The weekly “little of this, little of that” feature here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!
I'm going to check in for real (meaning: include some baby pictures) next week. For now I want to give you a glimpse of what would currently be in my {happy} category if I ever had it together enough to do {phfr} (speaking of which – did you see Suki's announcement!?).
To wit: my clothesline.
As you know, the Chesternest is quirky. When we were considering moving here, I balanced a few considerable drawbacks against some major pros. One of those major pros was this clothesline, pins included, installed on the porch. Now that the sun is fiiiiinnnaally out, I am cashing in on a longing that sat deep in my soul all winter long: hanging clothes out to dry in the sunshine. Every time I do it, my soul is filled with contentment. Seriously.
We made the switch over to cloth recently, and I'm loving it. I got a good deal on one big batch of Smartipants diapers via Craigslist (where I get All My Things). I have put a gift card to use to get just a few more. I think that, once the new ones that I've ordered arrive (they will be BumGenius), I should have enough to have both kiddos clothed in cloth but still only have to do laundry every other day.
Okay yes, I love laundry nowadays, but I still don't want to do it every day. Since my goal here is less cost and less waste, it seems worth it to shoot for not running the machines and all that water on a daily basis. I also know that all of this will be considerably less fun when another New England winter sets in and I have a chilly walk to the dryer in the storage space rather than a sunny respite at the clothesline.
Now for troubleshooting: I have a few questions for those of you experienced with cloth. Can you help me out here? (NB: if you are not actively interested in cloth diapering, the following section will mostly likely be wicked boring to you.)
– The diapering station. It is currently in the nursery, where Finnabee takes a daily nap and goes to bed before the rest of us retire. So what do I do about changing the baby's diaper when she's in there sleeping and I don't want to disturb her? Sometimes I've been taking the diaper bin out of the nursery before nap/bed time and pulling it out into the kitchen or wherever we are and having a small stash of cloth diapers out and about with me. But this seems rather silly. As much as I love the fragrance and think it makes a great accessory, I don't actually want to be dragging the bin around the apartment all the time.
However, as I've mentioned, I don't have a ton of options as far as using floor space in our (again, quirky) apartment. So I don't really want to move the whole station somewhere else (there's really only one place where I'd put it, and it's currently an attractive sort of Little Oratory spot in our bedroom which I'd rather not displace with diapers…. but if it comes to that, it must I suppose. It's not our main LO.).
Another thing that I've been doing is just having my wet bag handy during those sleepy hours and then emptying the wet bag into the diaper bin when the naptime is over. Maybe I should just have a mini changing station – like a basket with a few diapers, wipes, and spray, and the wet bag – near, say, my bed for those times that I need to change the baby when the nursery's not available?
What do you think?
– Leaking. The first few run-throughs with cloth were basically seamless. Then we hit a rocky patch (that we seem to still be in, to some extent) with leaking wetness. Seeing as how the diapers worked perfectly for the first week, I don't think it's a design flaw. Are we talking a detergent buildup here? I have followed washing instructions and haven't used any fabric softener. So maybe I just used too much detergent a couple times ago and it's taking a while to rinse it all out? I use Tide Free & Gentle, which was listed as an approved detergent in a video that I watched right on the Smartipants website itself. Hm.
Any tips for me? Preferably ones that don't include switching to a more expensive detergent?
And on to this week's links!
Literature-related:
- A quick, fun read: If Jane Austen Got Feedback from Some Guy in a Writing Workshop. Mainly, this made me chuckle. But secondarily, it made me think how important a canon of great works is. I would like to think that, had I never heard of Pride and Prejudice, and simply happened to pick it up in manuscript form, I would notice that it was brilliant and a lasting work of genius. But would I? I don't know. Hopefully we can discern great work when we come across it, but it's a good thing that there's a collective memory on this topic to help us out, in case when can't.
- Since I have a policy of sharing almost anything Kristen Lavransdatter-related: Kristen Lavransdatter's Crisis Pregnancy and Pope Francis' Year of Mercy
Random practical items:
- Some photography chatting and tips from a favorite haunt of Auntie Leila's: photos tips from Under the Sycamore. From my mom: “practice them and then link up with {phfr}! – or just link up. :)”
- A thoroughly researched piece on how important it is not to reward a mass killer with any attention: What Mass Killers Want – And How to Stop Them from the WSJ (the author is a friend).
- If you are needing a boost, may I suggest unclogging your tub drain? Not to brag or anything, but I totally unclogged my bathtub drain all by myself this week and it was amazing. I went around mentally flexing my imaginary muscles for the afternoon. For the next time your tub gets clogged (for example, like maybe approximately 8 weeks after you have a baby, when your hair starts falling out): a video on unclogging the tub drain in five minutes. I've decided that, while I have no patience for instruction manuals, I have at least a little bit of patience for instruction videos.
Other lovely/interesting:
- I found a lot of insight in this piece on The New Religion of Food from Word on Fire. The author makes a strong case that current food trends are taking the place of religion on many people's lives, sometimes in an ironic way. I found the conclusion of his piece strange, however. It seems that maybe he's ignoring or forgetting the age-old practice of fasting, as well as other bodily manifestations of our Faith (genuflections and other rubrics at Mass, for example). What do you think?
- Very sweet images and a moving story behind them. If Jesus had been Korean: 20 Rare Paintings of the Life of Christ
- A suggestion for a wedding dance song. Auntie Leila recommends the whole site as something worth checking out – thoughts on marriage from a kindred spirit.
- Top Six Liturgical Quotes by Robert Cardinal Sarah, the Prefect of the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship.
