Do Cloth Diapers Really save You $$$???

They save you tons of money! When I first started cloth diapering my son we lived in an apt building where we had to pay to use the washer and dryer and even then when I did the math including paying for the laundry it was well worth it. I used fuzzi bunz for him from 10 days old until potty trained and loved them. I did not find them to be a hassle at all. Just one extra load of laundry every 2-3 days. If the poop is solid you can put it in the potty but if it's not it will come off in the rinse cycle you do before washing them. I am due with my second any day now and am going to use the diapers again which means I save even more $. Good luck!

OK...not sure if you live near NJ, but I just went to the most AMAZING cloth diapering workshop EVER at the Birth Boutique in Denville, NJ...go on their website for more info if you are not close to that I think you can order the whole kit on there. I have been feeling really guilty too with my 2 year old (wanting to do it ever since she was born). There are SO MANY cloth diaper options out there, I wanted something that was going to be simple. One of the gals that works at the birth boutique has a 14 month old daughter and she has been cloth diapering since birth and through process of elimination, she found the best diapering system EVER with what is shown at the Birth Boutique. The research she did showed that with a child in reg. diapers for 2 years with the cheapest brand out there, you spend a total of $3500.00. With the cloth diapering through the 2 years, you spend a total of about $1200.00 (that includes the laundry detergent:):):) Not to mention the "green" factor and all the poisons that are in reg. diapers. Dioxin (one of the ingredients in most diapers) has been linked to kidney disorders and UTI's. Which my 2 year old has had UTI's since 6 months old. I currently haev a 7 week old that will be starting the cloth diapers (once they arrive in the mail) next week. **BTW: my 2 year old has lose bowels as well until I cut out apple juice and other gassy juices** try it out and see:)

Hope this helps! And I'm looking forward to my cloth diapering experience!

with a little push from a friend I started cloth diapering my first daughter at 6 weeks. I wasn't sure if I would be staying home or going back to work. So after trying a few different types of cloth diapers out (and I would recommend trying out a lot if different ones before committing to any one type) I decided that pocket and all-in-ones would work best if I ended up needing child care. But I ended up staying at home and now, with a second on the way, I think if I needed more diapers I would go with prefolds or fiteds with a cover. Prefolds are by far the cheapest and, although a little intimidating, aren't really that hard to use. I had a few in rotation with my DD and they never, ever wicked or leaked, ever. As far as taking care of them, I found it easy. With breastfeed poops you don't even need to rinse them off, just drop them in the wash for a soak and then a wash. With solid or formula poops, just empty in the toilet (sometimes I would rinse them a little sometimes not) and soak and wash. We also used cloth wipes with a spray that worked well (you can buy that on the cloth diapering sites). You will be spending more up front but less in the long run (especially if you buy AIO or pockets) but you can also get slightly used ones that work just fine for a discount. Good luck and you will find what works best for you.

I used cloth diapers for my first son and have saved everything for my second child whenever he/she comes along. Absolutly you save money, no doubt about it. Once I have my second child I will have zero expenses with the exception of the biodegradable disposables that I will by for the in laws - I figure if they are babysitting for me for free...i'm not going to inconvience them with washing cloth dipes. =)Save the earth & Save Money!

Yes! The savings can really add up. Especially if you have the two in diapers and get the adjustable ones. They can both wear the same diapers! One thing you can do to help ease "the burden" is get a diaper shower. They attach to the cold water vaulve on the toilet tank so if there is a gross mess you can just spray it into the toilet. They also have biodegradable/flushable liners that can even help with the loose stools. Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions ____@____.com. Jillians Drawers is also a really good place to ask questions. I've found they are very honest.
Good Luck!
K.

I figured out that for me the cost savings wasn't that amazing on the first child, but if you have more children, or even just resell the used diapers, you will really save $$$. I have to recommend that you try a flushable diaper liner, like from Imse Vimse or Kushies, to help with messy poops. My daughter has very soft stools too, and the liners make it possible to just pick it up and flush it. This is great pre-potty-learning too; they can see where the poop should go. :) Go for it- and good luck!

