Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Cloth Diapering 101: Part 2, The Wipes

OK, so I'm the worst blogger ever!  Three months between blogs that are part of a series!  Oy!  I'll try to be more on top of this going forward.

In this second installment, I'll be talking about wipes.  Back in February of 2011 I wrote about The Great Wipe Debate.  It's amazing for me to look back at this post & see how much I have learned since then!  For those of you who read the initial blog, my methods & opinions have since changed on cloth wipes.  For those of you who didn't read the old post - don't bother.  I'll start fresh here.

BumGenius Flannel Wipes
Many people debate over whether or not to use cloth wipes or not.  I am finding that most of the time the people who don't use them don't because they haven't found the right combination of cleanliness, ease & portability.  When I started with cloth wipes, I received a tip to use baby washcloths instead of actual flannel cloth wipes because they were much cheaper.  BIG mistake!  I used the washcloths for a while and wasn't very fond of the results.  They were very harsh on my baby's skin and often time led to a small rash because of that.  So if you're trying to save a buck while cloth diapering, don't do it there!  Get the flannel wipes!  As with all things cloth, the initial expense is greater than with disposable but the overall savings will win out in the long haul.  They are about $1.00 a wipe and are usually sold by the dozen.  The first flannel wipes I bought were BumGenius flannel wipes but you can buy good flannel wipes on any cloth diapering site. Or you can save money and make your own if you're handy with a sewing machine. 

So how do these things work?  What do you do with them?  Is it worth it?

Overall I'd say that yes, if you are using cloth diapers cloth wipes are worth it.  If you're using cloth diapers & disposable wipes, that means possibly digging through mess to dispose of the wipes or putting a mess to the side.  With cloth wipes, you just toss it all in the pail together and its done.  No digging, no separating, no wondering what to do with a poopy wipe while you get another one because your child's bum isn't clean!  There are many different ways you can make cloth wipes work but the most important thing here is to find what works best for you.

California Baby Diaper Area Wash
In order for the wipes to work, they need to be wet or you have to use some form of spray.  So you must first decide what you want to use.  Many diapering sites sell wipe solutions.  Here's where you can save a few bucks and make your own.  Get a spray bottle & fill it with water & some mild soap - just a tiny bit.  It can be anything you're comfortable using on your baby's bottom.  Or just plain water works fine too.  The second thing you want to decide is how to use said solution.  You can either pre-wet wipes so they are ready when you need them, or you can spray the wipes as you need them.  In my experience, it is just easier to have wet wipes on hand because you never know when you're going to need them, it's one less thing to have to worry about during diaper changes, and you don't have to carry a spray bottle in your diaper bag.  Let's face it - you're already carrying enough in there!

Huggies travel case with cloth wipes
If you decide to spray on demand, simply spray the wipe or your baby's bottom & wipe the mess away.  I'd recommend having 2 spray bottles - one for home and a travel one so you can just leave one in the diaper bag.  If you want to pre-wet the wipes, you'll need a waterproof container to store them in.  Some people like wipe warmers for the house - any wipe warmer will do.  I just use a travel wipe case, again any case will do.  I think mine came with a package of Huggies wipes, so if you have one of those laying around from your disposable wipes you're set!  Just wet some wipes with your solution or just water, put in the case & you're good to go!

A little tip here...I have found that if I have wet wipes sitting in a case for more than 2 days they get a funky mildew smell to them.  So at the beginning of each day I take out the number of wipes I think I will use for the day, wet them in my sink, wring them out and put them in a travel case.  If I need more I can always wet more.  If I don't use all the ones I wet, they are OK for the next day.  After a week or so you should be able to guesstimate the number of wipes your baby will need for a day.

But what do I do with my poopy wipes?

Easy.  After the diaper change is over, just toss the used wipe into the diaper pail or wetbag and wash with your diapers.  That's it.  I know it might seem impossible that all of that yuckiness will wash off of the wipe but it will, I assure you.  When I am out & about I keep the dirty wipes wrapped in the dirty diaper in the wetbag so that when I deal with everything at home I'm not reaching into a bag filled with poop and it's easily tossed into the diaper pail.

That's about it for wipes!  Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

No comments:

Post a Comment