Tired of disposable overnight diapers for my (daytime) potty trained 2.5 y old. Thinking of switching to cloth diapers and need advice

[predestinedforglory]

Heyo! I’m happy to report that we’ve successfully potty trained during COVID but are still using pull ups at night and naps and the occasional car ride. I’m getting down to my last few diapers and don’t want to buy more! I’m tired of throwing them into the trash and causing so much waste. I’m exploring cloth diapers, but I know nothing about them.

My daughter does wake up wet, but not crazy wet. She has pretty much stopped pooping in her diapers. I’m assuming she’ll stay in this night/nap diaper phase for a while (when do kids stop with night diapers??) so I’m thinking cloth would be a good next phase for her - esp since I don’t have to deal with the poop factor any more.

Please share any thoughts or experiences. Any Recommends of where to start? Things I should look for? Brands? Type? Is it worth the money? Should I buy second hand (I like to buy most things second hand - but diapers?)? Anything else I should consider?

Keep on moderately granola-ing mamas!

Ps I’m always so interested in where people are writing from - wanna include in your response??

We’re in the San Francisco Bay Area

 

[sushii]

@predestinedforglory Try r/clothdiaps.

I cloth diaper during the day but didn’t attempt it at night because I have two super duper night wetters. I do use Grovia ONEs on my 2.5yo at nap time and they work well. Grovia also has Big ONEs that might fit your purpose and last longer for an older child. The clothdiaps sub will be much more helpful than I am.

 

[predestinedforglory]

@sushii Oooh thanks for the tip! I’ll join.

 

[smtdds]

@predestinedforglory Honestly, you might have luck just going cold-turkey. Since she's potty trained she can likely hold her pee and doesn't because she doesn't feel it in the nighttime diaper; if she feels herself get wet she may change course. It'll mean some midnight wakeups and sheet changes but it might be a quick way to get over the hump!

 

[livelystone13]

@smtdds This!

I'll add that if she isn't ready to hold it all night then doing a dream pee with her before you head to bed can help her consolidate around a particular time.

We had about a month of night wetting while troubleshooting the nighttime situation. We sent toddler to bed in trainers and during dream pee, I'd slip in cloth diaper insert for extra absorbancy in case of a miss. Nowadays we just do the dream pee and don't need the insert.

 

[kuriosiesouschristos]

@livelystone13 The dream pee made all the difference for our 3 year old too. She’s asleep around 8 and then one of us lifts her out of bed, still asleep, and sits her on the potty in her bedroom around 10. She barely wakes up enough to pee and is passed out again the second we put her back in bed.

 

[sonhp]

@kuriosiesouschristos This is exactly what we do too.

 

[farshi]

@predestinedforglory Sub r/clothdiaps is suuuuper helpful.

 

[dawnpawn]

@predestinedforglory Yes second hand! You’re not supposed to heavily bleach diapers much, but between babies (even in the same family) it’s a good idea and doesn’t hurt the diaper every once in a while.

This will be so easy for you because it will presumably only be pee, so you’re not going to have to deal with solids.

I used Facebook B/S/T groups for my diapers and loved the deals I got. Since they are for nights you can buy the “ugly” diapers that people are trying to de-stash for cheap because no one wants them!

In terms of recommendations, we use Grovia ONES for 12 hours at night for our 1.5 year old and have rarely ever had a leak. They have two inserts and an absorbent cover, so you can adjust for what you need. I paid about $16 postage paid each for 3 and that’s just right for us laundry wise.

 

[c88c91]

@predestinedforglory We have some cloth pull-up type diapers. I pull them out every now and then, use them for a few nights, and then get super irritated and pack them away again. They leak, they are hard to keep clean (get stinky soooo fast and it’s not like you have a full diaper laundry load every other day), are super bulky, and kiddo can’t really use it himself (too hard to push down). There’s a company called Peejamas that I considered, but I haven’t tried that kind. So they exist, but my experience has been lukewarm.

 

[seekingthetruth247]

@predestinedforglory Bumgenious pockets with one regular plus one bamboo insert works great for overnight. Make sure you get a good fit around the legs! You don't even have to buy very many if just needing one a night and throwing in with the wash every couple of days!

 

[cmbh1]

@predestinedforglory Babyfriend washable waterproof training pants.

They look like underwear, but they have an absorbent panel (I guess). It works really well for my 2 year old who is in the same place your daughter is. Highly recommend. I don't put them in the dryer, but I don't actually know if you can or can't.