My son is 2 and potty training as well. I looked into the cloth diaper thing very seriously, and I had concluded that it didn't save me much more money. I factored in the cost of electricity to run 2 loads extra a week with hot water, and the cost of the diapers themselves, which I have always felt were way too pricey. But in spite of the price I purchased a few and started anyway, in an attempt to be environmentally conscius. Unfortunately, I hated the whole process -- it also did not help that my son peed and pooped what felt like all the time, and his stools were also never formed. I thought that maybe I could try again when he is older and stooling less frequently, like only once daily, but now that he is training I feel it is not worth it to spend all that money on bigger cloth diapers.

Hi A.,
I have used cloth diapers since my daughter was about 6 weeks old and i can assure you they will save you a TON of $$$!
Buy one size pocket diapers ( I like Happy Hienies and Haute Pocket brands), they will fit from birth ( unless you have tiny babies like I do) until potty training. You can find seconds and used diapers pretty cheap online. Almost all my diapers are seconds or bought of craigslist and i have never had any problems. I have spent about $250 on diapering and will never have to spend another dime even when my next baby comes. As for the pooh issue, my daughter also has loose stools so we uses spetic safe flushable liners. They catch the poop, are reusable if just peed on and make cloth diapering very easy... no dunking, just pick up the dirty liner and flush it in the toilet. They cost about $6 for 100 or so and last us over a month and they can be purchased at just about any online diapering store.
Cloth diapering also promotes early potty training which is great. My daughter was out of diapers during the daytime by 18 months old and now only uses one at night.
Give it a second try!

You can totally save money, especially if you have another child. I bought about 30 Haute Pocket and Bum Genius diapers (one size - from birth to potty training) in velcro tabs (like disposable diapers). They are easy to launder (I keep them in wet bags until laundry time, then dump them in the washer, wet bag and all! If you get the one size pocket diapers like the two brands I use, they dry faster. Check out Nickis Diapers website for great deals! That's the place I found the best prices. Good luck, PM with any more questions.

A.,

Congratulations on being a stay at home Mom! That's so wonderful for your babies!

AIO will take you a while to realize the difference in not paying for disposable (and if you are sick, plan on disposables, bc you won't be doing laundry!)

I bought diapers, and covers, and copied a design for fleece covers (not as good as buying fleece covers - they are better material - I just ran out of outlay)

They are bulky. They're not as cute. They can up a clothing size.

I bought 2 days of diapers (so one could line dry while the other was being used.)

I had ONE box of disposables from Nov to August. We bought our 2nd box after having to take a trip that didn't have facilities for washing diapers (family home - you just can't make some people see how YOU are saving money by using their washer). I despised the ones I bought - a year ago this brand was GREAT and now they are skimpy. I prefer my cloth.

You will save $ over time - if you are diligent. I didn't buy the AIO because if I do have to start using the dryer, I didn't want to pay for something to deteriorate just because it was a little wet.

That's the other thing: You're (supposed to be) changing every time baby wets, not just when the diaper is full. So 12 diapers for a day is not totally unrealistic.

They're not (as) cute as disposables. But the savings I realized was roughly $40/month times 9 months. That's food on my table and 3 months covered the diapers.

I also bought the next size up. Buy the right size for your baby. Especially if your family is going to expand by one or two more. I doubt my son is going to BE in the next size up before he potty trains. He's just lean.

If you go diaper/cover, there's a saving over the AIO. Get your baby sized.

If you put your older babe in to cloth, line dry as much as possible.

I don't know what you buy for diapers. So I don't know how much you will save.

You can go to Luvaboos.com and see if she has the info on what disposables do to landfills. Not to mention the fact that waste is not supposed to go in the garbage in the first place - it's against the law - so technically you're not avoiding the emptying part in the first place.

The best part of disposables that don't get used before your baby sizes out of them is: you can gift them to a new Mom, or give them to a Mom who needs them. You can also return unopened boxes (usually, BRU gets sticky about that one and 90 days). .

