Considering using washable nappies (diapers) instead of disposables
Having read a leaflet entitled ‘Real Nappies’ about informal drop in sessions being held locally for people wishing to find out more about using washable nappies I went along to a ‘Nappacino’ event and saw a very knowledgeable woman who knows all about using disposable nappies as a cheaper, more environmentally friendly and altogether less stinky alternative to using costly disposables which are well documented to be an expensive, highly processed, chemical containing, non-degradable yet time saving modern phenomenon. She bought along samples of the range available to parents and took the time to explain in great detail why cloth nappies are so wonderful.
I’ve been exceedingly lucky to have been given nearly 20 brand new OneLife ‘birth-to-potty’ cloth shaped nappies by my very good friend Jane to use for our newest child when it is here. I’ve also collected another 15+ of various other brands from generous Freecyclers in response to an advert I placed several months ago.
I went along to the ‘Nappacino’ event held by the local council in conjunction with Mandie who sells reusable washable nappies at her baby shop (www.honeybees-store.co.uk). I went because I wasn’t sure whether I had enough nappies, whether they were the right size or whether I needed any extra equipment.
My friend who also came along and I were both astounded to learn that there is still A LOT of awareness building to be done as so many parents-to-be just don’t know how lovely and how cheap washable nappies can be in comparison to nasty old disposables.
When my kids were in nappies (2003-2005) there were always some evil smelling nappy sacks containing foul nappies waiting to be taken outside to the bin, in the summer the wheelie bin would reek with a weeks worth of nappies being roasted inside. We added at least £10 extra to each weekly shop to cover a packet of nappies and calculated that we probably spent getting on for £1000 on disposables before they were potty trained. It was only when they were nearly 2 that I learned that had disposable nappies been around in King Henry VIII’s time we would still be surrounded by his generation’s festering nappies today a good 500 years later as they are not biodegradable. Yuck!
The facts I found out at the nappy awareness thing were as follows:
There are loads of different nappy manufacturers these days but they roughly fall into a few main catagories of the following types. They are all used with a flushable liner inside so that all the solids can be flushed down the loo into the sewage system (where it belongs) instead of sitting on a landfill site leaching its contents into the water supply. Flushable liners for washable nappies are sold at large supermarkets, online (eg. Mothercare) or at healthfood shops.
The types:
- Terry towelling (or bamboo) squares:
Cheapest, easiest to wash & dry, not at all scary to fold (once shown by someone who knows how to do it properly) which can be done in advance into a satisfying pile ready to use by a changing station. Terries have the added advantage of being useful beyond the life of an untrained bottom as can be employed for all manner of household jobs, mop ups etc. A waterproof pant goes over the top (lovely soft fabric more like lycra than hard plastic - covers are now made from supersoft polyester cotton blend jersey fabric with a wipe clean surface on the inside.). They can be fastened with nappy pins as our mothers did or with a ‘Nappi Nippa’ which is a three pronged velcro type clip which grabs loops of the towelling and keeps it secure). I loved the look of these once they were folded (a 1 second job) and found myself urgently buying a pack of 10 so I have extra nappies on the days when the washing machine breaks, I’m too shattered to do a load of washing etc.
- - Pre-folds (eg. BambinoMio):
Similar to terries (I think, but I wasn’t paying too much attention as I knew I had none of these) but come with a waterproof pant into which a folded rectangle of cloth nappy fabric is inserted into inside pouches to hold them in place. I seem to recall that the nappy lady wasn’t particularly impressed with these as the way the nappy was folded inside on itself rather than on and around the baby’s lef meant they have a tendancy to leak more…
- - Birth-to-potty: (eg. Motherease or OneLife)
My friend who accompanied me on the excursion was totally sold on this nappy and is now preparing to buy the full kit to take her expected baby (and any subsequent babies) from birth to age three for £199 (slightly different cost to the £1k we spent on disposable nappies for two children). I was pleased that it seemed to both of us to be the easiest to use (wash, dry, fasten onto a wriggly babe) as I knew I had been given so many. With these nappies they are made from very nice soft, thick, terry towelling but are shaped in a similar way to disposables with some gentle elastic around the leg holes and a huge range of poppers to fasten so you really can have them fit a tiny new born to a great chunky toddler. They come with extra booster pads (also towelling) to put in the centre of the nappy for an older baby, a heavier wetter or for use at night/long car journeys. The waterproof covers/pants come in four different sizes and you need about 3 of each size to see you through to toilet training but as they don’t get soiled during the day they aren’t changed at each nappy change.
