Travel Diapers

When we decided to cloth diaper there were a few reasons driving us to do so, namely environmental and cost. When we thought about the chemicals that go into making disposable diapers and the images of landfills still holding them decades later, it made me feel responsible to not dump an additional few thousand to the pile. This picture was shared with me on facebook this week and was a great visual reminder of how using cloth can help to prevent that landfill pile up. 

Courtesy of http://the-giggling-green-bean.com/ Facebook page- a Denver, CO based cloth diaper store.

Now that being said, I also live in a reality where cloth is not always convenient or best. Since Heath was maybe 6 months old and a heavy overnight wetter, we chose to use a disposable as a night time diaper and Target has been a great brand for us to keep the wetness away from his skin when he has great stretches of sleep.

When we travel is another time where we look to have alternative options that work for our itinerary. Sometimes we will not have access to a washer/dryer where we are staying. On a travel day where we could be in transit 3-11 hours, it is not ideal to carry a wetbag with you that could be filled with poopy diapers (airplane toilets are not an option for rinsing). So we usually rely on our trusty Target disposables for those travel days.

This past Christmas break we traveled to California and while in years past we have packed up our cloth diapering system with us, I wanted to try out some hybrid options. I dislike that taking our cloth with us means checking another bag, and we were also going to be traveling a bit more throughout the trip and not staying at one house location. So I explored the disposable inserts to use with our cloth covers. In our last minute packing I was limited to what our (one) natural store in town had in stock which was a package of gDiapers disposable insert. One package had 32 inserts for ~$18.

gRefill on the right. 

gDiapers biodegradable gRefills
Pros:
- They were large and filled in the cover well.
- They were highly absorbent and I felt worked very similar in the way to Target disposables as far as how much it would hold.
- They provide the option of composting or flushing as they advertise as biodegradable, though their website says this: * Disposable inserts are biodegradable in home composts per ASTM standards by a third party independent lab (wet ones only please). Nothing truly biodegrades in a landfill. But gDiapers gives you options for disposal. Flush, compost or toss. The choice is yours.When referring to the top picture here, this made me feel somehow better that these could break down more than a common disposable. I did not try flushing any of them because I was concerned about putting such a large piece down the toilet and since we were traveling, we did not have access to our compost.

Cons:
- When compared with the flip they were not as soft, but before I knew any different I thought they were fine to have against Heath's skin.
- More expensive (partially because of our in town purchase, didn't shop around online) Diapers.com sells a pack of 32 for $15.59
More info at their website here: http://www.gdiapers.com/shop/diaper-inserts/biodegradable-grefills-case

Flip Disposable Insert

Flip Disposable Diaper Inserts
Pros:
- They were softer to the touch
- They were better priced (we ordered online at diapers.com for $5.99, package of 18)

Cons:
- I found these less absorbent than the g's and had to change wet diapers more quickly, but also went through more covers because of dampness penetrating.
- While they were longer than the g's they were not as wide and I think for Heath's body type at least this size of Flips were not as good of a fit.
- Not biodegradable nor flushable
More info at their website here: http://www.cottonbabies.com/product_info.php?products_id=2160
Takeaway:
This was a great hybrid option for us to pack only our covers and then had free shipping directly send the inserts to our travel destination, reducing the need to pack them. It became more of a vacation for us when we were not obligated to do diaper laundry every two days and just used a sink to hand wash the covers as needed. I like that we have some extra on hand that we can try out for other scenarios (church nursery, car rides, maybe night doubler?). For people wanting to dabble into the cloth diaper world, this may be a great full time option for you, especially if you don't have immediate access to a washer/dryer in your home.

Want to read more reviews? I found these interesting:

• On using the gDiaper system http://mrandmrswright.com/2010/10/g-what-gdiapers/

• Flip system and their insert change in 2010 http://everythingbirth.wordpress.com/2010/09/01/flip-disposable-inserts-are-on-their-way/

• A nice comparison of Grovia and Flip  http://www.iloveclothdiapers.com/2010/11/grovia-vs-flip-are-they-same.html

Cloth Diapering

Since my last post on cloth diapering back in the fall of last year, we have five and a half months of experience under our belt now. Many friends have asked what we use, how to get started, what tips we have. Since I've essentially written the same email many times to different inquirers I thought it would be helpful to assimilate it all here for future reference.

