Washing Routines, Detergents, and Creams, Oh My!

Introductions to Cloth Diapers Series: Post #3

Disclaimer: Of course, I must mention you should always use the diaper manufactures recommendations for washing methods!

Washing Routines

I have found these to work for myself and leave our fluff clean and fresh!

1. Knock off solids into the toilet. 

Breastfed babies usually have liquid poop that does not need to be rinsed off. It will rinse clean in the wash. For formula fed babies and babies on solid food, you can use flushable, biodegradable liners to help catch the mess. Another helpful tool is a diaper sprayer. No need for dunking, just spray the poop off!

2. Toss your dirty diapers into a waterproof pail. 

This can be a hanging bag or a trash can lined with a waterproof bag. No need for to place any water in your cans. You can also lessen bacteria by keeping the bag or lid open. Bacteria like dark, wet places!

3. Place cloth diaper, wipes, inserts and pail liners into washing machine.

4. Rinse with cold water or do a cold soak.

The initial cold rinse or soak helps to get rid of the stuck on solids and helps to get the urine out of the diapers. 

A cold soak is hard to do in HE washers so a cold rinse is used instead and I can state from experience it works just fine.

5. Add cloth diaper friendly detergent. (More or Less is needed for different size loads.)

Cloth diaper friendly detergent will be listed in the next session.

6. Wash on Hot/Hot or Hot/Cold cycle with the largest amount of water possible.

Do NOT use the sanitize cycle because this could ruin your diapers. You also want the highest water setting on your regular hot cycle. On my HE washer, I use the heavy duty cycle.

7. For extra dirty loads or if you put too much washing detergent in, you can do an additional cold rinse. 

Most of the time I go ahead and push the extra rinse button on my washer. It only adds 5-7 minutes.

8. Line dry or tumble dry on low in your dryer. 

Do not use your highest setting for regular dryings. Line dry whenever possible. The sun acts as a natural disinfectant and stain remover! 

Cloth Diaper Detergents

Again, I am just passing along information I have found helpful. Always use the detergents recommended by your cloth diaper manufacture.

Cloth Diaper Friendly Detergents:

• Rockin’ Green
• FuzziBunz
• Charlie’s Soap
• Allen’s Nartually
• bumGenius Cloth Diaper Detergent
• Vaska
• Country Save
• Soap Nuts

(Visit www.KellyWels.com for a list of detergents. She keeps an ongoing up-to-date list.)

No-No’s of Detergents for cloth diapers include

• No Bleach (Except on very rare occasions. When bleach is recommended it is usually just for microterry inserts, not for the shells.)
• No baby detergents such as Dreft
• No “Free and Clear” detergents
• No Natural Detergents
• No Fabric Softeners 
• No detergents with additives like bleach, whitening, enzymes, or fragrance

Creams

If you need to put cream on your baby’s bottom, it is important to use only cloth diaper safe creams or use a liner. The liner will help protect the cream/ointment from getting on the inner lining of the diaper. If non cloth diaper safe ointment gets on the diaper, it will repel water.

Here is a short list of cloth diaper safe cream companies:

• Northern Essence
• CJ’s 
• The Homestead Company

Do you have any cream, detergent, or washing tips to add?

3 Reasons to use Cloth Diapers

Introduction to Cloth Diapers Series: Post 2

Why Cloth Diaper your baby?

1. Best for Baby and Mama (& Daddy)

2. Best for Mother Earth

3. Best for your Wallet

1. Best for Baby and Mama (& Daddy)

Many parents choose to cloth diaper their child for health reasons. Cloth diapers contain several different chemicals. Of course we can’t wrap our children in bubbles (although we might want to at times!), but we can control certain things. Another great reason to cloth diaper your child is cloth diapered babies tend to have less diaper rash (if any!).

Here is a list of what makes up a disposable diaper (from Changing Diapers):

Dioxin 

Sodium Polyarcylate 

Dyes

Fragrances

Plastics

Toluene

Xylene 

Ethylbenzene 

Dipentene

I don’t know about you but I can’t pronounce half of those chemicals! When our babies are in diaper 24/7 for 2 years, why have all of these chemical pressed up next to their sensitive bodies!!

Now, people can argue that there are chemicals in cloth diapers. There are currently no studies that show the chemical exposure from cloth diapers. As a mom who cloth diapers, I can tell you I feel confident that my daughter is exposed to far less chemicals than when she is in disposable. If you do want to lessen the impact even more so, you can buy organic cloth diapers! 

They are also best for moms and dads because they mean no late night diaper runs! And they are best for moms because they are super cute! You can have so much fun with these!

2. Best for Mother Earth

3.5 Million TONS or 28 BILLION disposable diapers are thrown away every year!

I’ll let you reread that and take that in!

Crazy! And add in the fact that it takes 250-500 years for those diapers to breakdown! 