From the Archives:
- Housewifely. One of my Archives favorites, and not just because I'm a line-drying enthusiast.
- Also, from just about exactly one year ago: other pictures of my laundry. Because not only do I just love drying clothes on the line – I also love to talk about drying clothes on the line.
- Auntie Leila gets into the very nitty-gritty on the topic of sponges and washcloths, etc. Because laundry.
Melanie says
probably too much detergent. I don’t use Tide, so I can’t say exactly for that, but you know…it is way less than you would think, like a couple of tablespoons. Here’s my favorite stripping method… (that doesn’t…sound right..)
http://www.mamanatural.com/how-to-strip-your-cloth-diapers/
Melanie says
Oh, and a diaper station….we made kind a little mini station with a basket to have upstairs…our changing table is downstairs, but sometimes an upstairs change had to happen.
Sully says
I have a mini diaper station stored downstairs in a kitchen cabinet (changing pad, diapers, wet bag, GroVia Magic Stick for diaper rash) for nap time changes, and it works really well for us. As for leaking, if you are using stuffed diapers, which it looks like you are, make sure the insert is pulled allllll the way to the front of the diaper, and maybe try “shortening” the rise of the diapers. We had some leaks because the diapers were too big, even though they were snugly fastened around the baby’s belly. I hope it works out! I am in love with that clothesline!
Mary Elizabeth says
I also store diapers in my kitchen cabinet but thought that sounded too odd to recommend.
Mrs. B. says
Deirdre, I don’t use cloth, but I think your conundrum is a common one no matter what… My first instinct is to say to move the changing station to your room, but I understand your hesitation. I guess you don’t have some kind of spare bedroom that could help you there? Has it actually happened that Finnabee was woken up by a change of diaper with the baby, or is it just your fear? Only you know what kind of a sleeper she is, but if you’re lucky (and really really quiet 🙂 ), maybe she would be able to sleep through it all. Also, do you see that you always need to change Peabodee’s diaper during his sister’s nap, or is it only occasionally? Just my thoughts to help you balance pros and cons of moving or splitting up your changing supplies…
So grateful for Card. Sarah…
Christine P says
Hokay, a couple things:
1. Detergent build-up is a myth. Detergent is designed to rinse out & will do so. What you may be dealing with is hard water build-up, which is liable to cause leaks, barnyard-like stink, etc. If you have hard water (you should be able to get a testing strip from Lowe’s or somewhere similar) you will need to add a softener/booster to every load.
2. Stripping diapers: if you have a good wash routine you will not need to strip your diapers. Needing to strip often is a sign that your diapers are not getting clean enough in the wash & that you have some troubleshooting to do in your routine. Whatever you do, DO NOT STRIP WITH DAWN. You will void the warranty on your washing machine! If you need to strip you can do it with RLR.
3. “Free & Gentle”-type detergents are ok to use on cloth diapers, but they don’t have as much cleaning power as your regular detergents; you will actually have to use more if the F&G detergent than something like regular Tide or whatever (I use Arm&Hammer).
4. Wash routine: Remember that cloth diapers are the hardest-working and dirtiest cloth in your house! They’re not delicately spun from fairy wings (as some CD manufacturers might have you believe). They won’t get clean with a tablespoon of detergent — remember that we’re dealing with urine and feces here. Treat them like you would treat, say, a farmer’s jeans after he’s mucked out some stalls. Cloth diapers need HOT water, LOTS of agitation, and plenty of detergent. If you have a good wash routine they do not need to be regularly bleached. If you need to bleach your diapers, you’re not getting them clean enough.
5. By way of example, this is my wash routine. I have about 36 diapers and I wash about every 3rd day (the boy wears cloth in the day and a disposable at night). I do a four-minute pre-wash on cold with detergent up to the first line, on heavy agitation. This takes care of the “surface” stuff. Then comes the deep clean. I do a 14-minute wash (I have a top-loader; your routine will be a little different for a front load / HE machine) on hot, with line 3 of detergent and heavy agitation. At this point I will also add household laundry (towels, sheets, etc.) to fill it up. Then everything goes in the dryer for the longest cycle on medium heat (you can also do high heat — PUL isn’t even harmed by an autoclave and can certainly withstand dryer heat). Of course, line-drying is fine too — we just don’t have one ourselves.
6. I strongly encourage you to join this facebook group: Fluff Love & CD Science . They’re fantastic. All the info you need is in their files (DO read them first!) and they have an active board and many admins who are happy to work with you for individual troubleshooting /routine-tweaking.
Christine P says
Sorry, looks like I messed up my html — it’s not letting me click through. Here’s te direct link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/FluffLoveCDScience/
Rachel K says
Yes to all of that! I prefer to use the fluff love university website instead of the facebook group, because, well, sometimes people get dramatic about laundry over there 🙂 The website has some fantastic troubleshooting tips. I probably would have given up cloth if it weren’t for their tips!
http://www.fluffloveuniversity.com/
Heather says
I echo the hard water thing…you can use vinegar in the rinse cycle and I do 2 extra rinses before hanging on the line. I love the Rockin Green detergent and it lasts forever and I buy it on Amazon. I’m cloth diapering my 5th baby. 🙂 I keep a little Paul by the dirty clothes hamper.
Heather says
*pail
Mary Elizabeth says
Ok! Hi.
Welcome to the conundrum that is cloth diapering. I think Christine P has some very sound advice (and some things I will kindly offer another opinion on) LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS OF WATER is IMO the key to clean none leaky stinky diapers. I also think stripping diapers can be a bit of a red hearing especially if after only a week you are having stinky diapers.
