Mailbox Mondays: Washing at the Laundry Mat

Today’s question comes from Sarah Jane.  She writes:

“What type of diaper would you recommend to someone who has to pay every time they do laundry?”

Until recently, I never had to wash my diapers at the laundry mat.  However, our landlord has decided to restrict the amount of loads I can do per week, so that has sent us to the laundry mat with most of our laundry. 

I already have my diaper stash established, and I am able to do some loads at home.  But the few times I have trekked to the laundry mat with my diapers in tow has caused me to consider whether or not I would use cloth diapers if I had to pay to wash them.  I came to the conclusion that I would still use cloth diapers, and that using cloth would still save me money, even if I was paying to wash them.  But I also realized that I would chose a different type of diaper stash if I had to pay to wash my diapers.

I would definitely choose a hybrid/all-in-two system.  This would allow me to invest most of my money in inserts, without paying for a pocket/cover for each insert.  With an AI2 system, you can reuse the cover multiple times and replace only the inserts at each diaper change (unless the cover becomes soiled).

Technically, a prefold and cover is also an AI2 system, but the prefolds are bulkier to store until wash day.  Prefolds are a really “safe” bet for the laundry mat because cotton is really easy to care for.  You don’t have to be as concerned about contracting build-up from someone else’s detergent left over in the machine.  Cotton prefolds are also inexpensive to purchase, so you can add a lot to your stash for a small investment.  So if one is ruined or left behind at the laundry mat, no worries!

Using an AI2 system would cut down on the amount of dirty diapers that had to be stored in between washing (as your pail would contain mostly inserts, and not multiple pockets/covers).  It would also mean fewer diapers that had to be washed, and therefore you might be able to select a smaller and less expensive washer at the laundry mat. 

And if you could invest enough money to purchase a larger stash of inserts, you could probably get away with doing laundry every 3-4 days, rather than every 2-3 days.  (Provided that you have room to store that many dirty inserts, of course).  Therefore you would also be saving money on your washing by doing fewer loads each week.

There are many types of AI2/hybrid cloth diaper systems on the market.  Some of the more popular ones include Flip, GroVia, AppleCheeks, and Best Bottoms.  While I have tested several hybrids, they do not make up the majority of my stash.  I’m sure I have left some off of my list!

Are you a fan of AI2/hybrid cloth diapers?  Be sure to leave a comment and tell Sarah what brands you prefer.  Do you wash your diapers at the laundry mat?  What type have you found to be the best for that situation?

Diaper Packages Save Money

Using cloth diapers is a great way to save a hunk of change in your budget.  You can maximize these savings even more by purchasing a cloth diaper package.  Most manufacturer’s offer a discount when you buy a certain volume of diapers.  Doable Diapers offers several great diapering packages – from just diapers, to all accessories included.

Some people are eclectic with their diaper stash, while others prefer to have everything the same.  I am mix between the two.  I love to try new things, but I have my two absolute favorites which make up the majority of my stash.  If you know you like a particular brand of diaper, you can save money by purchasing a package.

~FuzziBunz Packages & Rumparooz Packages:

Save when you buy 6, 12, 18, or 24 diapers.  The more you buy…the more you save! 

~Flip Day Packs

These packages come bundled with two covers and six inserts of your choice.  You save money by using a hybrid system (less covers to purchase because they can be reused), and you save money by buying a Day Pack.  The cost of two covers and six inserts would be $53.70 (stay-dry isnerts).  The cost of a stay-dry day pack is $49.95.  Available in Stay-Dry or Organic Cotton inserts.

~The Get Started Package – save $55

This package gives you the necessary diapers and accessories to “get started” in cloth diapering.  Included are 12 one size diapers, a diaper sprayer, a small wet bag (for your diaper bag), a large wet bag (to use as a diaper pail), one package of cloth wipes, and one bag of detergent.  Available in FuzziBunz diapers or Rumparooz diapers.

