New To Cloth Diapering? Check out how easy it can be!
Washing Cloth Diapers
Basic Washing Routine:
1. Wash the entire load on cold with or without detergent.
2. Wash the entire load again on warm or hot – with detergent. See the amount recommended by the company. If it is made for cloth diapers, use that amount. If not, use half the amount.
3. Run a second rinse.
4. I recommend that you line dry your diaper covers, pocket diapers and anything with a waterproof lining. Everything else can be tumble dried on medium (like inserts).
5. If you are lucky, your washing machine may come with a diaper setting. All you need to do is select the diaper setting and start!
If you’re having problems with diapers that stink after washing:
1. Run an extra rinse. Sometimes detergent residue can cause diapers to smell. Check the detergent and make sure you are not over using the detergent, especially if you have a HE washing machine.
2. Wash once with liquid Dawn (the blue formula). Use 1 teaspoon in a front loader and 1 tablespoon in a top loader. Rinse well.
Some recommended Detergents for cloth:
DO NOT USE ANY WITH SOFTNERS ADDED, FREE AND CLEAR DETERGENTS, OR BABY DETERGENTS
Crunchy Clean
Rockin’ Green
Charlie’s Soap
Planet Ultra
Seventh Generation
Allen’s Naturally
bumGenius Detergent
Tiny Bubbles
How to Remove Diaper Stains:
The best stain remover is the sun! Wash your diapers(do not dry them) and then lay them out flat with the stain facing the sun. It usually only takes a few hours and the stains will most likely disappear!
How many to buy:
A newborn can easily go through twelve cloth diapers in one day so I recommend purchasing 12-18 cloth diapers in the newborn or small sizes/ or One Size that goes from 7-35 lbs. An older baby doesn’t need quite as many diapers, but you should still have enough for 8 diapers a day and an overnight diaper system. Really, it depends on how many times a week you want to do laundry and how much you want to invest intially. Remember: you can resell your used diapers on craigslist.org or ebay.com most of the time and make some of your money back, especially if they are in good condition. It will help off set the cost of the initial investment.
What Cloth Diapering Accessories You Really Need:
At minimum, you will want a washable diaper pail liner (laundry bag size wetbag), a diaper pail with a lid, and a diaper sprayer that attaches to your toilet. EX. Bum Genius Diaper Sprayer. If you plan to use cloth all the time, you will need a wetbag or two to hold soiled diapers when you are out. The wetbags come in a variety of sizes and will fit in most diaper bags.
Where to Buy Diapers and Accessories:
Fuzzi Bunz- Contact ME 
Jennifer Kakita 702.236.5002 / www.mamafit.com (see the store)
Bum Genius- www.cottonbabies.com
Other sites to buy from: kellyscloset.com, diaperswappers.com, diaperpin.com, ebay.com, and craigslist.org
An Explanation of Common Cloth Diapering Terms
All-In-One-AIO
An all-in-one cloth diaper that has a waterproof cover and an absorbent inner liner and built in closures- all one piece. These diapers are usually fasten with hook and loop or snap fasteners. All In Ones are used by parents who need a convenient diaper for a day care, for quick and easy changes on the go, and by parents who just want the convenience of a one-piece diaper along with the environmental and financial advantages of cloth.
Aplix®
Aplix® is a hook and look fastener commonly used on cloth diapers.
Chinese Prefold Diaper (also abbreviated CPF, UBCPF and IPF)
A flat diaper (thicker in the middle than it is on the sides) that comes in multiple absorbencies and sizes. This diaper is the most economical way to cloth diaper. Chinese Prefold Diapers come in white and unbleached. The unbleached diapers have not gone through a whitening process. They come with many of the original cotton oils still in the fabric and may require extensive washing to make them absorbent. Once these diapers have become absorbent, they are usually softer than the white diapers.
