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Cloth Diapering Basics



Cloth Diapering Basics

Since I have begun my cloth diapering adventures I have not run into any major issues that would deter me from continuing. I will admit that there are those rare moments when I want to give up. I have found that many people are very accepting of my choice to cloth diaper and then there are others who have doubts and question why I have made this choice. 

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The following are the top 8 questions that I have been asked about using cloth diapers.

1. Don’t you find cloth diapers difficult to use?

Before I started using cloth diapers this was the image I had in my mind. I thought there is no way these diapers would be just as easy to use as the disposables. I was wrong. In fact I found that cloth diapers are easier to use than disposables. I never have to worry about running to the shop to re-stock my diapers. I never have to worry about the tape breaking on the diaper as they occasionally do on the disposables. Also, the cloth diapers are one size adjustable so no need worrying about replacing diapers during baby’s growth.

2. Isn't cloth diapering just as expensive as disposable diapers?

Some people have the idea that purchasing cloth diapers is very expensive. Yes while buying one package of disposables is less expensive than purchasing one dozen cloth diapers, you don’t have to throw out a cloth diaper after baby soils it. Just simply put it to be washed and re-use over again. So making one purchase of a few dozen cloth diapers is way less expensive than having to stock up on disposables every few days.

3. How do you deal with the bad smells?

If cloth diapers are not left for more than 3 or 4 days at a time very rarely will there be a bad smell. Since many moms will only have a certain amount of diapers most will launder every 2nd or 3rd day.
Diapers will come clean during the wash cycle using just normal washing detergent. Personally I use regular tide, the same as I use for all my family’s clothing. I add half a cup of vinegar to the final rinse although it is not necessary to do so. I had never used any form of bleach on my diapers for the first 8 months. Now on occasion once per every few washes I add ¼ cup of bleach just as a disinfectant. I have had no problems with losing any of the colors or seeing any reactions on baby’s skin.  The best treatment for any stains is to hang the diapers out to dry in the sun to bleach them naturally and make stains disappear.

4.  Why do you bother to cloth diaper when hardly anyone else does these days?

Actually if you read up online about cloth diapers you will see that they are starting to gain popularity once again among moms. Today’s cloth diapers are so much more absorbent and hip as compared to the diapers many years ago. The diapers today are not as bulky, snaps have replaced pins and the patterns are bright and colorful.

5. Won’t cloth diapering delay your child’s development?

I have heard people say that babies in cloth diapers will have more difficulty in reaching developmental milestones such as sitting, crawling and learning to walk. Their reasoning is that the cloth diapers are bulky and therefore making it difficult for a baby to move around. This is not the case. There are babies wearing cloth diapers who crawl earlier than babies wearing disposables and vice versa. All babies develop at different rates.

6. How do you deal with leakage from your cloth diapers?

I don’t. I have only rarely had a problem with leaks which were not caused by the diapers but caused by the way I had been adjusting the snaps. In the beginning, when I was learning I did not want to tighten the diapers too much. I ended up putting them so loosely that they leaked out from the sides. J I spent some time playing with the adjustable snaps and have not had any issues since.

7.  Don’t you think you are doing more harm to the environment with the extra water and energy consumption it takes to clean these diapers?

The way I see it is this. I am adding on average 2 to 3 extra wash loads per week. Now compare the water and energy usage to all those disposables which are taken to the dump site on a daily basis. It takes anywhere from 200 to 500 years for a disposable diaper to decompose. I think we know which is better for the environment.

8. What do you use to treat your baby’s diaper rash?

Since the very beginning of my cloth diapering adventure my babies have not had a single diaper rash as of yet. It is fair to mention here though that babies in either disposable or cloth are both at risk for contracting diaper rashes. The best prevention is frequent diaper changes.

Do you use cloth diapers? Do you often get bombarded with questions from others?













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