~The Complete Package – save $95 

This package is for the one who wants it all!  Save $95 over the cost of purchasing these items individually.  You get 24 one size diapers, a diaper sprayer, a medium wet bag, a pail liner (or extra large wet bag), two packages of cloth wipes, and a bag of detergent.  You get a full stash of cloth diapers in either FuzziBunz or Rumparooz!

Rumparooz Doll Diapers

My daughter received her first baby doll for Christmas from Grandma & Grandpa.  She was very excited at first, but then the newness wore off and she returned to her best friend, “Bunny.” 

Then a few weeks later, Elaine insisted on taking “Besty” (her baby doll) with her to naptime.  Elaine usually plays in her crib for a few minutes before I come to get her after naptime.  On this particular day I heard the sound of velcro as I approached the bedroom.  I was a little baffled as we don’t use hook and loop diaper closures.  Then I realized the source of the sound…Elaine had discovered Betsy’s diaper. 

That same week, Kanga Care released their Doll Diapers, made from the scraps during the manufacturing of Rumparooz one size diapers.  I was so excited and thought they were adorable…I couldn’t wait for the package to arrive.  I picked out Gumball and Lux for the baby doll, to match Elaine’s diapers.  We played with them a little bit and changed Betsy’s diaper.  But alas, again the newness wore off.

One day recently during playtime, Elaine wanted to change Betsy’s diaper.  She can fasten the velcro tabs if I hold the diaper in place.  After we finished, she went and found another dolly and wanted a diaper on it.  We had great fun diapering her dolls.  But then Elaine wanted one on her Bear. 

I should mention that this Bear was around when my husband was a child, and it was given to Elaine by my mother-in-law.  Elaine absolutely loves him! 

We did encounter a problem.  You see, Bear has big hips.  The dolly diaper was just not going to fit!  Elaine insisted, and so I improvised.  We are now one diaper cover short in our stash…Bear is wearing Elaine’s Butternut Flip!  Elaine seemed happy with this arrangement, and she still does not want the diapers to come off!  (One of her three words is “no” and she uses it quite loudly if you try to mess with her Bear and Betsy).

Baby (wearing a Gumball Rumparooz), Bear (wearing a Butternut Flip), and Betsy (wearing a Lux Rumparooz).

Cloth Diapers: The Economical Way

There are a variety of reasons why parents choose to use cloth diapers.  One of the biggest reasons, and one of the biggest benefits, is the money that can be saved.  But maybe you want to use cloth diapers, and you can’t afford to jump in with a full stash of pocket diapers.  What are your other options?

There are a couple of economical options to use cloth diapers and maximize the savings by using less expensive diapers.

Choose Prefolds and Covers

I started cloth diapering with six FuzziBunz (all baby gifts) and a lot of prefolds.  Prefolds are usually around $2 each.  You could get a full stash of 24 prefolds for just $48!  You will need to use diaper covers with prefolds, so let’s factor in the cost of the cover. 

The Flip one size diaper cover is a great choice.  It will grow with your baby and fit from 8-35 pounds.  At diaper changes, just wipe the inside of the cover and reuse it over a clean diaper (unless of course the cover is soiled…then replace it with a clean one).  We recommend that you have 6-8 covers, depending on the age of your baby.  Smaller babies need their diaper changed more often, and have more potential of soiling the cover.  You want to have enough on hand to compensate.

Let’s add the cost of 6 Flip diaper covers.  At $13.95 each, that would come to $83.70.  So theoretically you could start diapering your baby for the grand total of $131.70!  Depending on the size of your baby, you may need to purchase some larger prefolds down the road.

Choose a Hybrid System

This is similar to the prefolds and covers system, except that you are using inserts designed for your covers.  The Flip diaper cover has two great inserts – a Stay Dry Insert, and an Organic Cotton Insert.  By purchasing a Flip Day Pack (2 covers, 6 inserts) you can save even more.  Because you are reusing the covers at diaper changes, you need to purchase less of them, and therefore the cost of your complete stash is less.

Let’s look at the cost of the Flip diapering system.  If you purchase three Day Packs, you would have 6 Flip Covers and 18 Stay Dry Inserts.  You could purchase an additional six inserts to complete your stash of 24 inserts.  Or, if your baby is smaller, you may just want to purchase 4 Day Packs so that you have more covers available.

