Cloth nappies 

From the moment we announce to the world that we are pregnant, we are bombarded with freebie disposable nappies and money off vouchers for these.  We are almost conditioned to use disposable nappies now, without even considering the alternative, which is to use cloth nappies. 

There are many advantages to using washable nappies: 

• You can save £500 per child, even more if you keep your nappies for subsequent children or if you sell them after your baby has potty trained.  There is a really good market for second hand nappies.

  

• You will not be sending any disposables to landfill which take hundreds of years to rot down

  

• A new report by the environment agency found that you can reduce your carbon footprint by 40% by using cloth nappies rather than disposables.

  

• Cloth nappies do not contain any chemicals or gels and are a natural product against your babies skin

  

• Paediatricians will recommend cloth nappies if you have a baby with clicky hips because they give correct hip alignment

  

• Potty training is usually achieved an average of 6 months earlier in babies with cloth nappies

  

• They are easy to use, come in lots of lovely colours and there are no safety pins involved!

  

• Many modern cloth nappies go on exactly like a disposable, do not need an outer wrap and are very simple to use.

  

It is always helpful to look at some nappies before buying.  You could also contact your local council to see if they have a nappy incentive scheme.  Find out if you have a local nappy advisor that can take you through the different types of nappies available. 

  

What to do with a dirty/wet nappy 

 Remove the nappy. If using flushable liners you can simply flush any solids away. If using washable fleece liners – remove the worst of the poo before you put it in the bucket. This can be done by holding it in the toilet and flushing – or, some people keep a long handled brush for this purpose. (It is useful to keep your bucket near the toilet for this reason) 

Do the same with the nappy to ensure that as little poo as possible goes into the nappy bucket. If using a separate, PUL wrap you do not need to wash this at every change unless it has poo on it. If it is just damp, leave it somewhere to air for a couple of hours and it will be ready to use again. 

Choosing whether to dry pail or soak nappies 

 Dry pailing simply means storing the nappies in a bucket without soaking. If doing this it is helpful to add a couple of drops of tea tree oil in the bottom of the bucket. You might want to use a nappy mesh which makes it easier to load the nappies into the machine but it is not vital. 

 Dry pailing is a lot less messy than soaking – it will also make it a lot less smelly affair! When you come to wash your nappies just use a pair of rubber gloves and transfer them into the machine. The smell will really not be that bad if you have been storing them dry. Today’s washing machines are so efficient that they are more than able to cope with dirty nappies – without having to soak them. 

 Rinse the bucket with hot water and add a couple of drops of tea tree oil to freshen it up. 

Washing nappies 

 Nappies are usually washed at 60 degrees however, if your baby is over 3 months old and is not suffering from any kind of illness then there is no reason why you cannot wash at 40 degrees. It is best to wait until you have a full load of nappies but if you do not want to do this you can just make up to a full load with other washing. 

 When washing nappies, use a non bio washing powder and just use around a half of the normal amount of washing powder. This will avoid powder residue building up in your nappies which will eventually affect their absorbency. 

 Do not add fabric conditioner. This coats the fabric with a wax like substance and will definitely affect the absorbency of your nappies. You can try adding a couple of tablespoons of distilled white vinegar to your fabric conditioner drawer, this will leave your nappies smelling fresher.  

 

  

 

 

  

 VIP Top Tips brought to you by:

Tracy Dixon is a mum to two children, aged 4 years and 20 months.  She has used cloth nappies on both of her children and has tried and tested pretty much every nappy on the market!  She provides cloth nappy advice by either email or telephone and face to face if you live in Plymouth or surrounding areas.  You can visit Tracy at www.greenmums.co.uk, where she is happy to answer any questions that you may have about using cloth nappies.