I've been trying to use cloth diapers most of the time at home. Don't worry, that sentence is not going to be followed by statements like "And I have decided to sew all of our clothes from the hemp fibers I grew myself." It just seemed like it was worth a try, since I am working-at-home and can manage the extra laundering. And boy howdy is there a lot of laundry. It's clear as a bell why working parents, and day care providers, generally do not use cloth. Something else that also becomes much more evident when you use cloth diapers, and go through the process of washing and drying them: even cloth diapers use up a fair amount of energy, and that's not including my energy output. A disposable diaper's energy costs are all completely hidden, from the making of that diaper to the transport to the tossing-it-in-the-landfill, but with cloth-- even though I'm lessening the environmental impact considerably, I actually see the water and energy being used to clean these things. It's sobering.
That said: I do like the cloth. I'm testing out-- for any of you remotely interested in this stuff (hi, Lauren!) both the all-in-ones and the traditional pre-folds. The pre-folds will line dry in the sun a lot faster, but they are so big that I can hardly get Audrey's pants on over the diaper. Hence the buffalo butt.
1 comment:
I've wondered about the fleece pre-folds, thinking they might be thinner. (Gregory is outfitted in cotton pre-folds; he's just now outgrowing the first size.) We went to a cloth diaper workshop before he was born, where we learned that there are also hemp and bamboo (!) diapers, apparently very absorbent and soft but significantly more expensive. We're taking the cheap route for now, but the buffalo butt warning is one I'll be keeping in mind, especially as he turns out to be the big-boy in his mommy's groups.
Chris "Diaper Launderer" W.
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