The One-Size Cloth Diaper Debate

I think that all of us parents can agree that saving time and money is an ideal goal for anything.  We're already running around like crazy and wasting our precious resources on something that doesn't make our lives easier?  Insanity!  

When it come to cloth diapering, one might assume that buying "one-size" options is the money saving way to go - these diapers can "grow with your baby," right?  Well... maybe.

 

The basic idea behind a one-size cloth diaper is that, through a series of snap closures, you can adjust the way the fabric is secured around your baby - this allows for a hypothetical 8lb baby to fit into the same diaper as a hypothetical 30lb toddler.  But does it really work as easy as that?

In my experience, I've only dealt with BIG babies.  My son was born weighing in at a burly 9lb 4oz, and my daughter at a slightly more modest 8lb 0oz.  Even under those circumstances - where the newborn was actually larger than the typical minimum weight for a one-size diaper (8lbs) - the diapers were far too bulky and just not practical at first.  My kids used newborn specific cloth diapers for at least the first month, if not a little longer.

I currently have a two month-old (the daughter I mentioned earlier) and she's only just now wearing the one-size diapers from our stash.  She's about 12lbs now - and in my experience, the 12lb mark is generally the smallest that I feel confident with.  A poor fit (i.e. a too big diaper on a too small baby) can lead to leaking, and, in the words of my idol Sweet Brown:

What brands work best on small babies?

There is some variation on the sizes of one-size diapers... as odd as that sounds.  I've found that buying the "cheapy" brands off of eBay (try this link) generally results in slightly tighter fits - of course, they will also fit tighter as your child grows, so they won't last as long.  Snaps on these are also lower quality, so buy at your own risk.

If you want to be sure your diapers are either locally made or if you're a "name brand" kind of parent, the Rum-A-Rooz OS diaper fits a lot more snug on my kids than others and has a really adjustable fit around the legs if your baby has "thunder thighs" like mine did/do.  Kawaii Baby OS diapers are a great option for parents on a budget - these work okay as well, though still a bit bulky on a 12-13lb baby.

What does a OS cloth diaper look like on an infant?

This is my daughter in a Kawaii Baby OS - as I mentioned above, she weighs 12lbs now.  This diaper, hypothetically speaking, should fit an 8lb newborn... and to be honest with you, I can't buy into that.  Yes, there are smaller adjustments to the fit at the waist and thigh than what she's wearing here, but you'd force that poor newborn into doing the splits with all that bulk - Do you see what I mean? 

Why do my cloth diapers stink?

One common problem that cloth parents face when newer to cloth diapering is a lingering "bad smell" that clings to diapers even after washing.  There are a number of potential causes to this problem, so let's do a little problem solving to see what might be happening to YOUR diapers.

Detergent and Water Temperature

Many cloth parents are driven to cloth diapering out of a desire to be more"natural" and limit harmful toxins or chemicals getting onto baby's skin.  As a result, a lot of parents go into the diaper washing process thinking that they shouldn't use a lot of detergent.  Detergents can leave residue on diapers, so by limiting the detergent, you're helping your diapers and your baby... right?

I completely disagree with this - It's extremely important to WASH your diapers.  This means that you need a cleaning agent to cleanse the fabric of baby's waste - if you don't use enough, the diapers will not be sufficiently clean.  Period.  It is important to know what a "safe" detergent is for your baby and the fabric of your diapers, so check out my post on cloth diaper detergents to guide you.

The temperature that you're using when washing your diapers is almost as important as the detergent - for natural fibers, HOT is best - in fact, the hotter, the better.  For synthetic fabrics, be sure to read manufacturer instructions when you buy your diapers - what's good for one fabric may not be good for another!

Waiting Too Long To Wash

Just as important as actually washing your diapers, you also need to create a schedule for yourself on the frequency that your cloth diapers are actually making it into the washer.  It's not realistic to expect that you would wash diapers daily - that would drive me NUTS - but you also can't only wash them once a week either.

