I am new to cloth diapering and just getting everything ready for my baby in January. I got a few Alvababy pockets from FB marketplace and the owner said they were either new or hardly used. They looked in great condition but they ended up getting stripped and bleached with the rest of the stuff I was prepping. I think they got run through 2 or 3 hot washes afterwards to make sure the bleach was gone and I noticed some shredding so I took them out to hang dry. Is this normal? I’m a little worried I was too hard on them. There’s no holes and I used a lint roller to remove the shedding. My prefolds looked a tad like this as well so I figured it was just stuff shedding in the wash but I’m a little paranoid I ruined something 😅 I was going to add a picture but I don’t think that’s allowed?

I got two medium wet bags from Petite Crown and one large off Amazon. I got the medium ones for my bedroom while she's still sleeping in our room and then the other for on the go in her diaper bag. We went out yesterday and I changed her diaper for the first time outside of the house and that wet bag was smelling like newborn poop. Do they not usually keep the smell or are Petite Crown wet bags not that good?

I purchased some used prefolds and they have gray “shadow stains”. Can these be removed from sun bleaching or any known methods to reduce the stains?

I cloth diaper my 15 month old and am expecting my second baby when he’s 19 months and plan to cloth diaper both (mostly pockets). Do I need to sanitize the diapers for my newborn at first, or can I just use my first’s diapers on her right away without special treatment? I’m planning on washing everything together anyway so I’m guessing it wouldn’t make much of a difference. But maybe I should sanitize & strip the whole stash for good measure? Thanks!

Just my thoughts after using all three brands. My stash started with Alvababy using their bamboo inserts plus OsoCozy prefolds as doublers. Then I ordered some Nicki's once the elastic started to give out on the Alvababy diaps (after 18 months, not terrible tbh), then I bought a stash of Lalabye from my friend.

Alvababy
Pros

• cheap! easily get an entire stash up front
• long! The ones with good elastic still fit great with RTG
• truly OS, kiddo is 25lbs and 31 ish inches and we still have lots of room on the side snaps
• lots of patterns!

Cons

• cheap. Not a sustainable brand, and they will definitely stretch out over time.
• don't use their microfiber inserts. Any compression (i.e. your baby sitting) will squeeze out moisture and result in leaks. Go with bamboo and get some cotton inserts from another brand for absorbency
• opening on the back only. If you're like me and don't remove inserts before washing, then the inserts won't always shake out in the first wash so you'll have to check everything before running the deep wash.
• difficult to order in bulk, you have to email them with your order number and all the patterns you want, and they might tell you some are out of stock.

Nicki's
Pros

• also cheap! More expensive than Alvababy but honestly I didn't see a difference in quality
• openings on both ends so inserts will shake out
• long! Lots of room to grow

Cons

• no wetness guard on the front, gotta tuck it in if you want to make sure nothing leaks
• the fleece inner seems like it would be way too warm, and potentially irritating when wet l. Not moisture wicking IMO
• also not sustainable brand
• no extra hip snaps
• limited on patterns

Lalabye
Pros

• inserts snap in if you want to secure them but you don't have to. Can also double up the inserts and secure them to each other for extra absorbency
• opening on both ends, inserts will shake out in the wash
• wetness guard to cover up the opening on the front
• color coded snaps to help you remember how tight to close the diaper
• extremely cute patterns

Cons

• securing the insert to the diaper on both ends means you're limited on length
• MUCH shorter than Alva or Nicki's. They still fit my toddler, but probably not for much longer.

Overall I think if I had the money and planned ahead, I would easily go with Lalabye if only they were longer. I know everyone has their reasons for cloth diapering, and personally I was more focused on saving my wallet in the long run so if you aren't able to afford or prioritize sustainable brands, then I honestly recommend Alvababy.

We're hoping to start trying for baby #2 next May, so I'll probably end up slowly replacing my Alva stash with either additional Alva products or more sustainable brands a little at a time.

​

Edit: formatting, clarifying information

Calling on all unsolicited advice! What’s working for you right now?