My best guess is they are just not getting clean enough. Maybe add a while extra rinse to your routine. A word about machines- I switched out my energy efficient pretty new washer for a used but good condition classic washer and it made all the difference. I don’t know how to get diapers that don’t stink with a low water unit. I have heard it has been done but i got nothing.
Regarding RLR- I would be very cautious. They are very strong chemicals and you are placing the washed items on very delicate skin. I personally know babies who were burned by the product. Also it can eat natural fiber diapers.
On to where to store used diapers waiting for the wash. Can you put the bag in the laundry room? or do you have a communal laundry situation? or is the washer by the dryer outside- i think you mentioned that. I like the idea of storing diapers in the bathroom and used diapers in a wet bag in the bathroom or laundry room. . . and lastly leaking: is it from a giant pee or are the inside parts folded out so that it touches babies clothing? those were my most common culprits and fixed by adding a soaker pad and making sure the inside was folded in completely and not showing at the leg gussets.
Nicole says
Yes yes yes!!! Thank you to Christine for talking about Fluff Love because I was about to wax eloquent about it. Seriously though, it changed my cloth diaper game, big time! I start d having major burns and rashes and after consulting with the admins on the FB group, I concluded it was due to my improper washing techniques paired with hard water; basically cloth’s nemesis. So I did a strip and a bleach soak (actually had to do two bleach soaks because so much stuff had built up in the diapers), ditched my homemade detergent and tried a Free and Clear but still had issues, so ultimately have switched to regular, powdered Tide Original. And also started following their wash routine recommendations. Now, thankfully all my issues are gone.
The site says you need to sanitize with bleach anytime you get used diapers, so that will help immensely with your stash to start. Also, I’m guessing from the pictures that you’re using pocket diapers? They are notorious leakers. Or at least are for my girls! Anytime I think they’ll have a pocket on for more than about 1.5 hours, I add a soaker or extra layer of absorption to the existing insert. The best materials for absorption are hemp/cotton blends or charcoal bamboo. They are more expensive than cotton prefolds but save so many costume changes because they can hold a lot of liquid. We use Thirsties Duo Hemp Prefolds for naps now with no leaks, and I’m even considering trying them at night (we usually do sposies at night). Cloth diapering is a whole big world, so don’t stress too much– you will find a rhythm that works for you over time.
It’s def more complicated to change a diaper any old place in the house in cloth. We have a dresser-cum-changing table in our upstairs hall outside the bathroom. The diaper pail is right up there with easy access to the toilet. If I’m downstairs though, I usually use some supplies from the little basket I keep under our coffee table, and then take the dirty diaper upstairs (but keeping a wet bag is probably more practical. I’d just forget about the wet bag myself, I think).
Deirdre says
Thanks for all the info! I joined the FB group and will be reading up… 🙂
Jen @ Into Your Will says
Are you using the same detergent for the rest of your laundry? I had an issue at first with residue sticking around in my washer and messing with my diapers. So now I just use a natural detergent on everything. Also, an extra rinse and a prewash can help (although mine has a prewash setting and I have friends who don’t have that on their washer).
Love the clothesline!! I would love that here in Louisiana.
Anamaria says
Doing a strip with Charlie’s soap has helped me in the past. Line drying actually helps too! But it could easily be a sizing issue or insert placement issue. I also always use a cloth diaper detergent from the cloth diaper store for my diapers, and tide or whatever for everything else.
Looks like you have ones with insets- bum genius don’t. If you like the inserts so you can reuse the cover (I do), you might try flip made by bum genius.
Lastly, when it gets cold, don’t use the dryer for your covers- they loose their water-proofness over time! Inserts are fine in their, though.
No advice on diaper station, sorry! I’m hoping my toddler will be out of diapers before baby #2 arrives!
Annie says
I’ve been diapering for 10 years, and I learned a bit just from reading the comments. I think it is very helpful to invest in a diaper sprayer. 5 minutes to install and it helps wonders with staining and you can take it with you. I have a front loader and I do a long wash on cold and then a long wash on hot water and then 2 rinse cycles. I do this at night and start the new cycles when I’m up nursing. It is helpful to add a soaking wet towel to the load also. I don’t like washing other household linens with diapers, so the towel I use is an old bathtowel used primarily for cleaning up toddler floor spills. Diapers with stains go back in the pail to have another try at getting clean. I also use oxy clean, which may be controversial, but my diapers are white, white, white after 10 years and 4 kids. I also use my diaper bag as a napping diaper change station. My mom taught me long ago about having multiple stashes of diaper supplies depending on how big your house is. Enjoy the sunshine. It is supposed to be 106 tomorrow where I’m at. 😉
liz says
I have found hard water buildup to be our primary diaper issue even in homes where our water doesn’t seem hard for ordinary uses; it definitely causes random wet leaking. I use rockin green hard rock (which is a more expensive detergent, but it is the only thing I’ve found that works with even slightly hard water; I tried a softener treatment (Calgon) but it didn’t really help) on our fuzzi bunz pockets. Cold prewash without detergent (but with rg funk rock bc our inserts got a little funky after a year of use and this prevents that),hot wash with detergent, extra rinse, hang to dry even in the winter (the inserts sometimes take a long time to dry but usually have 2x the number of insets so you can use your diapers as soon as the outer part is dry). Use as much water as possible for your machine. Other types of buildup on diapers or residue in your machine can cause problems,too, of course, but here in the Midwest hard water is a major issue. I hope you get it worked out! Why is cloth diapering so endlessly fascinating for those of us who do it? 🙂
Mary Alexander says
I always used the basic cloth diapers that I bought in bulk as seconds from the manufacturer. My rule of thumb from experienced moms is to use 2 diapers always and for girls you lay the two diapers down and then twist the center. For boys you fold down the front inside towards the baby for obvious anatomical reasons. Instead of a fancy bin I used a 5 gallon bucket once I had used the detergent in it. I found the gold standard of rubber pants was a rip stop nylon that only Sears sold. It did not get wet and washed up nicely and did not rip or leak.
