Cloth Diaper Troubleshooting

Getting the right fit.

1. Make sure the pocket insert is smoothly placed inside the cover. It needs to lie flat and straight.
2. All portions of the insert should be tucked inside the pocket and none of the inner diaper layer should be folded over or exposed to outside of wicking will occur.
3. Adjust the snaps so the rise of the diaper is snug and not unnecessarily bulky.
4. Always use the wing snap to ensure a snug fit along the leg.
   

My diapers are leaking.

1.  If your diapers are brand new check the fit of the diaper. Diapers that are too loose or adjusted too small can both leak. The inner fabric of a pocket diaper needs to be snug against the babies bottom in order for urine to be quickly absorbed and not pool and run out.
2. Pocket one-size diapers fit best from 10-30#. Every child is different though so a very thin 10# baby might not yet fit.
3.  If your diapers have been in use a while and just started leaking, the problem is likely detergent, mineral, or rash cream buildup and they need to be “stripped”. Stripping refers to the process of removing that detergent buildup. It can be done numerous ways.
   1. RLR – Soak clean diapers in RLR and hot water for 4-5 hours (bucket or tub) and then rinse until suds are gone.
   2. Add a tbsp. of original dawn dish soap to the wash cycle (clean diapers) and then rinse until all suds are gone.
   3. Boil the inserts only (NEVER THE OUTER POCKETS)
      

My diapers smell.

1.   If your diapers smell once your baby wets them but are fine coming out of the machine, they likely need to be stripped. See #3 above. 
2.   Increase the frequency of your wash schedule and do not leave diapers as long in the pail. 
   

Buttons brand cloth diaper review

 

I recently received a Buttons brand one-size all-in-two cloth diaper to test out. I had not heard of this brand before receiving it to try but was excited to give an all-in-two a shot.

These diapers consist of a wipe-able PUL shell with a snap-in insert. The shell of the diaper can be reused numerous times in a row without washing by simply removing the soiled snapped in insert and replacing it. This allows the user to purchase less of the more expensive part (cover) and still haev a complete stash. The insert itself is microfiber with a soft fleece lining. For nighttime or heavy wetters they have a snap in doubler option as well. I received the diaper in bright green Apple, insert in large, and a nighttime doubler.

My first impressions were very positive. The PUL shell is very thick, two layer in fact, and feels as if it will stand up to long term wear and use. The nighttime doubler is extra thick. It was surprisingly thick and equal to two or three of other inserts we have!! My only wish for it is that it also has a fleece liner so when not needed it could double as a regular insert. With just the microfiber on top it can't be used stand alone and always has to go under the regular insert since microfiber against a baby's delicate skin is not good.

I prepped the diaper according to instructions and gave it a go. Our first use was a simple daytime outing but as most do it went a little hectic. In the end, Carter was in this diaper longer than I would have liked (almost three hours) and after having finished off his sippy cup. NO LEAKS! For my tiny baby the leg gussets were perfect! He decided to christen the diaper the first time out and I can say that the microfleece seemed to repel the poo and it easily fell into the toilet. I didn't have to scrape as can sometimes happen.

Our second time out with the diaper, I decided to be brave and use it in place of our regular nighttime routine. Now for those of you who cloth diaper you know what a worry this is. After you finally find the perfect nighttime combination messing it up at all can lead to a wet, cranky, awake baby in the middle of the night. I put away our heavy wetter diapers and pulled out the Buttons AI2! Carter slept his usual 12 hours and woke up with no leaks! It's definitely bulky with both inserts snapped in but all nighttime diapers are.

We've also tried using the nighttime doubler inside of another brand's pocket to see how flexible the system is. I am a lazy cloth diaperer and hate sorting through a huge clothes basket for the exact right insert. If I were to add more Buttons to my stash, I'd definitely want to be sure that in a pinch the inserts would work out okay in other diapers. They definitely do and this way the nighttime double can be used without also using a regular insert!!