We have been full time cloth for just a few weeks. We were doing part time for the past few months. For the last few days, every time he poops it is beet red everywhere the poop touches. He has been pooping a ton and possibly teething. My diapers have no stinks and he has never had any issues before with cloth. I just want to make sure I am not causing my poor guys red booty!

I’ve been using California Baby diaper spray to help clean my babies’ poopy butts with a wet cloth wipe, which has been wonderful but a bit expensive. I’d like to make my own spray with some baby soap, witch hazel, and possibly a small amount of essential oil. Has anyone ever tried this? Where do you buy witch hazel? (Preferably a brick and mortar store suggestion). Thanks!

I really like the idea of cloth diapering from birth, and I also plan to use flats. That being said, I’m not sure if I could make a full sized flat fit on a newborn, especially before the umbilical stump falls off. Rather than buying a few sets of newborn size half-flats, is there any reason why I couldn't buy a set of regular flats, cut them in half, and sew off the rough edge? Seems like a cheaper way of getting double the number of half flats.

Maybe I’m underestimating how challenging wool will be to take care of? I don’t see much about wool anywhere though! It just seems like it makes more sense to me from a health and environmental standpoint.

We may have a yeast rash going on and I haven’t used bleach for our cloth yet, as I have only been using them for about a month. I am honestly still a little confused even after looking up instructions on various cloth sites. For background, most of our cloth is new but i got grovia ONEs used, and definitely made a mistake by just washing them super hot but not actually stripping or bleaching, but I am a newbie. Anyway, now I want to sanitize the whole stash. I have an HE front loader (LG) and use tide free and clear and calgon as we have moderately hard water. I usually do a quick wash, followed by heavy duty. Would I add a tsp to tbsp of bleach along with detergent and calgon in the prewash? and then wash as normal? Like the title says, please explain like I am 5 😅. Thanks so much for any insight!

2.5 year old has basically outgrown his diapers and we're on the way to potty training, so it's time to put them away and also to take the size 1 diapers out for the next baby (due in 2 months). I don't remember how I prepped the size 1's for storage... anything I need to do other than a regular wash? How about getting diapers out of storage-- can I just wash them once? Any need to bleach between siblings? Thanks! (if relevant, we have a mix of cotton prefolds, alva pockets with inserts, and esembly fitteds + outers)

If we have leftover cloth-safe diaper cream from the toddler (haven't used it much since he was a baby) is it gross to use for baby 2?

My daughter is 7 months old and about 16 lbs. We’ve been using NN pocket diapers, but I’ve been dealing with constant leaks.

Based on some advice I saw in this sub, I swapped the NN insert for a pad-folded intermediate sized GMD prefold. I’m having trouble with thigh gaps, but I’m scared if I make it tighter it will be too tight along the top.

The 3 rise snaps are on the lowest option, and the top snaps are snapped in so that there’s 1 empty snap in the middle. Photos for reference

I have bamboo French Terry from when I made my own cloth pads. Now I’m looking to use it to make pre folds or pre flats.

There’s so much information on the internet!

I have sizes, but how many layers should I use? Should I pre wash it before sewing it? (I never did did my cloth pads, but they don’t hold as much!)

I will take links or comments. I’m TERRIBLE at googling. (I swear I’ve tried, but I just get links to buy the fabric) so I’m coming here to you knowledgeable people!

So I’m getting prepped for cloth diapering and did a water hardness/ph check and these were the results…

Hardness: 0 (maybe a bit more, but certainly not higher than maybe 20)

Free Chlorine (Bromine): 0

Total Chlorine:: 0-0.5

Cyanuric Acid: 0

Alkalinity: 120

pH: 90

So now I’m rethinking ALL of our laundry because I’ve never felt like our laundry was right, everything always feels hard and not well-washed… or over washed.

Any suggestions for insanely soft water? Not just for diapers but for all clothing?

TIA!

Have you mastered your wash routine? Do your clean diapers smell? Did you recently buy a new washer/dryer? Chat all things laundry!