Rachel K says
I think you’re referring to using prefolds–it looks like she has pockets, where the insert goes into a fleece pocket attached to the diaper. 🙂
Rachel K says
Lots of good advice here! I would say that you probably have hardish water–that’s when we had issues. Free and clear/gentle detergents don’t have as many water softeners in them as regular, so if you want to stick with the free and clear, adding a half cup of borax may help, or you could switch to something like tide powdered that has the extra softeners already in it.
MC says
I’m very much in the ‘regular detergent, and plenty of it!’ camp when it comes to diapers. You’re washing out bodily waste!
Are you doing an extra rinse at the end of the wash? If not, I would add one if you can. We’re doing without it ourselves these days, though, because we’re stuck with coin-op facilities. When we have our own machines, I like to do a pre-rinse as well with just a sprinkle of detergent to get out some of the yuck before the full wash.
I also recommend a cup vinegar in the last rinse. That can help with any buildup issues you may have.
Phoebe says
I agree with Annie. I have my diaper bag set up with everything I need to change cloth diapers (or did, when baby was smaller and changes were more frequent) and then just keep it wherever I wanted to be changing the baby. I had cloth wipes in it, a spray bottle with water and a little cleaning solution, and a wet bag that could hold six or seven wet diapers. Then when Iwent to wash the main diaper collection, just add in the extra wet bag. You need at least two small wet bags for this method, and three decreases the worry about getting them out of the wash fast enough.
Danielle says
It’s amazing how similar and yet different cloth diapering can be for folks. I thought Arm & Hammer detergent had to be the best choice, and then found it lead to stinky diapers…I also found that my diapers got cleaner in a standard machine vs. HE…and dunking in the toilet to rinse was cleaner than messing with the diaper sprayer over spray or clumsy spray container…and with baby #3 we are going a little more old school with the cloth…back to prefolds and pins, and covers…
I got an over the door pocket thing on clearance at the baby story that we used for a second diapering station…one pocket for diapers, one for wipes, one for other diapering miscellany..
I’d love to have a clothes line, not just for diapers…but have used a folding drying rack that can stand in sun inside or out…or just near a furnace vent in winter…
Kelsey says
I love a good cloth diapering conversation! I’ve got two in diapers right now, and what works best for us is actually the old-school birdseye cotton flats with Flip covers. I tried a lot of different “systems,” though never the pockets you mentioned. I steer clear of microfiber diapers because I’m always hearing about the laundry issues, so it’s simple (and super cheap) cotton for me! I agree with the others that a somewhat aggressive wash routine is necessary, but if you still have trouble, I really do think that the old-fashioned diapers are much simpler. After all, if our foremothers could use them while running the family farm/ going west on the Oregon Trail / taking laundry down to the riverbed to wash, I think we can manage 🙂
Mary Elizabeth says
I agree the micro fiber ones seem to have more stink issues and I second and third everyones advice of rinsing diapers immediately and storing wet waiting to wash.
Esther says
I use prefolds and so I don’t have a whole lot of experience with pocket diapers, but my two cents are that I have leakage issues when baby goes too long between changes, or doesn’t have enough absorbence factor.
The single most helpful thing I have learned in cloth diapering is that everyone has their own method. Everyone has a different style and situation, and it can all get really overwhelming when you’re trying to do it the right way and everyone is giving conflicting advice. Accepting that you will have issues and rashes and leaking (while yes, attempting to resolve the problems) takes a lot of the stress out of it. It may take a year or more, but you will find what works for you and you will settle into it. Like breastfeeding, it takes a learning curve before you settle into it and can enjoy it!
You’re doing great! Not many moms take the plunge into cloth!
Tori says
I’m not using cloth much right now but I do have about 7 years of experience, and we have tried a variety of different things. What worked best in the laundry was a regular amount of regular detergent (I used Foca, but lots of people seem to like Tide). Special detergents like Rockin’ Green did NOT work. My kids got simply awful rashes because the diapers were not getting clean. I added Borax to every load to help with the hard water, and put some detergent in the pre-soak to give the soiled diapers as much exposure to cleaning agents as possible. When I did those things I had great luck with getting thing clean. We never had problems with “detergent build-up,” but we did have problems with waste build-up when we didn’t use enough detergent.
As far as leaking, that is a tougher one. Adding Borax or Calgon or another softener can help if it’s a hard water issue. If you are using microfiber inserts, doubling up with hemp works great. We avoided most leaks that way. We never really got past the night-time leaking though. I think that is hard to do with pockets and we could never invest in anything else.
As far as a diapering station, I ended up keeping the pail in the laundry room. If you can’t do that, I think the mini-station with a wet bag would work great. I’ve done that before.
But more than anything else, for all these issues, you have to find what works well for YOUR situation. If you try something and it doesn’t work, try something else. Just because it worked for someone else doesn’t mean it will work for you. That’s probably the biggest thing I learned in my years of using cloth. So don’t get discouraged!
