I get asked about our cloth diapers all the time, so I figured it was time to update the blog on how our cloth diapering journey has been going.

9 months later?

We STILL love it! We have made a few changes from when we first started, but I thought I would share on what works for us and what our cloth diapering routine looks like.

A question I get asked a lot-

How much money do you have into it? Total? For EVERYTHING cloth diaper related, we have spent around $350 dollars. That includes cloth wipes, wet bags, diapers, diaper sprayers…. and we have NICE diapers… like organic bamboo diapers haha. You can totally do it for cheaper…. or you can totally do it for more, but I feel pretty confident that I have spent that $350 extremely well. Also, I won’t have to spend anymore money for baby #2 and then I can RESELL them and make some of that investment back. BAM!

I have bought 80% of my diapers used from people who have tried it for 2 weeks and decided it’s not for them. I’m really really really good at finding good deals.

Do you need a fancy washer/dryer? Nope! Our washer and dryer was bought off of craiglist 7 years ago and it was already 3 years old. Your wash routine is more important than what you wash them in.

How often do you wash diapers? I typically wash my diapers every other day unless it’s been a crazy day of poop.

Is there a lot of time involved in prepping them? I spend probably a total of 40 minutes every other day. That is a total from washing, hanging, stuffing, putting them back away. It’s basically the same as a load of regular laundry. If I didn’t use pocket diapers at night time, I could cut that time in more than half because I wouldn’t have to restuff the diapers.

How do you wash them? 

I do a COLD rinse cycle with a tiny bit of Tide powder detergent. This makes sure that when you actually wash them, they aren’t being washed in dirty water.

Then I set my washer to a HOT and HEAVIEST cycle possible. I add half to a full cup of Tide powder depending on the size load, and then let them wash.

I then hang them on the drying rack once they are done.

Voila.

What types of diapers so I use:

1. Bumgenius Elementals for anytime we leave the house.

2. Kawaii pocket diapers for nap time.

3. Bumgenius elementals, Grovia Hybrids, Bumgenius freetimes for anytime except nap time.

4. Sloomb Happy Little Cloud with a Thirsties Duo wrap for bedtime or a Target disposable.

Where do I store dirty diapers?

I use a large Planet Wise wet bag that hangs next to the dresser/changing table. I have 3 of these (I scored them for $4 each on a Buy/Sell/Trade site). I like having multiple bags because it let’s me always have one hanging even when one is drying/being washed.

What about poop? 

Well first of all, we have never had a blowout in a cloth diaper. They are THAT good. It’s amazing. When he DOES poop, if it’s solid, it just plops off into the toilet and there is very little evidence of poop on the diaper. If it’s NOT solid, we have a diaper sprayer which is basically like a mini pressure washer which is attached to the toilet (haha) and we spray the diapers off into the toilet so that they are virtually clean before going into the washer.

We’ve been doing it for so long, it’s just another part of our day. We don’t think twice about spraying a diaper or washing a load of diapers. It’s just second nature for us. Just like people who use disposables probably have to take their trash out a lot more often, we only do it once every week or so and it’s usually only half way full. Once you get into a habit of spraying or washing diapers, it’s no big deal.

Patrick, who was originally against cloth, is probably it’s biggest fan. He can talk to you about it just as much as I can which I find hilarious.

Any down sides?

They take up more room in a diaper bag. So that’s a little annoying. It’s not like you can take just 1 diaper. You have to also take a wet bag (it’s a waterproof bag that is used to put soiled diapers into) to put the diaper into until you get home. It’s not a huge deal, but sometimes I feel like I am carrying so much stuff because i’m toting around cloth.

Sometimes, I just don’t want to restuff the diapers. It’s not hard but you have to actually sit down to do it and with a mobile 9 month old kid, sometimes it’s annoying to stop, sit and stuff.

Cloth diapers don’t always fit under the right size pants. You typically have to size up to compensate for the larger fluff butts. We use Bumgenius Elementals when he has to wear pants and they are so trim that we actually don’t have to size up if he’s wearing them. Any other diaper though, we do.

How many diapers do I have?

I have enough diapers I could go a week or maybe 9 days without washing IF I wanted to. BUT I like to wash every other day. Having as many as I do, allows me to having an entire load in the washer/drying and STILL have enough diapers to use while those are being cleaned and on the drying rack. I have gotten stupid good deals though… SO, I contribute that to how many diapers I have. 🙂

If you want to wash everyday, you’ll need like 12. Every other day? 24-28. Just think, if you change a diaper around every 2-3 hours in a 12 hour period, that’s 6-7 diaper changes a day. That doesn’t include if they all the sudden pee in a new diaper, poop more often than usual… etc. SO, to be safe, you would need 10ish (minimum). It all depends on how often you want to wash and how quickly you’ll need your diapers to be ready to wear again.

A cloth diaper in (cell phone) pictures:

That’s a bumgenius elemental. It’s made up of organic cotton which is sewn into a waterproof cover with snaps. It’s our go-to diaper.

Don’t they start to look gross? 

As long as you wash them correctly, you’re good. These have been used for 6+ months, poop and pee GALORE and they still look brand new.

I finally took my diapers out and took a “stash” shot. It’s most of my diapers. It might be overwhelming when you look at it, but it all fits on B’s bookshelves. I’m missing a few that are dirty and in a wetbag…. but you get the picture 😉

These containers go onto B’s book shelves in his room. They keep everything organized and it keeps his room from looking like diaper central.

SO- for $350 I have diapered my kid(s). I know for one box of target disposables, I spend anywhere from $30 to $40. I don’t even want to know how much I would spend over the course of 2-3 years PER child. Easily hundreds, possibly thousands.

Happy Diapering yall. Always feel free to ask me a question about cloth. I could talk for days about it. 😉