The reason that it's important to wash your diapers every 2-3 days is because the waste that your baby produces can begin to breakdown the fabric of your diapers and also cause the smell of baby's waste to sink into the fabric and stick around for a while.  By washing every 2 or 3 days, you are getting the waste off the fabric in time that it doesn't do any damage or leave a lingering smell behind.

Neglecting "Prep" for Wash

Another key step in the "de-stink" process for a cloth diaper is clearing it of the solid waste prior to putting it in your diaper pail.  Whether you choose to spray the waste away, use a wipe to remove it, or use liners to catch the waste for removal, be sure to do SOMETHING to remove it so that the majority of it isn't just sitting in your pail.  This is, firstly, gross - imagine the smell that would create!  Second, as I said before, the waste that your baby produces can begin to breakdown the fabric of your diapers and cause a lingering smell.

Obviously you can't get everything out and your baby's urine will be there regardless, but do your best to remove what you can quickly and then dump that bad-boy in your pail... and speaking of your pail - I am a believer in a pail that provides air flow to my diapers - my pail is a 13 gallon trash can with a swing-lid.  This means that my diapers have circulation of air moving in and out of the pail 24/7 - some moms don't want their bathrooms or nurseries to get smelly so they seal up their dirty diapers to avoid it.  In my experience, however, airflow helps to limit the smell both before AND after washes... but that's just me.

Build Up In Fabric

Sometimes, no matter what we do, "stink" begins to build up into our diapers - typically an ammonia-like smell.  This process usually takes a while and sometimes doesn't happen at all...  but if you're using diapers and noticing a weird smell that your normal wash routine isn't solving, you need to review your routine.  Sometimes it's tempting to "cut corners" to save time during the wash process - see if you're committing any of the above "diaper stink errors" and get back on track to avoid any further "stinkiness" and/or damage to your diapers.

In these cases, you will need to add an extra step to remove this build up of smell - One product that has become my friend is OxiClean.  {I am by NO means the first cloth parent to post about the wonders of OxiClean, so don't consider this my patented method, just friendly advice that worked for me!}  Soaking diapers in hot water overnight with a few scoops of OxiClean is like a miracle for bad smells.  Try the "Oxi-Soak" overnight and then wash your diapers (with an extra rinse beforehand) and you should see a huge improvement. 

Guide to Natural Fabrics in Cloth Diapers

Like I've said time and time again, cloth diapering is NOT easy for the newbie cloth mom to wrap her head around (or the newbie cloth dad!).  The options are ridiculously varied and it does take a lot of trial and error to find what works for you and your baby.

One of the more confusing elements of cloth diapering are the fabric options - what's best?  What's cheapest?  Can best and cheapest be the same thing?  Are all of the options healthy for your baby's skin?

Because the options are so vast, I wanted to simply start with natural fibers - these are fabrics we're all familiar with to a certain extent, and all have a lot of great functionality when used in cloth diapering.  The most common natural fibers that you'll find available are cotton, bamboo, and hemp.  While others do exist, I like to keep things simple and these three are the staples of natural fibers in cloth diapering.

 

Cotton wins the "affordable" category - and probably will be the easiest to locate as well.  Cotton prefolds and flats are extremely common, come in organic and/or unbleached options, and are super cost effective.  Organic cotton is more expensive than bleached/processed cotton, but you can get still quite a lot of "bang for your buck" even in the organic area.

Cotton is also a very absorbent fabric once you've taken the time to properly prep the material (get the scoop on cloth diaper prep here), and is also very breathable.  "Breathable" is an important factor in cloth diapers because it means that the fabric will help to pull moisture away for baby's skin and lowers the occurrence of diaper rash.

While less readily available than cotton, bamboo is a fabric with a lot of additional benefits in cloth diapering.  Bamboo is a hypoallergenic fabric that is, in most cases, MUCH more absorbent than cotton.  This means that the parents of heavy wetters LOVE bamboo... In fact, I'll go ahead and give this fabric the win in "absorbency" for natural fibers.

This fabric is also antimicrobial and antibacterial.  This means that there is a lower chance of bad odors with bamboo, and that the fabric will help to naturally limit mildew.  Given it's high absorbency, this makes bamboo ideal for keeping moisture away for your baby and limiting diaper rash or skin infections.