The very first disposable diaper created in the 1950’s is still in the landfill. My parents poop and pee is still sitting in our tons dump! Gross!

According to Autumn Becks research, disposable diapers require 5 times more energy, 8 times more raw material, 90 times more renewable resources, 2.3 times more waste water, 60 times more solid waste, and 4-30 times more land for landfills than cloth diapers! 

Today’s cloth diapers are so much more earth friendly than the ones our parent’s and grandparent’s are familiar with. No bleach is required. Earth friendly detergents are preferred. When you use energy-efficient washing machines and dryers you help save more energy. And when you line dry your diapers you save even more energy! The sun is our friend when it comes to cloth diapers. The sun also removes stains! And can help kill yeast! When you are finished with your diapers, either keep them for a second or third or fourth child, donate them, or sale them!

3. Best for your Wallet

Cloth diapering can save you lots of money. Especially if you use the same diapers for your second child. Your initial purchase of cloth diapers can seem like a huge expense and some people wonder how you will save money. But if you buy everything you need up front and make no more purchases, besides water, electricity, and detergent, you won’t pay any more for diapers until your child is potty trained! 

According to www.diaperdecisions.com (Changing Diapers did the math!), cost of a baby in cloth from birth to potty training would be $381 versus $2577.35 for disposables!  That’s a savings of $2196!! On average, you can save $1500-$2000! What could you buy with that or where could you go with that?!?!

DiaperPin.com also has a calculator you can use. They estimate the energy cost is $0.013 for water and electricity per diaper. 

Of course this just scratches the surface! There are several great resources on the internet but my favorite at KellyWels.com, AllAboutClothDiapers.com, RealDiaperAssociation.org and DiaperPin.com. 

What was most eye opening to you in this article? Why do you cloth diaper your child? What are your favorite websites for cloth diaper information? 

Introduction to Cloth Diapers Series: Post 1
(updated because silly ol' me forgot a kind of diaper!)

Types of Cloth Diapers This is an overview of the different types and styles of cloth diapers. Currently Teal Elephant does not carry every type of diaper. If you are interested in a type we do not carry, please feel free to contact me and let me know!  1. Sized/One Size You can choose between sized diapers (XS, S, M, L, XL) or one size diapers. There are benefits to both.      Sized diapers have weight ranges as well as age ranges. I think it is best to always go by weight ranges. However, keep in mind that two children can weigh the same and look totally different. We started with sized and I loved them but my chunky monkey daughter quickly outgrew them. But if my friend would have cloth diapered her daughter she would still be in a small so they would have worked longer for her.      One Size are much different than one size fits all clothing that you are familiar with. One size diapers come with snaps for sizing up and down. They come with several different snap configurations to fit any size baby! Most one size diapers can fit a baby from birth to potty training. However, I should note that sometimes at birth even a baby who is in the weight range of the diaper might have fit problems because of the shape of the baby. Give it a couple of weeks and then your baby should fit just fine in them.  2. AIO/AI2s     All-in-ones (AIO) are exactly what they say: they are everything in one piece. All you have to do is wash, dry, and put on baby. They include a sewn in absorbent pad (aka soaker) that absorbs the wetness while the liner wicks it away from baby’s skin. They are fast to put on because no stuffing is needed. They have a waterproof outer cover so no need for covers. They are most like a disposable so they are a favorite of dads, daycares, babysitters, and nurseries. (Some AIO do come with a pocket that you are able to stuff for extra absorbency when needed.)     All-in-Twos (AI2) are similar to an AIO with an extra step. They have a liner that lays on top of the diaper or snaps onto the top of the diaper. No stuffing required, just lay it in place and snap. AI2s typically have inserts designed for that specific diaper but you can use anything as a liner. AI2 also have a waterproof outer cover so their is no need for extra covers. 3. Pockets     Pocket cloth diapers have a pocket for you to insert the insert! (Hence, their name!) They consist of 3 layers: the waterproof outer shell, the attached liner, an insert (the absorbent layer of your choice). These require stuffing and you get to determine the amount of absorbency needed.  4. Flats/Prefolds     Flat cloth diapers are what most people immediately think of when you say cloth diaper. They are what we clean our windows with and dust with! Or as burp cloths. They are usually a square so sometimes they are also called Squares. So when someone says Flat or Square they are referring to the same thing. These diapers need to be folded in order to fit your baby. You will also need to fasten them with a pin, snappi (this is a really cool invention that holds the diaper in place with no pins), or simply just place the cover on the diaper. A cover is needed for this kind of diaper.     Prefolds are flat cloth diapers with extra absorbent material sewn into the middle of the diaper. They still need to be folded in order to fit on baby and also require pins or a snappi, and a cover.      Even if you don’t choose to just use these as your form of cloth diaper, they are good for emergency liners! 5. Fitted/Contoured     Fitted or contoured diapers are simply called fitteds. These have elastic in the legs and snaps or velcro-like closures. These diapers require a cover.  6. Covers     Covers can be any form of waterproof layer. Most are made from PUL (polyurethane laminated) which is durable and waterproof. Wool is another common material for covers. Wool is waterproof and natural as opposed to manmade.  7. Hybrids     Hybrids are a type of diaper that give you options. They are a hybrid between disposables and cloth. They consist of a reusable outer layer (shell) with the option of using a disposable liner (that can be biodegradable) or a cloth liner. This is a favorite of many parents when they are traveling because you can simply toss the dirty in the trash. Since some of these liners are biodegradable you don't have to feel guilty about contributing to 250-500 years of landfill. Once baby goes potty you can either replace another disposable liner into that same diaper they are wearing or use a cloth liner. They make cloth liners specifically for these diapers or you can use a flat or prefold as the liner. These liners come in direct contact with the babies skin so make sure it is nice and soft.