Sarah C. says
For super absorbency in pockets, I really like Hemp Babies flats, which can be purchased at cottonbabies.com. They can be padfolded into pockets and provide a very trim nighttime solution 🙂
Elizabeth says
Lots of people have already chimed in, so maybe this isn’t so helpful, but here’s my experience with cloth on (now) five babies: Hard water is the pits! I always, always, always do a second rinse with cold water and vinegar, every single time, and have mostly managed to avoid non-absorbency issues. I will add up to a cup of vinegar for a load of diapers. I typically wash every second or (at the most) third day, more because I don’t like to let the diapers sit and stink any longer than that (and the urine will begin to eat the fabric if they’re left too long!) than because I actually have a full load at that point.
As for naptime and changing station location, I prefer to keep my diaper pail as close to the bathroom as possible so I’m not dragging rinsed dirty diapers any further than absolutely necessary. If you don’t want to move the Little Oratory in your room, my suggestion is to just use your diaper bag during naptime and then empty the wet bag into the pail when the baby wakes up.
You’re brave, line-drying diapers! When The Tightwad Gazette author admitted she used the dryer for diapers because she thought “happy babies are a good investment” I banished all thought of line-drying. Don’t they come off rather stiff? Of course, now I’m living with these HOA rules that prohibit a clothesline, so even if I wanted to I couldn’t try it. 😛
Elizabeth says
P.S. I should add, check your warrantee info before using vinegar. I’ve always used prefolds and covers. My one foray into pocket diapers left me decidedly underwhelmed.
Margaret says
Do you have a front-loading, HE washer? I know many people (myself included) who have quit cloth diapering after “upgrading” to these new machines, because they just don’t provide the water and agitation necessary to get the diapers really clean.
Jamie says
After 5 kids I have no embraced having a nice basket in the living room filled with diapers ..it’s not super organized in there but I know I can find it in the basket. Also I just lay my babies on an old fashioned cloth diaper to change them. Thus no table or what not and everything gets shoved into the basket after each diaper change leaving the living room a bit more living roomish. I use prefolds and covers and if you don’t get every last bit of that diaper tucked in there will be leaks! Not sure about the kind you are using though.
Jamie says
ps. Also I keep the diaper pail in the bathroom as well..I rinse mine and just toss them in that way.
Brooke says
I’m always so happy to hear about a new cloth convert!
When I had a newborn and toddler sharing a room (which included the changing station), I would pull out a few diapers and a smaller wet bag like the kind you stick in your diaper bag for overnights. I’d change the baby in my room when big sister was sleeping.
Are you using your diaper detergent on all your other clothes, with no softeners or other special additives? There can be build-up in your washing machine from your clothes loads that rub off on your diapers. If this might be the case, strip your washing machine and only wash clothes in your Tide. If you’re looking to try another super affordable, cloth-approved detergent, try Countey Save. I used it exclusively for about 2.5 years before making the switch to Rockin Green (which I love, but it’s also much more expensive).
Good luck!
Kelsey says
I second the Country Save recommendation. I also love their oxygen bleach.
Becky says
I don’t have anything to add to the leak discussion. I would try tweaking fit and then looking at stuffing and fit. If you get really industrious, I always liked giving the try cloth program from Julian’s drawers a run through. They will send you a bunch of different types of diapers for trial and that’s a good way to work out what fit works for a tricky baby body.
I usually had 2 diapering stations- 1 in the nursery and 1 on the first floor. Both of those locations had full kit although that was modest- cloth wipes, water bottle, lotion (be careful with those because they can muck with your diapers) and a wet bag. I kept it all in a little wicker basket that looked reasonably decorative. I kept the main wet bag in the bathroom next to the toilet. I got a hanging laundry bag sort of thing and hung it from a sturdy hook. It greatly simplified everything and I agree that the diaper sprayer makes all the difference.
Kimberlee says
Well, your readers certainly know a thing or two about diapers. 🙂
As for laundry in general, hanging it outside and having it smell so fresh is lovely but indoor air drying is nice too. I have seven children and have never owned a dryer, though I only cloth diapered for my first three (using these things called diaper pins). We use those old fashioned laundry racks indoors when necessary – the laundry really helps to humidify the house in winter when the heat is on.
The article on the ‘religion of food was mostly spot on’, with a bizarre conclusion as you noted. I thought for sure he was going to say we should employ the same friendly, relationship-oriented guiding methods when evangelizing the Faith as those food gurus do, and instead he concluded with a strange non sequitur. It does seem rather part of human nature that we are always pleased to be ‘converting’ other folks to our way of thinking, be it religion, food or even diapers. We like others to be like us, no?
Wonderful quotes from Card. Sarah!
Thanks for the links, as always – have a great weekend!
Mary Eileen says
I’m resigned now to a pretty-ish basket under a side table in the living room, then changing the baby on the floor when you’re not in the bedroom(which for me is upstairs). I have a cute changing pad that kinda covers the whole thing when not in use.
On the diaper thing, I can’t add anything else to the laundry discussion, but what about just using covers with your pocket diapers? I use a cover over everything- pocket pr prefold. They are thin, cheap considering you can reuse through multiple changes, and withstand nuclear blowouts.
I’ve considerably lengthened the lifespan of many pocket diapers with a cover too, bc you can keep a really holey, ragged diaper out of the trash quite a while if you stick a cover on it.
Mary Eileen says
Oh, and diaper pail in the bathroom, near the sprayer.