While at home with Heath we use the pre-fold system of cloth diapering. This is the most economical route as the diapers are cheaper and since you don't have to switch out the cover with each change, you have less laundry accumulating. We started off when Heath was a newborn size using the covers made by Green Earth, Thirsties, gDiaper (older cloth cover version- not a big fan), motherease (with fitted inserts vs square cloth). All of these worked as needed, I'm not shouting from the rooftop for any of them.

As Heath has gotten bigger (around month 2) he was able to fit into the one-size diapers that were gifted to us as showers. This allowed us to start using Flip diapers and Econobum, both with their respective pre-fold inserts. Now these diapers I will sing praise for- they have great double snaps, adjustable rises as well as the sides coming in. The pre-folds are super absorbent, especially for an affordable $11 econobum pack of cover and insert. The flip diapers we have are the organic cotton insert and they are extremely absorbent and stay in place better than other prefolds that tend to bunch.

While exploring daycare options for Heath we realized that not everyone was on the cloth diapering wagon quite like we were. Actually, nobody was. But Central's Center for Children was willing to at least give it a go and have a trial period. So with not much wiggle room to work with we opted for the easiest diapering experience to offer them which is an all in one. We found these Kushie all in ones at diapers.com for a great price- plus the 20% discount of being a first time purchaser. We got a combination of the ultra light package and their regulars- there is not a difference in absorbency that we have found, only a different outter material. The Ultra light is like an umbrella material and the regular is more like a heavy plastic tablecloth (the kind with felt backing).

As Heath has continued to grow these all in one school day diapers started to get his onesies wet because they were getting too small for his widening belly and thighs! So back to the research table we went and after hearing high reviews for the BumGenius 4.0 All in Ones we made another investment. They had just rolled out their new designer prints which was an added plus for making diaper changes fun. We opted for the Organic option (vs Stay Dry) because of the more environmentally friendly material and having something natural against Heath's skin. (This is the same company- Cotton Babies- that makes the prefolds we love for Flip and EconoBum). We also chose these new releases because they have snaps vs. velcro which tend to endure longer and are more difficult for babies to un-diaper themselves. These adjustable snaps are meant to fit babies weighing between 7-35 lbs. So lesson learned- we will have these for future Manz baby(ies) from start to finish.

What to Expect has a great overview of the different styles of cloth diapering if you want a one page review- check it out here.

Lessons in Cloth Diapering

We attended a cloth diaper workshop on Saturday at Terra-Tots the natural parenting store in Fayetteville that happens to be three blocks away from us. It was fabulous! Bernice, the store owner teaches these workshops once a month to help people learn about cloth diapering and what the options are out there- how to care for them and clean them, etc. We have been thinking about using cloth diapers even before we were pregnant as we read through Go Green, Save Green. It just made sense to us and the more we learn- the more logical it is. Granted not everyone thinks like us and we have gotten some pretty funny looks when we say this is the route we are going to go. I didn't know people had such opinions! So I will share a tutorial overview of what we learned for those interested or needing more information because this field is growing and they aren't your grandma's diapers!


There is a sliding scale of diaper options depending on your lifestyle and the degree of convenience and cost you are wanting to invest.


1. Pre-folds (or inserts). These are most like what existed before disposables. They have a cloth that you fold into thirds (or other fancy ways) and place on the inside of a diaper liner. These use to be just plastic bloomer covers but are now a little better fitted and come in a variety of designs. For pre-folds and inserts you have a variety of fabric options from cotton to hemp, some organic some synthetic. All of their absorbencies and costs vary.
2. Fitted Diapers. Similar to the above option in that you are placing a cloth inside a diaper cover except this cloth is pre-cut and shaped to fit around the baby just like the diaper cover will.
3. Pocket diapers. You are still inserting a cloth option to 'stuff' the diaper but here the cloth goes into a pocket pouch inside the diaper so that it isn't directly against the baby's skin. The plus here is that you can pre-stuff and there isn't a huge time commitment but the downside is you also have to wash the whole diaper after each use whereas the first two options you can just replace the stuffing.
4. All-in-one. Just how it sounds, these diapers come already together with the absorbency needed and no inserts required. They are essentially the same as a disposable only after they are used once you put them in the laundry bin instead of the wastebasket.


So there is an overview of the options! Obviously some are better for at-home whereas others better for on the go or babysitters or daycare. It probably will be good to have a variety- but we are still considering what that looks like. Terra Tots is adding an online registry next month so we will definitely be hitting that up and asking for cloth diapers instead of other traditional baby shower gifts. For some great health, environment and economic reasons of why to go cloth- visit the Real Diapers Association website.