Introduction to Cloth Diapers Series

Although I know there are plenty of places to look for information about cloth diapers, I decided I should help provide you with that information. I am using sources that I trust and have used and still use!

Some of the information that is provided is from my own experience. 

One of the sources is Changing Diapers: The Hip Hom's Guide for Modern Cloth Diapering by Kelly Wels. Right now you can get it free (a $17.95 value) with any $15 purchase! Just enter DB15 as the coupon code. Click here to shop now! Or read on and then browse my store! 

The other sources used during this series are The Ultimate Guide to Cloth Diapers by Autumn Beck and The Real Diaper Association.  

Once this series is completed I will have all of the information on my website: TealElephant.com

Overdue

I apologize for not writing in so long. I plan on blogging more in 2012 and have some goals I would like to share with you in a future post. But this post is an overdue post about why I personally chose cloth diapering and how I (we) came to this decision.

Somewhere around 2008 I became increasingly aware that I was not so environmentally friendly. I claimed to love the earth and want to take care of it but I wasn't putting my words into action. I began reading books and doing some researching. During this time I learned the horrible, stinking truth about disposable diapers. I stated at this time that whenever I had children I wanted to use cloth diapers.

The fact about disposables (aka sposies) that got me was that it takes 500 years for them to decompose. A recent article stated that it takes between 250-500 years but still, 250 years. 250, 300, 400, 500....that's forever! So for those of us who were put in sposies as a baby, our poop is in the landfills for at least another 220-470 years! That's craziness! (I do a more detailed list of environmental reasons to cloth diaper at a later date!)

So once we found out we were pregnant, immediately I started looking for cloth diapers. I researched and researched and researched. There are sooooooooooooooooo many brands and types of cloth diapers. I felt like my head was spinning every time I looked up cloth diapers. I read countless reviews and price checked a million sites. I finally felt like I needed to see some in person to help me decide. I started looking for cloth diaper stores in Nashville. For some reason, although there are a couple near Nashville, I never found them. It was nearing the holidays so I started searching for cloth diaper stores near our families. This lead me to Elemeno Pee.

(I feel the need to give credit where credit is due so this is why I am giving you information about another cloth diaper store.)

I contacted Kira at Elemeno Pee in Lafayette, LA. I had found her through the FuzziBunz website. We set up a date to meet during my family visit. I was so excited to finally be able to touch and feel the cloth diapers!!! She took time to teach me about them and explain how they work. I knew we would use cloth at that moment! I bought two FuzziBunz that day, a pink and brown one, and was so excited to show my family. Before this moment, they had looked at us like we were crazy when we talked about cloth diapering. They were still envisioning the squares they used or attempted to use with us.

We waited to order our full supply until closer time for our daughters arrival. She helped me choose the correct number of diapers and the types that she thought would help encourage us to keep cloth diapering. She was awesome and I'm so thankful that she was there!

We waited to start using cloth until her umbilical cord fell off. We figured this would ensure the meconium stools were finished and that we didn't take a chance of infection with the umbilical cord. Our daughter was a good 2 weeks old before her umbilical cord fell off. She still had this strange diaper rash that she had developed while in the hospital. I blamed it on their brand of diapers. But she kept it with the sposies we were using. I didn't want to start off our cloth diapering with a rash so we kept using sposies until it was gone. Well, that was the plan. We ended up using 3 different brands of paste before it went away but it kept coming back. I decided to just try and see if it got worse with cloth and low and behold, it went completely away once we started using cloth full time!!

We probably didn't use cloth full time until Abigail was 2 months old. This worked for us. As a first time mother I felt like I was constantly drowning and struggling. Cloth diapers didn't make things more difficult at all but in my head I was panicked! I was so nervous about the extra laundry. But I'm here to tell you it wasn't bad at all!

I am here to help give you advice and tips to make your cloth diapering journey as easy and fun as possible. I will share honest stories with you and let you know what worked or didn't work for us. The important thing to remember is that everyone is different and needs to find their own groove!

Happy Diapering!!