Emily says
When you ask for diapering advice, you definitely get a lot of different opinions! In my 8.5 years and counting of cloth diapering (mostly pocket diapers with prefolds/covers as a backup), I’ve settled into a routine of flipping the poop off into the toilet right away (no diaper sprayer), storing dry (often with the diaper pail in the hallway outside of the baby’s room due to older kids needing changes while the baby naps), and a long hot wash in Allen’s Naturally detergent (the one sold by Bum Genius) with two rinses. Allen’s Naturally is expensive, but it is more highly concentrated than regular detergent. I’ve had my $50 jug for four years (washing probably 2-3 times a week) and counting. (We use Tide Free and Clear on the rest of our laundry, as nothing gets my kids’ stains clean like Tide.) I’ve never had leakage problems (and we’ve lived in five different places with different washers and different water softness levels), but when I start to smell the stink, I do about four rinses and make sure all the detergent is rinsed out. My stink issue is always the urine chemicals mixing with lingering detergent chemicals. I’ve tried baking soda and vinegar, dawn stripping, boiling hot water, etc, but have never found them necessary. I do try to line dry my diapers as much as possible, and that’s why I love using the microfiber inserts–unlike prefolds, they don’t turn into cardboard stiffness on the clotheline!
I do think one thing you have to get used to switching from disposable to cloth is that you do have to change more frequently. When a cloth diaper is saturated, there is nowhere else for the moisture to go. Maybe the leakage is from that adjustment. But once you get accustomed, I truly don’t find cloth that much harder than disposables (which we use on the road and at the church nursery)!
Kelsey says
Yes, more frequent changes is an adjustment from disposables, but really key. We used disposables for a few months while living with my in-laws, and transitioning back to cloth seemed kind of tough, but after a few days of commitment it was no big deal. I aim to change every couple of hours.
I’ll stop commenting about this diaper stuff, now!
Joy says
A vinegar rinse really helps with buildup on cloth diapers. Also, if you are hanging them in the sun, no bleach is necessary. The sun sanitizes the diapers.
Ha! I just unclogged my bathtub this week, too. Isn’t it grand?!
Anitra says
Another cloth diapering “veteran” here. I’m on my 3rd kid diapered mostly with pocket diapers.
* Stink = the diapers aren’t getting fully clean. Try more detergent and more rinsing, and/or doing a pre-rinse with vinegar to help combat hard water.
* Leaking = legs are too loose (if the clothes are wetter than the legs of the diaper), or diaper is saturated (you need more absorbancy or change more often), OR the diaper is repelling (ie. there is buildup and the pee is running right off). The easiest way for me to test for buildup was to try “washing” the offending diapers without adding soap. If I saw suds.. well, then I know that not all the detergent is getting rinsed out. Try using a LITTLE less and rinsing more. I always check for suds in the gasket of my front-loading washer when the cycle is done. If I find any, I do another rinse cycle.
In my personal experience (living in New England, with hard water and a front-loader), Tide F&C is the most effective of the free & clear detergents.
Changing station: for the brief period that I had 2 in diapers, I used my diaper bag as the “extra” changing station. Kept one or two diapers in there and a wet bag; when naptime was over, I’d empty the wet bag into the main hamper and make sure I’d grab a fresh diaper to go back in the bag. The bonus was that my diaper bag was always packed and ready to go! (Unlike now, when I leave the house a lot more often, but I always end up hunting for a clean diaper to throw in before we leave…)
I want to love hanging clothes on the clothesline… I just don’t love taking them down again.
Rosie says
You have plenty of good advice here, but I’m wondering if your diapers are *leaking* or *wicking* – we’ve had issues with perfectly absorbent microfiber diapers wicking when compressed (the thicker inserts like in Fuzzibunz are the worst for this), which means they have to be changed more often. Actual leaking might be repelling because of buildup, since they’re secondhand. I’ve cloth diapered five kids and hate microfiber more with every kid I diaper because it just doesn’t hold up in the long run! If you can get a couple packs of prefolds and Flip or Thirsties covers, you might have better luck (and you can find those used also, plus Cotton babies has seconds sales pretty often).
Stephanie says
You’ve gotten lots of good ideas on the leakage front, but there are a few I’ve run into that I haven’t seen mentioned yet. If you’re getting leaks around the legs, check that the onesies (if she’s wearing any) aren’t too tight. I’ve had them creep into the leg holes of the diaper, and then they can wick moisture. The same thing can happen with pants–the waistband folds down into the diaper, and you can get wicking. I’ve never used pockets much; I’m more of a prefold girl, but we could never use pockets at nap or night time. My babies like to sleep on their side, where a pocket has no absorbency, so they would just leak out onto the bed. Others love pockets for night, though.
My other diapering secret is a splash of bleach. I know others claim that if the detergent is doing its job, you won’t need it, but I’ve found it to help greatly with getting rid of any stink without requiring a great deal of work. It doesn’t take much, but I’ve diapered 4 children with a variety of machines, detergents, and water types, and it wasn’t until I started adding bleach that I had consistently clean, fresh smelling, rash free diapering. I also feel better about adding towels in if I know everything is being sanitized.
Cloth diapers–who knew they’d generate so much discussion?
Ngofamilyfarm says
Vinegar in the rinse cycle and an extra rinse helps in my experience. I always had trouble with leaking when using the all-in-ones, but now have the two smallest in cotton cloth diapers and wool soakers (sometimes the plastic pull on ones, too), and have much less leakage 🙂
-Jaime
Liz L says
Could it be if the weather is warmer they are feeding/drinking more? Hence the leaks? You could try some hemp/fleece liners for extra absorbency.
Nappy changing. Could you keep what you need in your change bag? Our nappy bucket was by our toilet. In the u.k you are required to flush solid waste away from any nappy and this is more pertinent than ever with cloth. I used light flushable liners to assist.
