Cloth Nappy Help

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Right im keen to use these but am pretty clueless as to where to start.

Few things id like to know is:-

How many would i need i.e for a newborn? do i increase the sizes?

Do i just by the cloth nappies themselves or do i need inserts?

Any simple info would be greatly appreciated
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It depends what brands you are buying.

Fitteds usually have all the inserts/doublers they need but they will need a cover like PUL wrap cover, fleece or wool

Pockets go on like a disposable but you put an insert in them, but they are waterproof with nothing else

AIO (all in one) you dont have to do anyhing to just put them on and go...but I dont like them because they take so long to dry

Prefolds are the normal rectangle ones so you woul need pins, snappi and covers.

Depending on the brand it will come with inserts if it's a pocket, also just depends what you are looking at if its OS (one size) or sized that you will have to buy bigger over time. I didn't cloth diaper a newborn so I'm not completely sure BUT if I were having a baby right now what I would get is probably 15-20 fitteds, fleece pants, a few pul covers, 2dozen prefolds and maybe a couple pockets.

I have a mixture of nappies, mainly shaped/ fitted nappies eg tots bots, little lamb, fluffle and I have tots bots, nature babies and danhappy wraps to go over them. I have sized ones, I will need bigger ones soon and I'll prob try and sell these ones on. I have about 10 or 12 I think, but my baby is 5 1/2 months so not using as many nappies now and I never use them over night or out and about and I always have disposables in the house too.

If you are getting this type you don't need as many wraps as nappies. Personally I like the nippa fastening ones better (nappy nippa like a safety pin) rather than the velcro but everyone is different.

Unless you're REALLY sure you will be using cloth nappies I wouldn't bother buying the extras like a wet bag, nappy bucket, net bag etc at the start; you can always get these bits later.

There are some good website like the nappy lady which predict what type of nappy will suit you best based on if you use a tumble dryer, if your baby is fat or thin etc etc so maybe have a look at these.


And about buying nappies I have to warn you it is a bit addictive, there is always something new out there to try..... I control myself but it is hard sometimes!

i am using prefolds mostly right now as she is still a newborn and goes ALL THE TIME! I have 2 dozen and am washing every other day. I also have a few fitteds (8 total) for going out and maybe while the prefolds are in the wash. I have 4 covers but wish i had maybe 5 or 6 for incase we have a poop leak lol which has happened a few times!

i can't wait until she is out of newborn size lol. i didn't think she'd be in them this long, i was thinking maybe 2-3 weeks but shes nearly a month old and the newborn sizes still fit her! You really can't judge how big/small your baby will be and how long they'll be in each size i suppose!

for size small+ I am using pockets and AIO's, but i also have 2 dozen prefolds as well for just at home as they are so cheap and easy. I have a dozen one-size pockets and another dozen AIO's. Not sure yet how long all that will last but they "go" a lot less as they get older so i am thinking all that may get me through to day 3 without washing.

oh i also have 2 pail liners (cycle between them each wash), 30 cloth wipes, and a wetbag for going out.

checkl this website - it's really handy.
www.babykind.co.uk

there are various sorts, some of which need inserts, some of which need an outer layer ("wraps") whilst some are all in one.
there are also various materials, ranging from fleece to terry toweling. All have various pros and cons depending what you want.
Some have differing sizes, some are one-size-fits-all (Which in my experience means "one size fits some and looks and is massive on others"...)

Personally I'll only buy fleece ones as the dry super fast. I found terry cloth took aaaages to dry. I cant be doing with that.
I also chose pocket nappies (the type that need an insert) as I can chose the level of absorbancy, but mostly because I can take out the insert when I wash and dry everything which again increases the time it takes to dry the things - I really didnt want the house full of drying nappies for days during winter.

Personally I use fuzzi bunz. I only have about 8. They dry so fast the washing and drying period is really fast so i dont need lots.also they come in nice colours and come with an insert and dont need a wrap.

My top tip would be to be prepared to use disposables for a few weeks with a newborn. They have such teeny weeny bums the washables dont fit. You can get some "green" disposables anyway these days. I'd recomend people to use these for a few weeks while baby grows and you get energy back. I tend to use a combination of washables and disposables.

I always use disposables during the night as washables tend to leak quicker in my experience and I dont like to change my LOs nappy at night.

We're using biodegradable disposables at first because the meconium is meant to be really hard to get out of washable nappies.

But we have terry squares ready and are planning to get a few pre-folds to test.

A newborn needs changing roughly 10 times a day, but it varies from one baby to another. You probably don't want to leave soiled nappies more than a day before washing them either, so go for about 20 and wash 10 a day.

There is loads of choice and it all depends on your lifestyle. The best thing to do is hunt around, maybe get a few samples to try out and find what suits you best.

Are the nappy nippas easy to use? I plan to use tots bots for my bump but was unsure whether to get the nippa ones or velcro.

i couldnt get the hang of them. only tried a couple of times to be fair but gave up quickly. hence i chose nappies with poppers. much easier for me. even with a wriggly baby.

I have Bambino Mio prefolds and they work really well for us. The Mio prefold system is fairly easy to use, it just took a few practise goes before they were easy to fold and fit to him, with the wraps they work like dispoables as they have velcro side tabs to fit them to baby and then because they open up into squares they wash easily and dry quickly. And so far we've had no leakage out into his clothes!

I have 12 nappies and 3 wraps, although I thinking about buying an extra wrap, because Jasper does LOTS of runny poos he often leaks through the nappy into the wrap.

Depending on how often you plan to wash will detirmine how many nappies you need. I think having 12 per day is a 'safe' number, because it allows for a BAD nappy day.

I wash daily and if I dont I run out, if you want to be able to wash every second day, maybe have 20 nappies.

I have totsbots nappies for Charlie with the Aplix fastening (posh words for velcro). They have a built in booster. I have 21 stage 1 nappies but only use about 12 - 15 & have 4 wraps but wish I had more.

A couple of tips I would give you is make sure you wash the nappies quite a few times before you use them. I washed mine 3 times but they weren't as absorbant as they are now. Also get the disposable paper liners. These are a godsend. When baby does a poo on the liner you can just flush it down the loo! Oh yeah.. nappy bucket .. just get a bucket/container with a lid cuz the smell after a few hours .. well lets just say it aint nice.

The cheapest I've found the nappies are on Amazon .


Hope this helps

Mel x