Mmmm... think i may have to give up on cloth

[Justt]

I find it very easy to do and i think they are great but E doesnt agree with me.

Basicly my cloths got quite stinky so i got dp to get me a pack of disposables while i gave them all a really good couple of washes in the machine (with no drier this takes a while). Since having the disposables on E is happy as larry. Kicking around, wants to me on the floor , tried to play more, tries to roll, tries to grab her feet. Overall quite happy. This isnt so with cloth bums on.

She pees like a horse so her nappies end up being quite bulky (if i use somthing thin i end up changing her every 20 minutes as she is soaked through) and so she doesnt like it and ends up miserable. No interest on floor, no interest on rolling, no excited kicking and feet grabbing. Only time she tries all of that is when im changing her bum and she is nappyless.

Now for as much as im liking the money saving, eco friendly, ease of it all i cant disregard she seems so much happier in the stinkies(disposables cause i think they smell lol) and more interested in doing things other than being on me 24/7.

Even DP commented on the change and hes very happy with cloth too.

Think this may be the end for us.

[Seren]

what nappies do you use?

I've had 2 heavy wetters in cloth we used Fuzzi Bunz and had bamboo inserst which help with easing bulkiness

[Justt]

i use bamboozles (they dont last long at all), whambamboo (again dont last long at all), modern babies (last better but still not great), wonderoos with insert ( she pees right through them), also have a few others i boost up with either bamboo boosters or prefold or muslin cloth.

The whambamboo are the slimest of them all and even those she ends up miserable. Just dont see how to go around this issue. Dont want an unhappy baby for the sake of saving a few quid.

[xmisscx]

Do whats best for you and your little one. x

[Seren]

I think maybe a different type of nappy and inserts may help but as you say you feel she is happy in disps.

[Bear]

Yep, I agree with Erica - if it makes her and you happier then go for it. After all, if she really is feeling wet in the washables then that can't be nice for her, esp when it's so cold.

I'm all for cloth in principle (but my washing machine is on sometimes twice a day now, so don't use them I'm afraid) but if my baby was happier in disposables then it would be an easy choice for me to make I think.

However, I'm sure other cloth users will post some helpful tips so maybe it's not the end just yet?

[Purplecat]

I'm torn on using them again.

I use cottonbottoms and the odd Kushi. The cottonbottom are good, even use them at night time, well I did with DS, haven't yet with DD2, mostly coz I still have disposibles.

I'm only torn coz disposibles are easy, but on the other hand since I started using cotton again by rubbish has gone down.

I don't think I'd use them if i didn't have a tumble dryer, the kushis take ages to dry, the cotton bottoms dry quickly though.

[Justt]

Its really a shame because im hapy to use them and so is DP, took me ages to convince him before aswell. Its not a case of her feeling wet and so unhappy, its a case of her being so bulked up she cant move and then moans because she cant roll, kick, etc. That in turn means she will want to be on me all the time because she cant play alone.

Ive tried loads of nappies, i had only just bought the bamboo ones because normal cotton ones were so hard after washing.

I had actually found a decent combination that was no leaks, great wraps, lovely stuff. Overall im very impressed, but shes not.

[Chell]

Flexitots aren't bulky between their legs. DD is only tiny yet I'm not finding any of her nappies bulky.

Babies always kick more once their nappies are off though.

[shazgh]

I agree, she will kick and roll more etc when nappy is off and at this stage the nappy depending on size will be bulky and a very large part of her but as she grows the nappy will be a small part of her. Are your nappies second hand, were they well worn and maybe lost absorbancy, or are they new, bamboo definately holds more than cotton, make sure they are not too tight and restraining her,dispos need to be tight but not cloth. are you washing them according to recommendations, using a fleece liner etc? (just trying to troubleshoot here)
I tended to find the opposite to be honest, when it was time for the girls to sit etc they were much more supported in cloth but were like floppy dolls in dispos. I also found they were better at standing as the cloth made their legs stand further apart (which is why cloth is recommended for better hip development) and when they reach toddling stage and the many times they fall, cloth will give them a soft landing.
Due to the many benefits I would say why not have a break if you find them too bulky and go back when she is a bit bigger. You have to go with your instincts on this one.

[shazgh]

Flexitots aren't bulky between their legs. DD is only tiny yet I'm not finding any of her nappies bulky.

Babies always kick more once their nappies are off though.
is this the new ones from totsbots, if so I saw them at last babyshow and was very impressed, thought they looked fab, do they do as they say on the packet?

[Chell]

is this the new ones from totsbots, if so I saw them at last babyshow and was very impressed, thought they looked fab, do they do as they say on the packet?
http://www.twinkleontheweb.co.uk/acatalog/FlexiTots.html - these ones.

Tots Bots have a newer nappy coming later this month:

http://www.friendlybaby.co.uk/nappies/totsbots-all-in-one.html

[josfab]

one of my friends really didn't get on with tots bots, although I know someone else who did. We've found Motherease to be the best and I know someone who found they leaked all the time. We (and the babies) are all different aren't we! It was actually my OH's idea to use washables, if he wasn't so keen i would prob have stopped just cos of having to change them more often then disposeables and cos of the washing. from your position of not having a drier i don't know how you'd manage through winter.
Have you thought about the nature babies disposeables that are about £5 a pack and biodegrade? We use them overnight and when away and find them brill.