Washing the nappies. The bucket had a weak Milton solution in (type of nursery bleach sold here). Then I just used a non bio powder on a hot wash in the machine. (Iirc it was a 50c but it’s a few years.) Never had any issues with lingering whiffs. I washed every 2 or 3 days, and changed the bucket solution at the same time.
Logan says
I wash our cloth diapers by hand and found we were getting the leaking issue something turrible. I stopped using detergent and just use vinegar and dish soap and now they are so much cleaner smelling and they stopped leaking the first time I tried it.
Luana says
I also love cloth diapers, great to read all the comments!
Elimination communication was a great help for me! I started with a 2-3 weeks old baby and it was very easy to do it casually with both babies (with my first I didn’t know about it).
I almost never had poop in a diaper (which made diaper washing much easier), and almost no extra work for it.
My english is not very good, but I will give it a try.
After baby wakes us I would put her diaper of and hold her over a bowl (a big one in the beginning!), make a shhhhh sound, tell her she can pee/poo if she needs to and almost always she would pee, or poo. Then I would put a diaper on and do it again after nursing (after sleeping and after nursing were the best resulst), or when I would like to change her diaper.
My babies really liked it and very soon they would only poop when they didn’t have a diaper on. Some people do it full time, or very often, but for me, with more children to take care of, it was easiest do do it only after waking up and when I wanted to change their diaper. And they had a diaper or little backup (very thin cloth diaper, like my mum had) all the time, so nobody would get wet.
This way it is no work at all and great help to have less work with washing cloth diapers. When babies can sit, you can sit with them on the toilet while letting them pee/poo and then you even don’t have to rinse your potty-bowl.
(You can use any bowl you already have at home and don’t need. I didn’t buy anything extra, it is very simple and mothers all over the world did/do it.
And bonus- baby is used to pee/poo in the potty/toilett from beginning, it is nothing new when for them when they are toddlers.
Sometimes they stop for a while (when learning to crawl, or walk) but it was easy to start again after the break.
Maybe you would like to try? I was very suprised how easy it was. I remember with my first baby, that she would prefer to pee/poo on the changing table, when I opened her diaper. Which I didn’t like at the time 🙂
Maybe for this reason it was very logical for me when I heard about elimination communication with my second daughter.
I also found it fun! And when I had extra energy and felt adventurous 😉 I would let my baby without diaper and be open for some wettness, if I don’t pay attention.
Kate says
I don’t know how she did it, but my mother-in-law had my husband potty-trained by the time he was one year old. We have a a black and white photo of him smiling on the toilet with the caption “6 months old, training going well.” She died before I could ask her about the details. I have a feeling we aren’t the women our mothers were.
Luana says
Uups, it sounds like I did it in the night. No!
It should be “after she wakes up”, and not “after she wakes us”.
I would hold my baby over the bowl (or sink or toilette) only during the day, after she would wake up, or nurse. And not often, like 5-6 times per day.
And baby had diapers on all the time (so no stress to catch any pee at all). And I did not do it very often, because then I would need even more diapers (because I wouldn’t put an already slightly wet diaper on a baby again).
Paula says
I didn’t get thru your whole post because I didn’t cloth diaper.My Mom told he she kept the diaper pail in the bathroom (I remember siblings rinsing the poop out in the toilet) and she kept bleach water in the diaper pail. She had 3 steps to washing…pre-wash; wash; extra rinse. SErioulsy…going downstairs 3x for each load ! the woman was a saint! She had the fist four under 5yrs old; then another bunch til my dad died 2 months before their 20th anniv. They wanted a dozen kids. she had 9 live births & 3 miscarriages. You do the math..prego..nursing for 20 yrs. And she did not get a dryer til the youngest was born. I miss my mum.
Kate says
I used cloth diapers for all seven of my children (my youngest is 8), so I have a lot of experience. I found that nylon plastic pants were the cheapest and best leak-proof option. I would have liked more natural covers, but it wasn’t in the budget. The way I typically washed the diapers was to run them first through just a rinse and spin cycle, then I washed them on a full cycle with a vinegar rinse. I hung them out to dry in warm weather (although they did resemble and feel like roof shingles). I used Arm & Hammer detergent and most of my diapering years we had a top loading machine, so I didn’t worry about the amount of detergent.
As far a changing stations, keep some diapers in your diaper bag. I usually used disposable for travelling, but I also kept some cloth diapers in the bag which were handy for all sorts of things. I kept the diaper pail in the bathroom. If you have the room, you could put some cloth diapers in your linen closet or a basket of them in the bathroom. Consider the unused space underneath things (like the sofa) as possible storage as well. A vintage fishing basket hanging on the wall could double as hidden diaper storage too.
Laura says
HI Deirdre! We used cloth diapers for four of our babies. We stopped with #5 b/c we have no dryer at all and there IS a limit (we do about 10-12 loads a week and hang ALL of it–diapers were too much). We made sure to boil them to start out, and be sure to fluff dry them on high heat once or twice. After that, we used arm and hammer free/clear detergent, never use softener! If your water is hard, add some borax(1/4 cp per large load). A half cup of white vinegar in the rinse might help too. Leakage might be related to insufficient layering. We used flat diapers and I loved them as you can layer as much or as little as you like. It may be that the little man is just peeing too much to quick and needs a bit more absorption, so folding a flat in there might help. We used the super whisper wrap by Bummis. As far as arranging rooms for baby care, I know we prefer to have multi-purpose surfaces–at one small house we had a changing table in the babies’ room as well as a basket of changing supplies sitting on the long coffee table the living room(it was about 4 feet long by 2.5 ft wide and could easily hold a baby)(and that included cloth diapers and a Tupperware of wet cloth wipes, and some coconut oil. We also used rice paper liners to keep the poop off the fabric (especially after they start eating solids). BTW, we probably won’t go back to using cloth, so if you wanted our load of cloth diapers (flats, mostly), I could boil them up and send em along to you. My email is claybyfaith@yahoo.com if you are interested. We have probably about 3 dozen.