All in all I was pleasantly surprised. In the past I've not been a huge fan of snap in inserts or AIO or AI2 systems. This one was comfy on baby (my biggest complaint against GroVia system), easy to assemble and disassemble should the diaper be pooped in, and heavy duty enough to last through many many washes!! You can get a Buttons cover/shell for just $11.50/ea on Amazon and inserts are around $4 a piece. (I just saw that Buttons website (link above) has a sale on the covers for $9.35. I'm not sure if it's Cyber Monday deal or not but worth checking out!!) That's pretty impressive considering you'd only need a few covers total to last an entire day.

The diaper is currently in the wash and ready to go back on Carter. I swear this time I'll remember to actually grab a picture of it on him and I'll come back and update this post!! I always remember after I've changed him out of it already.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Thrifty Diaper Wash and Diaper Stink Help

I'm always looking for ways to cut costs and for a long time paper towels and detergent (both for our diapers and regular laundry) has been at the top of my list. I think I'm going to bite the bullet and get the fabric for unpaper towels this weekend and a few weeks back I made my own cloth detergent.

On the advice of a friend I used this recipe. I'm going to start using Calgon Water Softener as an additive too because we have horribly hard water here. I know hard water makes detergents not as effective  and I plan to add 1/2 the recommended amount along with the 2T of detergent to the wash cycle. With my new homemade detergent I'm using 2T for my cold wash cycle and 2T for the Hot wash cycle for diapers.

I've used this as a boost for our clothes laundry and seen great results. After the first wash of our cloth the microfiber inserts were softer and felt as if the individual thread were more fluffy. I'm a few weeks in to using it and no issues s far! Fresh smelling diapers every time and my checking account is happy (I typed pocket book here as the saying goes then realized that saying probably isn't said anymore!).

Since I've been asked a lot recently about things I do for stinky diapers, I figured I'd add it to this post also. I strip my diapers every other month or so (once baby is past newborn stage) with RLR. I carry it at First Coast Fluff after having problems finding it locally. It takes 1/2 to 1 packet each time and I place my clean diapers in the bathtub with the hottest water. I soak overnight or 5-6 hours minimum. then I rinse by hand in the tub and wring the diapers out. Into the wash they go for 2-3 full cycles with NO detergent since my machine doesn't have a rinse only option.

I'm also a huge fan of Bac-out Biokleen. This stuff is amazing even if you're not doing cloth. It works great for odor removal, I've used it in stinky shoes and for carpet cleaning. For diapers, I spray a bit on horrible diapers or into the pail if it smells. I'll also then add a tablespoon or so to the cold wash cycle I do with diapers. It's amazing and all natural. I buy mine at Whole Foods and it lasts forever. It's also available online cheaply.

New wash routine

Along with moving came a few changes to our cloth routine. Nolan is getting close to being potty trained but truthfully with the move and new house full of new carpet, end of pregnancy and upcoming road trip, I haven't been working on it 100%. He has now pooped in the potty (YAY!!) and goes pee numerous times a day. We need to bite the bullet and move to undies and just be prepared to clean up accidents.

Every blog post needs a pic so here are a bunch of our diapers in action over the past 2.5yrs!

Our new house has a top loader washing machine. Tim was willing to switch out our HE front loaders for these new appliances but I was hesitant. I was pretty excited to get to try a machine that could actually soak diapers! I have to say I'm really happy. I wish it had a soak only feature which the machine doesn't or just a rinse feature but I've fine tuned our wash already. I do a lighter wash on cold first which doesn't agitate as long would be similar to our old rinse and drain. Then I do a super sized load on hot for the longest time available with an extra rinse at the end. My diapers are definitely smelling better and seem better rinsed with minimal effort. No more hand rinsing in the bathtub either! I've also stopped storing and washing inserts and covers separately since with the new machines nothing is requiring extra washing. Overall pretty happy. You can definitely cloth diaper and probably easier with the less fancy machines.

On the fence...

So, you're on the fence about cloth diapering? Here are some of the reasons why I made the leap. For more statistical and referenced reasons visit: Diaper Facts

1.) It saves money! Spread out the investment through the last trimester of pregnancy and use any baby shower gift cards to buy your reusable diapers. After the newborn stage (8+lbs baby), you can get away with about 18 diapers. My favorite diapers cost $17 at full price with no discounts for a grand total right over $300. These diapers go from 8lbs to 35lbs! Cloth diapers kept in good condition have a resale value and nice diapers can be bought used.

