Cloth Diapering - If I did it all again...
How do I get started with cloth diapering?
- Consider your reasoning for starting with cloth diapers
- Set a budget range that you want to keep
- Compare and contrast your cloth diaper options to find a setup that will fit your needs and budget!
In my episode Kinda Crunchy Mom Mode, I mention some of the basics to our cloth diapering journey. In the next Thursday's episode, I dive much deeper into the options, but here are the basics of what I would recommend for anyone starting their cloth diaper journey or I should say if I had to start all over, this is the route I would go.
Why should I cloth diaper?
#1 Cost - In an article by CostStudy.org the average family spends $2,445 in disposable diapers for one child… Not including pull-ups and overnight diapers for the potty-training stages. We have 5 boys so that adds up fast!
#2 Environmental Concern - Amber Keefer wrote an article for oureverdaylife.com and explained that in a landfill it takes a diaper 500 years to decompose because of how they are buried… Diapers need to be exposed to light and oxygen to break down and when they are buried that doesn’t happen. In her 2018 article she explains that the EPA reports an average of 20 billion disposable diapers go to the landfill each year! That blew me away, I didn’t realize it was so much!
#3 Chemical concerns - Noreen Kassem does a great job explaining all the ingredients that go into a disposable diaper in her 2017 article on hellomotherhood.com. I have personally known several babies allergic to disposable diapers. We did have a concern with that for Odin; he seemed to react to certain brands. Call me naïve, but I never thought to question the ingredients in products till later in life!
Where can I find my cloth diapering supplies?
There are so many different options but if I were doing it all over again in my current season of life, this is what I would go with!
Prefolds and PUL Covers - For a newborn I would go with 36 newborn diapers and 10 covers. The Kawaii Baby brand or Thirsties makes adjustable covers that can grow with baby. I really like those, but you can also get different sized covers if you prefer. I would get 1 pack of snappis and make sure I have a diaper pail bag. As well, the diaper sprayer attachment is a must!
83.85 (36) diapers
50.82 (10) covers
9.99 (1) pack of small snappis
19.95 (1) large wetbag for dirty diapers
39.95 (1) sprayer
Total = $204.56
As baby grows, I would add 24 of the medium size prefolds. With our boys we have been able to use that size up until they were around 2 years old.
76.00 (24) diapers
10.00 (1) pack of large snappis
Total = $86.00
Then I feel like potty training is the hardest stage because each child is different as to how they go about this. When Steven gets to that point, we will probably go with 10 of the Thirsties Potty Training pants. We found with Odin that the “no pants” method worked well and thankfully he picked up on the whole concept fast.
197.50 (10) potty training pants
Total = $197.50
So overall you are looking at
less than $500! And on top of that, if you have multiple kids, you can reuse your supplies!
I would love to hear your thoughts on the concept! Make sure to message me with the connections below!
UPDATE: I forgot to mention extra inserts! At night time (if you cloth at nighttime, you will want to bulk up your diapers since the babies are hopefully sleeping longer. We use a cloth prefold and add a charcoal bamboo insert! That seems to work well.
If you are doing some shopping make sure to check out GreenMountainDiapers.com and use the code ROOTED7CE for 7% off any Clotheez items! As well, I have a few links below if you can't find everything you need at Green Mountain!
*There are affiliate links in this post that I may get a small commission if you purchase from them, but know that these are products and brands that we know and love, and I hope that you will too!
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