My OS Charlie banana diapers came with medium/large sized inserts that are about an inch too long for the XS sizing on my newborn. Is it okay to fold the end of the insert in order to make it fit into the pocket or will that mess with how the diaper fits? I don’t really want to go out and buy small-sized diaper inserts if baby will grow out of them soon.

My daughter is currently 7.5 months old and has been in Kangacare Rumparooz since she was 2 weeks old with absolutely no issues. In the last month she's been getting deep red indents and now a rash. I feel like my fit is good and in her thigh creases. I have stripped and sanitized all of my diapers. I switched to a Tide Free and Clear liquid detergent. I'm not sure what else I can do. I'm desperate! help!

So I've recently invested in a few good wool covers and absolutely loving them over fitted diapers. But they are expensive and washing them is a hassle (but fortunately don't need to be washed super often). Just wondering how fleece covers compare... I love that I can use wool overnight and not get a leak for nearly 12 hours. I also feel like the wool is more breathable during the day to help air him out more as an alternative to diaper free time. Is fleece as breathable? Or because it is synthetic not really?

I'd love to start using fitted/covers more than my pockets but I can't afford as much wool as I'd like

I have a bunch of natural fiber cloth diapers I purchased used and need to clean before baby comes! It’s mostly prefolds, cotton/hemp inserts plus 3-4 cotton AIO’s and pockets.

I am overwhelmed with all the different articles, videos, opinions, etc. I’m having a hard time finding something to follow specifically. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I’ve heard you can do both steps in the washer. I don’t mind stripping in the bathtub but I’d rather use the washer for bleach if possible as I’m just not comfortable exposing myself to that and doing it on my own in a small bathroom at 36 weeks pregnant.

It seems to me everyone recommends Grovia mighty bubbles or RLR for stripping. Can I do this in the washer? Is it more effective in the tub? I have the GMD booklet and they seem to say a couple hot rinses with vinegar is an effective strip? The diapers I have don’t seem overly dirty and they don’t smell. I just assumed I should “start fresh” and remove any build up from previous owners.

Lastly what’s the process with sanitizing.. I don’t want to ruin anything but I want to make sure they’re clean. Do my AIO’s & pockets go in with everything .. do I do them separate since they have PUL on the back? Do I run a regular wash after the bleach with extra rinse to make sure there’s none left?? Should I bleach then sanitize?! Do I really need to clean my washing machine first to ensure nothing gets out into the fabrics? Am I just over complicating everything? I’m kind of at a loss here haha any help would be appreciated!!

Know of any good deals going on or upcoming? Did you find a lot on Marketplace and aren’t quite sure if it’s a great deal? Share sales or ask away. Happy shopping!

I got my first set of cloth diapers (AlvaBaby saint paddy’s day print) today and I’ve been researching for like 6 years on and off but I’m so nervous lol How many do I need to do this full time I plan to do a wash day maximum every 3 days with wiggle room if I’m sick or anything that hinders that plan and tips and tricks are appreciated!

I’m 25 weeks today so I have alil time to get the prekinks figured out before actively going through it with baby.

I also plan to use the diapers the hospital gives first but after that I just want to cloth diaper

So anything y’all got to say (respectfully 😭😅) I’m receptive to. Dos, Donts, products to use with cloth diapers anything!

Thank you in advance 🥰❤️

I share laundry with my basement suite tenant (until we can get laundry installed for them). I’m hoping this won’t take long but realistically do you think cloth diapering would be feasible with having a tenant? It’s a close friend of mine but the idea of it makes me a bit uneasy.

I’ve been lurking here since spring and I’m finally ready to start using cloth on my 10 week old son. I got my stash from facebook marketplace, they’re all pocket diapers with various inserts, and I have some new cotton prefolds/flour sack towels to use too. He is EBF but I will use a bidet sprayer for personal preference. I have a good idea of what I want my wash routine to look like.