Andi says
I used cloth diapers with my daughter for a year, so here are my two cents: for detergent, I used Charlie’s Soap. I loved it so much that I switched all my laundry to Charlie’s soap. I buy two gallons of it at a time on Amazon, which makes it affordable. It leaves like zero residue, and no cent whatsoever. Another thing is that to get the diapers truly clean can take a surprising amount of water. Are you making sure to do an extra rinse cycle (especially with a front-loading machine)? We used pre-folds, so the leak issue might be different for the different type of diaper, but I also found that when they started leaking a lot, it was because my daughter could hold more in her bladder, and it was time to go up a size in liners!
As far as diaper changing station, we always kept ours in the bathroom – so handy for washing up messy changes. But you have to have a pretty big bathroom to make that work. Good luck to you!
Katherine says
Cloth diaper questions inevitably bring so many comments and so much feedback! We just rinse the heck out of ours in hot water when we have stink or leaking issues.
Best of luck! I continue to be so happy for our cloth investment- lots of money on the front end but I think of all I saved (four kids in the same diapers) and it has been totally worth it. And I am always just happy to see all of the diapers on my clothesline. I think I’ll actually miss it, once everyeone is potty trained!
Libby Jane says
Dierdre, i realize this will sound crazy, but we just rinsed dipes that were only peed upon, with plain water in the bathroom sink, wrung them out, and hung to dry from a line strung over the bath/across the shower curtain rail. When dry, as long as they did not smell, I just used again. Of course, if they needed washing, they went in the bucket.
We also used a dry bucket (i don’t know if you mentioned it, but lots of people use wet systems between washing,) and I found it was way less smelly, and we didn’t have any trouble getting them clean with normal washing. Wet things just get so much more icky!
Also, crazy agin, I know, but my babies all peed almost right away upon waking up, so I just let them go right away in a tiny potty, by holding them over it, reducing our load by several dipes a day.
We have no drier, and in the winter used wooden drying racks. Living in a cold place, this worked great, and things dried very quickly, since the air was so dry, as long as we werent also using a humidifier, which we just do if someone is sick and needs it.
I hope that did not all sound terrible, but none of it was unsanitary at all! It was pleasant, and we love cloth. Oh, line drying is much faster if you have separate covers. All in ones have so many layers, and the air cannot get to the waterproof side easily. No prob in bight sun, but i did favor a layering system, with separate covers. And it reduces the overall volume of laundry bc if they are separat, the covers are rarely washed. Only for blowouts. With an all in one, you are wasing a cover for every pee, multiplying the volume. Also newborns pee so much! They space them out longer when they can hold a bit more! Think like nursing!
Becky says
Charlie’s soap! It is great for diapers, fragrance free, biodegradable, and the most inexpensive laundry soap I can find that doesn’t have tons of chemical junk! Highly recommend it after 2 cloth-diapered babies! Check Amazon.
Mary says
I don’t know about the leak issue because I haven’t had to do any stripping yet (almost a year of cloth diapering). We use a detergent I buy on Amazon called “Nellie’s Soda”. I mostly use disposables at night as I haven’t figured out a totally leak-free bedtime solution yet. We have a mini station downstairs because that’s where we hang out the most. I keep the diaper pail with a wet pail liner in the laundry room, which makes it easy for when it’s time to wash.
Amanda says
I’ve used Tide Free and Clear too and it’s a good cloth diaper detergent. Try a little less (1/4 what a normal load would require) and add some vinegar to the wash (I use Downy Fabric Softener balls to measure it into). The vinegar helps it rinse clear, gets out stains and smells, and softens…so a win all around 🙂 We also do the cold rinse, hot wash, cold rinse pattern so they got plenty rinsed out.
Oh, just thought, do you have hard water by any chance? If so that could be the culprit since the build-up usually won’t happen that quickly from too much detergent alone. We had that with our well in a previous house and it was rough. If so the vinegar should help and if that doesn’t do enough check into water softener (I think the common one is called calgon?)
As for the diaper changing station I always keep a mini-station downstairs. I keep a small basket with a few diapers, wipes, and a largish traveling changing pad. For cloth diapering downstairs add a decent sized wet bag and you’re good to go!
Love the cloth diapers on the line! Line drying is so peaceful to me somehow. There’s something very pretty and satisfying about clean clothes drying on the line, especially clean diapers.
Laura says
I’m just going to throw this out there about the leaking, since I scanned through and I don’t think anyone has mentioned it. Is everybody leaking, or is it just the little boy. I have done cloth for 2 girls and 1 boy, and I only ever had issues with the boy leaking. And were there ever issues. Especially in the first couple months, he managed to leak on almost a daily basis, and it had nothing to do with the manner of washing. You may want to explore creative solutions along those lines. Happy diapering!
Libby Jane says
Is the leaking that the diaper is not absorbing liquid, or is the liquid just escaping without touching the diaper, or is the liquid soaking through?
So often, when they are teeny tiny, it is just hard to get a good fit, and it sort of misses the diaper entirely. If it is that, I would make sure I had a snug fit on that little bottom.
I really liked flat diapers for newborns. I did a fold with a twist, and it was perfectly snug. But a bulkier diaper is harder.
Good luck!