- - All -in-One (eg. Kushies):
For this I gather you would need to buy several of one size and then buy more once your baby gets to a certain weight. This put me off as well as the fact that the ‘all-in-one’ washable nappies I have been given from Freecyle are apparently a bit of a pain as they take a long time to dry as they consist of a waterproof pant containing a cloth nappy and a thicker pad down the inside center. They can’t be tumble dried or put on a radiator because of the waterproof outer and can whiff a bit damp by the time they finally are dried. My friend and I also sussed out (and the nappy lady confirmed) that the elastic leg holes tends to be a bit rigid and can leave a painful looking imprint on a little bubber’s soft skin. I get the impression that this kind are not very popular anymore.
Do excuse me if I’ve left out another type of nappy. There were some incredibly light fluffy ones on her display table which I gather are made from bamboo fibre rather than cotton which has the advantage of being more absorbant yet less bulky (good for a baby who drinks and wees a lot), much much softer to feel, quicker, easier and more environmentally friendly to produce than cotton.
Small yet highly valuable nuggets of wisdom were also passed on to us during the washable nappy session which I will share here.
Changing and Washing Tips:
- Have a dry nappy bucket (no need to ever soak apparently unless they are hideously soiled and you want to remove a stain) with a large mesh bag inside next to the changing station or in the bathroom. As you remove a nappy put it and its components (except the flushable liner) into the mesh bag.
- Wash and dry the baby using a small washable flannel and some warm water (no need to spend loads on chemical ridden wet wipes each week) bung this in the mesh bag too and put the lid on the bucket.
- As you go to the bathroom to wash your hands take the discarded liner and flush away.
- At the end of the day lift out the mesh liner full of nappies and wash at 40 degrees with detergent and some sanitiser added to the detergent compartment (Napisan or an enviromentally friendly alternative).
- Hang out to dry or tumble on a low heat setting and when dry reassemble them (including a liner) into a pile or into a nappy stacker so they are all ready to be used by you or helpful relative when the baby next needs a change.
Although I feel that washable nappies will be brilliant for us (washing machine already on once or twice a day, large washing line in the garden, lots of time already dedicated to drying and putting away laundry) I *can* see that for parents who both work full time and have babies in childcare it may be that disposables are just one more thing that helps find the right work life balance. There is certainly enough to do after collecting babies from childminders or nursery, getting them to bed, feeding the family, doing laundry to then have to find the time and energy to wash a bag full of nappies and get the next day’s dry supply ready to take in the morning with the baby. Maybe the next generation of day carers will offer the service of washing & drying reusable nappies.
So it turned out that I do have enough nappies as I have 17 OneLife nappies which are one-size-fits-all-babies (Mandie recommended having 20 and then you have enough to last two days without being forced to wash and dry in one 24 hour period), I need extra waterproof covers as I only have 3 of the size 1 (for a baby 10lbs-20lbs) so will get a few tiny ones and several larger ones, I already have a nappy pail bought from an NCT nearly new sale and I already have an unopened pack of flushable nappy liners (donated by a very kind friend).
I’m surprised that out of all my friends who have had babies in the last 5 years I can only think of two who are using washable nappies. Goodness that means that between me and my close girlriends we are guilty of spending well over £15,000 on disposable nappies which have taken up a fair bit of landfill…
I do wonder whether I’ll sneak back to the occasional disposable nappy when on a caravanning holiday - I’d be interested in hearing if anyone has been exclusively reusable nappies and even used them on camping excursions.
January 26th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Hi, we are going to be first time parents, so your post was very informative and interesting for me. Thank you!!