[friendlybaby]

is this the new ones from totsbots, if so I saw them at last babyshow and was very impressed, thought they looked fab, do they do as they say on the packet?

The FlexiTot (http://www.friendlybaby.co.uk/nappies/totsbots-flexitots.html) is probably the new one that you saw. I am impressed by it, and the feedback from customers has been positive too. Only issue I have is that newborn explosions do seem inclined to leak into the wrap around the leg where it doesn't with something like a Mother-ease Sandys. I haven't worked out why yet though.

I'm currently testing the latest Tots Bots One Size All In One (http://www.friendlybaby.co.uk/nappies/totsbots-all-in-one.html). I am also impressed by this, despite initial reservations. It is made from Fluffle fabric so dries a lot more quickly than most nappies (quicker than most two-part nappies even!) and so far no leaks - even overnight! They are also launching a bamboo version, which by estimates will take until the child is toilet trained to dry (slight exaggeration but you get what I mean!)....but I haven't had one to test so I might change my mind when I see it.



As for the initial question. I'm not going to give any more advice as you have already received plenty. As usual I agree with shazgh's comments.

[shazgh]

one of my friends really didn't get on with tots bots, although I know someone else who did. We've found Motherease to be the best and I know someone who found they leaked all the time. We (and the babies) are all different aren't we! It was actually my OH's idea to use washables, if he wasn't so keen i would prob have stopped just cos of having to change them more often then disposeables and cos of the washing. from your position of not having a drier i don't know how you'd manage through winter.
Have you thought about the nature babies disposeables that are about £5 a pack and biodegrade? We use them overnight and when away and find them brill.
I used the nature babies dispos when needed, they are really good, and don't smell!

[Justt]

thanks for all the advice. Will have a good think about things and go from there.

[Chell]

one of my friends really didn't get on with tots bots, although I know someone else who did. We've found Motherease to be the best and I know someone who found they leaked all the time. We (and the babies) are all different aren't we! It was actually my OH's idea to use washables, if he wasn't so keen i would prob have stopped just cos of having to change them more often then disposeables and cos of the washing. from your position of not having a drier i don't know how you'd manage through winter.
Have you thought about the nature babies disposeables that are about £5 a pack and biodegrade? We use them overnight and when away and find them brill.

I have a drier but I rarely use it. I am washing for five of us including DD in real nappies. Using a dryer defeats the object of havung real nappies IMO. It is only really used for towels or bedding if I get desperate.

[Emsickle]

Nathan is still in his tots bots (cotton with nippa fasteners). I find he has no leaks and is gorgeously dry throughout whereas the odd day when I've used disposables, he's leaked and got a lot wetter a lot quicker. I dry mine in the tumble drier, but then I don't do a separate nappy wash - I wash my nappies with the normal white wash and my machine is on twice a day - if I didn't use the drier, then the boys wouldn't have any clean clothes to wear.

You have to do what is right for you at the end of the day - I have no other suggestions than those that have already been mentioned.

:kisshands:

[josfab]

I have a drier but I rarely use it. I am washing for five of us including DD in real nappies. Using a dryer defeats the object of havung real nappies IMO. It is only really used for towels or bedding if I get desperate.

I'm washing for 3 and the nappies but we work almost full time, out from 7am-6pm so impossible to hang outside in this weather. i totally agree about the energy consumption of drying in tumble, but would need the heating on all day if they were going to dry in house. It's a last resort in bad weather, anyway, it's more of a landfill issue for us, as it's unlikely using washables saves much anything anyway when you factor in washing, powders, etc, making them in first place ....

[friendlybaby]

I'm washing for 3 and the nappies but we work almost full time, out from 7am-6pm so impossible to hang outside in this weather. i totally agree about the energy consumption of drying in tumble, but would need the heating on all day if they were going to dry in house. It's a last resort in bad weather, anyway, it's more of a landfill issue for us, as it's unlikely using washables saves much anything anyway when you factor in washing, powders, etc, making them in first place ....

The latest government report shows that even aside from the landfill issue, cloth nappies are better for the environment. When you factor in transporting the chemicals, plastics, wood pulp, etc to the factory to make the disposables and their packaging, and the plastic packaging most people use to dispose of them, and then the actual manufacture of all of that and the chemical waste that is produced, then the transportation to centralised supermarket depots and then to the individual supermarkets and then to people's houses and then to the landfill sites.

Factoring in energy usage and laundry detergent, washable nappies are cheaper even when only using them on one child, and obviously vastly cheaper when used on subsequent children too. People generally don't realise quite how much disposables cost as the money is dripping out of their wallets over a few years, whereas with cloth a lot of the money is up front.

[Justt]

DP has suggested a good half-way. If shes happier in disposables day time then use them during the day but nightime she doesnt need to roll and wriggle so we could use cloth still. Would save us a few quick in long run and , even if not much, save on that 1 or 2 nappies overnight each evening.

[Confused74]

I've just started on Littlelambs. So far so good, but I've had one leaky nappy and one heavily soiled one which is on its second wash to get the stain out and still hasn't washed out! Still far less leaky, stinky and messy than disposables though.

[Confused74]

I got the stain out!!! I put the nappies on the window sill when it was a sunny day and the stain (about as orange as the colour of the bar at the top of this post) bleached right out!