper sprayer or dunked and swished in the toilet and then placed in the pail. If you are only bfing, you can just put the messy diaper in the pail. On wash day, put all the diapers and the pail in the washer and do your wash routine. As you can probably tell, everyone has their own routine. I prefer a cold rinse and then hot cycle w/ a little dye perfume free detergent, cold rinse and then dry on hot. Cloth diapers can get stains but it depends on the material and how long you let them sit before washing. Most are easy to get out. HTH.

marilyn