3 Day Packs (Stay Dry): $49.95 each, total of $149.85
6 Additional Stay Dry Inserts: $4.95 each, total $29.70
Grand Total: $179.55

With the Flip system there is no need to purchase additional sizes, as the cover is a one size cover.  $179.55 would diaper your baby from birth to potty training!

Consider the Price of Disposable Diapers

I know…$200 bucks at once still seems like a lot of money, especially since one reason to use cloth diapers is to save money.  So let’s consider the cost of disposable diapers.

There are a lot of variables when it comes to computing this cost!  What brand you choose, where you shop, whether or not you use coupons, how often your child wets, how often you change your child, and at what age your child starts potty training all affect your total cost of disposable diapers.

I priced diapers on Amazon, because I know a lot of people who use Amazon to get volume discounts and free shipping.  I averaged the prices of the various sizes of Pampers.  If you purchase the economy package the average is 20 cents per diaper.

• Let’s figure 12 diapers per day for the first 3 months.
  90 days x 12 diapers per day x 20 cents per diaper =
  $216 (or $72 per month)
• Let’s figure 10 diapers per day for the next 3 months.
  90 days x 10 diapers per day x 20 cents per diaper =
  $180 (or $60 per month)
• Let’s figure 8 diapers per day until age two (I’m being generous…most kids I know don’t potty train until age three!)
  18 months (540 days) x 8 diapers x 20 cents per diapers = $864 (or $48 per month)

That’s a grand total of $1260…that you are literally throwing in the trash!  Wouldn’t it be better to spend around $200 to use cloth diapers?  You would save about $1,000.  You would be creating less waste.  You would be putting soft and natural materials next to your baby’s skin rather than plastic and chemicals.

Choose cloth diapers – if you do it the economical way you will save a lot of money!

Diaper Covers Compared

I have recently returned to using prefolds after my daughter outgrew several of our sized pocket diapers.  I have several different brands of diaper covers in my stash.  Now that I am using them more, I have definite favorites and preferences.  Here is my personal take on several major diaper cover brands.

Bummis Super Snap Wrap
sized diaper cover, newborn to large, 7-40 pounds

This cover feels very durable because of the thickness of the PUL.  I only use snapping diapers, and this cover only comes in white with a snap closure.  I do wish I could get more of the fun prints but still stick with snaps!  The quality is great, I have had no leaks or explosions that I can recall, and it washes well.  The downside to this cover is that it is sized as opposed to one size.  However, the newborn size is really great for a tiny baby.  A one size cover may not fit a newborn right away.

This was definitely my favorite newborn sized cover.  The small size also fit Elaine very well.  Now that she has outgrown the small, the medium seems a little too big in the rise, allowing the diaper to move around a lot.  If I use a Snappi fastener, this works great.

Kissaluvs Marvels One Size Cover
for babies 8-40 pounds

I won this cover in a giveaway.  It is not very high on my list of favorites.  I do like the double leg gussets and the overlapping waist snaps.  It features a snap down rise with three snap settings.  It was always a little big on a small baby, even though it is a one size cover.  I could only use it on Elaine as an infant if she was wearing a bulky fitted diaper for bedtime.  I only recently pulled it out of my drawer to begin using again.  I also find it a drawback that this cover only comes in five solid colors.  The cute factor is a big factor for me!

Thirsties Duo Wrap 
two sizes, 6-18 pounds, and 18-40 pounds

I really wanted to like this diaper cover.  I was excited when Thirsties finally became available in snap closures, and they also added several fun prints to their line.  The Duo Wrap system seemed like a great idea – to truly fit a newborn through potty training there are two sizes of cover, but each features three sizes using a snap-down rise.

