Reusable cloth nappies

By the time your child is toilet-trained, you may have worked your way through about 6,000 nappies. While disposables are considered a convenience of modern parenting, cloth nappies have made a comeback, with new designs and technology tempting parents to re-consider their options when changing their child's nappies. Ellie Gwilliam explains.

At some point in your parenting career, you may have considered cloth nappies, if only for a fleeting moment! Perhaps the pending birth of your firstborn prompted someone's well-meaning suggestion that you go against the "disposable flow" and wash cloth instead. More than likely this someone was a mum from an older generation, who washed her way through piles of nappies before the convenience of quality disposables was a viable option. Someone like my own mother, for example, who washed nappies for four children without an automatic washing machine, which meant individually putting each nappy, quite literally, through the wringer.

But cloth nappies are not just a form of torture for environmental martyrs. Modern cloth nappies, or MCNs, are a vast improvement on their predecessors. Fabric innovation and design ingenuity mean MCNs are more comfortable, more absorbent, more breathable, easier to wash, and easier to outfit. Days of soaking and a degree in origami are no longer requirements for those choosing cloth. Dangerous nappy pins are also history, with velcro and dome fastenings removing the stress from your change-table routine.

Why choose reusable?

Environmental awareness is a major influence on the recent upsurge in cloth nappy usage. Our increasingly consumer-driven society encourages us to generate more and more household waste, but lingo like "reducing your carbon footprint" has made green the new black. Each time you use a cloth nappy, you will be making an environmental saving - reducing the waste, consumption, and energy usage. How you wash your cloth nappies (bearing in mind that paying close attention to each product's laundry instructions is recommended) determines the extent of their environmental impact, factors such as water temperature, load size, type of laundry powder, and drying methods all affecting the ultimate size of your carbon footprint.

Cost is the other main motivator. With parents estimating each child will need their nappy changed between 4,000 and 6,000 times between birth and toilet training, it doesn't take a genius to work out that nappies are a considerable expense. Some still argue that purchasing, washing, and drying cloth nappies can work out to be just as expensive as disposables, but calculate that outfitting one child in modern reusable nappies, including all the laundering expenses, will cost a total of $1,068 (priced using premium cloth nappies), compared to a staggering $6,095 for disposables. And the savings continue when you use your cloth nappies for your second child, instead of purchasing more disposables.

Other benefits of reusable nappies include the materials used in manufacturing. Cloth nappies are free from chemical absorbers and fragrances, and can be made from organic, unbleached fibres such as cotton, hemp, or bamboo. They are also good-looking! Modern designs include funky patterns and colours, creating nappies you don't have to cover up.

But what about the mess, you ask? Isn't washing nappies and coming in close contact with their contents a huge ordeal? As with most things unknown, the anticipation is worse than the reality. Solids can usually be quickly and easily tipped into the toilet and flushed away, and wet nappies are generally quite inoffensive. You soon establish a laundry routine, and the whole process becomes almost incidental. Besides, here's a little-known fact: Even with disposable nappies, solid waste is best flushed down the toilet, rather than thrown away with household rubbish.

Choosing your nappies

Cost is a major consideration when choosing a reusable nappy system. Although you will save money by using cloth, the old adage of "You get what you pay for!" is true in your purchasing of all nappies. Generally, the more expensive the system, the longer it will last. The economy of reusable nappies really comes into play when your system serves more than one child. It is important to note that while there is a range of prices between reusable nappy systems, there is also a price variance when it comes to designs within each system. There are the top-dollar brands, and then there are plenty of cheaper, similar products or "knockoffs". Cheaper versions may not be as well designed, properly tested, and may not wash well, possibly leaking and falling apart before they have given you value for money.

Try a few styles and do some research before you invest in an entire system. Ask people about their experiences with different nappies, as you will benefit from making an informed and considered purchase. Some systems require you upsize as your child grows, whereas others (usually the more expensive products) will serve your child from birth to potty training. 

Remember, you don't have to use one style exclusively. Feel free to mix-and-match. Some people use a variety of reusable nappies, finding different designs better suit different activities - outings or overnights, for example. And, of course, you don't have to be an absolute cloth nappy purist and forego disposables completely. Many parents use disposables for the first few weeks or months of their baby's life, especially during the meconium stage when washing cloth would be extra-challenging. Be realistic during those early days, when you have enough adjustments to make without giving yourself extra laundry. That said, reusable nappies are absolutely fine for newborn babies. Disposables are also the convenient option when it comes to travelling or holidays. Unless you feel like taking your washing machine along on your camping trip, disposables mean you can take a nappy-washing mini-break.

Other issues to consider are your family's lifestyle (if other people are looking after your child, consider which system would be easiest for them to use), and also the climate where you live. Ideally, drying nappies in the tumble dryer should be avoided, thus maintaining environmental and financial savings. If you get a lot of rain, look for the faster-drying products.

Personally, I was delighted to discover that the cloth nappies I chose for my daughter are easy to use, simple to wash, fast to dry, and tidy to fold and store. Call me old-fashioned, but there is great satisfaction in bringing in a load of sun-dried nappies and folding them neatly for the next day. Admittedly, I do feel a tinge of smugness as I consider my eco-footprint. But more importantly, the cloth nappies I am using are doing their job quite well, and keeping my daughter comfortable.

The four main players

So what are your options if you choose to reuse? Whereby you were previously limited to folding up those familiar cotton squares now more frequently used as burp cloths or window cleaners, today there are four main players in modern cloth nappy styling. Herein lies a world of potential confusion for first-time buyers. The choice can seem unnecessarily bewildering, but understanding the basic designs can help you chose which system best suits your lifestyle and budget.

• Prefold nappies
The prefold system is simple to use and often the most economic of reusable nappies. It uses an inner pad for absorption and an outer wrap for waterproofing. Liners are optional. The benefit of using liners is that solid waste can be easily removed from the nappy and dropped directly into the toilet. No scraping required! Flushable liners mean the whole mess can be quickly disposed of, but, of course, this makes them a disposable item with an increase in environmental impact. Your other option is to use washable, reusable liners, or no liners at all. The prefold system is durable, and easy to use. The inner pad is easily washed and the outer wrap can often be reused before washing. On the downside, this system can be bulky and the inners can take longer to dry.

• Fitted nappies
Fitted nappies, as their name suggests, fit baby more snugly, with the inner being shaped for extra comfort. Some brands use a separate breathable, yet leakproof, outer wrap. Again, liners are optional. Fitted nappies also provide good value, but can be another slower drying system.

• Pocket nappies
The pocket system combines the benefits of extra absorption with fast-drying materials. Basically,
a pocket nappy is made up of a waterproof outer layer sewn to the liner. Often the lining fabric (the fabric closest to baby’s skin) is made from microfleece or microfibre — fabrics designed to wick moisture away from the skin, keeping baby more comfortable. Pocket nappies have an opening at the top, where an inner pad, providing the absorbency, is inserted. This system makes nappy changes simple, but inserting the inners into the pockets adds a whole new menial task to your laundry folding routine! This system is also one of the more expensive.

• All-in-one nappies
The other more expensive system is the all-in-one nappy. Again, this is a very simple and easy-to-use nappy, with the waterproof outer, the absorbent inner, and the liner all bundled together as one unit. They can take longer to dry, though, as the different elements of the nappy can’t be separated.

Ellie Gwilliam is OHbaby! Magazine's former editor. She is a mum of three daughters who have all graduated from wearing nappies now.