did u use cloth dipes from the start?

Christina - posted on 01/16/2010

I just read through the above posts and DO NOT USE DREFT on diapers. It will give them a waxy build-up and they will repel moisture instead of absorbing it. I used a free and clear detergent, with an extra rinse, and never had any problems.

Christina - posted on 01/16/2010

I used cloth on my youngest from the day we left the hospital. I never had any problem with the merconium sticking to the diaper at all. I used pf's to start, and would have been using cloth on him in the hospital, but didn't have quite enough prefolds to do that. Next baby, I'm buying more prefolds, and making some pockets and fitteds, and am going to using cloth right from the start, in the hospital.

Amanda - posted on 01/16/2010

We tried from day 2, but she was so tiny the AIO's were way big. It was about 3 weeks before she was in them. My diaper lady (chisaibums) recommended putting a liner in them because 1) they were cheaper and 2) they were easier to wash! We ended up having her in disposables for the first few 3 weeks. :(

Jessica - posted on 01/12/2010

I didn't start with cloth until my son was several weeks old, mostly because they were huge on him, but he's had poops since that closely resembled his early poops, and they come out. His diapers aren't pristine, but I think they've stayed whiter because I put them in vinegar and water to soak after rinsing them out in the toilet (and I scrub it all off), and then wash them with natural bleach (Biokleen Oxygen Bleach). Line drying helps bleach them naturally, too. But if they stain a little, who cares? The cover conceals the diaper anyway, and diapers are made to poop in! LOL! Good luck! Cloth diapers are a great choice for so many reasons!

Hsin-Hsin - posted on 01/11/2010

I used CD from day 1 with my son and didn't stop until he potty trained. the best detergent for CD for me is Charlie's soap, it leaves diapers soft and fresh without having to use a softener. and it removes all traces of soap scum/residue, doesn't contain any petro/chemicals, and it is super cheap, you only need 1 tablespoon per load!! I still use it for my laundry. note - it may take a load or 2 to take off the residue from other detergents when you first start using charlie's soap. and make sure the entire household use only this detergent if you are sharing washers.

Sheree - posted on 01/11/2010

As a nurse and cloth diaper user, I can assure you that it is perfectly safe to use cloth diapers from day one. Prewash them in Dreft or a product reccomended for washing baby and infant articles first. Never put anything on your child or infant that is not prewashed as the chemicals in new clothing and diapers is harsh for fragile skin. Additionally the first stools are no more hard to wash out of diapers than any. The clue is to rinse dirty diapers out right away and soak overnight in a diaper pail with laundry presoak. nothing will stain them then.

Annie - posted on 01/11/2010

I waited until the 'black' poo was gone until I put him into the cloth nappies. We still use disposable for the nights though...

Frances - posted on 01/10/2010

The hospital where I had my daughter used old square cloths and they had no problem getting any stains out. If we wanted to use disposables we ahd to bring our own.

Naomi - posted on 01/10/2010

we started as soon as we got home from the hossy... he was 8 days old. i've heard the meconium can stain. many people recommend using liners

Terri - posted on 01/10/2010

We used cloth diapers after a few weeks old with my daughter and from the start with my son. If I remember right- when my son had his first few bowel movements we used liners which I just flushed. It did make it easier to clean. After a while I stopped using the liners.

Genevieve - posted on 01/09/2010

We started with the cloth straight away. Used the old fashioned squares with a liner. If you get the flushable liner you can put the poo straight in the toilet. Once they start solids the poos are firmer and you dont need liners, but they make things easier. Never had a problem getting the poo out of the nappy even if it went over the liner. We never soak, just put on a load every night on the long cycle on the washing machine. Remember never use fabric softners as they reduce the effectiveness of the nappy.

Sarah - posted on 01/09/2010

We used cloth and disposables right from the start, but I honestly can't remember which she pooped in. I have never heard of not using cloth in the beginning because of the stools being hard to wash out. The only reason I used both in the beginning was because she was so tiny and I didn't have that many tiny cloth diapers.

Cynthia - posted on 01/08/2010

I used CDs from the start and only noticed a little trouble with the fit for the first couple of weeks. We had a diaper service that someone gave us as a shower gift and we kept it up for the first few months. By then we had a handle on everything and a baby that slept through the night. I wouldn't change a thing the next time. Including the diaper service for the first few weeks! I also recommend having at least 6 diaper covers. I only had 3 and had to hand wash at least two a day at the beginning.

Megan - posted on 01/08/2010

i cd my first from day 1 but at that time i was using cd service that had been givn to me as a shower gift. #2 and 3 i started after they were a month old. We use cd mainly because of the cost of sposies and it did not make sense to me to buy nwb or prmie size dipes. My youngest made it through 4 weeks with just one pack of sposies from my shower and what i came home with from the hospital.

Jen - posted on 01/08/2010

We also started the cloth diapers after our son was 3 months, more because of the fit issues. We tried a couple around 1 mo. and the poop isn't hard to wash out. We use the Gerber prefolds and Thirsties covers. We did prewash all of our diapers and also used Oxy to pretreat them. As long as you're fairly diligent about washing diapers, staining isn't a problem!

Sah - posted on 01/08/2010

I started using fitted cloth nappies about a month after my lil girl was born, because my nappies were too big to begin with. The hospital also asked that we use disposables at the hospital. I plan to do the same with my next one too, because in the first weeks looking after your baby and yourself is the first and only priority. No one wants to be washing nappies when you should/could be sleeping.

Tammy - posted on 01/07/2010

I started using cloth about a month after our son was born, mainly because we were given so many newborn nappies, and also because of the meconium. It will pretty much wreck your nappies if bub poops in them in the first few days, because it is so sticky and thick. Although Kristal has the good idea of making extra liners to catch the poop until it turns normal if you want to CD from the very start.

Tessa - posted on 01/07/2010

I started with cloth at 10 months so I don't have personal experience. But my mom used them from day one and I have the diapers that she used for myself and my siblings. They're still white. If they stain you can hang them out in the sun or lay them on the grass to dry and the sun will take the stain right out.
Several of my friends do cloth and some did them right from birth (like took them to the hospital and everything) and some didn't. The reason why some didn't was because they didn't want the extra laundry during the first few days with a newborn.
I personally will probably do cloth right from birth the next time around (probably won't take them to the hospital though). I have a helpful husband who knows how to throw diapers in the washer :)

Kristal - posted on 01/07/2010

We started late with my daughter, but plan to CD our new addition from the beginning. The suggestion I was given is to get some fleece, cut it into insert-sized strips, and put one in each diaper to catch those first poops. You can just throw those away with the poop on them and still use your cloth diapers! I was told that you probably need a few dozen to get through the first 2-3 days, but after that the poops should go to normal infant poop and those are very easy to wash.

Jennifer - posted on 01/07/2010

We didn't use ours until our daughter was about 3-4 weeks old, but this was more a fit issues than a laundering one. We use the BG 3.0s, and though she was born at 7.11, and BGs start their fit at 7 lbs, they just looked so huge on her. Looking back on it, and I think they would have been fine, but I was nervous as she was my first, and I had no experience at the time with CDing.



My best friend used CDs (FuzziBunz) with her children from day 1 and had no problem with staining. I should note, however, that she doesn't use CD safe detergent, only vinegar and baking soda, and he does line dry, so that may have something to do with it. (I DO use detergent, and mostly dry in my dryer)