Prefold Cloth Diapers & Diaper Covers

Cloth diapering has several benefits. It’s better for the environment by keeping landfills from being so full of disposables. It’s cheaper (especially after you reuse the diapers with subsequent children). It helps against diaper rash. They’re cute. Toddlers who wear cloth diapers learn to potty train faster. The list goes on.

However, to get started with cloth diapering can be very expensive. I have seen initial packages costing as much as $400 or more just to get started. Then, how much money does it honestly save once you have made that initial output? Some mothers I’ve discussed the subject with say they buy special laundry soap and special rinse stuff plus do as many as 8 more loads of laundry a week. That’s a lot of chemicals and a lot of laundry! And I don’t know about you, but laundry is not one of my fondest chores.

Well, my mom insisted I use the diapers of the 80’s like she used on me. So she bought some Gerber pre-fold diapers from Wal-Mart, which were actually pretty inexpensive. She also bought me pins to fasten them and the white diaper covers (ie “plastic pants”) to go over them.

However, the pins were pokey and I had a hard time getting the diaper tight enough on my baby with them. I also didn’t particularly like the plastic pants because they left ridges on his tummy from the elastic, they made annoying crinkly noises, and they leaked pretty badly. Plus they were kinda ugly and dull.

Then I discovered diaper covers. I received positive feedback from some of my friends who use these diaper covers. So I bought one to give it a try.

The brand I chose was Thirsties. The reason for this was because they have Duo Wraps. With duo wraps, you only need two different sizes–size 1 and size 2. They have snaps so you can lift and lower the rise to meet baby’s size.

I also found out about Snappis. These are little fasteners with “claws” that hold the pre-fold diaper on so you don’t have to use safety pins. They’re cheap, easy to use, and work really well.

My diaper cover experience was awesome! It worked very well. My baby never leaks unless I haven’t changed the diaper for a while after he’s soaked it, and never has a poo explosion leaked.

Here’s another plus with the diaper covers: I only have four of each size, which I bought one at a time as money allowed. When he pees (keep in mind urine is sterile) I change the pre-fold diaper and wipe the cover dry with an old washcloth. If he poos and it gets on the inside of the cover, I wipe it off with a baby wipe.

Here’s a picture of two of the wraps I now have. These are Thirsties Duo Wrap diaper covers. Thirsties sells them with aplix (that’s the velcro) and with snaps. The aplix are somewhat easier to use, but I prefer the snaps because they last longer than aplix and should last better from child to child. Thirsties has retailers who sell these covers for about $12.75 each (my retailer sometimes also has sales). To find a retailer and to view Thirsties products, click here.

Here’s a Gerber pre-fold diaper. My mom bought these for me at Wal-Mart. They sell them in 12 packs for about $10.98 (about 92 cents each).

Here are some Thirsties duo inserts. You insert them with the pre-fold at times like night to absorb more. They cost $7.00 for a two pack.

However, to be savvy and save money, I make my own inserts. I take one of the pre-fold diapers and, using pinking shears, cut the thicker, more absorbent center out. This is now my insert. And so that I don’t waste the flaps from the diaper, I cut each of them in half and use them as cloth wipes (click here for a healthful, homemade cloth baby wipe solution).

Pins? No, no, no. No pins. I love Snappis. They have little teeth that securely hold the pre-fold diaper in place.

Now here’s how to put the pre-fold on. First, lay the pre-fold under baby’s bottom, placing the seam at about waist-height (about where the edge of a disposable would land). By the way, my baby’s only wearing a disposable to cover up his little boy parts.

Next, fold the flaps in toward the middle like this.

Then flip it up. My baby is still pretty short, so the rise of the pre-fold is too high. So I fold it down to lower the rise.

Then, pull the corners out from the folded part.

Now you put on the Snappi. Pull it from one side, to the other, then down the middle.

It looks like this with the Snappi on.

Now for the cover. Place it underneath him just like you would a disposable.

I loosely fasten it at first….

…then make sure all of the pre-fold is tucked inside the gussets (the elastic around the legs) to prevent leaks. It goes from this….

Because I use the cheaper pre-fold diapers, I only have to do one extra load of laundry a week (this is because they take up less volume since they are not the full, bulky cloth diapers). I have found no need to do a pre-rinse (breast-milk poo is water-soluble so it doesn’t need rinsed off) and neither have I purchased any special laundry soap. I make my own laundry soap (find the recipe for homemade laundry soap here) and he has had no allergic reactions. He is not on solids yet, so I haven’t discovered that realm yet (in about 3 months I’ll let you know how that goes!), but I’m told you only have to wash off the chunky poo into the toilet using a sprayer (my husband is going to make one for us, so I’ll post on how that goes too) then just wash the solids off the pre-fold and wash as normal.

The following picture is of a my diaper pails. The one labeled “Cloth” is lined with a Thirsties diaper pail liner (aka wet bag) for cloth diapers. I put about 2 tablespoons or so of baking soda in the bottom of it to help with odors. I have two diaper pails because we currently still use disposables at night (we have quite a stockpile of disposables from baby showers and gifts).

To wash, I throw the wet bag and all in the wash (make sure the drawstring’s not tightened). It opens up and the diapers fall out while it washes. I use 1/2 cup of home made laundry soap and NO softener (softener is bad for both the wet bag and the diaper covers).

To dry, I toss it all in the dryer. Once we have a line set up, I’ll probably hang dry them.

If your pre-fold diapers or diaper covers get stained with poo, set them out in the sun. The sunlight will bleach it out (it won’t hurt the color of the diaper covers).

Another highly-recommended diaper cover that is comparable to Thirsties is Flip diaper covers. Learn about them here: www.flipdiapers.com

Also, check out this website for all kinds of cloth diapers