2.) They are so cute. Could you do this otherwise and have such a fun shot?

Nolan in a BumGenius 3.0 one-size diaper

 3.) Your crafty friends and family can actually help you make diapers. Yep this one was hand made by me!

4.) You're going to spend the money regardless. Why throw it away? Buying cloth diapers is actually fun and satisfies that urge to shop!!

5.) They are better for the environment! It takes forever, yes 200 to 500 years is forever to me, for a disposable diaper to decompose. Did you know you are supposed to be scraping all that poo out of the disposable and into the toilet before placing it in a landfill? If not, it's considered hazardous waste.

6.) Babylegs!! Google if you don't know what these are. They are the cutest.

Nolan wore a onesie over his diaper in this picture but Babylegs 

and a cloth diaper make the perfect summer outfit for a crawler.

7.) Cloth diapers are more breathable and place less/no chemicals next to baby's bottom. 

Nolan in a FuzziBunz one-size

Nolan in a FuzziBunz one-size

....stay tuned for the next post which discusses the many myths of cloth diapering! Just in case you can't wait... yes, they are easy to wash!

Prefold Folding 101

Here is the basic way we put on our prefold diapers. We have not had any blowouts with this technique.

1. Lay prefold out flat.


2. Fold right third toward center


3. Fold left third toward center



4. Place baby on diaper with center of bottom in the middle


5. Fold up front to cover baby


6. If needed based on prefold size, fold down the front panel for fit.


7. If needed based on prefold size, undo front right and left folds to make inner tabs. The back tabs in steps 8 and 9 will go over these.


8. Unfold right back tab


9. Pull right tab up to front of diaper and secure with one side of snappi


10. Pull left tab up to front of diaper and secure with one side of snappi


11. Secure center/lower snappi clasp



In reality, I complete the first 3 steps as I pull the prefold from its drawer. I then lift my baby’s legs and place the folded diaper under him as seen in step four. This is exactly like one would do with a disposable. Step 7 is usually necessary as the baby grows toward the upper end of the prefold size (i.e. gets larger).

Cloth Diapering 101 - Part Two

Sizing Diapers

Many of the above listed diaper types are available in both sized and one-sized versions. Sized diapers offer a trimmer diaper but can only be used for limited periods. This can be more expensive when accumulating an adequate stash of diapers. One size diapers usually have snaps or Velcro across the front which allows one to adjust the rise of the diaper. They usually fit babies once they reach 10lbs so smaller newborns will require additional diapers until they reach this weight (prefolds and covers are perfect for this).

How many diapers?

Each baby is unique but newborns can be expected to need diaper changes 10 to 12 times a day. Most manufacturers recommend washing diapers every other day to avoid accumulation of odors and setting in of stains. Two to three dozen newborn prefolds and 3-4 covers are adequate for a newborn household which will wash every second or third day. Covers contain a waterproof layer on the inside which can be wiped off between diapering and reused until soiled.

Velcro vs. Snaps

As an expectant mom researching cloth diapers I was convinced I preferred snap diapers. They continue to look brand new after many washes and unlike Velcro they do not collect hair and lint in the process. As a mom to a newborn though, Velcro became a great feature. The Velcro allows the diaper to be adjusted at any given increment unlike a snap diaper which is preset. I personally am willing to give up a little in the looks factor and to clean Velcro in order to have well fitting diapers. A well fitting diaper is less likely to leak.

Personal Favorites

Newborn size – Chinese unbleached prefolds with covers. Preferred covers are ProWrap for price, durability, ease of cleaning, and fit.
Over 10lbs – Chinese unbleached prefolds with covers. Preferred covers are
ProWrap and Thirsities. BumGenius brand OneSize diapers. These are a
pocket diaper which come with two inserts.

I personally prefer diapers which are one-size (except of course prefolds which are sized but have a much larger range). I used FuzziBuns sized pockets and they were absorbent and worked well. Again, because of the limited time each of these diapers could be used and the fact that I would need to purchase more diapers as my son grows, I will stick with BumGenius OneSize in the future. The prices of the two are similar and one has a much larger life span.

There are other variations on the above diapers but they function much the same with only pattern differences. Knowing the above information though will make understanding these other types much easier!