Traveling with Cloth Diapers

At the beginning of June, we packed up the car and headed on an eight-hour road trip to Florida.  Well, more like 10 hours with the little one.  For the first weekend, we were scheduled to shoot a friend's beach wedding, and for the following week, we were on our own for a relaxing vacation.  The laid-back wedding was so much fun to shoot, and the setting was amazing.  The rest of our time in Florida was also incredible.  We had so much fun.  Molly did so well with all the adjustments (long car ride, sleeping in strange places, spending a lot of time in the sun, etc.) and she had a blast!  This kid loves the water!

Originally when planning this trip, we anticipated using disposable diapers.  We felt no guilt about using a week's worth of disposable diapers, especially considering how few we've sent to the landfill these last 9 months.  But several weeks before our trip, I did a little research and we found we might be able to get a condo with a washer and dryer.  So we decided we would give cloth a try during our travels.  Not knowing how things would go, we tried to keep an open mind, remembering that there were plenty of stores near our condo where we could buy disposables if needed.  But it actually went really well!  Here's what we did to make it work:

The number one requirement for us using cloth diapers was having a washer and dryer in our condo.  (And not spending more on the condo rental price to get it.)  Our higher priority was getting a condo at a low price, but if we could also get one with a washer and dryer at that same price, then we would decide to use cloth on our trip.  Turns out, both condos we booked had a washer and dryer inside the unit (not just a laundry room on the property somewhere).  We didn't end up paying more for that, so it worked out really well.  Also, it turned out that we really needed to wash clothes on the trip, so we were especially glad we had a washer and dryer available.

Trip preparation:

• The day before we left, we washed, dried, and packed our cloth diapers, wipes, and pail liners.  We used disposables that day so we weren't creating dirty laundry that we'd have to bring with us in the car.
• We brought some cloth diaper detergent and regular laundry detergent in ziploc bags.  I labeled the bags as "cloth diaper" or "regular" and I also wrote how many scoops were needed for top-loading and front-loading washers because I wasn't sure what we'd have.  I measured out more deteregent than I expected us to use, just in case of emergency.  Then I put the scoops in the bags.
• For the long car rides, we planned to also use disposables just to make things a little easier.  So I put together a little caddy of diapers, cloth wipes, a water bottle for the wipes, disposable wipes, hand sanitizer, and diaper rash medicine.  (We used cloth wipes because Molly had a diaper rash/infection, and disposable wipes irritate rashes.  The disposable wipes were for wiping down my hands afterwards.  After a diaper change, cloth wipes went into our wet bag, and we washed them the next day in our condo.)  This caddy, along with the wet bag and changing pad, made changes much easier along the way, as well as when we were in the condos.

During the trip:

• We basically kept up the same routine that we use at home, minus some of the conveniences like a diaper pail and a diaper stacker.
• Our cloth diapers can be used as swim diapers!  Awesome!  We just removed the inserts from the Bumgenius 4.0 diapers, and put them on her otherwise like normal under her swimsuit.  Loved not having to buy swim diapers, and not having to throw anything away after swimming.

 

So all in all, we were pleasantly surprised.  Traveling with cloth diapers went really well!  As long as you have a washer and dryer in your hotel room, it's about the same as cloth diapering at home.  We definitely saved money not having to buy disposables and swim diapers!

Cloth diapers

Ever since Molly was about a month old, we have used cloth diapers.  I had decided before she was born that we would use them, and had a good stash built up by the time she (or really, I) was ready.  (In case you're wondering, I used disposable diapers until she was 4 weeks old, that way I wouldn't have to worry about the cloth diapers messing with her cord stump, and so I could get settled into being a mama first.  In hindsight, we could have started sooner-- the cloth diapers are not nearly as complicated as I thought.)  Several of my friends have asked me about how I like them, how they work, if they're totally disgusting, etc.  So I figured I could write a post about the system I use, and why I like it.  I am by no means an expert in this stuff, but I know cloth diapering can be a little intimidating, so maybe this will help someone.

Why do you do cloth?

Ok, so I don't remember anyone actually asking me this question, but I figured I'd answer it here anyway.  If you know me pretty well, you probably already know the answer...  Ben and I like to live as environmentally friendly as possible.  But also, cloth costs less than disposable diapers (especially if you use them for more than one child), and they expose the baby to fewer chemicals.  So when we decided to use cloth, I figured I would just grin and bear it, assuming it would be really gross and somewhat inconvenient, but worth it.  But it turns out that I actually really like using cloth!  For us this the best option, but I know it just won't work for some families.  (No one can do it all!)

Some bonus benefits of cloth:  

• Fewer to no blow-outs!  I just recently realized that since Molly has been in cloth, we have had only one blow-out (and that one time was because we gave her a lot of prunes!).  Little did I know, the diapers are designed to prevent it.  When she was in disposables for that first month, nearly every time she pooped (especially when we were out in public!), it would come out of her diaper, up her back, and onto her clothes (and sometimes onto her carseat!).
• Less smell!  Seems backwards, but in my experience, disposables stink more.  When she's wearing a disposable, I can smell urine as soon as she pees.  When she's wearing cloth, I never notice a pee-smell, and the poop smells are hardly noticeable, except when you put your face up to her diaper.
• Cuteness factor!  While it isn't really that important, it's fun to have diapers in cute colors and designs.