DD
Disposable Diapers
Diaper Cover
Cloth diaper covers come in all shapes, colors, fabrics and sizes. They are used to ‘cover’ up a cloth diaper and keep your baby’s clothes dry.
Flat Diaper (flats)
A “flat” refers to a diaper that is typically 27″x27″ square. Flat diapers can be folded many ways to accomodate different ages and shapes. Flats are very flexible and are considered a one-size cloth diaper. These are the diapers that our grandmothers used to diaper their children. They come in many different fabrics, including flannel, cotton, gauze and hemp, and have been staples in diapering for generations. Today, many parents purchase flat diapers to use as a light-weight blanket, sun shield, pocket diaper insert or a burp cloth. They are the best diaper for traveling or camping as they can be easily washed out in the sink and hung to dry.
Fitted Diaper (fitteds)
A fitted diaper has elastic at the legs and at the waist. It also has some type of closure to hold the diaper on the baby. The closure can be hook and look or snaps. A fitted diaper requires a cover. The absorbency of fitted cloth diapers varies based on the materials used in the construction of the diaper. Cotton fitteds are an inexpensive and popular choice. Hemp fitteds are slightly more expensive and are more absorbent than cotton.
Inserts:
Inserts are used with pocket diapers. They can be made from a variety of materials including micro-terrycloth, regular terry cloth, hemp, or you can use prefolds as inserts. “doubling up” just means using more than one insert to increase the absorbency on a day trip or overnight.
One size diaper (OS)
A one size diaper usually fits a child from 7 to 35 pounds or birth to potty training. This sizing is achieved by either snaps on the front of the diaper or internal elastic/button holes (Fuzzi Bunz only). As the baby grows, you move the snaps or buttons to accommodate the growing length/width of the baby.
Pocket Diaper
A pocket diaper is usually made of two layers of fabric sewn together to form a pocket for an absorbent insert. The entire diaper fastens onto your child and does not require the additional use of a cloth diaper cover. Pocket Diaper Inserts can be made of microfiber terry, cotton terry, hemp Chinese Prefold Diapers or a cut up old towel. Popular brands of pocket diapers: Fuzzi Bunz, bumGenius, and Happy Heinys
Wool Soaker
A wool soaker is a diaper cover made of wool. Due to its high lanolin content, wool works very well as a cloth diaper cover. It can hold up to 40% of its weight in liquid.
Velcro®/Aplix
Hook and loop fabric usually sewn onto the diaper or diaper cover. Very fast and easy to use. Wears out eventually and can cause snags on other items when being washed.
Snaps
Plastic or metal snaps are used to fasten a diaper or diaper cover. Very simple to use and snaps rarely wear out. Not as adjustable as hook and loop but more durable. Snaps take more time to ‘snap’ which can be an issue when diapering a mobile baby.
Snappi
T-shaped plastic device with plastic hooks on each end to grab and hold the fabric. Very fast and convenient to use. Usually have to replace as the baby gets bigger
Cloth Diaper Lingo and Abbreviations
As you begin to research cloth diapering through online message boards and discussion groups, you might get confused. Cloth diapers tend to have their own terminology when discussed, so here is a list of popular words and abbreviations related to cloth diapering that may help you figure out what is being said!
AIO – All in One diaper
AI2 – All in Two diaper
BF – Breastfeed
CD – cloth diaper
CPF – Chinese prefold
DSQ – Diaper service quality
EC – Excellent condition
EUC – Excellent used condition
F&C – Free & Clear (used referring to detergents)
FS – For sale
FSOT – For sale or trade
FYI – For your information
IPF – Indian Prefold
IMO – In my opinion
ISO – In search of
PUL – polyurethane laminate, a material used to make diaper covers/wraps
SAHM – stay-at-home mom
WAHM – work-at-home mom
Diaper Brands Commonly Referred To With Abbreviations:
BG – bumGenius
FB – Fuzzi Bunz
HH – Happy Heiny’s
Recent Comments