I love the gussets on the Thirsties cover.  It is also made of durable PUL, though it is thin and flexible as opposed to the stiffness of the Bummis.  However, this cover has given me no end of frustration and grief!  I purchased the size 2 for Elaine although she was not quite 18 pounds.  Yet the rise snaps do not stay fastened.  When I am pulling the cover between her legs to fasten it, they always pop.  I try to snap them after the diaper is fastened, but then it is difficult.  I don’t know if I just got a bad cover, or if the snaps they use are not strong enough.  Elaine is definitely not ready for the next rise setting, so it is not a problem of being too tight.  It’s really too bad because the cover is so adorable!  (I have the Warm Stripes).

Flip One Size Diaper Cover 
for babies 7-35 pounds

This is it – my number one, absolute favorite diaper cover!  The Flip came out near the same time as Elaine’s birth.  The covers fit very well from the beginning (she was 7 pounds at birth).  She is still wearing them now, and we have four of this cover in our stash.

I primarily use the Flip diaper cover with prefold diapers.  When Elaine was smaller we always used a Snappi fastener to help contain the runny breast milk poo better.  Now that she is older, I just tri-fold the prefold and lay it in the cover, and then fasten the cover on Elaine. 

This is an example of a tri-folded prefold; this is a Thirsties diaper cover

The Flip diaper cover features three size settings with snap-down rise.  The stretchy tabs help ensure a great fit each time, and I really like the two rows of vertical snaps.  I feel like this holds the diaper more securely than a single row of snaps.

The Flip cover can be used with Flip Stay-Dry or Organic Cotton inserts.  I was not a fan of the inserts when Elaine was little, but they are great now.  The stay-dry insert is basically a microfiber insert with micro-suede topping to keep baby dry.  The Organic Cotton is an oh-so-soft large prefold that can be folded several different ways depending on the size you need.  There are also disposable inserts. I plan to go disposable on our next air travel trip.

 

How about you?  What is your favorite diaper cover?  Do you go for snaps or Aplix?  I would love to try wool, and also the GroVia system as I have heard great things about those two covers also.

Retired

This week my daughter finally outgrew her small sized FuzziBunz pocket diapers.  These six diapers were the beginning of my stash, and gifts from family and friends at my baby shower.  I think I got a lot of “mileage” out of them.  At 13 months, my daughter is a skinny 18.5 pounds.  So these six FuzziBunz are retired…until June or July when the next baby arrives.

I still have a colorful stash of pocket diapers, as you can see from the picture below.  I have FuzziBunz One Size and medium Perfect Size diapers.  I have bumGenius 4.0 diapers with snaps, and Rumparooz G2 One Size Diapers.  I also have a Doopsy, a Knickernappies, a Kissaluvs, and a Happy Heinys.  And of course, I have dozens of prefolds!

The six diapers that are now safely tucked away awaiting baby #2’s arrival were nearly enough for a whole day of cloth diapering.  In their absence we will be returning to prefolds and Flip One Size diaper covers.  The majority of our diaper stash which we purchased consists of prefolds and covers.  After all, we started using cloth diapers to save money, and stocking up on prefolds and covers is probably the most economical way to do cloth diapers!

I don’t mind using prefolds.  They are not quite as easy and convenient as pocket diapers, but there is something nice about their simplicity.  My prefolds are a little “crunchy” because I don’t have a dryer.  Sometimes I just like the soft polar fleece in my pocket diapers.  But prefolds have been around for a long time – they are definitely tried and true!

How about you?  What kind of diapers make up the majority of your stash?  Were they gifts, or purchased by you?  What factors influenced your decision to go with that type of diaper?

Flip One Size Diaper Cover Review

guest post by Carrissa Stalcup

Just to warn everyone, I am totally bias.  I was doing the old way of cloth diapering when I saw the new one size fits all pocket diapers.  I thought to myself "Wouldn't it be easier on the pocketbook to have a one size fits all diaper COVER for my old cheap diapers.  What do you know, they had it already!  

Expense

The Flip is even better than I thought it would be, and I expected perfection. We did not have to spend as much to get pocket diapers right away.  My ideal stash is 4-6 Flip covers, 20-30 one-ply cloth diapers, and 6-8 FuzziBunz.  The Flip cover makes it cheaper to have 30 diapers ready to be used than if I bought 30 pocket diapers.  So we use the Flip at home and when Mama or Papa takes the kids out, but in church nursery, babysitters, etc. we use pocket diapers.  So the Flip wins on the home front. 