My main questions are about detergent! I have original Tide powder, and liquid Tide free & clear. I am sensitive to fragrance so I use fragrance-free detergent most of the time, but so far my son doesn’t have any reactions to fragrance. Our water is moderately hard. Which detergent should I use, and how much? I lost the scoop for Tide powder, so measurements in tablespoons or even grams would be so helpful! Do I need to add borax or washing soda because of water hardness? TIA!

Hey all, we have a less than 6 months old LG front load dryer. I am still just prepping for baby due in Jan but we are going to try out cloth diapering with Esembly diapers - they have 3 layers of cotton in the inner. I did the pre first use wash and dry per instructions to prep the new diapers for use, which instructions say to wash on heavy duty hot then to use a regular dry cycle on medium high heat set to normal dry level.

Full cycle ran and the diapers are still very wet, especially in the middle strip where there are 3 layers. It literally took 2 more cycles to get them dry, and even then a few were still damp at edges. I dried them with 2 wool balls and the agigitators that Esembly sells. I have had occasional issues with other thick items not fully drying or needing another 20 - 30 mins, but this was extra.

This kind of kills my reasons for being interested in using cloth vs disposable (which is mainly for sustainability). Is this the norm for multilayered cloth inner diapers or am I doing something wrong??

The underside of my sons tip of his penis has been getting swollen. I make sure to point his penis downward, but since it's swollen I've tried pointing it to the side to avoid too much pressure on the swollen part. Could it be too much pressure? I change his diaper about every 4 hours as he is a good sleeper (about 9 weeks old) and about every 5-7 hours during overnight changes.

Maybe they wouldn't of gone under if they double gusseted their wraps. Why wouldn't you tbh.

Has anyone been able to find some fun double sided flannel? I want to make my own cloth wipes and I’m struggling but I know they exist b/c I see places (like markets minsters) have single ply double sided print flannel :/

My other thing is a PSA; if you get marleys monsters cloth wipes be careful with having them wet cause they bleed 🫠🫠🫠🫠 RIP to literally every color

My kiddo is 10 weeks old and we just started using cloth diapers a couple weeks ago. We started with a diaper service that provided cotton prefolds, but we found those pretty awkward to use; as an added bonus, kiddo got diaper rash almost immediately. We've also tried some pocket-style diapers that someone gave us (Mama Koala) and stuffing them is not terrible but not my favorite either. We don't have enough of those to use full time so I'm looking for recommendations of others to try. I'm also a n00bie so advice/suggestions welcome.

I'm looking for something that is low/no-prep, probably all-in-one or all-in-two. Since she seems prone to diaper rash from wetness I would prefer something that is moisture-wicking (so, at minimum, not plain cotton).

Also, in case it matters for the choice of diaper - it is really not feasible for us to rinse/spray/scrape diapers right after we take them off the baby. They're gonna go in a bin and get taken out when it's time for washing. We're okay with using liners, but if there are options that make that unnecessary, even better.

Thanks in advance for your help!

I have two Disana covers that I am using as overnight covers. Underneath I use overnight fitted diapers (Sloomb and bayrli). I followed the instructions to lanolize from GMD but I am getting leaks. There is a round wet spot under my baby where pee has seeped through the butt/back of the diaper. I figured I needed more lanolin, so I lanolized again, this time with more like 1 tbsp of lanolin per cover. This seemed to work better for a few nights but then leaks started again. So I lanolized again, to the point where the covers were very tacky. I figured I would be good, but alas, more leaks after a couple nights.

It seems like the covers are soaking up the lanolin?! They will be very sticky after lanolizing, but then a couple days later it seems like it’s been completely absorbed? Do I just need to keep adding more lanolin to get them more water resistant?

For reference, the fitted diapers underneath seem wet but not totally saturated. If I use a PUL cover over them I generally don’t get leaks overnight, I just find the wool to be more comfortable so I prefer using those. Could the wool cover be too small? I have the 74/80 size based on sizing recommendations from GMD, but my baby does wear a big diaper because she sleeps 12 hours. She’s only about 14-15lbs though. I’m not sure what to try at this point to get them to work.