Use and Care of diapers main pg

FAQ’s

People often email asking for a specific type of diaper or how to use a diaper, I’ve gathered some of these questions and put them here for all to benefit from

1. I want a diaper that works on skinny children-
Any fitted diaper will give you better fit and leak protection than most AIO's or pockets, in that there are 2 layers of elastic to escape for leaks- the diaper and the cover. This is a 2 step process. The Pull on covers are very forgiving on skinny legs and cover fitted diapers well.
Prefolds and flats give you flexibility to secure the diaper as needed around skinny legs and also have the covers to act as a second barrier to leaks.
Of the other diapers available- there are pocket diapers- Bum Genius, Fuzzi Bunz and Happy Heiny pockets are about equivalent in function. The one size versions work better from about 12 lbs and up. The Fuzzi Bunz has independent leg elastic adjustment which ought to help accomodate skinny legs better, but it's a fairly new product and I don't have a whole lot of feedback on it.

2. Trimness is very important to me
There is always a trade off with trimness- the more trim, the less absorbent it will be. Frankly, none of the cloth options will be as trim as a disposable diaper. The trimmer they are the more often you will need to change them. Cloth can be as absorbent as a disposible diaper, but the more absorbent it is the bulkier it will be.
In Pocket diapers- The trim-ness will be determined by the number of inserts you put in a pocket diaper. Swaddlebees are a bit thinner in the crotch area and seem trimmer. Their leg opening are a little higher, but ought to give you adequate protection in a skinny legged baby. They do not have a one size pocket diaper option. The Happy Heiny is next in thinnest crotch area, followed by the Bum Genius and Fuzzi Bunz- the last 2 are essentially equivalent.
One size diapers are always going to be less trim than a sized option until the baby is older and would be in a larger diaper.
In AIO diapers- the Bum Genius OS AIO Organic diaper is a fairly trim option in an older baby, but it will be bulky on a newborn, the sized options are fairly trim but have the disadvantage of buying more than one size and is limited in absorption without adding a doubler to it (and adding to the bulk factor)

3. I want something that is easy to use-
As far as fastening it on a baby, the AIO's and Pocket diapers are very close. The AIO diapers need a little more care in laundering and should be line dried to protect the elastic, generally AIO diapers take a day or two to dry. The pocket diapers should also be line dried, but the inserts can be put in the drier, so they have a quicker dry time, generally a few hours. Pocket diaper take time to re-assemble- as in putting the inserts back into the pocket at laundry time.
Fitteds are also pretty easy to use- generally you snap or velcro them on and then put a cover over the diaper. It is 2 steps, but they're pretty fast 2 steps. You need fewer covers since you can air dry them between uses as long as they aren't soiled. The fitted diapers can be dried so they are quicker to dry than AIO.

4. I need something that is also absorbent
As mentioned above- there is a trade off- pocket diapers give you the most flexibility as to adjusting how much absorbency you get from the diaper, but the trade off is that the more you use, the more absorbent it is, the less trim it is. The Pocket diapers generally come with 1-2 microfiber inserts (Swaddlebees being the exception) and you can use the smaller if you're looking for trim, the larger if you're looking for absorbent and both if you need more absorption.
Generally if you need more absorption, hemp or bamboo or cotton inserts work well in combination with microfiber better than microfiber alone. If you have a pocket diaper with microfiber inserts that doesn’t seem to have enough absorption, add a hemp, bamboo or cotton doubler.
Most AIO's can get you 2-3 hours between diaper changes, you can add a doubler to get longer, such as for naps, but you will have more bulkiness.
Fitteds depend on the diaper- generally they are fairly absorbent- more than an AIO, but it depends on the particular brand. Our little-lions fitted is very absorbent, but it's not very trim.

5 .Ideally if there is a diaper that would work from small newborn to potty training that is trim I would go with that.
There are options that go from newborn to potty training, but there is a trade off in trimness when using this option.
The general tendency I've seen is for moms to use fitted diapers or prefolds for the first few months and then when the baby gets closer to 15 lbs they transition to pocket diapers.
I have also seen many moms say that they don't want to use prefolds but then found that that is the diaper they prefer- there is a plastic fastener called a Snappi that eliminates the need for pins and you can trifold the diaper, meaning you fold it in 3 and put in an velcro cover and fasten- about as easy as a disposable diaper. Prefolds are substantially cheaper than the other options and rather easy to launder.

6.How do I use a fitted diaper?
These are easy. Open diaper, lay baby on it and fasten. They do need a cover for waterproofness. Please make sure all parts of the diaper are under the cover to prevent leaks. These do need to be washed and dried 3-4 times on hot/high heat as they do shrink as well as for absorbency.

7. What do I do with a Flat diaper?
Fold it, use it as a burp cloth or blanket or fold it and stuff into a pocket diaper. Flats are very versatile. There are good fold demonstrations on the site
http://www.thenappylady.co.uk/public/articledetails.aspx?id=140 (Cut and paste into your browser)

8. What do I do with the soiled diapers?
The easiest thing to do with a newborn diaper which is exclusively breast-fed is to place the whole diaper in your diaper pail – no rinsing, dunking or otherwise required. Do a quick cold rinse in the washer first followed by a hot wash with 2 warm rinses.
If you are cloth diapering an older child who is on some solid food you will want to dispose of the waste. There are several ways of accomplishing this: one is to use a fleece liner in the diaper, take it to the toilet when soiled and shake the bulk of the poop into the water. Another is to take the ends of the diaper and swish it in the toilet until the majority of the poop is in the water. Another way is to install a diaper or mini-shower to your water supply hose of the toilet – you use it to spray the poop off the diaper into the water.
No matter what you do you will need to get the diaper back into the diaper pail when done. You can take the pail with you to the bathroom with the diaper or as I prefer – to have a small container to carry the diaper or liner back to the diaper pail. Some also keep a separate diaper pail in their bathroom, as space permits.

9. What about the covers?
Covers do not need to be changed as often as the diapers. Generally you can re-use them until they are soiled or smell. Hang the damp cover over the side of your changing table to allow to dry between changing. Most covers dry very quickly. Remember to toss them in the wash when you do diaper laundry. 5-6 covers is generally adequate for 1 child in diapers when diapers are washed every other day. Sometimes it is helpful to hand wash a few in between washes if needed. You can wash your covers with your diapers, but it is recommended to line dry the PUL or nylon covers such as the Bummis, Proraps, Dappi, Swaddlebees, and Stacinator so simple. If you choose to dry these in the dryer, follow the manufacturer’s recommendations- most allow for drying on low, but please check the labels for specifics. Wool covers, being wool should only be line dried. Some wool allows for machine wash on gentle cycle in cold water.
AIO and pocket diaper options do not require covers.