Hemp is often considered to the be the champion of "durability" in cloth diapering.  This fabric can last a really long time - It is also easier to find than bamboo and many of the major cloth diaper companies offer hemp inserts and fitteds.

Breathable and absorbent, hemp is also often considered more effective for heavy wetters than cotton.  In addition to that, hemp is antimicrobial, so you'll get the benefit of limited odors with this fabric as well.

A key benefit to hemp is, however, the fact that hemp in nature is not grown in a manner that requires the use of pesticides.  This means that you don't need to worry about any nasty pesticides lingering in the fabric when you purchase (still prep this fabric, though!).


Want more "Cloth Diaper 101?"  Check out these articles from The Cozy Life:

• What Cloth Diaper is right for you?
• The Importance of Cloth Diaper "Prep"
• The Scoop on Baby Wipes
• DIY or Buy?  Cloth diaper detergent

The Importance of Cloth Diaper "Prep"

If you've looked into cloth diapering, even just a little bit, "prepping" is probably a term you've seen A LOT of.  But what does it mean and why is it so important?

What is "Prepping?"

Cloth diaper prep is, simply put, the process in which you take a brand new diaper and prepare it for use.  Depending on the type of diaper and the fabric involved, the actual process of prepping your diapers will vary.  What does NOT vary is the fact that some form of prep should take place - covers, AIO's, AI2's, pockets, fitted's, prefolds, flats, inserts, soakers, doublers, etc. should be prepped before you put them on your baby.

I'll do my best to keep things simple, so I'll just add that "prepping" a diaper for use involves WASHING that diaper, usually multiple times, prior to actually using it.  This washing process increases the absorbency of your diapers and cleanses them of any irritants left over from the manufacturing process.  So... How do you prep a cloth diaper?

Like I said, it varies.  A great deal of this variance is related to the fabric of your diapers.  If you want to keep the thought process simple, you can (with a few exceptions) say that diapers made of natural fibers are prepped differently from those made with synthetic material.

Natural Fibers

When I say "natural," I mean fabrics like hemp, bamboo, cotton, etc - These have a naturally occurring oil in the fabric when you purchase the material new.  This oil makes the fabric more water resistant, which is something you do NOT want your diaper to be.  When prepping these kinds of natural materials, you'll want to wash this oil out of the fabric through repeated washes.  The prepping process is also training the material to absorb liquid, which makes it more effective as a diaper.

Cotton and hemp are also popular materials for prefolds - this type of cloth diaper requires a lot of prep in order to get the fabric ready for use, specifically related to absorbency.  When you buy a brand new prefold, it looks like a very thin sheet of fabric - by washing your prefolds multiple times, a process called "quilting" occurs, where the fabric of the prefold begins to thicken up and increases in absorbency.

Synthetic Fibers

When you consider man-made materials used in cloth diapering - like microfiber, TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane), or PUL (polyurethane laminate) - the prepping process is less "involved" than with natural materials.  Because these are man-made materials, they do not have any "naturally occurring" oils to worry about and they are engineered to be absorbent from the get-go - these materials just need to be cleansed.

 Because these materials are man-made, however, you do need to pay attention to your method of washing these.  TPU, for example, is recommended for washing only in medium/low temperatures.  PUL, however, can be washed in high temperatures.

How many times should I wash my diapers before use?

To a certain extent, these numbers are up for debate.  Some would recommend more, others less.  However, it should be mentioned that your prefolds and fitted's will continue to gain absorbency for a little while through use - so don't give up on a diaper if it's not 100% absorbent immediately after prep.  Overnight use with a new diaper might also be tricky, so be sure to plan ahead with extra absorbency layers to accommodate.

I also recommend drying between wash cycles - many mom's will say not to bother and just use repeated washes with a dry at the very end - Again, it's up to you and what you're comfortable with. 

• Prefolds: 4-6 washes, dry in between
• Natural Fiber Inserts: 2-3 washes, dry in between
• Fitted: 2-3 washes, dry in between
• Synthetic Pockets: 1 wash
• Synthetic AIO's and AI2's: 1 wash
• Synthetic Inserts: 1 wash
• Synthetic Covers: 1 wash  

How hot should the water be?  Detergent?