Fit

My son is a month and a half old and a little under 12lbs and the Flip cover fits him just as perfectly as they fit my nearly 28lbs 20 month old daughter.  Because the tabs are stretchy, the legs are able to fit even better than a plain snap diaper.  He is not on the smallest setting, so I look forward to using them on a newborn, because I believe they would fit well.

Waterproof

My daughter is a heavy wetter at night and leaks through her diapers, cloth or disposable, rubber pants or pocket diapers.  My son was leaking through some of his pocket diapers at night no matter what I did.  Since I have been using the Flip cover we have had no leaks whatsoever!    

Convenience

No pins!  Some moms use the Snappi to protect the cover.  We just fold a diaper and lay it in the cover, and snap the cover on. 

Absorbency

We can use prefolds, one-ply, or the Flip insert.  Some moms use the G-diaper inserts with the Flip cover.  Ebay sells hemp inserts that I have considered buying.  Basically, a mom can customized the absorbency, trimness, wicking power or whatever is important to her. 

Style

Flip has several cool colors, but no prints.  I have noticed that is important to lots of moms.  if prints are important, they would go well with the leg covers bumGenius sells .  I wish they would come out with a nice chocolate brown since I use them for boy and girl and I refuse to buy non fun colors like white.

I hope this review has helped in your diaper shopping!

 

Carrissa is the mom of two beautiful children.  She resides in Gastonia, North Carolina. She began cloth diapering because she had no money to buy disposables.  “My Grama had given me the prefolds, rubber pants and pins in case I ever ran out of diapers.  Well, I did and I hated it.  The rubber pants  were gross and they got holes in them and leaked.  I still had to use disposables when we went out, and for baby sitters and for nap and for night.  After reading a lot about the modern cloth diapers and seeing some of my friends do it all the time, I started doing research. If I had my choice, I would have started cloth diapering with Flips and not used any disposables. Full time cloth diapering has saved me so much money!  My hubby has seen how much we save and does not mind me expanding our ‘stash.’”

Game #1 – Winner

 

The question was: Name the original Flip diaper colors.

The answer is: Ribbit, Zinnia, and Moonbeam

random.org selected comment # 5.

Tammy Weiss
said:

“Ribbit, Zinnia and moonbean”

She wins a free flip insert!  Tammy has been emailed about claiming her prize.

Back to School Game

Let’s play a game to celebrate Back to School!  Throughout this week I will post several questions.   Winners will receive codes for discounts and/or freebies with their purchase!

Rules:

You must comment here on the blog to be considered eligible (Facebook rules prohibit comments on our fan page being used as entries). 

Each question will be open for a random amount of time – anywhere from 30 minutes to 24 hours.

Answers can be found on our website (www.doablediapers.com), here on the blog, or from general cloth diaper knowledge.

There are two ways to win:

I will either draw several winners using random.org, or

I will post a code here on the blog.  The first “x” number of people to use it (different number for each promotion) will be the winners.

First Question:

What are the original Flip diaper cover colors?

Prize:

Free insert (either stay-dry or organic cotton) with the purchase of a Flip One Size Cover.

Inventory Update: bumGenius! & Flip

Now available at Doable Diapers are the bumGenius! 4.0 one size stay-dry pocket diaper, and the Flip diapering system.  For more information on the Flip system, please click here.

The Flip system can be purchased as a diaper cover only, the Flip system with either stay-dry insert or organic cotton insert, and a day pack.  The day pack includes 2 covers and 4 inserts.  There are also disposable inserts available.

The Flip one size color is my favorite diaper cover, and it works extremely well with prefold diapers. 

We will also be stocking the bumGenius! 4.0 one size diaper.  The 4.0 made several improvements over the popular 3.0 version.  Benefits include new pastel colors, snap closures in addition to aplix, a leak stopper at the front of the diaper, and replaceable elastic.  

New pastel colors include Bubble, Sweet, and Noodle.

 

Come and check them out on the website, and order yours today!