Adventures in Cloth Diapering

**UPDATE: Baby Cheapskate is giving away 12 bumGenius 3.0 diapers (over $200 value)! Details here.**

We got Isabel back from the grandparents just after lunch on Saturday and immediately velcroed a fresh diaper to her bum. Thus began our weekend trial of the Bum Genius 3.0 One-Size Cloth Diaper. So far we have tested day use (works great), night use (all night, no leaks), and poop use (no problems). Our early opinions? The diapers are great. In actual use, they are as simple as a disposable. Tony is really happy that they don’t stink like disposables. I was extremely worried about the overnight use, but once again Tony commented about the lack of pee stink and I was shocked that she was perfectly dry. Even when I removed her diaper, there was no redness or signs of moisture. 

But what about all of the other stuff? Let’s start with the basic info about the diapers. They are Bum Genius 3.0 One-Size Cloth Diapers. They are a one size fits all pocket diaper. There are snaps on the front to adjust the size and there are inserts that stuff into the diaper to provide the absorbency. We are using a dry diaper pail system which means very simply that we just toss the wet diapers into the pail and sprinkle with some baking soda. Dirty diapers have their contents dumped into the toilet and then go right into the dry pail. When it is time to do the laundry, the diaper pail liner and diapers all go into the wash. We run one cycle on cold/cold without detergent and then follow with a sanitation cycle with detergent, and an extra rinse. Everything goes into the dryer and that’s it. 

Why cloth? I thought about it for a very long time and for a while I just wasn’t convinced that cloth was that much better. One of the biggest reasons tempting us to make the switch was money. We liked the idea that we could buy a stash of diapers and those diapers would see Isabel all the way to potty training and also work for any future children. It also doesn’t hurt that people can resell their used diapers and recoup much of the initial investment. The secondary reason really was the environment and this is where it becomes a grey mess of a toss up. With disposables, the environmental impact is in the production (chemicals (petro and otherwise), deforestation) and in the disposal (chemicals, landfill). Not to mention the sheer wastefulness of such a one time use product. I couldn’t get my chi or whatever to cooperate guiltlessly with the constant throwing away of stuff. The cloth diapers are more friendly upfront with their almost complete use of natural fibers, but they require water use for the washing. However, we have a super efficient washer and I use eco-friendly detergent, so I think we are actually doing ok there. 

Disposables = oh, so convenient. I love them for that. Costly. Wasteful.
Cloth = pretty darn convenient. I love how soft and breathable they seem. Costly to get started. Much less wasteful.

We have decided to order 12 more diapers. I hope everything continues as well. Next, we’ll see if we can get daycare on board.

Interested in cloth, but not sure about making the leap? Baby Cheapskate is going to be giving away 10 free BumGenius diapers. Psst. That is $180 worth of diapers and about half a stash!