How to start cloth diapering?
When I was trying to figure out what I needed to start cloth diapering I was kinda overwhelmed with all the things people were saying I absolutely had to have.
The only thing you really need to start cloth diapering full time is 24-30 cloth diapers.
Pretty much everything else that goes with cloth diapering is a want not a need, figuring out what’s actually useful can take some time.
What do you need to get started cloth diapering?
There are some basics that are really nice to have when you start cloth diapering, all you really need are these 3 things.
- Cloth wipes
- Wetbag
- Diaper sprayer
Now there are a lot of other things you can get that do come in handy, a few are
- Diaper pail liners
- Wet/Dry bags
- Disposable/Flushable liners
- A Spraypal splatter shield
How many diapers do you need for cloth diapering?
I personally figure about 8 cloth diapers per day, per kid, if you’re washing every other day your probably gonna want around 24 cloth diapers.
That way at any point in time you would have 8 for today, 8 dirty and 8 drying for use the next day.
Now if you are using all-in -one cloth diapers were all the absorbency is sewn together in the diaper.
Those are going to take longer to dry since they are several layers sewn together, so you may want to get more like 32-40 cloth diapers.
However if you are comfortable putting them in the dryer, they would still take longer to dry since you should only dry then of low heat because of the PUL and elastics.
But it would be a lot faster than line drying them.
If you are not putting your all-in-ones in the dryer than they could take over 24 hours to dry depending on the weather.
Covers and inserts system
Now when I say 24 cloth diapers I really mean 24 changes, so if you are wanting to use a 2 part cover and insert system then you really only need 24 inserts.
This makes the cover and insert system one of the most affordable options since inserts can be basically anything absorbent.
So you could buy 24 $2.00 flats and only spend $48.00 on your 24 changes.
However you do still need something to make these 24 changes water-proof, and that where the cloth diaper covers come in.
A cloth diaper cover can cost anywhere from $4.00- $22.00 each, but you don’t need as many.
The standard is typically 1 cover for every 3 inserts.
So take your 24 changes and divide that by 3 and you get 8.
So you are gonna want around 8 cloth diaper covers.
While that may not seem like enough, cloth diaper covers dry extremely fast since they don’t have any absorbency themselves.
They are also very easy to clean, so if you run low you could just wash one of the covers in the sink really quick, roll it up in a towel to get the extra water off and let in hang dry for an hour or so.
Pocket cloth diaper system
Pocket cloth diapers are my personal favorite cloth diapering system, they dry fast since the absorbency isn’t all sewn together and they are very easy to use.
I have 3 kids 3 and under who are all currently in cloth diapers full time, so I want a cloth diaper that is quick and easy to put on, easy to wash, and easy for dad and grandparents.
Now a lot of people think that all-in-ones would be the better option here, but I personally haven’t found that to be true.
Most of the all-in-ones I’ve seen have the absorbency sewn in in flaps that can flop around and come out of place, which can be confusing.
If you decide to go with pocket cloth diapers you will need 24 inserts and 24 pocket shells.
1 insert = 1 shell
Since the inner lining that goes directly against baby’s skin is sewn on to the water resistant outer layer, the whole thing needs to be washed after each change.
The inner lining which is typically microfleece or microsuede does take a little longer to dry than just a plain PUL/TPU cloth diaper cover.
All-in-ones
Many people really enjoy all-in-one cloth diapers, but I personally haven’t had much success with using them after my kids are about a year old.
My kids are pretty heavy wetters, so it could be that most people don’t have any problems what-so-ever.
But I have definitely heard people say that they have had problems with all-in-ones because they weren’t absorbent enough and weren’t roomy enough to add more absorbency.
This is usually my problem, the amount of extra absorbency I would need to put in just won’t fit or makes it so the diaper’s elastics don’t fit correctly around the legs anymore.
They also take a lot longer to dry and are a tad harder to wash since they have so many layers of fabric sewn together.
This is something you especially want to keep in mind if your plan is to hand-wash your cloth diapers, while it isn’t impossible to hand-wash all-in-ones it does take more work.
When can you start cloth diapering?
You can start cloth diapering whenever you want.
You can buy a newborn stash and take newborn cloth diapers with you to the hospital or just have them ready at home depending on where you plan to have your baby.
You could start cloth diapering when your baby is about 3 months old or 10-12 pounds when most one-size cloth diapers will start to fit well.
If you got a ton of disposable diapers at your baby shower you could just plan to start cloth diapering when those run out.
You could wait until they’re 6 months old and have started solid food so you’re dealing with less explosive poop.
Or you could wait until they are ready to potty-train and use cloth training pants.
It’s never too early or too late to start cloth diapering, it all depends on what’s right for you and your family.
Do you really save money using cloth diapers?
The simple answer is “yes, you do in fact save money by cloth diapering”, you would have to buy a ton of cloth diapers to not end up saving money.
In 2 1/2 years one baby will go through an average of 7,280 disposable diapers.
If each disposable diaper costs an average of $0.22 then
$0.22 x 7,280 =$1,601.60
One of the most expensive cloth diapers on the market is the Smart bottoms Dream 2.0 all-in-one at $31.00 per diaper.
You would have to buy 51 Smart bottoms Dream 2.0s to get to $1,581.00.
If you buy the typically recommended 24 Smart bottoms Dream 2.0 cloth diapers then you only spend $744.00.
Now the average price for cloth diapers is around $17.00.
You would have to buy 94 average cost cloth diapers to get to $1,598.00.
And it would only cost $408.00 to buy 24 average cost cloth diapers.
There are some odds and ends you will need like some extra inserts but those will probably cost you less than $75.00 depending on what kind you want.
Microfiber inserts are usually around $1.00 each, while hemp inserts can be up to $15.00 each.
Resources
Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning I receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you) from qualifying purchases made through those links. * Indicates an affiliate link
Link to the Smart bottoms Dream 2.0 at Smartbottoms.com
Link to Spraypal splatter shield on clothdiaper.com *