Don't you have to fold the diapers and use safety pins?

Diapers have changed a lot in recent years.  There are lots of different kinds out there, but the ones I use are very similar to a disposable diaper.  No pins, no special folding.  I have two different kinds:

• Bumgenius 4.0 diapers, which are one-size pocket diapers, meaning you stuff an absorbent layer of cloth into the diaper shell
• Bumgenius Freetimes, which are one-size all-in-ones, meaning the absorbent layer is attached so no stuffing required

Notice both are one-size, which means I buy one set of diapers and it adjusts to fit her from when she's a newborn until she potty trains.  Sure, these diapers are more expensive than some of the other cloth diaper options, but the one-size feature and the ease-of-use is worth it to me.  And I'm still saving money when compared to buying disposables.

Don't you think it's gross to stick poop in your washing machine?

If I were throwing huge clumps of poop into my washing machine, that would be pretty gross, but that's not how it works!  When a baby is exclusively breastfed, the poop is pretty liquidy and water soluble, so it washes out really easy.  You just take a dirty diaper, throw it in the pail, and wash a load of diapers later.  Once the baby starts eating baby food, the poop becomes more solid.  At that point you have to get the poop out of the diaper before washing.  So for us, after we put a clean diaper on Molly, we take the dirty diaper to the bathroom, and gently shake the poop into the toilet.  If it doesn't shake out, we'll use the diaper sprayer to gently spray the poop into the toilet.  Then we throw the diaper into the pail and wash it later.  Very little poop actually makes it into the washer.  The diapers come out of the wash with no smell, and if there are any stains (which is rare), a few hours in the sun takes them right out! And when you wash diapers (or clothes, or whatever) in a washing machine, the machine gets cleaned too.  No poop is left in there to get on your clothes next time you use the washer. 

Isn't it a lot of extra laundry?  And a lot of extra work?

Not really.  It is more work than disposables, except you don't have to leave the house to get clean diapers! But it's not bad.  We put our diapers in a pail (for us, a wicker laundry basket with a waterproof liner), and wash the diapers (along with the wipes and pail liner) every other night.  It's pretty easy-- we run the washer once on cold water with no detergent, then again with hot water with detergent, then an extra rinse.  Then we dry the inserts, wipes, and pail liner in the dryer, and hang the liners on a drying rack (The liners can be dried in the dryer, but drying on the line is supposed to help them last longer-- we hope to use the diapers for more than one child). Finally, stuffing the inserts back into the liners of the 4.0 diapers takes about 5-10 minutes tops.

Does Molly's room stink?

As far as I can tell, there's no smell.  When she was breastfed, the poop stayed in the diapers while they sat in the pail, so yes, it stunk. But there are things you can do to help keep the smell down, like using an odor spray.  Now that we shake the poop into the toilet, there's no smell in her room.

A few tips we've learned to make it easier:

• Have enough diapers - We now have 26 diapers.  When we started out with only about 20, we often ran out of clean diapers before the load of diapers would finish washing and drying.  With 26, we have more wiggle room.  As long as we wash them every other day, we don't run out and have to use disposables while a load of diapers is drying.  That's even enough to keep 2 clean ones in the diaper bag, rather than having to remember to grab some before walking out the door.
• Snap closures are best!  There are different opinions on that, but in our experience, hook-and-loop closures cause more trouble than they are worth, and they wear out fast.  Snaps last a long time!
• Buy two pail liners - An extra to use while washing the first one.
• Cloth wipes are easier to manage and prevent odors in Molly's room.  I'll be writing another post on that soon.

Summary of my diaper routine:

1. Remove diaper, wipe baby bum with wet cloth wipes.
2. If diaper is only wet, remove insert, and throw everything into the diaper pail.
3. Put new diaper on baby bum.
4. If diaper is dirty, shake poop into toilet (spray if necessary) and flush.  Put diaper and insert into pail.
5. Every other day, wash and dry diapers.
6. Stuff diapers (takes about 5-10 min.) and put them in the diaper stacker.

A few cloth diaper resources

Bumgenius
Cottonbabies (Where I buy my diapers, detergent, etc.  Always free shipping!)
Cloth diaper types
Diaper product reviews
Comparison of diaper detergents
Cloth diaper resources on SimpleMom.net
Planet Wise Diaper Pail Liner


So, in case you were curious about using cloth diapers, I hope that helps.  There's so much more info out there, though, so much more research could be done to find the best system for you.  I have used other brands of diapers (FuzziBunz, gDiapers, etc.), and tried a few other things, so if you want to hear more, let me know!  Again, I'm no expert, but I have had to learn a lot since we got started!  All in all, I would say cloth diapers are awesome, and not so gross after all.