Good luck!
M.

not sure, but they do save on the environment. also not sure if it's worth the time. motherhood is exhausting.
mom of 15 yr and 10 yr old girls

Short answer is yes :P (well unless you use a diaper service).

We did a combination of cloth and EC (elimination communication) and all totaled spent less than $150 on everything: Fitted diapers and wool longies/shorties (ie wool covers for waterproofing) and a little potty ;-) --added benefit DD has been done with diapers since she was around 18 months old. However, even if you only cloth diaper full time, you will still save money--especially if you have 2 in diapers, because when your younger one gets bigger she can use the older child's old diapers. If you wash everyday you only need maybe 2 dozen diapers, but maybe 3 dozen is better for 2-3 day time period.

As far as how much you can save, it all depends on what you are looking for and whether you're handy with a sewing machine and have the time :D If you do have the time and skills you can sew a VERY generous stash for a about $50 to $100 for materials. If not, there are many good quality WHAM made diapers that are very reasonable. I bought all of mine as "seconds"--there was nothing functionally wrong with them, but they were discounted because of cosmetic reasons, design changes or style/print changes.

Personally, I like fitteds (with wool covers for waterproofing when needed). But AIOs are not that expensive. Also you can do pocket diapers or waterproof covers with a lay-in soaker pad/prefold (similar to G-diapers with cloth instead of the biodegradable insert).

Also you'll have to decide whether you want "one size" diapers or sized diapers. For us we only needed one size for DD the whole time she was in diapers (small from birth until she was done--at 3 years old, she probably could still fit in a small or newborn diaper though--skinny little thing takes after her dad :P)

Start out by getting a few to use when you're at home and build up your stash as you find ones that you like. Maybe get one or two diapers every time you have to pickup a new package of disposables. Before you know it you'll have a decent stash of cloth diapers.

I've had good experiences purchasing from Chloe Toes Boutique: http://www.chloetoesboutique.com/store/Default.asp
and This End Up: http://hyenacart.com/This-End-Up/
Check around and see what you like.

Not sure if cloth diapers will save you money, but early potty training definitely will. it sounds like your daughter is in the perfect age to start (yes, you can start potty training a 5 month old!).
We started my daughter around that age, at 18 months now, she is almost completely potty trained (needs diapers while sleeping).
so if you do that with her, and use cloth diapers when needed, then you will definately save money. and you will be amazed at how she will pick it up. it's a lot of work on your side, but you can't expect to do good for the environment and save money without putting in a little hard work :)

good luck!

I used cloth diapers for a while I know fuzzibunz are expensive so I justbought a pack of Berbers cloth diapers and rubber pants to fit. The only problem is I love in an apartment building so not have a washer available makes it hard. My son also doesn't have formed poops so you really have to scrub it with hot water and soap. Or there are liners you can buy either disposable liners or washable disposable will add to your expense but they take up a lot less room in the garbage dumps. I read a diaper takes 500 years to break down our childrens childrens children may know what happens when it does do if you imagine it that way it is definately worth it. It's also good to have a few cloth diapers around if you run out then you don't have to run to the store. But at night you might want to use disposable it's more absorbent and keeps them asleep longer. But it does help in potty training in teaching them when their wet.
Good luck!
From H.

Cloth diapers can absolutely save money! Disposables cost 30-50 dollars a month depending on which ones you use. With an inexpensive system like prefolds, you can diaper for under $200, with a pocket system like Fuzzi Bunz, it costs about $450 (if you use their new one size diaper). The cost is more upfront, which often scares people off. Our water and bills have not gone up in any way I've noticed. I usually line dry the outer parts of the diapers and double up loads to dry the insides with towels and such.

We switched when my oldest daughter was five months old and have never regretted it. I enjoy using them and it never feels like a hassle. If you're worried about messy diapers, you can buy a sprayer attachment for your toilet. Handy people can even make them out of materials from the hardware store, so the cost is even less. Please feel free to ask if you have any more questions.
Good luck with your decision :)