Generally speaking, prep should be done with hot water.  However, like I mentioned before, there are some synthetic materials that are not meant for use with super hot water, so please read manufacturer labels!  With your natural fibers, though - HOTTER IS BETTER.

As far as detergent goes, use some during your first wash cycle for cleansing purposes - after that, it's not really necessary.  Prepping for absorbency has more to do with the actual water making it's way into the fabric - not the detergent.  But, if you want detergent during all cycles, that's okay too.  Just be sure that you're using a detergent that is safe for cloth diapers.  For more information on detergents, click here to see why not all detergents were created equally!

Can I boil my diapers?

I've never been a fan of this method, simply because it's labor-intensive and I'm ALL for easy! "Work smarter, not harder," as my mom always said!  However, there are some women that swear by this method - so we'll agree to disagree.

If you are interested in boiling, you definitely can, but only if they are 100% natural materials - like cotton and hemp prefolds or flats.  Please, please, please - do NOT boil anything with a pull, or velcro, or snaps, etc.  You run the risk of ruining the diaper AND causing a huge mess.  Once you're sure that the diaper is okay to boil, the basic process is fairly easy - When boiling, put the material on the stove for 15-30 minutes and follow this by putting diaper in the washer for one cycle before use.

DIY or Buy? Cloth Diaper Detergent

I had a lot of questions when I first committed to cloth diapering. Among those were the issue of washing your diapers - Can I use normal detergent?  If not, what do I need to make my own?  Will it be expensive?

Can I use normal detergent?

The answer to this is both yes and no.  Some readily available detergent brands offer options that are okay for cloth diaper use.  Others don't.  So what do you look for?

Avoid: Brighteners, Fabric Softeners, Dyes, Fragrances, and Enzymes
Brighteners purposefully leave behind a chemical residue in order to absorb light to make fabrics brighter, but this can cause skin irritation.  Fabric softeners are another component of detergents that, on purpose, leave behind residue - this time for making fabric feel softer.  However, fabric softeners also have the side-effect of causing fabrics to become water resistant - this can ruin the absorbancy of your diapers, effectively making them useless.  Dyes and fragrances in detergent are another potential source of skin irritation from harsh chemicals - and they are bad for the environment!  Finally enzymes, used as stain removers, can inadvertently attack your baby's skin if residue is left on your diapers due to their ability to breakdown organic materials.

Common detergents safe for use with cloth diapers
Some "free and clear" options from major detergent brands can be okay for use, though not ideal.  Many of them contain brighteners and/or fragrances, despite the "free and clear" label.  However, there are a few detergents that can work really well - like Arm & Hammer Essentials Free, which is free of dyes, phosphates, bleaches and fragrances.

What do I need to make my own cloth diaper detergent?

There are a lot of DIY recipes out there for cloth diaper use - many of which utilize very few ingredients and can be made easily at home.  The basic items in most of these detergents may include washing soda, borax, and baking soda.  Occasionally you'll see options that include the use of essential oils or other natural products as well.  Here are a few resources from The Eco-Friendly Family to check out and see if you'd be interested in trying your hand at DIY detergent:

Images (c) The Eco-Friendly Family

Will cloth diaper detergent be expensive?

It doesn't have to be.  You can certainly buy a boutique-brand detergent from a specialty store and end up paying a fortune for your cloth diaper detergent - However, most cloth diaper detergents aren't expensive at all.  DIY detergent can cost as little as $30 for 5 gallons of powder detergent that can last up to a year.  Brands like bumGenius offer cloth diaper detergent that costs under $15.00 for a supply estimated to last for 60-70 wash cycles.  Arm & Hammer Essentials Free is below the $10.00 mark for 50fl oz. 

So... DIY or Buy?

That's up to your personal preference - I've always been attracted to the idea of DIY detergent, but Cozy Hubby isn't comfortable with it, worrying that it won't sufficiently clean what we need it to clean.  Bottom line - Do what's best for you, your baby, and your diapers!