- Why should I use cloth diapers instead of “disposable” diapers?
Because cloth diapers can be used over and over again and also are made of soft cotton, not paper and harsh chemicals. When you are finished using diapers on your baby, the fabric makes excellent rags and, by not throwing away a diaper after every change, you will keep around 8,000 human-waste-filled diapers out of our landfills. Additionally, you can save $1,500 or more by using cloth diapers (and that takes into account the cost of washing, drying, detergent, and the wear and tear on the machines). Finally, a baby diapered with cloth diapers usually is potty trained far more easily and early than one diapered in single-use diapers. The child feels the wetness and associates it with the full bladder feeling s/he gets prior to feeling wet when s/he urinates. So they do learn and train faster. With cloth diapers, your baby, the environment and your pocketbook will all thank you! For more, see Why Use Cloth?
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- What makes a good cloth diaper?
A good cloth diaper should be absorbent enough so that you change your baby about every 2 hours or when wet. If the diaper is very thick, it will be difficult to get clean and also will take a great deal of energy to dry. A benefit of Blue Penguin’s All-in-One diaper is its “quick dry” flap construction. This not only allows for more thorough cleaning during washing, but also for quicker drying. A laundry load of diapers shouldn’t take any longer to dry than a load of towels.
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- Why do you put the word “disposable” in quotes?
Because single-use diapers are not really disposable (meaning “to get rid of”) in the grand scheme of things. They are simply “non-resusable,” which is very different. So while a mom or dad may have gotten rid of the diaper from his/her home, the earth has not gotten rid of that diaper at all. Every single-use diaper ever thrown away is still sitting in a land fill. The earth has not disposed of them!
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- How do you use cloth diapers?
There are a number of kinds of cloth diapers. The easiest to use is an All-in-One (or AIO). The “deluxe” of cloth diapers, the AIO works just like a single-use diaper, with snaps or Velcro holding the diaper in place instead of tape. The big difference is that, when you change your baby’s diaper, you do not put it in the trash bag, you put it in your diaper pail bag. On wash day you simply empty this bag full of diapers into the washing machine, toss the bag in with them and wash as you would any of your other loads of laundry. It is as easy as that. It’s just another load of laundry.
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- What if AIO’s are too expensive for me? Are there alternatives?
Absolutely! The least expensive way to diaper with Blue Penguin products is to buy our Prefolded Snap Diapers and several Diaper Covers. The prefolds get replaced every time you change your baby’s diapers. The covers can often last for several changes, as long as they have not become too wet or soiled. This is unlike the AIO. With the AIO you are effectively replacing both the diaper and the cover with every change. The diaper and cover combination is a little more trouble to change, but a less expensive alternative. Many people use a combination of AIO and diaper/cover.
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- 6Why is it called a “Prefold”?
Because a typical “old fashioned” diaper is made with several layers of cotton folded over on top of each other in a special way. We’ve done the work for you. We have “pre” folded our diapers so that all you need to do is just put them right onto your baby. We’ve taken away the need for diaper pins as well, so it’s a snap… literally! By the way, we enclose instructions with our prefolds to help you learn how to get them on your baby with the least amount of fuss.
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- What is a “Fitted Diaper”?
Blue Penguin’s Fitted Diaper is a soft flannel diaper that is already sewn into a pant, with snaps on the sides, making it very easy to use. It can just be pulled right onto the baby with the cover pulled on over it. When it is time to change diapers, it snaps off very easily. Sometimes Fitted Diapers are a great way to lead up to Potty Training.
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- How many diapers should I buy?
That is really a question for you to answer yourself. It depends on how much and how often you want to do (diaper) laundry. The more often you do laundry, the fewer diapers you will need to buy. A baby’s diapers should be changed around 8 to 12 times a day, so there’s an average of 10 diapers daily. If you want to do laundry every other day, 16 diapers would be the minimum you would want on hand. If you want to do laundry every third day, around 30 would be the minimum. If you want to do laundry once a week, probably 50 to 60 diapers will work for you. With a supply of 24 diapers, around 8 covers* and some diaper doublers (for night, naps or heavy wetters) you should be able to go three or four days. [*most of the time covers can be air dried between uses and then washed every few days, unless they are soiled or particularly smelly!]
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- What about washing?
Diapers should be washed before they are used the first time. Cotton has natural oils in it that will repel water causing the urine to roll off and leak until it has been washed at least once. Click here for full instructions. Clearly, if you are just starting with a particular size or style of Blue Penguin cloth diapers, only wash one until you know you are happy with it. We will give credit or refunds (within 30 days and less postage paid when order was originally sent) if you find the our diapers do not work for you. We cannot accept a return on any diaper that has been washed or used, however.
Also, when you get the new diapers, they will be a little large, because during the first few washings they will shrink a bit. This is considered when they are made. They shrink most after the first wash, but will continue to shrink for a few more washings. If you are unsure of a size, wash and dry the diaper a few times before washing all of them.
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- Are there any special things to watch out for when washing?
YES! Two big no no’s when washing Blue Penguin diapers (or any diaper, really): avoid using chlorine bleach and, with diaper covers and AIO’s, avoid fabric softeners of all kinds. Cloth diapers should last about 200 + washes. Just like any item of clothing that gets washed and dried repeatedly, a diaper will eventually grow thin and develop holes… but not until you’ve gotten plenty of good use from it! And tests on Blue Penguin’s diaper covers and AIO’s show that they should last for at least 120 washings, if not many more.
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- If I can’t use bleach, how should I get rid of stains?
A certain amount of staining is inevitable, since the pigments of certain foods (grapes, for example) will cause stains that are impossible to remove completely. To help prevent staining, you can soak any of the diapers that have been soiled in COLD water. Hot water will set stains. You can also use products like Bi-O-Clean Bac-out in your diaper pail to prevent staining and odors. Diaper liners can help prevent staining and makes for easier clean ups.
We recommend using a mild detergent, such as Cheer or Cheer Powder to wash and 20 Mule Team Borax as a whitener. Chlorine bleach will greatly shorten the life of your diapers, will completely ruin the waterproofing of diaper covers and AIO’s and can possibly irritate your baby’s skin. The important thing, really, is to be sure the diapers are clean, not to rid them of all stains at any cost! If your diapers smell clean, then they are!
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- Is it better to do laundry more or less often?
Again, this is a matter of personal choice. Your nose (!) will probably appreciate it if you do laundry no more than every third day. In that way the diapers don’t have the time to get particularly smelly and the bacteria that naturally grow in wet/soiled diapers doesn’t have time to get very far. Also, the longer a diaper that has been soiled sits (of course you will have done a preliminary cleaning of the soiled area in the toilet), the harder it is to rid the diaper of stains.
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